Countdown Teasers
so, we all speculated about those Countdown Teasers.
Each one of us has theories, hunches.
So, let´s analyze, compare, discuss, rant....
(I sized the first two down to 1204x768 cause photobucket says that´s that the limit.
If you have links to the bigger pics, leave them here.
Or maybe I will search for them myself, that depends.)
and now for the discussion:
VILLAINS DEFIANT
Well, that´s called forshadowing. I say simply that James is wearing the costume of Axel because you wouldn´t recognize him if he didn´t.
I mean, James doesn´t wear gloves at all.
We would have then a green hand (and an arm clad in black)
with a bare hand (with an arm clad in yellow ).
And that wouldn´t say anything to me.
But please, leave your thoughts. Tell us what you think.
noticable gloves.
no gloves.
See?
Well, here´s what Didio said about this.
*Why did you have to bring ted back up? Twisting the knife?
...unless this is a prologue to who gets resurrected (please Ted) I whish I had a baseball bat, superstrength and Didio when I am in a bad mood.*
so....AND EVIL SHALL INHERIT THE EARTH
official statement: here
my thoughts
Who do we see:
Granny Goodness + Mary Marvel + Eclipso
Martian Manhunter + Joker + Catwoman
Lex Luthor
3 Supermen (Kingdom Come, Cyborg Superman and "just came back from death"-costume Superman. (who turned out to be Super"boy" prime I think)
Trickster I + Desaad + The Penguin.
What do we see:
left to right:
we see a shield behind Granny Goodness.
I read that the shield should symbolize the return of Hippolyta, Diana´s mum. Hint on Amazon Attack and those "woman shelter". Why is it behind Granny?
It is with the first group of three..which is also the female-only group here...
a broken "Green Arrow" on the ground.
Well, things don´t look to well for Oliver Queen here. Or maybe this alludes to Connor Hawke?
My thoughts: This is a symbol for cupid´s arrow. It´s broken, so the relationship between Ollie and Dinah won´t work.
J´onn has a bloody knife
well, besides from the obvious...this could be from the Apostle thing. If he is Judas...
Looks like he rammed the dagger in someone´s back (proverb from home country)
I think it´s a sign for betrayal
joker has a joy buzzer
I would expect something like this from Joker. He has to have a whacky, dangerous toy. And why not use it on Catwoman, Batman´s love interest? (Id that IS selina...) Maybe this should tell us that Joker is a double-crossing bastard that no one can trust, not even his fellow villains. But that he isn´t exactly trustable...we knew that before.
a red box thingy next to Eclipso.
I see a rectangle red box with a golden sun on top. I really don´t know what this is.
This is a mother box. Used by the new gods on New genesis I think.
It lays on the ground = doomed. So, goodbye Fourth World?
some sticks (I want to call them skiing sticks)
dammit, these are skiing sticks and broken skis. I don´t know why there are skis on that page?
the only connection I can made is an opponent from G´nort, called the Scarlet Skier. But these skies are black.
I have no idea.
edit: these could represent the "Death on skis" from Kirby´s fourth world. So, death is no more?
or the fourth world is no more?
a book
isn´t that the crime bible from 52? I thought some freaky cult wanted to sacrifice Batwoman...don´t know why, but they tried to. Isn´t it re-appearing Countdown to Adventure 3?
And: bible pun!!
It looks like it was stabbed (J´onn´s dagger?) and it looks like it´s bleeding.
Kingdom Come Superman has the Palmer-mark on his hand
either Ray is trapped in his hand and tried to get out
or Ray put that mark there. I think in the recent "Search for Ray Palmer" there was a mark like that on Babs...who was a vampire and tried to kill Dick, before he managed to stab her.
Is he eeeeeeeeeeeeevil?
Or is he doomed?
next to Luthor there is some device (Boom Tube?)
don´t know what that is.
Trickster is standing on a torn Superman cape,
seeing someone standing on the torn, ripped cape of a superhero (who is invulnerable)..that´s just a bad sign.
And we may get some hope for Tricks. The official statement "everyone who stands on barren land is doomed" may not apply to Tricks because he´s standing on a cape and NOT on the ground.
next to that is Batman´s cape+cowl
Same as above, bad omen.
and a sword
well, the sword could stand for battle. It´s lying on the ground, but look at the grip. Light reflexes! And it´s still shiny, not rusted, or broken. Things look better for Wondy than for the world´s finest.
AND: the fact that the sword seperates the two capes, this could symbolize a rift between Supes and Bats, caused by Wondy. (yeah, I noticed that I used all three nicknames in one sentence)
Maybe Amazon Attack?
Tricks is holding Piper´s flute
first, it looks more like a clarinet.
1) Piper isn´t in that image because they had enough people for their last supper, and they didn´t want to mess around with the plot lines and crowd too many people here.
2) This is a villain page and Piper is not a villain.
