[For more of Collider’s Best of 2016 lists, clickhere]
2016 was a terrible year to be a human, but it’s actually been a pretty great year to be a superhero fan. From the big screen to the small to whatever Netflix is (the true Dominator, perhaps), there is more superhero content than ever. And, sure, some of it falls short of its iconic source material (likeBatman v. Superman), but much more of it lives up to the hype. Below you’ll find a list (unranked) of the best moments of 2016 from each of the year’s superhero TV shows and movies – some were harder to find than others. And obviously aspoiler warninghere: if you haven’t seen any of these shows or movies, skip on by if you don’t want certain plot points revealed.
Legends of Tomorrow — DC TV Team-Up
WhenSupergirlmoved to The CW for its second season and the Berlanti-verse announced it would be undertaking a four-way crossover between its various superhero-types, we weren’t sure how it would go. Would it be a total mess? In some ways yes, it was, but the result was totally worth any confusion that may have come from having so many characters on screen at once.
Drawing from the Dominator plotline from theInvasion! comic book story arc, the four-way (OK, really three-way) crossover was a classic superhero team-up. There were so many great moments, from everyone meeting Supergirl to the nerds of the respective superhero teams geeking out together, but the absolute best moment came in theLegends of Tomorrowsegment of the crossover, when we finally got to see these superheroes work together to defeat the aliens and save Earth.
No, The CW is never going to be able to compete with blockbuster movies in the visual effects department, but theArrow-verse crossover proved that it’s more important to get characters you care about on the screen together than it is to craft a visually-impressive fight. We’re already counting down to the next DC TV crossover.
Supergirl — Kara & Clark Team Up
As previously noted, whenSupergirlmoved to The CW from CBS, it was unclear if the show would be able to find its footing on the smaller, more demographically-specific channel. We never should have doubted Kara or the Berlanti team.Supergirlflew into Season 2 stronger than ever, giving us a two-part season premiere that featured thebest Superman since Christoper Reeve.
Supergirlgave us whatBatman v. Supermancouldn’t: a Superman who was also a total nerd. Watching Kara and Clark interact as ridiculously nice cousins trying to be there for one another was arguably more exciting than seeing them suit up and save a space shuttle together. Either way, we don’t have to choose.Supergirlproved that it’s possible to tell a story about a complex female superhero who occasionally gets support from her male, superhuman cousin. Clark didn’t take away from Kara’s characterization or heroism. As any El worth their salt knows, we are stronger together.
Runner up moments: Barry visits Kara in National City in “The World’s Finest.” Alex’s coming out story arc — proof that heroism takes many different forms.
The Flash — Welcome to Earth 2
The Flashis arguably the best of the DC TV shows right now. (I could make a strong argument forSupergirl, but will concede thatThe Flashhas an impressive head start.) Thus far, its three-season run has been characterized by a plot-churning pace unlike any other show on TV. From Gorilla Grodd to time travel,The Flashnever met an episode it didn’t think it could squeezeone morecomic book plot element into. When this works, this show is like comic book adaptation crack. When it doesn’t work, well,The Flashstill gets points for trying, if not demerits for giving its viewers a logic headache.
One of the most successful elements of the ever-expandingFlashnarrative has been the inclusion of the Multiverse, a fictional universe that is made up of an infinite number of Earths. Now, it’s one thing forThe Flashto give us a throwaway line about other Earths or even to bring characters from those Earths to Barry’s world. It’s another thing altogether to make Earth-2 a driving narrative force of the second season and to send Barry and Cisco there by Episode 13.
That’s exactly what we saw with Season 2’s “Welcome to Earth 2,” when Barry and Cisco traveled to Earth 2 in an attempt to save Wells’ daughter Jesse from Zoom. The episode not only tied a lot of disparate plot elements together, but gave us a peek into what our favorite characters are like in another world. From Killer Frost to jazz singer Joe West (R.I.P.) to alt-Cisco,The Flashmanaged to turn a potential gimmick into a stakes-laden hour of TV that ended with a killer cliffhanger.The Flashat its best. Comic book TV at its best.
Runner up moments:Jesse becomes speedster Jesse Quick. Our Caitlin begins to manifest Killer Frost-esque powers.
Arrow — The 100th Episode
There aren’t many people who would argue thatArrowis in its prime. The superhero TV show that started an entire CW fictional universe has seen better narrative days. However, that doesn’t discount the fact that its early critical and ratings success helped usher in an era of unashamedly comic book-y superhero TV, a function that has arguably gutted what made this show so great in its first two seasons.
In some ways,Arrowsacrificed its narrative soul to launch the DC TV universe that would later run ahead without it.Arrow’s 100thepisode, which somewhat fittingly was swallowed up by the crossover event, was a celebration of whatArrowwas, while simultaneously a lament to the show it could have been if it hadn’t been forced to go darker and more magical in the wake ofThe Flash’s launch.
Yes, this is a bittersweet superhero moment to highlight. And perhaps I could have chosen one ofArrow’s superior Season 5 fight scenes. The current season ofArrowhas been infinitely better than the previous two. But, for me, the 100thepisode was a fitting tribute toArrow’s contributions to the DC TV universe and superhero TV in general, a reminder of all that was lost whenArrowmoved from a lone wolf to responsible for steadying other superhero TV shows. This list would be a lot shorter without it.
