Paula Hammond - Features EditorAs story lines go, you can’t get more epic than Marv Wolfman’s 12-issue mini series, which was designed to create a single, unified DC universe, with new characters, new plot lines, and big, arc-defining events. Some have called it “the greatest comic book crossover ever”. And, regardless of whether or not you agree, there’s no denying its sheer scope and ambition.
The same is true of DC/Warner’s animated take on the seminal series. Not every fan will like where Part Three takes us — and how it gets there — but get there it does. And there’s plenty to digest, debate, and glory in, along the way.
Released in three parts, Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths Part Three represents the tenth and final instalment of the second phase of the DC Animated Universe, as well as the twenty-sixth film overall.
As ever, the voice cast do a superb job, with particular mention going to Supernatural’s Jensen Ackles (Batman), and Star Trek’s Zachary Quinto (Lex Luthor), who manage to make these much-cast roles their own. [SPOILERS] Mark Hamill returns — for the final time — to the role of the Joker, bringing a hole heap of madness and menace along with him. While Matt Ryan throws a little chaos into the mix as John Constantine. If, like me, you think that Ryan’s Constantine can never have enough screen time, then, frankly, it’s worth buying the disc just to enjoy one more outing of his trickster magician.
The pacing does stall occasionally, and the action sequences can feel a little repetitive, but Crisis on Infinite Earths Part Three is everything you were hoping for. Faithful to the source material, but never slavishly so, this is big superhero fun, with tons of action balanced by lots of small, human moments.
