Phil Roberts 
In Steppenwolf, Zack Snyder has delivered a villain that deserves to be feared. Not one cut off at the knees like in the Whedon Cut!
After immersing myself in Zack Snyder’s Justice League, it has become clear that Steppenwolf was seriously short-changed by Joss Whedon. The legendary DC villain was little more than a moderate threat in Whedon’s vision of the superhero team-up. And yet, in Snyder’s definitive version of the property, he is completely lethal.
WHEDON VS SNYDER
In Joss Whedon’s cut, he was a toothless speechmaker. A one-dimensional character lacking any real motivation other than the generic wanting to take over the world trope.
In The Snyder Cut, he is a deadly, battle-hardened warrior who wouldn’t think twice about eviscerating his enemies. And all for the glory of Darkseid. For the unity. And universal armageddon. He is a fallen tyrant. But a tyrant that commands Apokolips’s vast armed forces. One armed to the teeth, not cut off at the knees.
But of course, the changes weren’t restricted to his persona. Whedon altered the character’s appearance to make him more humanoid. This isn’t a big surprise considering that the character was always a humanoid in the comics. But Snyder’s original vision gave the character an edge that the comics didn’t have. And this only accentuated his dealings with Darkseid.
ANTAGONISTS
This newfound edge has made the character an instant hit with DC fans and cinephiles alike. And I am proud to count myself among them. I adore Steppenwolf in The Snyder Cut. He has fast become a villain I admire and yearn to learn to know more about; instead of a token villain that I won’t remember in a few years. And what’s more, his interactions with Darkseid and DeSaad have left me craving more from the conquerors from Apokolips.
One can only hope that Warner Bros. allows the adventures of Darkseid to continue. But after the studio canceled the planned ‘New Gods‘ movie, any hope of that is diminishing by the day. And with the Snyderverse all but banished from the DC slate, it seems that the planet Apokolips is now officially on the red list of destinations off-limits to fans. And that is a travesty.
Looks like I’m in the #RestoreTheSnyderVerse camp!
Zack Snyder’s Justice League is streaming everywhere now.
Phil Roberts is the owner, daily content manager, and editor-in-chief of The Future of the Force. He is a huge fan of Star Wars, Batman, DC, Marvel, Star Trek, Indiana Jones, Ghostbusters, King Kong, and the Ray Harryhausen movies.
If he’s not in the cinema he’s probably streaming something equally awesome!
Brilliant article! And spot on too. Steppenwolf was a villain that was so desperately needed in the film and Snyder made him as he should have been from the start.