Justice League: Throne of Atlantis (2015, 72 minutes)

Plot: An attack on a submarine draws the Justice League into the legend of Atlantis while a loner discovers he is the heir to the underwater kingdom.

Source Material: This is very, very loosely based on the arc by Geoff Johns and Paul Pelletier, mostly lifting the villain and his plans. What it honestly draws far more from is Aquaman’s origin story, which is pretty set in stone. I’ve long loved Aquaman and felt he deserved better. This is a pretty solid version of his story.

Animation: While the facial movements and some action scenes are off, honestly this is great to look at. The focus on underwater scenes really helps. It gives a unique look and color palette. The facial work also comes through in a couple of scenes, especially with Aquaman mourning his father.

Script: This was solid here. This was written by Heath Corson who also wrote War, which really must be seen before this as it’s a direct sequel. While I wasn’t high on War, I found this a step up, in no small part due to an increased focus on character. Arthur Curry’s journey to becoming king of Atlantis genuinely involved me. I also enjoyed Superman and Wonder Woman’s hesitant flirting even if I’ve never cared for it in the source. Cyborg and Shazam were fun in their scenes too. That said, this was a very good episode of a series, not really a movie. It was very dependent on the previous film to work. Not a bad thing but really not a stand alone item.

Voice acting: Surprisingly it’s two voice vets who show up the rest of the cast. Matt Lanter is a stellar Aquaman, bringing real warmth to a strong role. I also greatly enjoyed Sam Witwer as the over the top Orm. He was none too subtly aping Hiddleston as Loki but did a wonderful job. The rest of the cast was fine, with Nathan Fillion stealing every scene he was in as Green Lantern. There is one odd waste here though. Rosario Dawson is good as Wonder Woman but it’s epic overcasting for a relatively small role. Dawson is such dream casting for the role I inevitably wanted more.

Overall: 3. I had a really great time watching this but it’s really not a very dense film. It’s fluff but a fun bit of fluff. It made me want an Aquaman live action movie definitely.