The animated side of DC TV and filmmaking has often been viewed in a positive light, with praise being thrust upon the storytelling and bringing to life of acclaimed comic book arcs in high-quality, star-studded fashion. Their Tomorrowverse is no different, with it being a 10-film story arc that began in 2020 and will finish up late this year in the climactic final part of a three-part epic entitled Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths. I’ll get to my review of Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part One in a moment, but first let’s look at the Limited Edition 4K Steelbook that’s available for fans to add to their collection! 
So on the cover what some may notice is that it’s identical imagery to the regular Blu-ray case, and that’s okay with me in this scenario. Sure it’s always nice to get a unique Steelbook cover, but the art for this release is awesome, with The Flash front and center, and various other superheroes placed all around him. We’ve got earths from various universes behind them, and the speed force in full effect down at the bottom of the case. The bonus here is that it’s an awesome matte Steelbook, with the image spanning from corner to corner instead of being cut off by the limitations of a slipcase, and then the blue edges of the Blu-ray case being visible on the top and bottom. Overall, it’s just a really great cover and I love how it pops on the metal casing of the Steelbook.
The back is more simplistic, but it works. We’ve got a progression of various earths exploding due to the antimatter threat that the multiverse is facing, with the earth closest to the front of the case being the only one still unharmed. I’m sure they could’ve put the wall of antimatter tearing through the earths in the back, but that also risks things getting too busy and taking away from the visual of the worlds coming to an end. There’s a slight outline of antimatter surrounding the world farthest back, which is a nice touch, as it gets the idea across without just coating the entire backside of the case in antimatter.
We do have the credits for the film at the bottom, which some may dislike. I’m forgiving of it here, as it’s a clean image and the credits actually fit in okay. Ideally they’d leave them out for just a clean look top to bottom, but that’s just a call that varies from case to case, and in this scenario it doesn’t hurt the look in my eyes.
On the inside we’ve got The Flash on the left side of the casing, surrounded by various heroes that have been called upon to help deal with this new threat. There were various ways they could’ve gone inside, as you could’ve again gone with the antimatter threat, and had the progressive shot where the heroes are shown what they’re up against. You could’ve also had a shot of The Flash running through time, which I think would’ve been the most ideal look; however, I totally understand wanting to showcase the gathering of heroes, as that is what one of the major points of the story is about. Having The Flash take up the majority of the left side also makes sense, with him being the center of this story.
As a whole, if you’re looking to pick this movie up in 4K then it’s definitely worth hunting down the Steelbook for that extra bit of stylization in your collection. While the cover art may be the same across the board, the clean look that’s given to the front of the Steelbook version just sets it apart from the rest. Now, let’s get on to the review of the movie itself!
As mentioned at the start, Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part One is the first of a three-part finale to the Tomorrowverse story arc that began back in 2020 with Superman: Man of Tomorrow. In 2021 we saw the release of Justice Society: World War II, as well as Batman: The Long Halloween Part One & Part Two. In 2022 there was Green Lantern: Beware My Power, and then in 2023 they released Legion of Super-Heroes, and Justice League: Warworld. These seven films all stand on their own, but if you watch them all they give a better sense of the DC multiverse, and that foundation will add layers to the viewing experience of Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths.
Now, to be clear, I haven’t watched all of those movies, so I actually went into Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part One fairly blind. I’ve always found DC to be a bit more daunting than Marvel when it comes to its storytelling, as they do differ quite a bit. I find Marvel heroes to be more relatable, whereas DC heroes can often be seen as larger than life. It does add variety and options though, so that’s always a bonus. So, while Infinite Earths – Part One still works on its own, my best comparison would probably be if you skipped all of Phase One and began your MCU journey by watching The Avengers. It’d still work, but you’re losing some of the depth to the characters and universe that has already been established in those previous films.
While that may be the case, Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part One is still an entertaining and well executed viewing experience. I know there’ll be DC aficionados who know all the ins and outs and will be able to tear it apart if they so choose, but as a casual comic book fan I was drawn in and fully invested for the 90-minute apocalyptic spectacle. Even though I may have been thrown into the deep end with the story, the focus it had by grounding it all to Barry Allen aka The Flash (voiced perfectly by Matt Bomer) allows for an emotional connection that pulls you in regardless if this is your first DC animated movie watching experience, or your twentieth.
There’s a basic way to view the story, and then there’s the more complicated and layered way that those who have a stronger foundation from previous films will have. Those like me who are jumping in without a lifejacket will take a beat to understand how things work in this universe, as it’s already been established in past films that there are parallel earths, each with their own versions of the heroes and villains that we know. Heck, on some of those earths the heroes have become villains and vice versa!
