Zack Snyder's Justice League is an ambitious four-hour epic packed with tons of previously
unseen footage, as well as contradictions and unexplained moments.
Here are those confusing moments explained.
Of all the minor continuity discrepancies between the DCEU movies, one of the most noticeable
is the case of Aquaman's eye color.
If you missed out on the Whedon cut of Justice League back in 2017, then you may be used
to the brown yellows closer to Jason Momoa's natural eye color in James Wan's Aquaman.
In the 2017 Justice League, Aquaman can be seen with striking baby blues.
This coloring was brought back again in the Snyder Cut, leaving some viewers reasonably
confused.
As it turns out, this is a choice both directors are very aware of and cite as an artistic
difference.
But according to Momoa it was a decision motivated by something the actor himself said.
In an interview with the Huffington Post promoting Aquaman back in 2018, Momoa revealed about
the change,
"It was my idea I brought to Zack.
I thought it would be rad to have a different eye color.
Something that's completely Atlantean that was, like, his mark...I felt like it was just
something that would be a little otherworldly, so Zack really liked it."
As for why director James Wan went in a different direction, Momoa said,
"I feel like [Wan] wanted to have a warmer thing in this [movie].
I feel like my justification for [the change] is that he kind of went home.
He's more rooted, and he's calm when he's around his family."
Another inconsistency between Aquaman, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Zack Snyder's
Justice League has no real bearing on their overall plots, but is a detail that can be
irksome to anyone following the DCEU releases thus far.
It's time to talk about the trident.
In Zack Snyder's Justice League, Queen Atlanna's [at-LAN-nah] trident is presented to Aquaman
by Vulko.
Vulko encourages Aquaman to take the trident and claim his birthright to the throne of
Atlantis.
He declines, setting up the 2018 Aquaman arc.
In the theatrical version of the film, this was replaced by a scene between Mera [MEER-ah]
and Aquaman after Steppenwolf steals the Mother Box hidden in Atlantis.
It's implied that Mera gives Aquaman the trident that he uses to fight in the rest of the film.
In both cuts of the film, he uses the trident during battle with the parademons, but the
moment where Aquaman seems to ask for the trident doesn't exist in the Snyder cut:
"Then I'm gonna need something from you."
However, that still doesn't explain the footage first shown in Snyder's previous movie, Batman
v Superman, which shows Aquaman with a trident that looks pretty much exactly like the weapon
he wields in Justice League.
Does Aquaman just have an extra trident that looks just like his mother's?
This is another perplexing moment that is a result of creative changes made following
the lackluster theatrical release of Justice League.
The way Snyder envisioned underwater communications between Atlanteans works just fine for his
movie, but James Wan made some changes to fit his vision for Aquaman.
In both versions of Justice League, all underwater conversations between Atlanteans happen in
air bubbles they create.
In James Wan's Aquaman, the Atlanteans no longer require these bubbles to speak to each
other underwater.
Why did this happen?
"Whenever you notice something like that, a wizard did it."
Well, not really.
Wan said in an Entertainment Weekly interview,
"People are overthinking it.
They're just gonna talk!"
Honestly, it's hard to imagine him having any other stance.
Snyder's stylish portrayal of Atlantean communication would have quickly become annoying in a movie
that takes place primarily in Atlantis.
To many who grew up with the Justice League comics and cartoons, Green Lantern is a core
member of the league.
Sadly, the colossal bomb that was 2011's Green Lantern movie with Ryan Reynolds ensured that
DC won't be touching Hal Jordan for a good while.
But it seems like Snyder has put the wheels in motion to one day bring Green Lantern back
into the fold.
The climax of the second part of Zack Snyder's Justice League is a flashback of epic proportions.
It depicts the first age of heroes and the final battle between Darkseid and the humans,
Atlanteans, and Amazons.
The one Lantern visible, Yalan Gur, was in the original cut, but in the Snyder Cut he
explicitly dies by Darkseid's hand.
The scene also highlights how the ring escaped and continued the hero's line, which, presumably,
would've been followed up on in a future Justice League sequel.
Yalan Gur wasn't the only Lantern that made an appearance in the Snyder Cut.
Kilowog, set up to be one of the main characters in HBO Max's Green Lantern Corps series, appears
dead in Cyborg's vision of the desolate future timeline — a.k.a. the "Knightmare."
One of the most surprising and unusual changes made to the Snyder Cut comes from a character
who isn't in the movie for a terribly long amount of screen time.
Still, it's enough to notice how Snyder has made Mera change her accent... or at least
it seems that way.
The truth is probably much simpler.
In Aquaman and 2017's Justice League, Heard voiced the Atlantean queen with an accent
that sounded more or less like her regular speaking voice.
"My parents fought in the wars.
She took me in."
"What a saint."
"You dare speak of Queen Atlanna that way?"
Zack Snyder's Justice League has Heard putting on a British accent.
"My parents died in the wars.
She took me in."
"What a saint."
"You dare speak of Queen Atlanna that way?"
It's likely that the original scenes with Mera for the movie were already completely
finished, and were simply added back for the Snyder Cut.
This means that the Mera scenes in 2017's Justice League are almost certainly reshoots.
This choice is minor and in keeping with Snyder's objective to completely preserve his original
vision for the film.
If you are at all confused about the scene with Lois Lane and a green space alien impersonating
Martha Kent, don't worry, so are we.
