Both the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the DC Extended Universe have been around for a number of years now, which makes the young fan ignorant of the fact that the DC Animated Universe had started and concluded a series focusing on superheroes from 1992 to 2006.

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With the DCEU garnering a fair amount of criticism over a number of creative decisions, the DCAU is one universe that can be seen as its benchmark for future success. However, there are certain things that are going in favor of the live-action films too, and here are 5 things in favor of each of the DCAU and the DCEU.

10 DCAU: More Characters To Follow

As of now, we haven’t had the abundance of characters that the DCAU offered in the DCEU. Justice League Unlimited took this to ridiculous large lengths by having just about every character from the comics show up on the series.

This makes the DCAU the perfect place for a casual fan to learn about the DC Universe, whereas the DCEU hasn’t shown characters like Darkseid or Brainiac, and a whole lot of others for casuals to know about yet. Since the DCAU is available to watch all at one go, it also has a much better binge-worthy quality.

9 DCEU: A Cinematic Experience

Lois Lane and Clark Kent Man of Steel

While the quality of storytelling was much better in the DCAU, it couldn’t give off the level of cinematic wonder that the DCEU can. Other than a handful of release like Batman: Mask of the Phantasm, the DCAU is firmly entrenched in small screen culture.

This is why, no matter how badly received a movie might be, the DCEU does have the quality of presenting itself on a grander scale.  Even the relationships that fans have behind or against have felt in greater focus because of this reason. So, the viewer gets the sense they’re watching an epic superhero story play out before them, which makes for a more memorable experience.

8 DCAU: Better Portrayal Of The Justice League

Justice League was very lousily received upon release, with criticism pointed toward how the characters didn’t fit established ground from the comics. The DCAU version of the Justice League, on the other hand, is the most well-known version there’s been.

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Here, we had solid characters for The Flash, Hawkgirl, Martian Manhunter, and Green Lantern to follow the other mainstream heroes. There were even alternate versions of the Justice League in the Justice Lords, and the League’s countless adventures make the DCEU version look like a joke. The core Justice League’s success enables a hugely expanded roster to come in without feeling forced, while the DCEU’s few members felt like they were thrust upon each other.

7 DCEU: Mainstream Stars Offered

Sure, there were some prominent names who voiced characters in the DCAU, but by and large Mark Hamill remains the one who is commonly known in the mainstream audience as the Joker; apart from him, one can’t really name any other A-lister.

The DCEU started big right off the gate, and we have megastars like Ben Affleck and Will Smith elevate the brand value of this universe. Both Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Suicide Squad were badly received, but were huge successes due to star power involved. DCEU films make you want to watch them simply because well-known actors are attached, which even makes most people disregard bad plot lines.

6 DCAU: An Overall Arc

So far, there hasn’t been any overarching plot for the DCEU, which seems to be running on single stories rather than bringing all characters together to fight one Big Bad. This keeps fans lost and confused as to where the series is going.

The DCAU ran for over fourteen years, but it was all headed toward a certain end. Batman’s arc in particular had all gaps filled, and the series chronologically ended with Batman Beyond; however, the Big Bad in Darkseid completed every circle left unfinished beforehand as the universe’s superheroes came together to fight him.

5 DCEU: Fresh Take On Characters

Will Smith as Deadshot in Suicide Squad

Though there were certain deviations in characterization from comics to the animated universe, the DCAU generally kept faithful to the comic book iterations of the superheroes. Here, the DCEU has felt more like fresher air to breathe, as its stories have been different.

We’ve seen anti-heroes made out of villains like Deadshot and Harley Quinn, while Batman’s morality has fallen grayer than ever before. Even if these stories have been hit-and-miss in places, there’s no denying it’s fun to see where the series will go since we can’t really predict it.

4 DCAU: Incredible Villains

The combined Lex Luthor and Brainiac from Justice League Unlimited

DC has always had better villains than Marvel, which contributes toward the Justice League being considered stronger than the Avengers. The DCAU could not have achieved this point better, as every villain we had in each show was top notch.

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Lex Luthor, Brainiac, The Joker, Darkseid, and whatever antagonist came our way were phenomenal, making their popularity such that fans loved seeing them wreak mayhem. The villains elevated the character of the protagonists too, as connections between them ran deep enough for their bad blood to come across as legitimate. The DCEU has so far only had General Zod as a memorable villain, with every other failing to reach the mark.

3 DCEU: Taking A Chance On Different Superheroes

While we love watching Superman or Batman whenever they appear, it’s been nice having superheroes that weren’t used to the spotlight take charge. Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and Shazam! have been received excellently because fans were taken by surprise at their potential. Likewise, Birds of Prey is enjoying a hype before release because it looks so different compared to the usual superhero offerings.

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The DCAU featured series like Batman and Superman mainly, with different superheroes generally appearing as part of an ensemble. Should these relatively unknown characters take off in popularity, then DC will have a rich future ahead.

2 DCAU: A Better Batman

Lightning strikes behind Batman as he stands on a roof above Gotham

Batman: The Animated series was responsible for making fans believe the Dark Knight was capable of beating just about any superhero, and that’s because the Caped Crusader was at his very best portrayal within the DCAU.

This version had everything, from sadness to brutality, from power to vulnerability; he was a multi-layered character who gelled in with any other superhero or supervillain despite not having any powers. Batman Beyond furthered this purple patch of success by showing us a future Batman learning the ropes from an elderly Bruce. Let’s hope The Batman starts delivering a rich legacy for the superhero in the DCEU.

1 DCEU: It Can Go On For Decades

The reason for the DCAU’s conclusion was because the writers had nowhere else to take the characters, but that’s not a problem for the DCEU. Here, gaps between releases of sequels ensure the next time we see a character they will come across as fresh.

Now, with the abundance of new superheroes to be introduced in the coming years, we can have a whole decade dedicated just for the introduction of this universe, followed by a couple more decades or so of expanding this cinematic universe to unprecedented lengths, meaning it will be a long time before there’s a chance of running of stories.

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