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. — Ghost Rider
When it was announced thatAgents of S.H.I.E.L.D.would be introducing Ghost Rider in Season 4, the news was understandably met with some trepidation. Most people are still trying to wash the taste of the feature film out of their mouth. However, while Season 4 ofS.H.I.E.L.D.hasn’t been its strongest, Robbie Reyes has been a welcome addition to the show, proof that it is possible to stretch the mystical realities of a fictional world without driving it off the deep end. (Sorrynotsorry,Arrow.)
What has worked about Ghost Rider? Firstly, it’s just nice to see such an iconic character on the small screen, and for him to be rendered so impressively on a TV budget with a solid performance from Gabriel Luna, to boot. Past that, it is refreshing thatS.H.I.E.L.D.chose the Robbie Reyes incarnation of the character, and skipped the origin story to give us a fully-formed comic book dude.S.H.I.E.L.D.hasn’t skipped the character work in bringing Robbie Reyes to life, giving Robbie an actual life and people he cares about.S.H.I.E.L.D.continues to be one of the mostdiverse shows on TVand characters like Robbie Reyes are a large part of that.
Runner up moments:S.H.I.E.L.D. defeats Hive. Daisy becomes Quake.
Daredevil — The Staircase Fight
DaredevilSeason 2 didn’t make quite as many waves as its debut season, but the second season of the show was another solid entry from the Netflix Marvel show that does fight sequences like no other comic book-based TV show out there. In the third episode of Season 2,Daredevilarguably topped its “one-shot” fight hallway scene from Season 1 with a “one-shot” stairwell scene featuring Daredevil facing off against an entire motorcycle club’s worth of thugs in the flickering shadows of a NYC apartment building.
The Raid-like fight sequence took three days to shoot, but the result was worth it. Vigilante-ism has never felt as raw, visceral, or brutal as in this four-minute fight scene.
Agent Carter — Lady Heroes & Villains
Maybe I should get more specific with myAgent Cartermoment than the fact that it, you know, existed, but I don’t think I have to. Given the number of superhero TV shows and movies currently in existence, the fact thatAgent Carteris one of only two items on this list that is a female-led property (ensemble dramas don’t count) is disappointing. Without any newJessica Jonesin 2016 and withAgent Cartercanceled, the year was not a great one for female superhero-types.
DespiteAgent Carter’s cancellation, we’ll always have Season 2, which upped the ante when it came to giving us some charismatic, maniacal female villains for Peggy to face off against. Between the return of Soviet assassin Dottie and the introduction of Zero Matter-infected scientist-actress Whitney Frost,Agent Carterproved that women can be compelling, nuanced supervillain and superheroes. Now if only the rest of the superhero media universe would take note.
Gotham — Bruce Confronts His Parents’ Killer
Gothamisn’t the most consistent show on television, but it certainly has its moments. One of those moments? When the showfinallygot around to having Bruce confront his parents’ killer, Matches Malone, in Season 2’s “This Ball of Mud and Meanness.”
The cast ofGothambrings a gravitas to a show that arguably doesn’t deserve it. Nowhere is that clearer than in David Mazouz’s performance as a young Bruce Wayne. Mazouz was in top form for this pivotal scene, which sees Bruce faced with the ultimate question: If given the opportunity to kill his parents’ killer, will he? One thingGothamdoes have going for it is unpredictability, so it’s unclear when watching the scene if the show will actually have its teen character murder a man in cold blood.
Thankfully,Gothamtakes the more measured, morally-interesting road (for once), having Bruce recognize the larger context of his parents’ deaths, even if he doesn’t fully understand why they were killed. “Look at me. I’m a monster. You need to kill me,” Matches tells a steely-eyed Bruce. “I wish you were a monster, but you’re just a man,” Bruce responds, wise and broken beyond his years. In this moment, more than ever before, you can practically see the Batman in him.
Runner up moment:Penguin and Riddler almost have a romance.
Luke Cage — Method Man Raps “Bulletproof Love”
The power and radical importance of having a black, bulletproof hero in a year when the killing of unarmed black men by policemen was finally forced into the public eye cannot be understated.Luke Cagewas arguably the most important superhero TV show or movie of the year, and it didn’t mince words when it came to explaining what it was all about in the very context of the show. Method Man even showed up to make it clear to viewers.
In Episode 12, Method Man goes on a local radio show to throw his support behind Luke Cage, detailing how the superhero saved his life and explaining why we need “a black man that’s bulletproof and unafraid.” The scene launches into the rapper performing his track “Bulletproof Love” over a montage of black men wearing Luke’s signature hoodie (and interacting with the police).
With lines like “Now we got a hero for hire and he a black one” and “Give up my life for Trayvon to have one,” superhero media has never been more relevant thanLuke Cage, which is brave enough to engage with real-life, systemic problems, rather than abstract, supernatural forces.
X-Men: Apocalypse — Jean Grey Embraces Her Inner Phoenix
X-Men: Apocalypsewas a mixed bag of superhero tricks and treats, but Sophie Turner’s Jean Grey was one of the highlights of an otherwise uneven film. What could have felt like an unearned story arc shoved into an overstuffed film, was actually the plot line that saved this messy narrative, by giving the film’s climactic hero moment not to Charles or Erik, but rather to a teen girl.
Turner is perfect as a young Jean Grey. She is standoffish, but likable. A regular teenage girl, though one made guarded by her at-times uncontrollable powers.
Most mainstream media teaches young girls to hide their power, to keep it tight inside and let the men in their life save asked mentee Jean to save them all. And she does, literally melting a god by embracing her Phoenix powers. It is a moment an entire X-Men movie franchise in the making, and the one that gives me the most hope that this prequel series has somewhere interesting to go next.
