'Superman Vs. The Elite' Animated Film

Pauley Perrette will voice Lois Lane in the upcoming animated DVD-movie Superman vs. The Elite. Based on the graphic novel "What's So Funny About Truth, Justice and the American Way?". The story appeared in Action Comics #775 as published by DC Comics in March 2001. It was written by Joe Kelly, pencilled by Doug Mahnke and Lee Bermejo, and inked by Tom Nguyen, Dexter Vines, Jim Royal, Jose Marzan, Wade Von Grawbadger and Wayne Faucher.

The tale focuses on The Elite, a team of super-powered antiheroes fronted by Manchester Black, who gained worldwide popularity for viciously killing their foes. Despite the acclaim and approval that the Elite are enjoying, Superman knows that they are wrong, and tension mounts between the Man of Steel and The Elite mounts until a televised showdown takes place on Jupiter.

Said Perrette about her Lois Lane portrayal in comparison to her NCIS role, "I think there are similarities between Abby and Lois, they're both very smart and confident and really good at their jobs. They're both really focused. Abby [her NCIS characer] just doesn't have a Superman."

thecolorsblend wrote:Cripes... is there something so wrong about sticking with the Ed McGuiness style? I understand not wanting to go with Doug Mahnke's style (I believe he drew that "What's So Funny About Truth, Justice & The American Way?" thing to begin with) but that... I mean, dude, he's Superman, not David Putty.

thecolorsblend wrote:I hope so. A lot of the adaptations they've done up to now (except maybe BY1) have suffered a little in terms of continuity. Doomsday and A Death In The Family/Red Hood both relied on continuity that fans had been familiar with for years. Separating those stories from the continuity required major changes to the storylines and the end results were often less than they should've been because the writers had to do a lot of patch jobs and the end product was weak sauce in many cases.

Batman: Under the Red Hood is a 2010 direct-to-video animated superhero film based on the Batman storylines "A Death in the Family" and "Under the Hood". The film is the eighth in the DC Universe Animated Original Movies line released by Warner Premiere and Warner Bros. Animation. It was released on July 27, 2010. The film stars Bruce Greenwood as Bruce Wayne/Batman, Jensen Ackles as the Red Hood/Jason Todd, and John DiMaggio as the Joker. The screenplay was written by Judd Winick, who also wrote the "Under the Hood" run in the monthly Batman comic. Bruce Greenwood reprises the voice of Batman in Young Justice.

These are problems that "original" storylines (GL- First Flight and Crisis On Two Earths, for example) didn't have to face as they could work within their own their own parameters, more or less.

Anyway...

Apologist Puncher wrote:I just hope the "expanding" they DO end up doing doesn't ruin the effectiveness of the original.

thecolorsblend wrote:In the case of Doomsday, I think it kinda does. People can say whatever they want about Watchmen but for my money the Doomsday/Funeral For A Friend/Reign of the Supermen arc exemplifies the type of storyline you can only really do in comics.

Bear in mind though, I haven't seen the JLA animated movie yet.

Apologist Puncher wrote:The sad part is, they have now "blown their load" and can't go back and make a REAL "Death & Return" animated film.

Set phaser's for.......disappointed.

thecolorsblend wrote:Hm. The feedback I've heard seems to be one extreme or the other.

Apologist Puncher on Wed 22 Feb 2012 - 3:05

I watched this last night, and I have to say it is probably one of the weaker animated films the Bros. Warner has put out. Not 'Braniac Attacks' weak, but not 'Under The Red Hood' or 'Crisis On Two Earths' good either.

The animation wasn't very consistent at all. Pay attention to Superman, and see what I mean. Sometimes it looks like Superman from 'Young Justice', other times he looked like he was gaining/losing weight from scene to scene. Very distracting. Cyborg didn't look very good either. The story was ok, but things just seemed to move along VERY fast. How Superman is incapacitated is exactly the same as what we saw in 'Public Enemies', which was kind of lame. Batman saving the day, again, was also very lame. I'm sure that's how it went down in the book it is based off of, but still. Enough is enough.

Rent it, don't buy it.

Joe Kelly Previews DC/Warner Home Video's 'Superman vs. The Elite'
The direct-to-DVD animated film is based on the "What's So Funny About Truth, Justice and the American Way" story from "Action Comics No. 775.


"Superman vs. The Elite" and Joe Kelly

Joe Kelly is a busy man.

As part of Man of Action Studios, he's part of a creative team that's responsible for generating more than $2 billion in retail sales for toys and goods associated with Cartoon Network's hit animated series Ben 10. Beyond that, he's a comic-book writer whose résumé includes Action Comics, Superman, Deadpool, JLA, Green Lantern and Supergirl, among countless others.

On Friday at WonderCon in Anaheim, Kelly's Superman vs. The Elite, a Warner Home Video DC Universe animated original movie based on his "What's So Funny About Truth, Justice and the American Way" story from Action Comics No. 775 will have its world premiere.

The Hollywood Reporter caught up with Kelly to discuss the film, why the time is right for its release and how it will appeal to non-comic book fans.

THR: Why is the time right for this to come to DVD?

Joe Kelly: The story tackles themes that go way beyond a typical superhero story -- though it's as action-packed and fun as any of the animated projects that have come before. Politics, the price of power and America's place as a force in the world are all viewed through the lens of the DC Universe. Even if fans aren't paying close attention to these issues, they're all over the media. You can't escape them. So with the state of affairs being what it is, I can't think of a better time to see Superman confront these themes.

THR: How will politics play a role in the adaptation?

Kelly: I'm a big fan of taking real world issues and working them out through our "superhero" stories -- but this one goes beyond strict allegory. Like the original comic story, the film is thought provoking without being preachy and really delivers a punch. Also, the content is legitimately mature, and it took all of the projects that came before to pave the way for this story. We probably couldn't have done it five years ago, relevant or not.

THR: What challenges did you face in adapting it?

Kelly: I was very lucky in two ways: I had written the story so long ago that it was easier to be objective about the adaptation, and I had Alan Burnett. Alan helped me cut to the heart of the story and personalize it for an audience who might not have known the original comic. Once I dug in, the biggest challenge was taking the story out of the "comic universe" and making it into something bigger and more accessible to a wider audience.

THR: How did you change the story to appeal to non-comic book fans?

Kelly: The original story was about anti-heroes and comic fans and trends in the industry that were disturbing to me when it was written. For the story to work as a film, we needed to get beyond that while keeping the core of the story: that Superman serves a purpose and his moral code is relevant even in the modern world. This is where the expansion into "world politics" really helped.

THR: Will fans of the comic be pleased?

Kelly: Now that I've seen it, I couldn't be happier. The performances are incredible, the direction is fantastic; it's a home run all around. It's an amazing companion piece to the original story. I think fans of Action No. 775 will dig it and I hope that new viewers will go back and find the original comic after seeing the film.

Superman vs. The Elite will be screened Friday at 6:30 p.m. at WonderCon in Anaheim.