We know Superman as the Boy Scout superhero. He does what is right. He fights for truth, justice, and the American way. However, what if tragedy struck? Would Superman (Justin Hartley) be able to hold to those ideals?
In this DC Animated Universe film, we find out. When the Joker (Kevin Pollak) and Harley Quinn (Gillian Jacobs) trick Superman into killing his wife, Lois Lane (Laura Bailey), another side of Superman comes out. One thing the world and the heroes in it never wanted to see.
Superman decides it is his purpose to control the world. Through any means necessary.
The film explores what happens if Superman is corrupted. And then corrupts members of the Justice League. We get to see great takes on:
- Damian/Robin (Zach Callison)
- Cyborg (Brandon Michael Hall)
- Mr. Terrific (Edwin Hodge)
- Plastic Man (Oliver Hudson)
- Dick Grayson/Nightwing/Deadwing (Derek Phillips)
- Catwoman (Anika Noni Rose)
- Green Arrow (Reid Scott)
- Ra’s al Ghul (Faran Tahir)
- Captain Atom (Fred Tatasciore)
- Wonder Woman (Janet Varney)
Based on the prequel comics and video game, we’re going to explore this darker DC animated film for the leadership lessons hidden within. Buckle in, it’s a wild ride.
Quotes And Leadership Lessons From Injustice
1. Lois Lane:
We have our entire lives to make all of those wonderful decisions.
Lois and Clark (Superman) are lying in bed together. Clark, with his superhearing, hears a heartbeat in Lois’ belly. They’re pregnant!
Clark begins to go over the options for the child. Where will he grow up? Where will he go to college? On and on he goes… Lois stops him.
She tells Clark that they have their entire lives to make these decisions.
There are many decisions to be made as a leader. Some may include:
- Who do I hire?
- Should I fire Bill?
- What’s our next product to produce?
- How many employees should we have?
On and on the questions go. On and on your mind races.
While we can’t say how long you’ll be in a leadership role, you do have time to make these decisions. Don’t rush through them.
2. Watch the body language of others:
Superman meets up with Batman/Bruce Wayne (Anson Mount) to take care of a group of criminals. Afterward, Superman goes to tell Batman that Lois is pregnant. However, Superman couldn’t get the words out of his mouth before Batman beat him to it.
How did Batman know Lois was pregnant? He was watching Superman’s body language.
Superman had faced the villain Doomsday without trembling. Now, Superman was grinning like a schoolboy.
Body language gives many clues about what people are feeling. You can tell a lot about someone by watching how their body reacts.
Pay attention. The people around you are telling you more than you think.
3. Green Lantern (Brian T. Delaney):
Brace yourselves.
Joker and Harley Quinn had taken Kryptonite from a group of scientists experimenting on it. They had also killed the Scarecrow and taken his fear serum. They combined the two to make a dangerous weapon against Superman.
Superman is exposed to the toxin. He believes he’s fighting Doomsday. He lifts the villain into the stratosphere to subdue him. Except it wasn’t Doomsday. It was his love, Lois.
Joker had also implanted a bomb detonation device into Lois’ heart. When her heart stopped beating, it would set off a bomb that would destroy Metropolis.
BOOM!
Green Lantern begins to understand what’s happening. He warns those around him to brace themselves. A shockwave is coming.
Sometimes, we can’t deflect or prevent a bad situation from happening. All we can do is brace ourselves for the impact.
Well, you can do more than that. You can also let those around you know something is coming. To let them know to brace themselves.
Don’t hold your information so close to your chest. Be willing to share important information that will change the lives of those you lead.
4. Green Lantern:
You had an unimaginable loss. You need time to process it.
Superman immediately begins seeking out the Joker. He wants to kill him and Harley Quinn.
Green Lantern tries to stop him. He tells Superman that he’s not ready yet. He’s still grieving. He needs to process what happened.
Superman doesn’t listen. He hunts down and kills the Joker. And then he begins his takeover of the world.
