Warning: This article contains spoilers about: Black Adam.Black Adam has finally hit theaters and the film is tackling a lot. The 11th entry in the DCEU not only introduces the title character of Black Adam, but also introduces the Justice Society, which includes four new heroes in the franchise, a fictional land called Kahndaq, magical elements, and attempts to tie the film into different corners of the franchise. What may have started as a simple spin-off of the movie Shazam! has now positioned itself, thanks to the star power of Dwayne Johnson, as a starting point for a new era of the DCEU, phase one.
Black Adam has a lot to accomplish, and it spends much of its running time simply explaining things to the audience, flooding viewers with exposition details. Still, the film suffers from the problem of over-explaining some concepts while also not explaining some important information at all. The audience leaving the theater will likely ask many things that the movie didn’t answer. Here’s a rundown of the five big questions left over from Black Adam and an attempt to explain them based on what is presented in the film and what is present in the comics.
What is Hawkman’s background?
Of all the superheroes out there, Hawkman has arguably the most complicated and intricate backstories of any character. Many writers have spent years trying to organize his comic book history. Originally created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Dennis Neville, Hawkman premiered in 1940 as Carter Hall, an archaeologist who is also the reincarnated ghost of an Egyptian prince. The second version of the character was introduced in 1961 and was a total rework of the character and concept. This time, the character was an intergalactic alien agent from the planet Thanagar named Katar Hol. Many more versions of the character have been introduced since then, sometimes trying to mix the two origins together.
Any of these versions of the character’s backstory would work in the DCEU, as the reincarnating prince corner could have reconnected with Black Adam, or the intergalactic agent would root him in the sci-fi alien elements of previous DC movies. like Man of Steel, Justice League and The Suicide Squad. However, Black Adam never really reveals anything about Hawkman’s history, and the only public that knows about him is his name (Carter Hall), that he works for the Justice Society, and that he appears to be wealthy considering he owns a mansion. Passing references are made to Cyclone, Atom Smasher, and Doctor Fate about how their powers work and where they come from, but nothing is ever said about Hawkman, which seems like one of the film’s biggest missed opportunities.
What is the relationship between the Justice League and the Justice Society?
Black Adam sees the introduction of the Justice Society, a new superhero team in the DCEU that is very similar to the Justice League, but no relationship between the two organizations is ever suggested. In the comics, the Justice Society preceded the Justice League as DC’s first superhero team. However, the team soon fell out of favor and DC relaunched the concept as the Justice League to great acclaim. Now in the comics, the Justice Society is either a superhero team that exists in an alternate reality transitioning with the Justice League or a superhero team that continues the Justice League.
Black Adam seems to imply that the Justice Society is a superhero team that has been around for decades, as Doctor Fate (Pierce Brosnan) and Hawkman have long histories, and the original Atom Smasher (played by Henry Winker) has a cameo. These heroes were never mentioned or seen in previous DCEU entries, which saw the arrival of Superman and other metahumans as a groundbreaking event.
The Justice Society in Black Adam also draws heavily from the X-Men and The Fantastic Four, more so than their original Justice Society counterparts. Being a superhero team dealing with global issues operating out of a mansion, they are quite similar to the Justice League, and the movie never really makes the distinction between the two super teams very clear.
What exactly is Intergang?
DC Comics
Intergang was introduced to DC Comics in October 1970 and was created by Jack Kirby. The organization in the comics is a criminal enterprise armed with technology provided by the evil New Gods from the planet Apokolips, namely operating under the evil Darkseid. Since Darkseid was the villain introduced in Zack Snyder’s Justice League and was the original long-term plan for the franchise that one might assume Intergang laid the groundwork for reworking some of the ignored elements of the original DCEU plan Zack Snyder created.
But despite Intergang boasting advanced technology, including hover vehicles and advanced weapons, there is no reference to Darkseid or any of this technology being alien. There is even no reference to them being a criminal organization, and the film portrays them more as a foreign power invading the nation of Kahndaq. The film makes it unclear what exactly Intergang is and what its place is in the universe. Their advanced technology is explained by using a power known as Eternium, magical rocks found in Kahndaq.
Superhero movie audiences expect strange, exotic and powerful minerals and metals. Most public now has an idea of Adamantium from the X-Men movies and Vibranium from various MCU movies. Yet both metals were explained, as Adamantium is explained in X-Men and further expanded in X2: X-Men United. Vibranium was teased in Captain America: The First Avenger and Avengers: Age of Ultron before a complete failure was given in Black Pantherbut those two previous entries informed the public that it was a rare lightweight indestructible metal.
Black Adam introduces two new ones with little to no explanation. The first to be briefly explained is Eternium, a highly sought after magical element found in Kahndaq. It seems to give objects magical properties and gives Intergang its advanced technology. It also seems to be able to harm Black Adam (and presumably Shazam). In the comics, they are the remnants of the pieces from the formerly entire Rock of Eternity, an ancient place of great magical power. However, the Rock of Eternity is still whole in the DCEU as it was shown in Shazam!so the DCEU version has made the mineral a separate material.
The other material that is briefly suggested is Nth metal. Hawkman refers to it when Cyclone asks what his ship and his suit are made of. In the comics, Nth metal is an alien metal from the planet Thanagar (homeworld of the various Hawk heroes in the Silver Age). The metal has the ability to nullify gravity, allowing a person carrying an object of Nth Metal to fly. In addition, N-metal also protects the wearer from the elements and accelerates the healing of wounds, increases their strength and also has magical properties. It has a wide range of uses in DC Comics, but other than the brief mention in Black Adam this rare and powerful metal is never mentioned or explained in detail again.
Why do the heroes work with Amanda Waller?
Viola Davis reprises her role as Amanda Waller in Black Adam. Waller was heavily featured in 2016 suicide squad and those of 2021 The Suicide Squad and even had a role in the 2022 HBO Max series peacekeeper. peacekeeper ended with Waller’s daughter Leota Adebayo revealing her mother’s involvement in Task Force X to the world. This would probably hurt her reputation, as well as any connections she has to the various superheroes in the DCEU.
Not only do Hawkman and the Justice Society have direct contact with Amanda Waller, however, they even take Black Adam to a special facility designed to hold Task Force X prisoners. Waller is actually asking Superman a favor, but it’s hard to imagine a character morally right like Superman following orders from a shady government official like Amanda Waller. You could assume she has information about Superman similar to how she did on The Flash and Aquaman which she gave to Bruce Wayne in the credits of suicide squad, but nothing in the movie itself points to that. Hopefully some of these will be answered in the reported Amanda Waller series of The Suicide Squad and peacekeeper director James Gunn.