2022’s slate of DC Animated Movies had some callbacks to the previous connected universe. There were some films that could be building blocks for a new connected universe. A children’s DC franchise grows by one film and two big Hollywood stars are turned into animals and the hero’s best friends. Please enjoy my review of animated DC movies from 2022.

DC Showcase: Constantine – House of Mystery*****

Starring: Matt Ryan, Camilla Ludington, Ray Chase

This was a nice way to wrap up the DCAU (DC Animated Universe) as it serves as a bridge to the new line of movies. The movie picks up right as the Justice League Dark: Apokolips War (2020) ended but centers around John Constantine. No animated movie can match the amount of blood that Apokolips War had but this film came close. The movie has a groundhogs day format to it as it centers around John’s choices and how it always affects his friends negatively. It is later revealed that this is a punishment for his actions during the DCAU line of movies. In what could be Matt Ryan’s last performance as John Constantine, I felt that this wrapped up his character arc nicely. 

Catwoman: Hunted****

Starring: Elizabeth Gillies, Stephanie Beatriz, Lauren Cohan

The director Shinsuke Terasawa brings in a Japanese anime cartoon style with elements of the movie Catch Me If You Can (2002). The animation style is unique and different but it didn’t totally draw me in. What is very impressive about this movie is that while it is centered around a Batman villain, he is only mentioned twice – directly and indirectly. The vocal performance of Gillies (Catwoman) is a perfect fit as it has a quiet tone but with a hint of seduction. A member of the Bat Family is involved as Stephanie Beatriz plays Batwoman and brings her vocal performance (direct and lightly monotone) from Brooklyn 99 to this movie. There are tidbits that show Catwoman’s motives for stealing but it wasn’t enough to draw me in as someone that should care about the character. 

Green Lantern: Beware My Power****

Starring: Ike Amadi, Brian Bloom, Jamie Gray Hyder

The movie centers around the accession of John Stewart as the second Green Lantern of Earth. The Green Lantern Corps’ bylaw states that the ring chooses the next holder after the current dies. Randomly, Earth has held four or five Green Lanterns and none of them have died (in battle) and their ring goes onto the next person. This film finally dives into that process as it covers John learning how to use Hal Jordan’s ring after he is pronounced dead.  If this film starts another connected universe or is a part of one, I would enjoy seeing the chemistry between Aldis Hodge (John Stewart) and Jimmi Simpson (Green Arrow) continue to grow. The first half of the movie had great pace and draws you in but I felt that the remainder of the movie was rushed and left me with some questions. 

DC League of Super Pets*****

Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Keanu Reeves, Kevin Hart

Place the notion that this film was created for children out of your mind, and when you just focus on the storyline, this was a fun movie. Director Jared Stern accomplished a very interesting mission of making the Justice League secondary characters and shifting the focus to Krypto and the Super Pets. Kate McKinnon plays the villain of the movie, and while it’s outside of her usual casting, she takes the challenge on and excels. Her voice is disarming with her sweetness so it lowers your guard. Dwayne Johnson as Krypto and Kevin Hart as Ace were phenomenal.  I found myself really enjoying Keanu Reeves as Batman. 

Batman and Superman: Battle of The Super Sons *****

Starring: Jack Dylan Grazer, Jack Griffo, Troy Baker

I wasn’t a fan of the animation style when I first saw the trailer for this movie. I was so in love with the animation style of the connected universe that wrapped up with Justice League Dark: Apokolips War (2020). As I was watching the movie, I started warming up to it as it reminded me of a blend of Ninja Batman (2018) and Superman: Man of Tomorrow (2020) and it was very smooth. The cast was perfectly selected as Jack Griffo (Damien Wayne) brings his own style to the character, while having moments where you can see Batman’s influence on Damien breaking through. Jack Dylan Grazer’s version of Jonathan Kent carried a good amount of innocence with occassions of intensity as he began to tap into his powers which makes the pairing work so well. Starro as the main villain helps build the odds against the sons and makes you think that they will lose due to their inexperience. I could see this movie being a building block to a potential new connected DC animated universe. 

Teen Titans Go & DC Super Hero Girls: Mayhem In The Multiverse ***

Starring: Khary Payton, Kari Wahlgren, Tara Strong

The DC Super Hero girls are composed of all female heroes and are led by Wonder Woman. At this moment, she isn’t a part of the Justice League and decides to work to make the Super Hero Girls group just as relevant. The problem is that the Justice League only views this group as heroes that cannot get the job done. That mindset backfires on them as they are the ones needing saving. The format of this movie has a twist as the Teen Titan Go! have been relegated to viewers instead of active members during the crossover. Some of the lines are ones that I am thinking like “why do we not see more of this team?” While that is an interesting direction, it didn’t keep me engaged for long as I was anxious to see how these two groups would interact with each other. I unfortunately only got to see that for a couple scenes instead of the whole movie. The second half was very predictable but it wrapped up the story. While these movies can be a chore to watch, I am not in the targeted demographic. I do find myself enjoying these movies because they have free reign to do the unorthodox.

Click here to view DC Animated Movies from 2021