Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.5

Justice Society: World War II 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Flash...back.

Reviewed by Randy Miller III May 5, 2021

In DC's growing animated universe, time travel stories are nothing new... and Jeff Wamester's Justice Society: World War II isn't even the first one to span multiple Earths. But a lot of Nazis get punched, and that's never a bad thing. Its dual setups begin on Earth-2, where President Franklin Roosevelt is urged by Colonel Steve Trevor to assemble a team of superhumans to combat Hitler, and thus the Justice Society of America is born: Wonder Woman, Hawkman, Black Canary, Hourman, and Flash (the Jay Garrick version), as well as decidedly non-super Steve Trevor himself.

Meanwhile on Earth-1, modern-day Flash (Barry Allen) and his longtime girlfriend Iris West are enjoying a picnic in the park until Brainiac comes to town. He's met by Superman, who's nearly shot with a Krytonite bullet before Flash speeds to the rescue. Unfortunately, Flash goes a little too fast and limit-breaks his Speed Force, ending up smack-dab in the middle of Earth-2's France during a full-on Nazi occupation. Soon enough, the JSA temporarily grows by one.

At least that's how it starts. Justice Society: World War II travels a short and winding road to its destination, with the end result being a somewhat uneven and patchy adventure that, while not without its bright spots, feels like a handful of brainstorm sessions somewhat awkwardly fused together. A few good pieces are in place: modern-day Flash makes for a pretty fun straight man, the presence of war correspondent "Shakespeare" and his later reveal is a nice diversion, much of the hand-to-hand fight combat is fantastically hard-hitting, and the third act features an over-the-top monster invasion capped off with an admittedly fun and efficient ending sequence that ties everything up nicely.

But the mediocre almost ends up outweighing the good here, starting with Justice Society's relatively bland supporting characters -- a complaint that applies to the movie and the actual group. Wonder Woman and maybe Steve Rogers are the only semi-bright spots here, with lame ducks like Black Canary and Hourman feeling more like bit players that wandered in from another movie. Even a third-act sacrifice by one of the JSA members lands somewhat flatly, and is only exacerbated by Black Canary's laughably inept scream-fest. And aside from those last-minute monsters, Justice Society lacks a compelling villain: Advisor (the Earth-2 version of Psycho-Pirate) is OK at best, as is the superhuman under his control, but aside from that it's basically just nameless Nazi soldiers... which again, get hilariously decimated. And when mostly bland heroes do battle with mostly bland villains, who's surprised by the end result?

While the movie as a whole is decently entertaining during several key stretches, there's a lack of polish here that makes it much closer to mid-tier DC animated fare; this is more of a "complete the collection" title than some kind of hidden gem. But its fleeting moments of greatness -- most of which occur within the first and last 20 minutes -- might be enough to win over more ardent fans of JSA, and if nothing else Warner Bros.' 4K edition at least serves up a fairly well-rounded home video package. Featuring solid A/V support and a surprisingly nice collection of bonus features, it's still not the most essential DCAU production in recent memory... but it'll do until a better one arrives.

Justice Society: World War II 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Since most WWII-themed productions are apparently obligated to follow the Saving Private Ryan visual template of muted colors, Justice Society: World War II probably isn't the best choice to show off the eye-popping capabilities of HDR enhancement. But the animation style, stiff and choppy as it can be at times, does manage to serve up some razor- sharp stills with excellent delineation and almost no compression artifacts or banding, problems that rear their ugly heads on almost all Blu- ray releases... including this one, which is where the 1080p screenshots were sourced from. These potential problems are kept in check here thanks to 4K's superior resolution and encoding, which affords the film a much thicker and bolder overall appearance that suits its style nicely. The mostly flat character designs (very similar to Superman: Man of Tomorrow) stand in great contrast with WB Animation's painterly backgrounds, which are often detailed enough to give most compositions a more three-dimensional appearance than expected.

Those heavily muted colors do manage to squeak out more than a few vivid exceptions, though: the bookending picnic scenes with Flash's girlfriend and his fight alongside Superman, of course, as well as the third-act monster brawl (much of it set against the backdrop of a seaside amusement park at night) as well a few stray moments of heavy gunfire, explosions, and underwater locales that bathe a few scenes in a deep, atmospheric emerald. All things considered, Justice Society is another strong-looking disc, even it it's not one you'll necessarily reach for as often.

