Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths, Part Two 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		0.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		2.5

Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths, Part Two 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

"So many Earths. How does one even keep track?" Indeed.

Reviewed by Randy Miller III April 26, 2024

Arriving on disc just three months after the first chapter (deep breath), Warner Bros. Animation's Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths, Part Two is the second leg of a three-part saga set to presumably conclude sometime this summer. Like its predecessor, this extended undertaking is based on the celebrated 1985-86 comic book series by Marv Wolfman and the late, great George Perez... but it also doubles as the conclusion to their "Tomorrowverse" film series (2020-23) that included Superman: Man of Tomorrow, Justice Society: World War II, the two-part Batman: The Long Halloween, Green Lantern: Beware My Power, The Legion of Super-Heroes, and Justice League: Warworld.

As explained in my review of Part One, that seven-film series -- eight, if you count the minor back roads and detours explored in 2022's Constantine: The House of Mystery -- had its share of ups and downs; the least impressive outings felt almost totally inessential to the Tomorrowverse's "larger picture", which quite frankly felt at times like it was being written on the fly. (Meanwhile, Man of Tomorrow and The Long Halloween were two of my favorite DCAU endeavors of the past several years.) That hit-or-miss sentiment was perhaps best summarized by the microcosmic Warworld, which played like an anthology film that only worked half of the time. This shaky track record applied to the uneven Infinite Earths, Part One and I'm sad to say it continues here, despite this second installment not being burdened with nearly as much necessary exposition and world-building like most first parts of an eventual trilogy.

But certain parts are at least marginally better -- or at least different in execution -- than Part One, which put Barry Allen's Flash front and center but spun its wheels during most of the first half. Part Two comparatively hits the ground running by dropping us into a showdown between Batman (actually the entire Bat family) facing off against The Joker, Killer Croc, and Solomon Grundy. It's a solid enough start that sadly isn't capitalized on, even if it's followed by another promising detour with Psycho-Pirate (Geoffrey Arand) and intermittently gains back a bit of momentum as this episodic chapter lurches forward with subplots devoted to Superman, Supergirl, and others. The biggest problems are (1) a lack of higher stakes, which somehow feel even smaller than Part One; (2) that tendency to bounce around between stories with very little connective tissue; and (3) it just feels like a rickety bridge between the previous installment and Infinite Earth's forthcoming conclusion. There's very little focus here, which makes for occasional high points but no through-line to stitch everything together. Is it too late to say I actually kinda miss Flash as the central anchor?

Nonetheless, WB continues to stick to its guns as far as Inifinite Earth's presence on home video is concerned; Part Two is again available separately on either Blu-ray or 4K UHD Steelbook, with the latter sporting a shockingly steep sticker price of nearly $50. That's probably twice as high as it should be especially since, despite a proportionately solid A/V presentation on both formats, there isn't really much effort in the extras department. Simply put, again this has "just wait for the inevitable boxed set" written all over it... unless, of course, you really love Steelbooks.

Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths, Part Two 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

NOTE: These screenshots are sourced from the Blu-ray edition, available separately and reviewed here.

Not surprisingly, the merits of Warner Bros.' 2160p/HDR10 transfer largely mirror those outlined in my review of Part One as this native 4K 94-minute film (along with a few brief 1080p extras, detailed below) has been squeezed quite comfortably onto a dual-layered (66GB) UHD disc. As such there are no real concerns as far as encoding goes and this film looks good in of all the usual areas: edge crispness, textural details (however rare), color saturation, contrast, and black levels, enjoying a more thick, stable, and visually impactful presentation than its respectable Blu-ray counterpart. Simply put: the locations and characters may be different here, but the quality remains the same.

Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths, Part Two 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Similarly, the DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio mix carries its own weight but, perhaps simply due to the subject matter this time around, sounds a touch more weighty and detailed during several key scenes. Even so, the overwhelming majority of this track keeps pace with Part One and features crisp dialogue, well-placed and balanced effects, sporadic use of the rear channels, and of course potent use of LFE on many occasions. Despite my reservations about the uneven story and its low stakes, this certainly sounds like a top-shelf production and, as such, will delight fans.

Optional subtitles, including English (SDH), are offered during the main feature and extras below.

Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths, Part Two 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This one-disc release ships in standard-issue Steelbook packaging, which simply repurposes the wide-release cover artwork while featuring an image of Shadow Demons surrounding a quantum tower on the back. Inside, there's a two-panel spread full of supporting characters and a Digital Copy is also included. The bonus features are predictably minimal, mixing standard behind-the-scenes fare with a preview of the third and final installment.

• Voices in Crisis (8:19) - A trio of key voice actors do their thing behind the microphone while sharing a few brief thoughts about their characters, with the main players being Meg Donnelly (Supergirl, Harbinger), Jonathan Adams (Monitor), and Aldis Hodge (John Stewart / Green Lantern). Clips from both Crisis movies are sprinkled throughout, as are various Tomorrowverse films also featuring these characters.

• The Bat-Family of the Multiverse (8:25) - This more general piece provides a bit of valuable context for those a little less familiar with the source material, featuring brief interview clips with key crew members and other authorities -- including DC writer Geoff Johns, DC Group editor Katie Kubert, producer/writer Jim Krieg, DC archivist Benjamin LeClear, and more -- who speak specifically about Batman and company's role in the story and DC history in general. It's again supported by clips from both Crisis installments and other Tomorrowverse movies, with stills from various Silver Age and modern comics featuring the characters.

• Part Three Sneak Peek (1:19) - Aquaman, Superman, and Wonder Woman vs. a couple of dinos.

Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths, Part Two 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Die-hard fans of the source material may see something in Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths, Part Two that I don't, but I found this 94.minute follow-up to be another unevenly-paced production that, despite being different than the first installment, isn't necessarily better. Given that we're now officially past the halfway point for this three-part saga, I can't imagine that its conclusion will be a substantial improvement... but I could be wrong. Nonetheless, WB's piecemeal approach to this series continues to leave buyers cold, as the only UHD option is this shockingly overpriced Steelbook; realistically these individual parts should be no more than $20 apiece, so again I wouldn't blame anyone if they held out for a future three-disc collection. Despite these obvious reservations, though, 4K A/V merits are solid and the lightweight extras add a little bit of value, so completists and packaging enthusiasts should take note.