Green Lantern was onto something. Grief and loss are an immense weight to carry. When we’re hit with these, we must process through the events.
What does that look like? You might:
- Go and talk to your pastor
- Find a counselor who can walk you through the grief process
- Slow down and do not make any brash decisions
Grief and loss can make you think less clearly. Stop, pause, and take your time.
5. People tend to like you when your actions help them, but when your actions don’t… Watch out:
The United States military loved how Superman took control of foreign powers. He stopped wars and destruction through force. The military cheered him on.
Until…
Superman’s actions went against the United States. Then the government and military had a different view of Superman. They begin to think they have to find a way to control him.
So, they go after Pa Kent using the Mirror Master (Andrew Morgado) to kidnap him.
Your team will love you when you do everything that benefits them. They see raises, bonus perks, etc… It’s all praise for leadership.
But what happens when you have to pull back some of the perks? What happens when you can’t provide everything you once did for your people?
There’s going to be anger and frustration. There may even be rebellion.
Know that when you change things, people will be frustrated.
6. Nightwing:
So, what did you do wrong?
Nightwing and Robin, two of Batman’s proteges, were sparring. Nightwing found a vulnerability and took Robin down.
The two stopped. Nightwing asked Robin what happened. What did he do wrong?
What do you do when you fail? Or when something goes wrong? Do you push through? Do you keep going?
Or do you pause and consider what went wrong?
That’s what great leaders do. They stop and think through their actions. They look for what went wrong.
That way, they can correct their mistakes in the future.
7. Catwoman:
Stop just for today. Don’t be Batman. Don’t be the mask.
Batman is in the Batcave when Catwoman finds him. He’s punching a device so hard his fists are bloody.
Why? Because he is mourning the loss of Nightwing. Robin had accidentally killed him in a fight. He was anticipating Nightwing would block his move. He didn’t.
Catwoman is there to comfort Batman. She gives him some wise words: Bruce needs to take off the Batman persona. He needs to be Bruce, not Batman.
You cannot always be on as a leader. You need to find ways to take off the mantle of leadership and just be you.
Go do the hobbies you love. Spend time with your family. Just be you.
Don’t be the leader.
8. You can always go further down the rules and policy rabbit hole:
Mr. Terrific and Superman are playing chess. They’re discussing what’s happening in the world and how there are still criminals. Superman needs more T-Spheres to monitor the world.
That’s when Mr. Terrific tries to show Superman how inane his idea of policing the world and taking out criminals really is. He tells Superman they should:
- Go after smokers. Smoking kills more people than guns.
- Find the speeders. They kill more people as well
- On and on Mr. Terrific goes, sharing the things that are worse than guns
When you go down the rabbit hole of trying to police everything, it becomes hard to do. Sometimes, it becomes ridiculous.
Make sure you’re not making rules and policies for rule’s sake. You can only do so much.
9. Our actions can have adverse consequences:
Green Arrow confronts Superman. He tells him to back down. Superman wouldn’t.
Green Arrow draws a Kryptonite arrow. He releases it toward Superman. Superman blocks the arrow, and it hits Pa Kent, killing him.
Superman didn’t expect his action to cause the death of his father. But it did…
We can never know the adverse consequences of our actions. However, we have to consider what could happen.
Think through your actions before you take them. Where will they lead you? How will they impact those in your organization? What damage will they do?
When you consider the consequences of your actions, you can make better decisions.
10. Wonder Woman:
The battle is won… but at what cost?
Ra’s al Ghul created the robot Amazo to “help” Superman police the world. In reality, Ra’s was looking for a way to cause death and destruction. And that he did.
Amazo wound up killing multiple members of the Justice League. Eventually, they defeated him.
However, Wonder Woman looks around. She wonders the cost of the battle… Was what they’ve done worth it?
The answer: NO.
Not only do we have to consider the impact of our actions, but we also have to consider the cost of our actions.
There’s a price to pay for everything we do. We have to consider that before we make a business decision, terminate someone, or bring someone on board.
Always consider the cost.
