Maybe for the same reason you failed to credit Gardner Fox whose Crisis on Earth-Three (JLA 29) was the original from which Morrison's Earth Two was adapted?
I just saw Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths on Netflix, and I LOVED IT!!!!!!!
After having recently been disappointed with Batman: Under the Red Hood, I was in no hurry to see another DC animated feature, even despite Warner Brothers' overall good track record with these films, but since I've been playing streaming Netflix programming while doing other computer or Web activities, I figured, why not?
I'm so glad I did!
I LOVED the story.
I LOVED the dialogue and characterization.
The action and the animation was also really good, from the beautiful and explanatory opening title sequence to the manner in which they made Batman's cape so fluid in some scenes to the way Flash deals with his counterpart throwing debris at him in one scene. I also liked the score.
The concept appeared to follow Grant Morrison's 2000 graphic novel JLA: Earth 2 (read my review of it on Amazon here), and indeed it did, at least up until the middle of the first act, but then Dwayne McDuffie, the recently deceased writer who adapted that story into this film, goes in a different direction, with a substantially different take on the story. Although some core elements remain from Morrison's original story, McDuffie creates a story is different (though not necessarily worse or better). But seriously, why is Morrison not credited at all, either in the opening or closing credits? It was his concept that McDuffie used as the springboard/source material. Is DC/WB really so cheap that they expect us to believe that this film wasn't derived from his story?
Juggling all these characters can't be easily, but they did it, and cast some nicely familiar and fitting voices, such Firefly's Gina Torres as Superwoman, Wonder Woman's evil Earth 2 counterpart. (Can someone explain to me why she was not cast in as the original WW in a WW feature film? Hello?)
I must admit, I did not care for Mark Harmon as Superman, and while I was okay with modeling the Crime Syndicate after Earth mob families, having Ultraman speak in a stereotypical New York accent annoyed the hell out of me. I also didn't care for the Flash's smirky characterization, as I don't recall Barry Allen nor Wally West ever being that way.
But other than that, it was an awesome film to watch. I would've paid to see this in theaters. Hell, too bad they can't adapt this into the live action Justice League that they've been talking about (hint, hint, hint!).
Bottom line: Watch this film!
Agreed; I would call this the best of the DC animated films. (Though, ironically, my close second would be... Under the Red Hood! :-) ) This movie turned my wife into a DCAU enthusiast, too.
“You blinked.”
But seriously, why is Morrison not credited at all, either in the opening or closing credits? It was his concept that McDuffie used as the springboard/source material.
Maybe for the same reason you failed to credit Gardner Fox whose Crisis on Earth-Three (JLA 29) was the original from which Morrison's Earth Two was adapted?
Well, the reason for my failure was viewer ignorance (even though I am aware that all parallel Earths in the DC multiverse are based on that Flash story from the 60s that started it all); By contrast, WB suits are not viewers, and have a higher obligation (both legal and ethical) to not be ignorance of this.
When they use some permutation of certain characters that have been around for a while, they will credit the original creators, which they did with the creators of Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman in this film, but they can't do that for every single character or premise. The credits would probably be too unwieldly, and raise questions of how many different elements are in the film that were created by individual contributors over the decades.
But in films, the story, on the other hand, is generally treated as a major element requiring credit, and that includes when it's adapted from a pre-existing work in another medium. While I don't know if it's feasible for each creator of parallel Earths, Earth 2, the Crime Syndicate, etc. to be credited, Morrison should've been, because he wrote this particular story.
Tmurphy - Gardner Fox whose Crisis on Earth-Three (JLA 29) was the original from which Morrison's Earth Two was adapted?
I believe Earth-Two was more of a reboot of the concept than a rewrite or adaptation of Justice League of America #29 & 30.
Luigi - even though I am aware that all parallel Earths in the DC multiverse are based on that Flash story from the 60s that started it all
There were a few parallel Earths/alternate worlds that appeared before Flash #123
they will credit the original creators, which they did with the creators of Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman in this film
That's probably because of legal requirements, not the goodness of their hearts. Bob Kane's contract with DC stipulated he be credited as sole creator. The new agreement with Seigal & Shuster in the '70s got their credit restored on all Superman appearances. I'd assume the agreement with Marsten also stipulated such a requirement. The creators of the other characters didn't get any such legal requirement in their contracts.
I believe Earth-Two was more of a reboot of the concept than a rewrite or adaptation of Justice League of America #29 & 30.
Point taken.
Still, Morrison's plot was close to an adaptation, given the evolution of the graphic story form and the fact that the original Earths Two and Three, etc. were (mostly*) written out of continuity in Crisis on Infinite Earths. (At least it seems to me that, with the exception of the absence of the JSA characters, E2 was hardly more of a departure from Fox's Crisis than McDuffie's Crisis was from E2.)
*Their memory still popped up from time to time in "hypertime" stories and in the later Crisis storylines.
Alternate Lex Luthor, despite being a supposed "good guy", doesn't seem bothered by causing a vehicular accident when he arrives on Earth-1. He doesn't even ask the motorists if they're all right.
After Wonder Woman, Flash and Lex commandeer Owl Man's stealth plane, Lex Luthor wonders out loud where the chameleon circuit is. Flash zips around the cockpit, finds an unmarked red button and presses it, saying, "Found it." He then asks what it does. First of all, how did he find it if it was unmarked, and looks like all the other red buttons in that cockpit. Second, why press if it he doesn't know what it does? Shouldn't he just point it out to Lex? Lastly, how smart or knowledgeable does he have to be to know what "chameleon" circuit does?
After Superman and Lex place Ultraman and the alternate Jimmy Olson in an armored police transfer car, Lex sloppily tosses in the fragment of blue kryptonite he used to take down Ultraman in there with him. This is idiotic. What he should've done was give it to the authorities in charge of keeping him. If they don't know it's in there, or if they're not briefed on the fact that this is the one thing that makes him vulnerable, then Lex can't be assured that they'd make sure it stays within the vicinity of Ultraman.
quote:Luigi Novi: I also didn't care for the Flash's smirky characterization, as I don't recall Barry Allen nor Wally West ever being that way.