I have not yet seen Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. I do plan on seeing it, but with Wondercon this weekend, it won't be any time soon. That being said, I know what the film is NOT about. Below is an idea of what could have been...
When the title Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice was first announced, many said
it sounded like the title for a court case. This sparked my imagination in a
very strange way. I knew that Warner Brothers, and likely neither DC, would
never sanction a live action court drama of two of their largest icons, but
imagine if they did.
So everyone remembers that in Man of Steel Metropolis got messed up
during Superman’s battle with Zod and his Kryptonians. Buildings toppled, life
was lost. Those buildings definitely belonged to somebody. Belonged to
somebodies. Lex Luther has a huge stake in Metropolis. He regards himself as
Metropolis’ first son. Without a doubt he owned a few of those buildings that
were destroyed. No doubt he insured his buildings against acts of nature like
earthquakes and hurricanes but I doubt he had any idea a bunch of aliens were
gonna come and their rumble would destroy half of Metropolis. So he needs to
seek recompense. He opens a lawsuit against Superman seeking rewards for damages
done to his property. Now, Lex not wanting to just collect a paycheck, he opens
a class action suit to allow other business owners to cover their losses. This
is to help unify him with the people of Metropolis against the alien Superman. Wayne
Enterprises is an international company and likely has businesses all over the
United States including Metropolis. In the destruction, Wayne Enterprises
likely took some losses as well. Enter Bruce Wayne, CEO of Wayne Enterprises,
aka Batman. Wayne joins the class action suit and that’s how we get the title Batman v Superman.
Now in reality the class action
suit would read something like The
Business Owners of Metropolis v Superman. And why the hell would Wayne out
himself as Batman in a court case? The title is just for dramatic effect.
Naturally Superman shows up to the
trial because he stands for Truth, Justice and the American Way. He wants to be
a law abiding citizen and does in fact feel responsible for the damage caused
during his fight. At the start of the trial the attorneys call for a temporary
injunction against Superman to not perform any “herorics” while on trial. The
reason for this injunction is to both protect the respondent (Superman) from
accruing any more charges of financial damages against himself as well as
protect current holdings of the plaintiffs. This leaves Metropolis ripe for
crime.
Superman does his best to follow the
injunction, but with it being public, criminals are taking advantage of this “free
pass.” Since Batman is in town, he takes it upon himself to deal with the crime
wave. He also visits Superman in jail and asks why he doesn’t just break himself
out. Superman explains that he wants to prove that believes in the justice
system and will not break any more laws. Supes also talks about the remorse and
guilt he feels about the destruction he caused. He is unsure if he even belongs
on Earth. These existential questions will be the real battle for Superman.
Meanwhile another player comes to
town. Wonder Woman! Wonder Woman has been functioning as both a hero and
ambassador of Themyscira (homeland to the Amazons). She first encounters Batman
while fighting criminals in Metropolis. They converse and come up with a
brilliant idea: Diplomatic Immunity!
Because Superman is an alien to
Earth, never legally adopted, his citizenship is actually foreign. As the sole
surviving member of Krypton on Earth, Kal El is the ambassador of a foreign culture
and government. This would grant him diplomatic immunity and any crimes
committed on U.S. soil would be void. Any legal action would need to be taken
to the government of Krypton.
Superman, being the stand-up guy
that he is, would still accept responsibility, citing himself as the sole
surviving member since his planet was destroyed decades ago. This speech of
loss and love of Earth moves the jury to not only find in favor of Superman,
but also move for the United States of America to grant citizenship to Kal El.
Luther’s lawyers would move for an
appeal while Wayne and the rest of the members of the class action suit remove themselves.
Wayne then offers to create a fund dedicated to cover the damages incurred by
any member that registers with the roster he is creating. This roster of names
that would be financially and legally covered while performing acts of justice:
The Justice League.
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