After four years of having to live with the disappointment that is 2017’s theatrical cut of Justice League, fans are finally able to experience the full, emotional epic that is Zack Snyder’s Justice League.

WARNING: Spoilers for both the 2017 theatrical cut, Zack Snyder’s Justice League, and previous DC Extended Universe (DCEU) films ahead. 

Zack Snyder’s Justice League colloquially knows as the “Snyder Cut” by fans, is a re-edit and rerelease of 2017’s Justice League. This version will be released to stream on HBO Max on March 18, 2021. Zack Snyder’s Justice League omits certain scenes from the original while extending some so we get much more context and character-building than the shallow scenes from before. The movie divides its four-hour run time into six parts. Again, SPOILERS AHEAD.

Part 1: Don’t Count on it, Batman

The film opens up where Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (BvS) ends, with Superman (Henry Cavill) getting killed by Doomsday, reminding the audience of the motivation Batman (Ben Affleck) has to bring him back. Zack Snyder’s Justice League omits certain scenes from the original while extending some so we get much more context and character-building than the shallow scenes from before. One such scene is when Batman (sans bat-suit) tries to recruit Aquaman (Jason Mamoa) for the team he is trying to assemble after Lex Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg) warned him that “he” is coming at the end of BvS. They also extend the Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) introduction scene involving the terrorists attempting to blow up a bank, ending with a touching moment where she helps a young girl and tells her she can be anything she wants to be.

A stand-out moment from Part 1 is the introduction of Steppenwolf (Ciarán Hinds), who is sporting a shiny new look that works way better than the original. Steppenwolf’s voice also gets an adjustment, as his voice and grunts sound more animalistic and barbaric. He literally roars and growls, but again, it works. Another aspect they changed about the original’s main villain is that he no longer is the main villain; He’s presented more as Darkseid’s (Ray Porter) lap-dog, trying to get back into the good graces of the New Gods after being exiled from their homeworld of Apokolips. His method of doing so are by returning the three Mother Boxes, which are highly advanced, sentient supercomputers, that are on Earth, but more on both of those points later.

Part 2: The Age of Heroes

Part two is where the movie really starts to pick up in terms of further world-building and character development. We’re introduced to Ryan Choi (Kai Zheng), who comic fans know will eventually become an iteration of the Atom, a STAR Labs employee working with Dr. Silas Stone (Joe Morton) on research involving the Mother Box and the crashed Kryptonian ship from Man of Steel.

So how do our heroes find out about Darkseid other than Luthor’s cryptic and vague warning? Queen Hippolyta (Connie Nielsen), Wonder Woman’s mother, uses the Arrow of Artemis to warn the “world of man” (The world outside of Themyscira, hidden home of the Amazons and Wonder Woman’s birthplace) after Steppenwolf steals the Mother Box the Amazons were guarding. Diana retrieves the arrow, knowing full well a dangerous threat is imminent.

Underneath the pedestal where the arrow was fired lies an ancient mural depicting the events of Darkseid’s previously attempted invasion of Earth. This was another massive change from the original. In the 2017 version, Diana explains to Bruce the story of the previous invasion, and that it was Steppenwolf who lead it. In the Snyder Cut, we see her learning this for herself via the mural, and the audience is shown the same flashback from the original film, with new and updated footage. Instead of Steppenwolf spearheading the invasion, this time Darkseid leads his hordes. We’re shown the familiar scenes of the different races of Earth coming together with the Old Gods (basically the Greek pantheon) to fight the invading threat, with David Thewlis’s Ares from Wonder Woman makes a quick cameo. Ares is actually the one responsible for Darkseid’s retreat. We also get more backstory into Steppenwolf, the Mother Boxes, the parademons, and are introduced to DeSaad (Peter Guinness), one of Darkseid’s more devout followers.

