Zack Snyder’s Justice League has been a culmination of blood sweat and tears for a lot of individuals. The story telling was top notch; and Snyder has tried to showcase that on the screen with as much depth and emotion as possible. Every character arc made them that much more believable, and the whole process has been something extraordinary.
The heroes of the movie – from Batman to Wonder Woman to Flash to Aquaman to Superman and of course, Cyborg were given the proper time and justice that the 2017 theatrical release wasn’t able to. But it wasn’t just the heroes who got the time they needed, but also the villain.
The Story of Steppenwolf:
Snyder includes a more modern version Steppenwolf than the 2017’s theatrical release; and this extended version investigates a crucial betrayal from the past. In the Snyder cut, Steppenwolf is given sufficient time on screen to set up a more evolved incentive for attacking Earth; rather than essentially being a yet another power hungry villain of the week.
He is still the ruthless and otherworldly being we saw in the 2017 movie; yet Snyder’s Steppenwolf appreciates expanded wisdom on account of a very much fleshed out back story. Steppenwolf in one way or another betrayed Darkseid and as punishment was ousted from Apokolips.
Deceiving Darkseid is the reason Steppenwolf is so anxious to unite the Mother Boxes and make the Unity. His only way to be permitted back home to Apokolips, and into his lord’s acceptable graces, is by destroying 50,000 worlds in the name of Darkseid. A lot of this significant information is gained through a dialogue between Steppenwolf and Desaad – Darkseid’s second in command.
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A few key moments from the HBO release develops Steppenwolf’s character. His discussions with Desaad, and eventually Darkseid, unfathomably offer clarity on his motivations. It does not let Steppenwolf to be just another bad guy with no back story – he is a man who wants a way back to his home; and if that comes at the cost of destroying worlds, he is okay with it.
How Steppenwolf Betrayed Darkseid:
In the DC comics, Steppenwolf, created by Jack Kirby, was one of the New Gods that lived on the planet Apokolips. His sibling was the planet’s first ruler, Yuga Khan, whose child was a New God named Uxas. Yearning for domain over Apokolips, Uxas fights his father and slaughtered him, however not before Steppenwolf, and a large number of the New Gods, apparently fought Uxas. Uxas won the fight and becomes the ruler of Apokolips, later taking the name of Darkseid.
This back story is like Steppenwolf’s in the New Gods comics; as Steppenwolf would have presumably battled with Yuga Khan against Uxas before the later became Darkseid. In spite of the fact that Steppenwolf was a powerful ally to Darkseid’s forces, there is obviously no simple way out with the Lord of Apokolips, in any event, for a champion as particularly impressive as Steppenwolf, which clarifies his expulsion.
While in Snyder’s Justice League, Desaad specifies that Steppenwolf is Darkseid’s nephew, not uncle; there are a few similarities between the comics story and in the film. In the DCEU, Steppenwolf tested Darkseid’s rule over Apokolips; and that disloyalty brought about his expulsion from the planet. Despite the fact that Steppenwolf claims that he realized his mistake; and has killed anyone who threatened Darkseid, or stood against him, he is still not allowed to come back home. From what Desaad said, it indicates that Steppenwolf had thus once challenged Darkseid by deciding to serve himself.
Darkseid’s First Attempt To Conquer Earth:
During the flashback scene in Justice League that follows Steppenwolf’s first gathering with Desaad; Wonder Woman clarifies the historical setting of earth’s Mother Boxes to Batman. And with this scene, Snyder showcases DCEU’s first look of Darkseid in real life.
In an epic fight sequence, we see Darkseid and his Parademons fighting against humans, Atlanteans, Amazons, Green Lanterns, along with a few gods like Zeus, Ares and Artemis from ancient Greek mythology. Conspicuously absent from Darkseid’s attack on earth is Steppenwolf and his electro-ax. It is possible that Steppenwolf didn’t serve Darkseid during that time he set out to conquer Earth; and during the events of Zack Snyder’s Justice League, he’s paying for that deception.
The treachery of an inhumane warlord like Darkseid is a pretty big offense. Desaad even reminds Steppenwolf that he could have stood alongside the New God if not for his “self-pride”. It is conceivable that Steppenwolf once thought, similarly as to how the New Gods Uxas toppled Yuga Khan; that he could take Apokolips from Darkseid. It is obvious that Steppenwolf neglected to show fealty; and that lack of loyalty brought about an expulsion from his home world that has lasted for centuries.