3) He´s supposed to die *lalalalalalala I can´t hear you DENIAL*
4) the clarinet is a symbol that Piper helps Trickster through his crisis
a strange sky (Boom tube? Apokolips?)
aaaaaand Darkseid´s head (analogy to the statue of liberty in the first teaser...or he will die/will lose his reign...you catch my drift.
AND: look at the lights in this picture:
We have light on the shield, on the sword, on the mother box, on the arrow, on the clarinet (flute) and the two capes.
Either that symbolies hope, or that these artifacts belong to good people.
AND: look at what objects we have:
-a sword
- a shield
- an arrow
clearly weapons; classical weapons.
- a mother box; highly developed computer
- a flute (perhaps also a sign of high-tech or maybe a bit "magical", because it is a musical instrumemt first, then a weapon)
...what does that tell us?
Fight? Attack and Defense?
Artifacts:
as
wark_leementioned, there are villains in this picture, but only the artifacts of the good guys!
If that makes Piper in one league with the trinity, a new god...I´m okay with that.
Other theory:
I found a post on
scans_dailywhere
darkchaosx94posted some thoughts:
Here, take a look and here
Characters and poses/positions:
We have three areas:
Front is Luthor;
second is the Granny/Mary/Eclipso -group and the Trickster/Desaad/Pengy- group.
third is J´onn/Joker/Catwoman and the three Supermen
the capes indicate that there is wind blowing from left to right. -----> this direction.
We have a crossroad in the picture:
female group left, T/D/P-group right, and Luthor in the middle of it all. And one street points to us.
Granny Goodness:
left, second area;
she stands on barren ground ...is she doomed?
she seems happy (evil, but happy);
she is rubbing her hands together (points to the sky?)
and she looks at Mary.
proud of Mary? what is she planning?
Mary Marvel:
left, second area;
she is levitating and therefore NOT on barren ground = hope?
she seems confident, satisfied;
her one hand points to the sky and ligthning (Shazam!), the other is on her hips.
she is looking upwards (to the lightning)
she focuses on power...is she corrupted absolutely?
Eclipso:
left, second area;
standing on doom-ground;
she leers (watch that tongue°)
her one hand is around Mary´s taille, the other is on her side, formed as a claw.
she is looking at Mary.
what will she do with Mary?
J´onn:
left, third area;
I can´t see his feet, but I suppose he´s standing on/behind Darkseid´s head
his face is cast in shadows (Judas reference?), his head slightly bowed
with one hand he is holding the dagger, the other makes a fist between Joker and Catwoman.
he is looking down
what has he done?
Joker:
left, third area;
same with J´onn,
he seems happy (does not mean anything), he turns towards Catwoman...but doesn´t he look into the other direction?
His one hand holds the joy-buzzer (threat?) and this looks as a pose of familarity/"friendship"/or "come closer, I´ll tell you a secret"; his other hand points at KC-Superman, doesn´t it?
he looks at Catwoman and he grins (but that doesn´t have to mean anything)
what is he tinking?
Catwoman:
left; third area;
same as above
her face expresses discomfort (no one trusts Joker)
her one hand is at her whip-belt (ready for attack) , the other as a claw (same as Eclipso!)
she is looking at Joker.
whom will she fight?
Luthor:
middle; center!, first area.
he is down on his knees, barren ground; at the crossroads
facial expression: terror, guilt, fear, anguish, he is screaming.
his arms..stigma? crucifixation? and his hands are bleeding...blood on his hands? or his wounds?
he is looking in the sky
what has he witnessed? or what has he done?
Kingdom Come Superman
right, third area;
probably on/behind Darkseid´s head;
he looks upset
he is looking at his hand with Palmer-mark
...is that heat vision? are the eyes red?
Cyborg Superman
right; third area;
same as above
he looks pretty sinister, but I can´t interpret his face.
his metal hand is forming a fist; I can´t see the other one
he is looking at the other Superman
Superman Prime
right; third area;
same as above
he looks ...I want to say TRAITOR
he is whispering something to Cyborg Superman; a secret?
his hand is in "whisper"-pose, the other one on his hip (Mary Marvel pose?)
he is looking at Cyborg Superman
I say Conspiracy.
Trickster:
right, second area;
standing on Superman´s cape; not doomed?
he looks pretty upset....and it´s not a good omen when Trickster is NOT smiling
he hold the flute and points to Luthor
he is looking either at Pengy´s hat or in the group
He is the TRICKSTER...what can we expect from him?
Desaad:
right, second area
barren ground.
he is smiling, he is evil-happy.
he has his arms crosssed; not pointing at anyone or making a special gesture
he´s looking at Luthor
Penguin:
right, second area;
standing on Bat´s cape (doomed or not? same as Trickster?)
he looks neutral
he points to Luthor (or maybe the strange device?), his other hand holds one umbrella
he is looking at Luthor..I think
Costumes:
what is the deal with the costumes?
First thing you notice is that Trickster (James) is wearing the wrong costume! It belongs to the second Trickster.
WHY?
