Since its inception with 2013's Man of Steel, the DC Extended Universe encountered obstacle
after obstacle, with poor reviews, mixed reaction from fans, and disappointing box office receipts.
But there is one potential bright spot on the horizon: The upcoming Flash solo film,
which could act as a soft reboot of the entire universe.
So cross your fingers, superhero fans, because here's a look at why the Flash movie could
fix the DCEU.
Flash to the rescue
Under the guiding hand of director Zack Snyder, the DCEU was positioned as the dark and gritty
alternative to the bright and fun Marvel movies.
But since being an alternative to fun is a recipe for failure, the folks at Warner Brothers
have since changed direction, demoting Snyder and promoting Walter Hamada to head of the
comic book division in 2018 as an attempt to lighten things up.
And with the possible exception of Wonder Woman, no DC hero so far has been as bright
and upbeat as Ezra Miller's Flash, who added some much needed levity to 2017's Justice
League.
If the DCEU is going to right the ship, the Flash's brand of spunky fun may be exactly
what Warner Brothers and fans have been hoping for.
Flashpoint
Though Warner Brothers has reportedly decided not to name the upcoming Flash film "Flashpoint"
as originally planned, it's still expected that the movie will draw heavily from the
popular 2011 Flashpoint comic book storyline.
That's important, because the plot involves Barry Allen realizing he's trapped in the
wrong timeline and teaming up with his fellow heroes to fix time and restore reality to
its true form.
And that means that Warner Brothers would have the perfect excuse to jettison any details
from their previous DCEU films that fans and critics didn't like.
Things like Pa Kent's weird me-first lessons on selfishness and amorality, Superman killing
Zod, and the whole Martha scene can be erased quicker and more successfully than Henry Cavill's
mustache.
Flashpoint gives Warner brothers a chance to totally rewrite the history of the DCEU
in order to create a better future for its characters and its fans.
The Arrowverse
If the plot of Flashpoint sounds familiar, it might be because the CW's Flash TV series
adapted the comic for its third season storyline.
And that suggests another opportunity for the Flash movie: the multiverse.
In the TV show, of course, Flash and his pals have discovered that there are lots of alternate
universes and timelines comprising a multiverse, which already includes versions of Superman
and Supergirl, among others.
It would be easy and awesome for the film version of Barry Allen to cross over and meet
the characters from the CW's Arrowverse.
Considering Flash has consistently been one of the CW's most popular shows, it's the kind
of fan service that could bring a whole built-in audience to the theaters and even give Warner
Brothers a rare leg up on Marvel, which has struggled to connect its TV shows to its movies.
Elseworlds
Another benefit to introducing the concept of the multiverse to the DCEU is that it helps
explain not just all the previous versions of DC super-people that have appeared on film,
but all the future out-of-continuity movies Warner Brothers is planning.
For instance, it's been announced that the upcoming Joker standalone movie is already
set to appear in another timeline.
That could be confusing for fans who just saw a new version of Joker in Suicide Squad,
but if Flash introduces the DCEU to Elseworlds the name given to alternative universe DC
superhero stories everything will still make sense.
And it would also allow Warner Brothers to recast its big roles with more ease.
With Ben Affleck constantly rumored to be leaving as Batman, having some random new
dude put on the cowl could be jarring.
But if it turns out Affleck is just a wrong version of Batman from some Elseworlds timeline,
accepting a new star in the role could be a lot easier.
A tradition of successful reboots
Fans who object to the idea of rebooting the DCEU through a Flashpoint event this early
on would do well to remember that this wouldn't be the first time a superhero franchise has
been rebooted and often with great success.
The X-Men series repeatedly alters its continuity within the ongoing story, the Batman franchise
was revitalized by Christopher Nolan's trilogy, and even more recently Spider-Man was reinvigorated
by Marvel's Tom Holland-led take on the character.
And just like how Holland's version of Spider-Man found solo success after breaking out of Captain
America: Civil War, Ezra Miller's Flash could do the same following his well-received appearance
in Justice League, all while resetting the elements of the DCEU that don't work in the
process.
Sure, it would be pretty fast for a reboot.
But after all… nobody is faster than the Flash.
Godspeed, Barry Allen!
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