Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part One

Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths is a 2024 American animated superhero film featuring the DC Comics superhero team the Justice League and based on the DC Comics storyline Crisis on Infinite Earths (1985–1986) written by Marv Wolfman and pencilled by George Pérez. The film was directed by Jeff Wamester from a script by Jim Krieg. It is the eighth, ninth and tenth and final installments in the second phase of the DC Animated Movie Universe, as well as the twenty-fourth, twenty-fifth, and twenty-sixth and final films overall, being the first part of a trilogy of films.

Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part One was released on January 9, 2024. Part Two was released on April 23, 2024, and Part Three was released on July 16, 2024.

The films were dedicated to comic artist George Pérez who died on May 6, 2022 and Kevin Conroy who died on November 10, 2022.

Part One
An elderly John Constantine sends Barry Allen on a "time trip" to key moments in his life, from gaining his metahuman abilities to a fight against the android Amazo to his wedding with Iris West. During the fight with Amazo, Superman gets injured and is aided by Barry and Green Arrow and is brought to Bruce Wayne for medical help. In response, Bruce suggests forming a team with Barry, Clark, Oliver, fashion model Mari McCabe, and John Jones, who now lives on Earth as a private detective.

During a press conference to unveil the Justice League headquarters, Amazo attacks the superheroes, as its primary function to improve human life has been altered by Lex Luthor to kill anyone that is not human. The League is unable to defeat Amazo due to its ability to absorb and copy their abilities. The Flash goes to scientist Dr. Anthony Ivo, who reveals he has contracted a disease that ages him rapidly. While researching quantum energy absorption with Luthor, Ivo created Amazo in hopes to siphon metahuman abilities and find a way to extend human life. Ivo sacrifices himself to depower Amazo. Batman deduces Luthor gave Ivo his disease to prompt his experiments. Hearing this, Amazo turns against Luthor. With Luthor arrested by the police, Amazo returns the stolen powers to their respective heroes before shutting down.

Meanwhile, Barry is sent by Constantine to a parallel Earth known as Earth-3. After a confrontation with his Earth-3 doppelgänger, Johnny Quick, Barry is captured by the Crime Syndicate – tyrannical doppelgängers of the Justice League – and is taken to their Hall of Crime, where he is interrogated by Superwoman using her Lasso of Submission. Confirming the existence of the Multiverse, this inspires in the Syndicate, who have grown bored with ruling their Earth, deciding to plot a Multiversal takeover. An anti-matter wave then threatens Earth-3. Despite the Syndicate attempting to halt the wave, it destroys the world. Quick sacrifices himself to allow Barry to tap fully into the Speed Force and escape Earth-3 before its destruction. Constantine explains that he witnesses the parallel Earths being destroyed as his punishment and that Barry shares the same guilt.

On the day of Barry and Iris's wedding, Harbinger recruits Barry, Oliver, Mari, and John Stewart / Green Lantern to a space station, where other heroes and super-powered people are gathered as well as Psycho Pirate of Earth-2. Flash reunites with the Justice Society of Earth-2 who are old except for Wonder Woman, Superman, and a reincarnated Hawkman. Batman meets the Robin of Earth-2, who introduces him to Huntress, the daughter of Earth-2's Batman and Earth-2's Catwoman. Superman meets his Earth-2 counterpart and learns of the latter's relationship with Wonder Woman. Each hero has been gathered by Harbinger as ordered by the Monitor, an ancient Multiversal being. The Monitor explains that an anti-matter wave, which can destroy entire universes, threatens the multiverse. Barry's time-tripping inspires the Monitor to create vibrational towers on the remaining Earths that will allow them to phase through the wave and survive. However, the wave rapidly spreads before the towers are completed.

Barry uses his powers to slow time for him and Iris, and they grow old together while completing Earth-1's tower with the help of Amazo. Upon completing the tower, the elderly Iris dies. The elderly Barry reverts to normal speed and activates the tower network by using a cosmic treadmill. The vibrational energy destroys his tower and Amazo, but causes the antimatter wave to pass through the various Earths and dissipate, apparently saving the day. Barry is then approached by the Spectre, who claims that Barry bears responsibility for the Crisis, but that it is up to the Speed Force to determine his fate. Barry is then sent back to the moment he gained his powers, and has an epiphany. He appears as a vision to Batman when he was trapped in the Warlord illusion of Warworld, telling him to go back to before "the beginning". Barry then vanishes, seemingly dying.

Back on the space station, the heroes celebrate their victory. However, Harbinger, who is revealed to be Supergirl, realizes that they might have changed history when she sees her friends from the Legion of Super-Heroes fade from existence.

Voice cast
Appearing without dialogue are:


 * Atom, Batgirl, Batwing, Black Lightning, Blackhawk, Blue Devil, the Challengers of the Unknown, Creeper, Dawnstar, Davy Crockett, Elongated Man, Firestorm, Guy Gardner, Hawk and Dove, Hawkgirl, Katana, Mento, the Metal Men, Metamorpho, Negative Woman, Nighthawk, Red Star, Red Tornado, Solovar, Speedy, Star Sapphire, Swamp Thing, Tempest, and Zatanna from Earth-1.
 * Members of the Justice Society of America (Black Canary, Doctor Mid-Nite, Flash, Hourman, Jade, Obsidian, Starman, and Wildcat) from Earth-2.
 * Captain Atom, Nightshade, and Peacemaker from Earth-4.
 * Captain Marvel Jr., Mary Marvel, and Uncle Marvel from Earth-S.
 * Uncle Sam, Doll Man, Ray, and Black Condor from Earth-X.
 * Thunderer from Earth-7.
 * Kamandi from Earth-AD.

Production
The film was announced at San Diego Comic-Con in July 2023. An official trailer and the voice cast was revealed on December 5, 2023.

Release
Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part One was released on digital in the U.S. and Canada on January 9, 2024, and on Ultra HD Blu-ray and Blu-ray January 23.

Reception
Rafael Motamayor, writing for Inverse, praised the film, writing: "Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part One Finally Gets the DC Crossover Event Right", calling it "A worthy adaptation focusing on heart and character". Mae Abdulbaki, in a review for Screen Rant, also gave the film a positive review, praising its faithfulness to the source material.

Hayden Mears of IGN rated the film a 7 out of 10, with the verdict: "Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part One knows what it is and strives to do right by its source material. There's no depth, no moral murk, no optional profundity for the insight-hungry. Just good, clean, marginally sensical fun. The action and performances are nothing to shake a Batarang at, but it never loses sight of its stakes and (mostly) prioritizes character over plot". Jennifer Borget of Common Sense Media gave it three out of five stars, praising its story but commenting that "The constant jumping between alternate Earths can make it feel like a time-traveling treadmill at first, and the action scenes might trigger a bit of déjà vu from other superhero tales."

Sequels
Part Two was released on April 23, 2024, and features Terry McGinnis from Batman Beyond with Will Friedle reprising his role. The running time is 94 minutes.

Part Three was released on July 16, 2024, and posthumously features the final performance of Kevin Conroy as the DC Animated Universe version of Batman who debuted in Batman: The Animated Series, having completed his voice work before his death in 2022. The film is dedicated to his memory. It was also announced that Mark Hamill was reprising his role as the Joker from Batman: The Animated Series, despite previously announcing his retirement from voicing the character following Conroy's death. Friedle also returned as McGinnis, with Jason Spisak reprising his role as Razer from Green Lantern: The Animated Series and Young Justice.

For both films, Matt Ryan reprises his previous role as John Constantine.