An interesting theme from Part 2 is that the flashback depicts the only time that the race of men, Amazons, and Atlanteans unite to fight together, instead of against each other. This parallel between them is enjoyable, as is the new reunification via the members of the Justice League; Batman represents the race of men, Wonder Woman represents the Amazons, and Aquaman represents the Atlanteans. It’s only fitting that they are united again to defend Earth from Darkseid. A new age of heroes.

Part 3: Beloved Mother, Beloved Son

Here we finally get more of Barry Allen/ The Flash’s (Ezra Miller) background. We get to see more of Central City, and we finally get introduced to Iris West (Kiersey Clemons), who comics fans know as one of Barry’s love interests. I was excited to see that this scene was added into the film, however, my excitement was extinguished when her scenes ended and she had literally no dialogue. While slightly annoying, I understand that the idea is to plant seeds for The Flash movie (currently in development hell), as they did with a scene in Part 2 with Willem Dafoe’s Vulko giving Aquaman his mother’s trident (This film takes place before the events of Aquaman). The movie assumes the viewer already has a basic knowledge of the characters’ backgrounds, but they give a basic outline through expositional dialogue and body language, like the Iris and Barry situation. In a passing line, Barry mentions that he is fluent in gorilla sign language, a maybe not-so-subtle nod towards Gorilla Grodd.

We also get a fully fleshed-out origin story for Victor Stone’s (Ray Fisher) transformation into Cyborg through a flashback that shows the death of his mother, how he got injured, and the start of the rocky relationship between him and his father Silas, who we previously met at STAR Labs studying Mother Boxes. The scene goes into more detail, showing that Dr. Stone uses the Mother Box that was hidden with the race of men to save Victor’s life that ultimately turns him into an all-powerful supercomputer; a human-Mother Box hybrid. He gives Victor the whole “with great power comes great responsibility” speech, as Vic has the power to launch the worlds’ nuclear weapons, transfer money to and from accounts anywhere in the world, and hack pretty much anything he wants. This is a great character development moment for Cyborg; he realizes he has this power but knows very well the responsibility he has to the world.

Part 3 introduces J.K. Simmons as Commissioner Gordon, who was basically born for this role, and Cyborg utters the second instance of “f**k” in the movie, bringing the total count to two. Overall, Part 3 did a good job of setting the stage for what’s to come.

Part 4: Change Machine

Part 4 will make a lot of die-hard DC fans happy. Steppenwolf receives a vision from one of the Mother Boxes he has already attained that tells him that the Anti-Life Equation, a formula for total control and dominance over a sentient race’s free will, is on Earth. This is something that Darkseid has been after for thousands of years. Steppenwolf also name-drops the Multiverse.

Another big moment came when Martha Kent (Diane Lane) visits Lois Lane (Amy Adams) in her apartment to try and encourage her to go back to work and find some semblance of normal life after Superman’s passing. What Lois doesn’t know, however, is that Ma Kent is actually Martian Manhunter in disguise. Martha leaves the apartment, her eyes glow red, transforms into the humanoid, green form of J’onn J’onzz, then transforms into General Swanwick (Harry Lennix), who we know from Man of Steel and BvS. That’s right, the last son of Mars has been on Earth this whole time and has been hiding right under our noses. While this is no surprise to those of us who have been following the production of the film, it was a welcome introduction nonetheless.

It is worth noting that this CGI Martian Manhunter looks as bad if not worse than his appearance on the CW’s Supergirl (played by David Harewood), but I’m willing to overlook that in favor of the pure hype moment that was his reveal.

Part 5: All the King’s Horses

Part 5 also had a handful of welcome moments of character development. Barry and Vic exhuming Superman’s grave after the group comes up with the idea of reviving him with a supercharged Mother Box. And Arthur and Diana building a friendly relationship discussing the histories of their people. Something I found intriguing is a blink-and-you-miss-it moment where Lois opens a bedside drawer for her press badge; the filmmakers gave us a blatant hint at what they potentially had in store for the future of the DCEU in the form of a pregnancy test. While it was just the box and not the test itself, it stands to reason that this may very well be foreshadowing for Lois and Clark’s son Jonathan.

