Zack Snyder’s Justice Leaguewas released to HBO Max on March 18 of this year, and two weeks laterGodzilla vs. Kongcame out on March 31. The characters present in both the SnyderVerse and MonsterVerse franchises are very longstanding at this point. The first King Kong film came out in 1933, and the first Godzilla film came out in 1954. The first Superman comic was released in 1938, and the first official Justice League comic came out in 1960.
Now Godzilla and Kong are members of the MonsterVerse, and the Justice League is a part of the DCEU. However, Snyder’s vision and what is canon within the DCEUare not necessarily one and the same. Subsequently within the franchise is a further subsection that is known as the SnyderVerse: what Zack Snyder wanted the DCEU to be. The two cinematic universes are similar, but the MonsterVerse is never taken as seriously as the SnyderVerse is, which has become a huge advantage for the MonsterVerse.
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There are four MonsterVerse films:Godzilla,Kong: Skull Island,Godzilla: King of the Monsters, andGodzilla vs. Kong. In the SnyderVerse, there isMan of Steel,Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, andZack Snyder’s Justice League. Both of these franchises are full of absurd and unbelievable events, but to some extent, the MonsterVerse does usually tend to feel slightly less believable, to its benefit.
Perhaps it is partially a result of the MCU preceding the DCEU, but there is somehow more credibility and realism in the actions of the members of the Justice League than there is in a giant lizard and a giant ape that fight each other. And reasonably so, because at the very least the Justice League is primarily made up of people, or at least what the audiencecan perceive as people. Although Cyborg is a cyborg (obviously), Superman is an Alien, Aquaman is an Atlantean, Wonder Woman is an Amazonian, the Flash is a superhuman, and Batman is wealthier than Jeff Bezos, it’s all still somehow more believable than Godzilla and King Kong.
Although it is not only audience perception that makesGodzilla vs. Kongand the other MonsterVerse films less serious than the SnyderVerse ones. It is clear in the MonsterVerse films, more and more with each one that comes out, that the creators know what they are doing is completely absurd. They are just trying to have a good time, and the films don’t take themselves too seriously, and the audience doesn’t expect them to be so serious.
Snyder, however, seems to be doing almost the exact opposite, making every moment of his films so serious that at times they can be almost too much. For example, Snyder wanted to titleBatman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, ‘Sun of Son and Knight of Night’ because he believed it would be more poetic. This overly serious nature can be alienating to audiences and simultaneously creates a feedback loop wherein the films are now also expected to be overly serious.
Zack Snyder’s Justice Leagueis very highly rated on IMDb with an 8.1, whereasGodzilla vs. Konghas only a 6.5. But both films are similarly rated on Rotten Tomatoes:Zack Snyder’s Justice Leaguewith a 71%, andGodzilla vs. Kongwith a 75%. Apparently, on IMDb, Snyder’s fans were purposefully leaving 1-star reviews onGodzilla vs. Kong, with the description as to why being nothing related to the film, but a comment about Warner Bros. alongside a#RestoreTheSnyderVerse.
Because Warner Bros. has said that they will not be making any more films in Zack Snyder’s vision, fans attempted to boycott their other film in an attempt to change their mind. This is unfortunate especially considering that whenGodzilla vs. Kongfirst came out, it was receiving primarily positive reviews. It’s this sort of event that unfairly gives a bad connotation to anyone who likes Snyder’s work.Godzilla vs. Kongwas still able to break pandemic box office records, making just under $50 million in the opening weekend, and so far, has made over $350 million worldwide.
Zack Snyder’s Justice Leaguewas only made in the first place because of the complaints of fans, so it makes sense as to why they might think that they’ll get more of Zack Snyder if they keep complaining. However, at this rate, it seemsunlikely that the studio will change their decision, as they let Snyder do what he wanted and got two mediocre films inMan of SteelandBatman v Superman. To be fair, Snyder’s version ofJustice Leaguecertainly isbetter than Joss Whedon’s. Although if judged for merit on its own, the film is not leaps and bounds ahead of the two SnyderVerse films that preceded it.
The film also features an epilogue that suggests the possibility of a post-apocalyptic battle between Batman and Superman, and it does feel as though Snyder only added this in to spite the studio that said they weren’t going to make anything else with him. It seems unlikely that his true vision for the Justice League went as far as to include a teaser for a film that would follow it, especially considering that this scene seems to extend past a natural conclusion in the film.
Conversely,Godzilla vs. Kongdoes not have a post-credit scene at all. The director of the film, Adam Wingard, toldCollider, “Let’s figure out what people really like about this movie and then if we’re going to make a sequel, let’s figure out what that is based on what people like and don’t like.” This feels like a refreshing opinion in juxtaposition with Snyder and his following. All in all, it seems that Snyder potentiallycould benefit from more criticism from his fans. But unfortunately, it seems many are unwilling to give him the feedback he needs.
