In just over a months time we will finally know whether or not Warner Bros. and DC Comics have what it takes to go toe-to-toe against Marvel Studios' well established cinematic universe. The marketing for Batman v Superman:Dawn of Justice has thus far been focusing on the rivalry between the movies two title characters, establishing that Clark Kent/Superman has a problem with Batman's brand of vigilantism while showing that Bruce Wayne/Batman blames the former for the devastation of Metropolis and considers 'The last son of Krypton' too powerful a threat to humanity.
Some of the movies marketing has also revealed Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman, as well as inferring that the remains of General Zod may be used by Lex Luthor to create a psuedo-Doomsday (pictured above), whom seems to serve as the antagonist that forces our heroes to band together against a common foe. Yet it would appear that Lex is not the only individual manipulating events from the shadows.
In the marketing released thus far we have seen glimpses of footage showing Batman in a desert-like envrironment wearing a variation of his costume similar to his 'Gotham by Gaslight' steampunk-esque costume (pictured above). It has been inferred that this and associated scenes are in fact a 'dream sequence', showing Bruce Waynes fears of what may happen should Superman turn against humanity.
There has been some speculation by fans after the above picture was released that the confrontation between our two heros may be because Superman is not Superman at all, but instead Bizarro, one of the Man of Steels other antagonists capable of taking on the physical form and abilities of others. Some fans are speculating that before transforming or devolving into Doomsday, the remains of General Zod are used by Lex Luthor to create Bizarro, possibly in an attempt to eliminate fellow billionaire Bruce Wayne. Yet after the revelation of the image below I feel as though there may be even more afoot, and that someone else is manipulating the confrontation between Batman and Superman.
The symbol shown above is the Omega symbol, which is used in DC Comics by Superman's most powerful antagonist - Darkseid; the ruler of the planet Apokolips whom is intent on conquered the known universe. It is my belief that Darkseid is using telepathy to manipulate Bruce Waynes fears and cloud his judgment. I say this because it has been well established in the comic books and recent movies that bruce Wayne is intelligent enough to determine that Superman is an ally and not a threat, the fact that Ben Afflecks Bruce Wayne is acting against character suggests, to me, that Darkseid is manipulating events in advance of an attack on Earth, which I suspect will happen in next years The Justice League. The only question remains, whom will Warner Bros. and DC Comics find to take on the role of Darkseid?
