After the lukewarm reception of 2013’s “Man of Steel” and the nearly unanimous hatred for this year’s “Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice,” it seems that studio Warner Bros. can do little to sway public opinion on current and upcoming movies based on the characters of DC Comics. The numerous negative reviews of this month’s “Suicide Squad” are the latest form of this backlash against the studio’s efforts at a shared cinematic universe similar to that of Marvel Studios. These criticisms are certainly not unwarranted; I’m sure everyone is aware of the shoddy, bland, dullness of “Dawn of Justice” or the mediocre story beats of “Man of Steel,” for example. But being an optimist and a reader of comic books, I can say that Warner Bros. has the potential to change and that their DC Expanded Universe can become something worthwhile. To see how this shared universe can be saved, it’s really necessary to analyze what Warner Bros. what mistakes they’re making and what they need to do in the future. With that said…

Darker Isn’t Better; Try To Lighten Up

One of the biggest mistakes being made by the writers and directors of the DC Expanded Universe is going for a dark or gritty tone in their films. Although the chaotic, wacky fun of “Suicide Squad” seems to hint that this is going to become less of a problem very soon, the fact that Warner Bros. has already produced two films that are guilty of this mistake is still troubling. Here’s why.

While watching “Man of Steel” in theaters back in 2013, something bothered me about the new Superman, portrayed by Henry Cavill in said movie, “Dawn of Justice,” and all upcoming DC Comics films. That something in question was the fact that he barely ever seems like the optimistic, affable, and inspirational character that he is supposed to be, instead doing a lot of brooding, contemplating, and yelling. Lots of yelling. In fact, it seems like so many fantastical and escapism elements of the character and his world were lost in favor of so-called realism and grittiness. This is unfortunately the reason why so much potential for fun went ultimately unused for this movie and also for “Dawn of Justice.”

Something truly baffling to me is the way critics of “Suicide Squad” bash the film for trying to allegedly copy the humorous action-adventure style films like “The Avengers” and “Guardians of the Galaxy” have used. Honestly, as a Marvel and DC fan, this argument—like similar ones that unfairly compare “Dawn of Justice” and the DC Expanded Universe as a whole to Marvel Studios’ efforts—is downright silly and absurd. Comic books, their creations, and their stories are supposed to be escapist fantasy. They are intended to be fun, creative, and exciting, not shoehorned into a faux “real world” resembling our own or used solely to illustrate a cynical, broken world without offering anything redeeming. This energy and fun needs to be present in DC’s movies just as much as it is in Marvel’s, as it only makes sense given what superheroes were created for in the first place.

Now, I’m not saying you can’t have mature themes or tones in any of the DC films. They can totally be an option for future films, but—and this is reallyimportant—there absolutely must be a reason for it. For example, a dark atmosphere and tone worked for the “Dark Knight” trilogy because Batman’s character, related characters, and stories typically explore darker themes and motifs than most comics do. Additionally, from a cinematic standpoint, the movies themselves were aiming to explore complex themes that jokes, pop culture references, and famous songs don’t really have a place in. Which brings me to my next point…

…Have A Point

Obviously, comic book movies aren’t expected to have vastly intricate and thought-provoking stories that will change all of cinema. Unfortunately, that seems to be an excuse for the writers of “Dawn of Justice,” for example, to focus less on an engaging, worthwhile story and more on “How many Easter eggs and references to the comics can we put into the screenplay?”

Allow me to give an example of an “engaging, worthwhile story” from yet another past DC Comics movie. The acclaimed 1978 film “Superman,” which starred Christopher Reeve in the title role, is the story of a super-powered alien who lands on Earth as an infant after his planet dies, learns to live and grow among humans while mastering his powers, and fights to stop a megalomaniac billionaire named Lex Luthor from obliterating the West Coast with a nuclear weapon. If this sounds like a fun, exciting, and adventurous movie, that’s the idea. Even if the film doesn’t have socially or politically relevant themes—though it would be great to have such themes—it should at least have something appealing and intriguing to hook audiences in. There must also be a balance between what is taken from the source material (i.e. the comics) and what new material is created for the purposes of the movie.

But there’s just one last thing, one very important thing that still bothers me about the direction Warner Bros. is taking with the DC Expanded Universe. And whether or not they decide to address this issue could potentially affect the quality of all of the DC Comics movies to come. That problem is…

Focusing Way Too Much On Continuity

I really still don’t know when, why, or how a movie called “Batman V Superman”—a movie that literally has the supposed focus in the main title—became a movie that has little to nothing to do with the two titular characters and is obsessed with setting up movies that won’t come out until later. We all know now about the film’s infamous abuse of Easter eggs and hints for future DC Comics films and how that helped turn “Dawn of Justice” into a lazy, confusing, downright boring experience.

Want to know a little secret? The reason why comic book writers are able to create such vast, lore-rich universes such as the Marvel or DC universes isn’t because of little references or setting up future events. The truth, oddly enough, is keeping the characters as far away from each other as possible (unless a crossover, story arc, or some such is due).

Superhero comics and films work best when there is a contained and fully fleshed out story to tell. This is done to allow for the most basic, most essential elements of storytelling: character development, a coherent story, and some kind of value or purpose. You’d expect Warner Bros. would be no stranger to this, having had their share of successful comic book movies that can in fact stand on their own without the helping hands of sequels, but this is peculiarly not the case. That’s honestly, truthfully disappointing.

Growing up reading numerous DC Comics, I’d always dreamed that one day the individual members of the Justice League would all get films and even get an official “Justice League” movie. But now that these dreams are slowly becoming reality with all of the above problems present and accounted for, I can’t say that the kid inside me is 100% happy. As it stands, I think the Justice League need saving. And by recognizing the issues I’ve mentioned above, making amends promptly, and hiring the right talent, I believe Warner Bros. can save them.