Later revealing himself to Bruce Wayne and to the DC universe at large, Martian Manhunter
a.k.a. J'onn J'onzz [JON JONES] makes his live action debut in Zack Snyder's Justice
League in a mysterious scene.
At the end of a long conversation between Lois and Martha about Clark, Martha exits
and, unbeknownst to Lois, shapeshifts first into Martian Manhunter and then into Secretary
of Defense Calvin Swanwick.
In the scene, Martha advises Lois that she still needs to be part of society, which motivates
her to get out, placing her in the right place at the right time when Superman is brought
back to life.
This moment is pivotal and the knowledge that Martian Manhunterwas orchestrating events
in the movie the whole time is mind-blowing.
Martian Manhunter was one of the original Justice League members and his appearance
in the Snyderverse brings the league's new total up to that oh-so-important number seven.
Now that we know what Snyder planned for two Justice League sequels, we know he was going
to expand the group and bring in Green Lantern and other DC legends.
But now the future of Martian Manhunter in the DCEU remains uncertain.
A very important part of the Snyderverse is the Knightmare.
It's never really explained in either Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice or Zack Snyder's
Justice League, nor is it referred to by name.
Still, understanding it is vital to understanding the greater meaning behind many of the new
additions to the Snyder Cut.
The Knightmare is introduced in Batman v Superman, when Bruce dreams of being in a sandy, washed-out
desert.
After being ambushed by a group of men, Batman sees parademons coming in the distance and
is overtaken.
This vision concludes with the reveal of an evil Superman and Bruce being awoken to a
Flash from the future telling him, "Lois is the key."
It's a reference to what happens in Justice League, but also is a clue to her importance
in the now shuttered sequels Snyder was planning.
The Knightmare itself makes a return in the Snyder Cut, where it becomes clear that Darkseid
is the cause of the apocalyptic future.
It's never explicitly stated, but Snyder has explained that this is a vision of the future
that must be stopped.
In the Snyder Cut, we see Superman holding the burned body of Lois in the Batcave, which
is the turning point that Bruce must never let happen.
There is a lot to love about Zack Snyder's Justice League, but admittedly it doesn't
explain some of its biggest concepts — such as what exactly is the anti-life equation
and why does Darkseid want it so badly?
Originally created for DC's Fourth World arc in 1970, the anti-life equation is a secret
way of controlling all sentient beings.
Darkseid believes part of the equation exists in the subconscious of humanity, which is
why Steppenwolf interrogates people using those creepy spider bugs.
Thematically, a common interpretation is that the equation is a mathematical proof of the
futility of living and a way to dominate humanity through spreading hopelessness.
What it actually is, and whether or not it has a physical form in the Snyderverse, is
one of the biggest mysteries for the future of the DCEU.
It's not explained at all in the movie, but Superman's pitch black suit has great historical
significance that references one of Snyder's key inspirations for his Justice League.
The black suit in Zack Snyder's Justice League is a reference to 1993's The Reign of Superman
comic arc; the follow-up to previous year's The Death of Superman, which saw Superman
die while fighting Doomsday.
When he comes back to life in Reign, he's wearing the black suit in an iconic moment
of DC Comics history.
Since then, it has always been associated with the death and return of Superman.
In the lore, the suit was designed to help the weakened Superman absorb more solar energy
so he can be stronger after coming back to life.
While this may be obvious to older DC Comics fans, it's not left unexplained for no reason.
There was actually a deleted scene that was shot during Snyder's original production that
showed a newly resurrected Superman choosing to don either a suit of Kryptonian armor or
the iconic black suit.
Joe Manganiello joined the DC universe as Deathstroke in a mid-credits scene in the
theatrical cut of Justice League back in 2017.
The yacht scene that served as his introduction is in the Snyder Cut, but in an altered form.
However, the restored version of the scene is more confusing than anything else.
In the theatrical Justice League, Deathstroke's introduction was a teaser for a Legion of
Doom movie where Luthor gathers a band of villains to face off against the Justice League.
"Shouldn't we have a league of our own?"
In the version of the scene that made it into the Snyder Cut, Luthor tells Deathstroke Batman's
true identity, which is a significant difference.
At the time, Snyder's intention was to make a standalone Ben Affleck Batman film following
Justice League, with Manganiello's Deathstroke serving as the main villain.
Affleck dropped out and The Batman eventually turned into the Robert Pattinson-led, Matt
Reeves-directed project currently in production.
Now, both versions of Justice League have scenes teasing movies that will never see
the light of day.
The Knightmare scene in the epilogue is the most dire of all.
Parademons roam the land while Batman and the rest of the League are at the end of their
rope.
Aquaman is dead, replaced by Mera, Deathstroke is working with the League, and Flash is wearing
his future costume from the BvS flashback.
Jared Leto's Joker makes his return to mock the Dark Knight one last time.
He and Batman make important references to the deaths of Robin, Harley Quinn, and Lois
Lane before Joker offers Bruce a truce.
The sequence ends with the League preparing for what might just be one last battle at
the end of the world with Superman.
The scene is loaded with implications about what might have happened in the future of
the Snyderverse.
It confirms the death of Robin at the hands of the Joker and that Bruce letting Lois die
in a tragic blast is the turning point of the conflict according to Snyder.
This tragedy allows Superman to succumb to the anti-life equation and therefore fall
completely under Darkseid's control.
Time travel and multiverses were going to play a major role in Justice League 2 and
3, but now this single scene is the most we'll see of Zack Snyder's dark Justice League trilogy.
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