Fans were, understandably, shocked that Superman died at the end of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. While that film’s Ultimate Edition did provide more insight into this event and did make it make slightly more sense, Zack Snyder’s vision needed to be realized in full for this to ever truly pay off.

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In having Joss Whedon’s theatrical cut of Justice League come into the DCEU canon, fans will never get the payoff they want from Clark Kent’s arc as Zack Snyder envisioned it. However, Zack Snyder’s Justice League was able to save Superman in several ways. If nothing else, the Snyder Cut showed fans what the plans were for Superman and how he should have appeared in Justice League, as opposed to how he actually ended up appearing.

10 Henry Cavill Got To Reshoot His Scenes Without His Facial Hair Edited Off

Henry Cavill In Zack Snyder's Justice League As Clark Kent Without A Mustache

Of course, one of the obvious and most heinous sins committed against Henry Cavill’s physical person during the making of Justice League was the decision to simply animate his facial hair away. As Henry Cavill was midway through filming another movie at the time and had a mustache for his role, he had a mustache in these scenes shot for Justice League.

Rather than leave the mustache in, which arguably would not have been as bad, his mustache was CGI’d off for the movie’s original cut and it was extremely noticeable. Thankfully, the Snyder Cut reshot these scenes, and Henry Cavill actually looks normal.

9 Superman’s Revival Was An Intelligent & Unanimous Decision

Bruce Wayne Decides To Bring Superman Back In Zack Snyder's Justice League

Inexplicably, Joss Whedon gave the Justice League a rather strange motivation to want to bring Superman back. Batman was upset that Steppenwolf showed them up and lashed out at Wonder Woman until they agreed to let him bring back Superman. In the Snyder Cut, this scene made a lot more sense and was completely revamped.

RELATED: Dawn Of Justice: 10 Ways Superman Could Have Beat Batman

Zack Snyder’s Justice League saw the entire team gathering to share information and brainstorm together. Cyborg is the one who brings the crucial explanations about the Mother Boxes to the group, and together they choose what to do about Superman. This inspires a much better team for Superman, and a much better rebirth for him as he returns to the Earth.

8 He Doesn’t Come Back Too Early In The Movie

The Justice League Decides To Bring Superman Back In Zack Snyder's Justice League

In a movie that’s four hours long, it would have been plenty easy to bring Superman in towards the very beginning and have him present for a great deal of the film. However, Zack Snyder stuck to his original plans for the movie, and did not introduce Superman too early in the story.

The franchise has given more time and space to Superman above all other heroes, for better or for worse, and Snyder was very aware of that. Each of the other members of the Justice League gets a good, solid amount of time to introduce them before Superman comes in. As a result, not only does the movie feel more fully-formed, but Superman himself has a better place in this world, too.

7 Superman Is Once Again A Worldwide Symbol & Unifying Force

Superman's Death At The Beginning Of Zack Snyder's Justice League

Zack Snyder’s vision for the DCEU basically relies on his audiences already having a cultural understanding of the superheroes in the Justice League coming into his films. If his viewers know these superheroes, then he can dismantle them and their ideologies as he sees fit in his movies. Eventually, Snyder planned to break these characters down and build them up again, but that chance was taken away from him. He made it clear in Zack Snyder’s Justice League, though, just how important Superman really is in this world.

RELATED: Justice League: 10 Ways The Snyder Cut Saved Aquaman

One criticism Snyder has gotten frequently is that Superman doesn’t feel like an important symbol to the people of Earth, but this is clearly no longer the case. The movie opens with Superman’s death, felt by all people all over the world, and follows his inspiration through characters like Cyborg and Batman who form the Justice League because of Superman. Once again, Superman is a symbol for hope, for optimism, and for unity, even when he’s not there.

6 The Knightmare Sequence Showed Yet Another, Even Darker, Superman

Superman In The Knightmare Future In Zack Snyder's Justice League

Throughout the DCEU, Zack Snyder has given audiences glimpses into a possible Knightmare future. Bruce Wayne seems to see visions of this world through dreams— probably nightmares, to be honest— but, upon waking, he is unable to do anything except attempt to prevent this potential outcome.

