Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) & "The Court of Owls" (2011)

*Disclaimer: This is not a film review of BvS. The split reviews for the movie itself are enough to make a decision whether you're going to watch it or not. Instead, this is more of a review/commentary on the zombie-like aspects established within the films mythology. This then is also compared to other zombie-like appearances of characters within a more recent Batman story from the comics.

Whether you agree with the creative choices Zack Snyder made within Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice: Ultimate Edition: (2016), there is something to be said of the interpretation of Doomsday we get within the movie. Coming towards the end of the film, Doomsday's introduction is given as a devil figure to Superman's god status. Created to defeat the god in the name of Lex Luthor. Throughout the film, Luthor meddles with unknown powers within a crashed alien ship from the climax of Man of Steel (2013). Ultimately going against the forces of nature, and bringing back the deceased General Zod from Superman's first encounter with the world in Metropolis. Made of spliced human and kryptonian DNA, Doomsday is ultimately brought back to life from the body of Zod which puts him in the same category of undead with zombies. At this point, Luthor has also been warned that the practice of giving life to something that has perished is forbidden according to the 'Council of Krypton' which has already been destroyed. Doomsday's 'birth' within the movie also calls back to many of classic horror stories such as "Frankenstein" by having the life be brought back through the use of electricity.

Doomsday moments after his "birth."

Following in the same vein as most zombie interpretations, Doomsday shows no form of verbal communication, no sense of past before "rebirth," and added attributes as in some cases with zombies. Being part alien in this case, Doomsday exhibited various powers such as flight, increased height/strength, heat vision, EMP discharge from stored up damage energy, and regeneration. With that, Doomsday was a match for the god in the eyes of Lex Luthor. Another parallel to older zombie films comes in the form of a "master" controlling the zombies such as in voodoo interpretations, one that Lex Luthor took up slightly. Luthor did in fact become a part of Doomsday, especially with their shared DNA, but was also betrayed by his creation, as Doomsday in his first seconds of life took a swing at Luthor with Superman there to stop him and lead into the final fight.

Doomsday was a formidable foe as Luthor expected when he decided to mess with the natural order of life. He knew his objective well, get rid of the god. Being from Zod's body, I can also be inferred that some memories of the fallen general still lurk explaining why he would pick a fight with a god as he remembers the outcome of their last battle, death. This time around, Superman was to one at the chopping block after fighting Doomsday alongside Wonder Woman and Batman. Doomsday did meet his end too at the hands of Superman with the help of kryptonite, the only known weakness to Doomsday and kryptonians alike.

Superman faces off with Doomsday in a heat ray battle.

Along with this new version of a zombie-like Doomsday, another new interpretation of the zombie can be found in the pages of comic books. Recent storyline "The Court of Owls" from the 2011 series of Batman pits the caped crusader against an enemy hidden by time ruling over the city and playing a major role on the future of the city. This secret crime organization is aided by their skilled assassins, the Talons. These Talons are people from throughout time, a new Talon for each century, who are kept at rest until needed. Each Talon is trained in combat and are later introduced to the life giving formulation of electrum. This compound was the secret to the Talons being able to survive jumps off skyscrapers with a direct impact on the ground. The compound only needs a spark to bring back the individual. The Talons the court has in rest mode are all then kept in cool conditions to keep the bodies preserved, only sparking them when needed by the Court. This compound also carries attributes as it enhances the individual in the way they are able to deal with pain as they are officially undead.

Talon stabs a weakened and broken Batman from the back.

With an ever moving culture, there's no surprise some ideas from the zombie mythos have reached a grander audience. Having characters like this in the DC universe gives it more room to play with storylines as seen in "The Court of Owls" storyline with the Wayne's murder getting a fresh new twist. The creative possibilities are endless, and the future of these types of characters that share aspects with something like a zombie can be found anywhere now. These crazes then power the media which is why more and more interpretations arise as we move on. Interpretations to look out for in the next blockbuster movie, or best selling comic to come out in the future.

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) - IMDb
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) can be rented on Amazon and iTunes for $4.99 while Batman Vol. I: The Court of Owls (The New 52) can be bought on Amazon.