For my thoughts on the included Blu-ray's 1080p transfer, please see my separate review of that title.

Justice Society: World War II 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Justice Society's mostly straightforward DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio mix offers a pretty predictable blend of front-heavy dialogue, supportive music cues, and a dialed-up presence during most of the film's chaotic fight sequences, which utilize a lot more punches and kicks than typical WWII encounters. Paired regularly with these fights -- and to great effect during one particularly satisfying Nazi beat-down -- is Flash's super-speed, which often ventures into the rear channels to create a more immediately dynamic atmosphere. Elsewhere, gunfire and explosion pack a decent punch, with outdoor locales showcasing reasonably good depth -- even though almost none of these battles are especially crowded, likely due to budget limitations. Like the visuals themselves, the overall sonic effect does travel to a few unexpected locations but, for the most part, this surround mix sounds very similar to most recent DCAU productions: definitely good enough to get the job done, but lacking the more immersive heft of an Atmos track.

Optional English (SDH) and Spanish subtitles are included during the main feature and extras.

Justice Society: World War II 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This two-disc release arrives in a dual-hubbed keepcase with a matching slipcover and two inserts including a Digital Copy redemption slip. All bonus features listed below can be found on the included Blu-ray disc.

• DC Showcase – Kamandi: The Last Boy on Earth! (18:03) - This enjoyable throwback adventure, based on the 1970s comic series created by (and strongly mimicking the visual aesthetic of) Jack Kirby, features the title character's adventures in a post- apocalyptic dystopia. Along with a few non-humans such as mutant Ben Boxer, tiger prince Tuftan, and hulking gorilla-man Zuma, Kamandi competes in a physical contest to crown "The Chosen One", heir to the throne of a supreme being who saved Earth ages ago. Featuring a colorful roster of characters and great visuals, it's another one-shot winner I hope to see more of in the future.

• Adventures in Storytelling (30:04) - An entertaining roundtable discussion with five members of Justice Society's creative team: director Jeff Wamester, producer Jim Krieg, supervising producer Butch Lukic, and co-writers Meghan Fitzmartin and Jeremy Adams. All five speak candidly about the story's patchwork creation and their love for its characters, as well as several challenges and successes during production.

• A Sneak Peek at DC Universe's Next Animated Movie (10:29) - This promo is for DC's upcoming Batman: The Long Halloween, Part One, based on the seminal comic mini-series by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale. A few cast and crew members (including writer Tim Sheridan, director Chris Palmer, producer Jim Krieg, and members of the voice cast including the late Naya Rivera) offer their thoughts, while glimpses of the upcoming film are seen as finished clips, storyboards, and rough animatics, some of which are compared to original comic panels. But geez, they couldn't have stretched out the running time another two seconds? So close!

• Preview - Justice League vs. Teen Titans (11:29) - This outdated promo for DCAU original movie #26, Justice League vs Teen Titans, originally appeared on WB's Blu-ray edition of Batman: Bad Blood.

• Preview - Wonder Woman - Bloodlines (9:59) - Another recycled featurette, this preview for Wonder Woman: Bloodlines originally appeared on WB's 4K and Blu-ray editions of Batman: Hush.

• From the DC Vault - Two full-length episodes of Justice League - "Legends", parts 1 (21:57) and 2 (21:45), which originally aired in 2002 during the show's first season. Like the other recycled extras in this collection, these episodes look identical to the earlier counterparts but are limited to lossy Dolby Digital audio.

Justice Society: World War II 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Jeff Wamester's Justice Society: World War II was, according to its creative team, created from multiple source elements including a WWII-era Wonder Woman series that, like many ideas, was pitched but never materialized. Its patchwork origins really show in the finished product, giving it an uneven episodic flow that's only fitfully exciting and populated by mostly lackluster supporting characters. But there are some unsurprisingly great moments here (Nazi punching!) and the finale hits all the right notes... so at the very least, it'll leave you smiling at the end and that might boost its replay value and staying power a little. Warner Bros.' 4K edition offers great visual support that strengthens a few Blu-ray weaknesses, and many of the bonus features are very enjoyable. This makes it a decent recommendation for seasoned Justice fans and newbies alike, providing they keep their frothing expectations in check.