In Zack Snyder’s Justice League, Batman and other characters talk about Superman— and about how he lost Lois Lane, and how she suffered in death. When Superman finally does appear, it’s clear that Clark Kent is long gone, and Superman has become a killing machine. Snyder showed off a possible dark future for Superman, giving audiences just that peek of what he had planned for this Knightmare plotline.

5 He Is A Leader Of The Justice League, Even Before He’s A Part Of It

Aquaman Submerges Superman In The Kryptonian Ship In Zack Snyder's Justice League

Killing Superman in the DCEU’s second movie was an incredibly bold move, but Zack Snyder’s Justice League actually showed how important this moment was to the formation of his specific iteration of the Justice League. This world has no Justice League, nor has it ever had one; not only that, but Superman died before one could even be formedTypically, Superman is involved in the founding of the Justice League in a more fundamental sense, but this movie introduced a different concept.

This time, Superman was the influential leader of the Justice League before he was even alive again. He inspired Bruce to want to follow what Clark wanted, to unite the Justice League based off of faith alone. As Bruce tells Alfred, if there is even a tiny chance that he can do this, he’ll do it based off of faith alone— just as Superman would have done.

4 Jor-El & Jonathan Kent Both Spoke To Their Son, Reminding Him Who He Is

Henry Cavill As Black Suited Superman In Zack Snyder's Justice League

There are many moments in Zack Snyder’s Justice League that were powerfully emotional and made audience members want to cry, but one of the best was when Clark Kent was trying to decide what to do and who to become after he came back to life. Resurrected by the Justice League but with no real clear goal in mind, Clark wanders Kryptonian halls and tries to discover who he truly is.

RELATED: Justice League: 10 Ways The Snyder Cut Is About To Change The DCEU

In the course of this introspective journey, Clark hears the voices of both Jor-El, his birth father; and Jonathan Kent, his adoptive father; reminding him who he is. Not only is he an incredible being, but he is, importantly, a beloved person, loved by his parents and by the world. They tell him to love as he was loved, and Clark then realizes what he must do.

3 Superman Has To Deal With Coming Back To Life & How He Feels About It

Black Suited Superman Steps Out In Zack Snyder's Justice League

It’s a heavy concept to introduce: The idea of a character dying and coming back to life some time later after the world, and their family, has already mourned their death. In some cases, people in Clark’s life began to move on. People like Lois Lane were attempting to get on with their lives after Clark died, as he would have wanted them to do.

However, Bruce Wayne was unable to do that, and Superman ultimately ended up coming back. However, Clark was still unsure of how he felt about coming back to life, let alone how he felt about Superman coming back to life. Zack Snyder made it clear that Clark was still figuring out how he felt about things by putting him in the black Superman suit during the Snyder Cut.

2 Clark Is Still Questioning Who Superman Is & Who He Should Be

Clark Kent Smiles At Bruce Wayne In Zack Snyder's Justice League

At the end of Zack Snyder’s Justice League, the movie did actually feature a moment where Clark Kent tucks away from the sidewalk and tears his shirt open. Like so many iconic Superman shirt rips, Clark reveals the S of the Superman suit underneath his shirt. However, this time, he was revealed to still be wearing the black Superman suit.

Snyder has reminded people that the red and blue suit is more of a formal outfit or a ceremonial costume, while the black Superman suit was more casual wear for Kryptonians. The black suit at the end of the film shows that Clark’s arc of self-discovery is still ongoing and hasn’t ended just yet.

1 Zack Snyder Obviously Had Bigger Plans For Clark Kent

Clark Kent Revealing His Black Superman Suit Under His Clothes In Zack Snyder's Justice League

After the Snyder Cut came out and people started asking Zack Snyder what his plans were for the end of Superman’s arc, he revealed that he actually had a lot of bigger plans for Clark Kent. He still had to figure out who he wanted to be and return to his red and blue Superman persona.

Not only that, but Superman would have a son who would end up becoming the next Batman, following in Bruce Wayne’s footsteps. Snyder still had more of a story to tell for Clark, which was obvious in the Snyder Cut.

NEXT: 10 Things You Didn't Know About Robin In The DCEU