Another fascinating easter egg is given to us when Cyborg receives a vision from the Mother Box. In what appears to be a flash-forward, we’re given our second tease at the Green Lantern Corps. Among the rubble of the Hall of Justice is what looks to be Abin Sur, the Green Lantern of Sector 2814, and Hal Jordan‘s predecessor.

Part 6: Something Darker

In BvS, we’re treated to what has become known as the “Knightmare Sequence“. This scene is a dream/ vision that Bruce has. The dream involves Bruce fighting an evil Superman in the future after Earth has been successfully taken over by Darkseid (as evidenced by his trademark omega symbol etched into the earth). This scene was mentioned in the passing dialogue between Bruce and Diana. It echoes the time-traveling Flash’s warning from that movie that “Lois is the key”. So it seems as though the filmmakers wanted to maintain that vision for where the story will eventually go.

The team brings Superman to life by using a supercharged Mother Box (thanks to the electricity generated by the Flash’s speed), and the familiar scenes of him fighting his allies out of confusion and subsequently stopping after Lois intervenes are still present in this version. We also finally get to see Superman in the black suit!

Towards the close of the film, the Justice League and the newly resurrected Superman handle Steppenwolf with relative ease, with Aquaman and Wonder Woman ultimately decapitating him, sending both his head and body through the boom tube to Apokolips, an extra-dimensional portal opened by Mother Boxes, and landing at Darkseid’s feet. In this scene, we get a better view of DeSaad up close, and we also get a glimpse at Granny Goodness, another one of Darkseid’s loyal followers. There are no actors credited for this role; I believe the character was fully CGI.

Part 6 ends with Darkseid telling DeSaad and Goodness to ready their fleet. This Hints at his second invasion attempt of Earth (basically the Darkseid-equivalent of Thanos’ famous “Fine, I’ll do it myself” scene), and setting up a sequel. Zack Snyder did mention his cut ends on a cliffhanger, and it does so flawlessly. But wait…

There’s more.

Epilogue

The film foregoes the traditional superhero movie post-credits scene, instead opting for a very juicy epilogue. I won’t go into too much spoiler territory here, but the gist is:

• A hint at a new hero we were introduced to early on in the film
• Superman wears the black suit under his regular clothes
• The post-credit scene from the 2017 original returns with updated dialogue. There is a MUCH larger reveal than Lex’s “a league of our own” mumblings.

Finally, we’re treated to brand new footage that was shot specifically for this cut of the film. This is another flash-forward/ dream from Bruce, that shows him teaming up with Cyborg, Mera (Amber Heard), the Flash, who is donning the time travel suit from the Knightmare sequence, Deathstroke (Joe Manganiello), and the Joker (Jared Leto).

I was skeptical when it was first announced that Jared Leto would return as the Joker. But his updated look and the exchange between him and Batman relieved any sort of unease I had about him.

Oh, and Batman says “f**k”. Three for three.

Bruce is woken up and is greeted by another familiar face: Martian Manhunter. He tells Bruce that he has been on Earth and watching for a while. He knows that the Anti-Life Equation is on Earth, and offers his services to the Justice League in facing Darkseid when he inevitably returns.

The film ends on this note. And it has reinvigorated any excitement and wonder I had lost regarding the future of the DCEU. Zack Snyder’s Justice League is the film we deserved in 2017. It is one of the greatest superhero films in the last ten years, and definitely the best DCEU addition. It ends on a massive cliffhanger, leaving it open for a potential continuation of the original plan. Hopefully, this is a course-correction that Warner Bros. will make to ensure the future of a more healthy, cohesive DCEU.

Zack Snyder’s Justice League will be available to stream on HBO Max on March 18, 2021.

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