It can be complicated, but Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part One does a good job of delivering a story that allows a fresh viewer to just focus on what’s happening now, and not everything they may not understand. The protagonist is Barry Allen, as a consumption of excess Flash Force has caused him to randomly jump through time without being able to control it. He has an idea of what’s to come when he’s in the past, but often he’s not able to fully grasp it, so it’s somewhat fragmented.
The story of The Flash trying to put together the pieces of the puzzle that he’s being sent on throughout different periods of his life is intriguing and a lot of fun to watch. Barry Allen is the perfect protagonist for this tale, as he’s a character with a positive outlook, he’s witty, but he’s also loving and kind. He’s arguably one of the most relatable of the DC heroes, and the story being told here is done so perfectly with The Flash at the forefront.
It sees the heroes of various parallel earths gathered together in a single location by a figure known as The Monitor. He’s not meant to interfere, but there’s an antimatter wave that’s appeared and it’s so destructive that it’s whipping out entire universes in relentless fashion. He’s brought all these heroes together to try and figure out a way to stop it, because once the earth goes in each of these timelines, the rest of those universes follow. But how do you stop something that’s completely unstoppable?
As silly as it sounds, it wasn’t until the movie was over that I realized that I’d benefit in watching the previous films before Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part Two and Three come out later this year. While this film did a great job of telling a story that worked both as a part of a bigger picture, as well as on its own, I’m not so sure that’ll be the case for the next two chapters. There’s just so much going on, and so many moving parts, that I think understanding where everyone is coming from (quite literally, with how many characters are coming from different timelines, earths and the past and future) will help make the story easier to digest, as well as the potential emotional notes that are to come.
That said, if you love The Flash and don’t have time to watch the entire Tomorrowverse, I’d still highly recommend Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part One. It’s just a really solid Flash story that really does stand on its own, which is no easy feat when creating a 10-part movie universe such as this. I look forward to what comes next from DC Animation, and until then, it’s time to begin hunting down all that I’ve missed so far.
Overall Movie Score: 4/5
4K Blu-ray Video and Audio Review:
The film animation looks spectacular in the 2160p/HDR10 delivery. When The Flash is traveling through time, the clarity of the animation coming through is smooth with incredibly vivid colours. The colouring is top notch throughout, and the various animation styles mix together seamlessly. There’s a great advancement in visuals, while also keeping that Batman: The Animated Series sense familiarity that DC has done so well with.
On the audio side of things we’ve got a great sound DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix that has a nice surround sound feel, especially during the action sequences. The dialogue is clean and clear, which I rank highly on the scale, as there’s nothing worse than having to adjust the volume up to hear dialogue, and then back down when the explosions start. Not the case here, as everything works harmoniously together to deliver a solid audio and visual home viewing experience.
Special Features:
Crisis on Infinite Earths Part One: Crisis Prime(r) – This first featurette comes in at just under 10-minutes in length and sees producer/writer Jim Krieg, executive producer Butch Lukic, director Jeff Wamester, and former DC Animation creative director Mike Carlin give an overview of the Tomorrowverse, and how they’re excited to bring it to a climactic end with Crisis on Infinite Earths. It’s an interesting, albeit brief look at all they’ve done over the past few years, though it doesn’t fill in enough blanks to use this to bridge together the story so far and skip watching the previous films.
The Selfless Speedster – This second featurette comes in at 8-minutes and sees Wamester and Krieg speak once again, this time joined by Jim Lee and the writer to the Infinite Earths comic series Marv Wolfman, inker Jerry Ordway, as well as that same series associate editor Robert Greenberger. Matt Bomer rounds out the group, who all talk about the original story arc, and how big a role The Flash plays in it. It’s a fun and quick watch for fans.
Disclaimer: A review copy of this Blu-ray was sent to me to cover in honest and truthful fashion.
Warner Bros. Pictures Presents Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part One. Directed by: Jeff Wamester. Written by: Jeff Krieg, George Perez. Starring: Matt Bomer, Jensen Ackles, Meg Donnelly, Darren Criss, Stana Katic, Jimmi Simpson, Zachary Quinto, Jonathan Adams, Alexandra Daddario, Zach Callison, Alastair Duncan, Aldis Hodge, Cynthia Hamidi, Erika Ishii, David Kaye. Running time: 93 Minutes. Rating: PG. Released on 4K Blu-ray: Jan. 23, 2024.
About Brendan Campbell
