Lego Deathstroke by JustDKFilms!

I have complained in this blog before that I felt that Deathstroke was given short shrift in most of the official LEGO movies featuring DC Comics characters. Serving as either a background character or an inconsequential cameo, Deathstroke rarely gets his due as the legitimate badass he is. Well in 2018, the fine folk (yes, singular) at JustDKFilms rectified this situation. On February 10, 2918, JustDKFilms published Lego Deathstroke: A fan-made stop-motion animated brickfilm short starring Deathstroke in all his miniature plastic mercenary glory.

Though visually innocent at first (these are Legos after all), Lego Deathstroke wastes little time in bringing the bullets-and-blades action befitting the Terminator. Blood? Buckets! Death? Duh! Mercy? None! In about five minutes, Lego Deathstroke accomplishes that rarest of feats in that it is both brutal and funny. There is an Easter Egg in the form of an homage to Mick Zeck's classic cover to Deathstroke the Terminator (1991) #1, which is priceless but isn't too much to take away from the film as a whole. I won't spoil the ending, but needless to say that JustDKFilms definitely left me wanting more.

Check out the film in its entirety, which is posted below, as well as JustDKFilms other projects at this link. Enjoy!

BATMAN vs DEATHSTROKE (2016) Fan Film by Crime Alley Studios

A dedicated group of Italian filmmakers and cosplayers, known as Crime Alley Studios, released what they describe as a "No-Profit (and Budget Zero)" fan film that features a throwdown between the Dark Knight and the world's deadliest assassin. With a runtime of just under four minutes, Batman vs Deathstroke (2016) is very short, but it is clear from the tone, the costuming (of Deathstroke, at least), the fight choreography and that this was indeed a passion project. Crime Alley Studios' YouTube page says to "Please share the video," so you'll find it posted below along with two trailers (one spotlighting Deathstroke and the other one Batman) and a behind-the-scenes video. The audio is in Italian, so if you can't speak it, be sure to turn on the closed captioning for the following videos.

Nightwing: The Series is Pretty Cool!

On September 29, 2014 Nightwing: The Series launched on YouTube. Nightwing: The Series, is a five episode fan-made tv-miniseries produced by Ismahawk Studio, a small production company created by series star, Danny Shepard, and his partner, Jeremy Le. The series was funded in part through a Kickstarter campaign and was filmed in Las Vegas by director Adam Zielinski. Beacause the series depicts the launching point of Dick Grayson's solo hero career, it is only fitting that Deathstroke, played quite well by Bob Lee Dysinger, fills the role of Nightwing's first villainous adversary. As the IMDB description for the series reads...

"When his girlfriend is supposedly shot and killed, Dick Grayson quits as Robin and goes off to fight crime as Nightwing. While doing so he comes into the path of Deathstroke and has to defeat him before he kills again."

Though Deathstroke is defeated in the end (It isn't called Deathstroke: The Series after all), there is real depth and genuine menace to Slade Wilson in this series. Good action and fight choreography, decent casting with at least CW quality acting, solid camera work, and adequate effects make watching Nightwing: The Series a pretty enjoyable way to spend an hour on YouTube.

The series can be viewed on YouTube at the following links.

Episode 1: Deathstroke

Episode 2: Origins

Episode 3: Descent

Episode 4: Oracle

Episode 5: Legacy

Bob Lee Dysinger as Deathstroke and Danny Shepard as Nightwing

Deathstroke: Arkham Assassin is Outstanding!

When people think of fan films, terrible acting, cheesy costumes, and cardboard scenery usually come to mind. But in directors Chris and Larry White's 2014 fan film Deathstroke: Arkham Assassin, viewers are treated to a very good presentation of what a larger budget studio treatment of Slade could possibly be. The 8-minute film takes place just prior to to events of Batman: Arkham Origins video game with crime boss Black Mask putting together a team of assassins to bring down a new-on-the-scene Dark Knight. In Deathstroke: Arkham Assassin, professional-grade camera work, adequate acting, excellent costuming and fight choreography all come together for a really enjoyable short film. But don't just take my word for it. On the filmmakers' YouTube channel (GoingNowhereShow) the comments section tells viewers to, "share our vid if you enjoyed it," so I have done just that here. This short film has been viewed over 1.2 million times as of this writing. Enjoy!

P.S. I suggest watching this at fullscreen on the largest screen on which you can show it.