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Not every bad guy can make the jump from the page to the screen with ease, though. There are a select few that need a perfect runway to land on, and more often than not, they don’t get it. In fact, one Batman villain’s best live-action showing comes in an 11-year-old fan film that doesn’t pull its punches. And if the DC Universe ever wants to do the characters justice, they should take some cues from the project.
Deathstroke: Arkham Assassin Lets the Terminator Loose
Gotham City’s crime lords always have one thing on their mind: taking out Batman. After all, without the Dark Knight, they would be swimming in cash and have every major player in the city in their pockets. Well, in Deathstroke: Arkham Assassin, Black Mask takes matters into his own hands by sending a group of his goons to take the hero off the board. Like everyone before them, they fail spectacularly, running back to their boss with their tails between their legs. Black Mask doesn’t accept failure, so he starts killing. Before he can wrap things up, he gets interrupted by the titular character, Deathstroke, who is willing to face off with Batman for $50 million.
Not wanting to hand over a hefty sum to an unknown quantity, Black Mask requests that his interviewee demonstrate what he’s capable of. A battle breaks out after Deathstroke hands over his weapons, and he doesn’t hold back against his opponents. Blood starts spilling quickly, with the Terminator even going as far as to smash a man’s head with his boot. It’s an impressive display, and by the end, Black Mask doesn’t even care that all his lackeys are dead; he’s just happy to have another missile to send at the Bat. Deathstroke: Arkham Assassin ends there, not showing the battle between Slade Wilson and the Dark Knight, but it leaves behind a blueprint that the DCU can follow.
