Comic book films have never been a favorite of the Academy Awards, with Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight was the last (and only) superhero flick to score a Best Supporting Actor nomination for the late Heath Ledger's portrayal of the Joker. While Ledger undeniably deserved the acclaim for his work, having delivered what is viewed by many to be the best on screen villain performance in recent years, many couldn't help but to wonder why Nolan was left out of the best director category for his work behind the lens. It's a topic that has continued to come up with each subsequent Oscars, however, the topic of The Dark Knight's "snubbing" may officially be history with the announcement of this year's nominees.

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With a plethora of fantastic superhero films debuting in 2017, many had hopes that Fox's Logan, which was met with critical acclaim upon release last year, would earn multiple nominations alongside DC and Warner Bros. film, Wonder Woman, which had also proven to be a critical and financial success. And while the former did land one major nomination, Wonder Woman surprised many by being shut out of the nominations completely after seeming like a likely contender. This, of course, led to fans declaring it the biggest Oscar snub of 2017 -- but is that truly the case? Despite its undebatable importance and role in helping to restore audience faith in the DC Extended Universe, was Wonder Woman ever truly worthy of being an Oscar nominee in the first place?

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Wonder Woman had the weight of the world on its shoulder prior to its release last June. Not only had the DC Extended Universe twice stumbled with the poorly received Batman v Superman and Suicide Squad, it was the first female-led superhero film in some time. That, of course, is notable as Hollywood tends to weigh female-fronted properties differently when considering potential future projects.

The film went on to smash various records at the box office and turned both its star Gal Gadot and director Patty Jenkins into household names. Yet, while the film seemed to be all everyone could talk about over after it's summer debut, Wonder Woman never quite seemed to be a true contender for an Oscar nomination. Sure, Warner Bros. began a push for the film; however, it's worth noting that studios will do campaigns numerous films, even knowing most movies' chances of a nomination are slim to none. Marvel Studios does an Oscar push every year for their films, including "For your consideration" campaigns for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 and Thor: Ragnarok.

Still, many fans had held out hope that Wonder Woman would be the film to successfully 'invade' the Oscars and possibly walk away with a Best Picture -- or at least Best Director -- nomination. Of course, as the 2017 nominee announcements showed, that wasn't the case. So, was Wonder Woman actually snubbed? The short answer is no. While the film was entertaining and proved to be an exciting new step forward for DC's slate of films, Wonder Woman wasn't without it's issues.

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Despite the amount of heart both Jenkins and Gadot put into the film, Wonder Woman is far from perfect, though the fault lies on neither woman. With a rocky road to production that saw original director Michelle MacLaren exit over creative differences, Wonder Woman was sure to have its issues as it headed towards the big screen.

Shoddy CGI, a rather typical origin story, and a poorly conceived third act took Wonder Woman down a few pegs, making a Best Picture nomination highly unlikely. It's something that is hard to admit, especially given just how important Wonder Woman is to Hollywood, but a film shouldn't receive a nomination for simply being "okay," especially when there are plenty of other features worthy of an award. To call Wonder Woman's lack of nominations a "snub" is unfair, as it implies the film was overlooked rather than seen for the imperfect work it was.

Looking back, 2017 proved to be a great year for comic book films, with nearly every release seemingly topping the one before it. It also happened to be a standout year for film in general thanks to the likes of Get Out, Lady Bird and The Shape of Water, another reason why stating Wonder Woman was snubbed seems unfair. Yes, Jenkins deserves plenty of praise for her work on the feature and for essentially single handily saving the DC Extended Universe from itself, but it takes more than an above-average product to be worthy of an Academy Award nomination. Likely due in part to its bumpy journey to the big screen, the film we ultimately received seemed to be rushed into theaters. And while the CGI in earlier scenes -- most notably the boat scene -- proved to be distracting, it was the CGI-heavy battle at the end that was essentially Wonder Woman's Achilles heel.

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Thankfully, with Jenkins having been involved from the get-go on Wonder Woman 2, an Oscar nomination for the sequel isn't exactly an empty dream. Prior to taking over Wonder Woman, Jenkins' Monster earned actress Charlie Theron a Best Actress win for her work as Aileen Wuornos, a real life Daytona Beach prostitute who became a serial killer. Jenkins not only directed the feature, but also wrote the screenplay, proving she's more than capable of delivering Oscar-worthy work when given the time to properly develop a story. With the critically acclaimed director and writer teaming up with Geoff Johns and Dave Callaham (The Expendables), Diana's second outing looks promising -- possibly even award-worthy.

Available now on digital HD, Blu-ray and DVD, Wonder Woman stars Gal Gadot as Diana, Chris Pine as Steve Trevor, Robin Wright as General Antiope, Danny Huston as General Erich Ludendorff, David Thewlis as Ares, Connie Nielsen as Queen Hippolyta, Elena Anaya as Doctor Poison, and Lucy Davis as Etta Candy. The Wonder Woman sequel is set to hit theaters in 2019.