Then Superman Prime?
wasn´t that Superman´s -just -back -from -the -dead-healing suit?
Is he wearing the costume of a dead man, or should this symbolize healing?
I don´t know the costumes so well that I could interpret further, but what do you say?
Anything wrong about other costumes?
Variations? Modifications?
LAST SUPPER
Now: this picture resembles the Last Supper by Leonardo. We have triple groups of persons, and one "Jesus" in the middle.
if we go from right to left and identify the persons with the apostels we get:
Granny Goodness = Bartholomew
" he was flayed alive and then crucified upside down. This fate has led to him being adopted as the patron saint of tanners." (wikipedia)
He was a martyr. Does that apply to Granny? Foreshawdowing?
Or does it mean nothing because the poses don´t match?
...but at least the clothes match. Same color^^
Mary Marvel = James, son of Alphaeus
" He is reported to have been martyred by crucifixion at Ostrakine in Lower Egypt, where he was preaching the Gospel. A carpenter's saw is the symbol associated with him in Christian art because it is also noted that his body was later sawed to pieces" (wikipedia)
another martyr...this time sawed to pieces. Future´s not looking so bright for little Mary, huh?
besides a similar haircut I see no resemblance. Not the clothes, not the pose...
Eclipso= Andrew
"He is said to have been martyred by crucifixion at Patras (Patrae) in Achaea, on a cross of the form called Crux decussata (X-shaped cross) and commonly known as "St. Andrew's cross", at his own request, as he deemed himself unworthy to be crucified on the same type of cross on which Christ was crucified." (wikipedia)
..and he was a fisherman.
ok....
...I don´t they´re connected.
J´onn= Judas
this is big. BIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGGGGG! J´onn a betrayer?
first clue is the knife he´s holding. The surname "Ischariot" is supposed to mean "dagger"
then the fact that he´s on the villain page. Baaaaaaad sign.
what Judas did:
"betrayed Jesus for a bribe of "thirty pieces of silver" by identifying him with a kiss-the "kiss of Judas"-to arresting soldiers "
what did I tell you? baaaaaaad
how Judas died:
1) "The traditional Christian explanation is that Judas hanged himself in the field, and afterwards the rope snapped, and his body burst open on the ground" (wikipedia)
2) "it is implied that the other Apostles stoned him to death for his perceived betrayal." (wikipedia) ...ouch.
Joker= Peter
"Peter's role as the "keeper of the keys of the kingdom of heaven" (wikipedia) HINT? Joker is the solution to all this?
"Jesus said unto him, "Verily I say unto thee, That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice."
Joker denying Lex-Jesus? I can totally buy that.
"According to John, Peter cut off the ear of a servant of the high priest with a sword at the time of the arrest of Jesus(wikipedia)
I can believe that. Joker cutting off someone´s ear. yep
"'Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church" (wikipedia) ...what to say to this?
"Peter asks Jesus to "make Mary leave us, for females don't deserve life." (wikipedia) he means Mary Magdalena...
Peter appears to be jealous of "Mary" (probably Mary Magdalene). He says to the other disciples "Did He really speak privately with a woman and not openly to us? Are we to turn about and all listen to her? Did He prefer her to us?" (wikipedia)
well, it is rumored that the person next to Peter in the Last Supper is not John, but Mary Magdalena (now combine these sentences with the knife in his hand, put Mary next to him.....)
and a special:
in the last supper, it´s not Judas with the knife, it´s PETER (Joker)
so, if we associate Joker with "key", "knife" and his obvious dislike of Maria Magdalene (who may or may not be Catwoman)...I -can- see that happen.
Catwoman = John (although it is rumored that this person is Maria Magdalena) (I bet you read Dan Brown)
"he and the Virgin Mary moved to Ephesus, where both eventually died" ...
"John was banished (presumably to Patmos) after being plunged into boiling oil in Rome and suffering nothing from it"
but the most important:
"the disciple whom Jesus loved". Faithful to the very end and beyond...
to Jesus-Lex?
John was the only apostle to live till old age and who was NOT martyred
And the next question: is that Selena? Holly?
yup. Resemblance.
Lex = Jesus
Well...savior of mankind? Son of God? LEX?
Well, he tried something like that in Justice. But...no. Just no.
But the blood. Either it is literally "blood on his hands" or this could be a refernce to stigmata and crucifixation.
the poses don´t match. The colors don´t match. The hair doesn´t match.
(ok, th poses can be intepreted as similar, but Jesus is pointing to something...Lex isn´t.)
I don´t know if that was always a part of his costume, but the X on his chest...maybe a Saint Andrew´s Cross?
Superman (KC) = Thomas
"In Thomas's best known appearance in the New Testament, John 20:24-29, he doubts the resurrection of Jesus and demands to feel Jesus' wounds before being convinced. Caravaggio's painting, The Incredulity of Saint Thomas (illustration above), depicts this scene. This story is the origin of the term Doubting Thomas. After seeing Jesus alive (the Bible never states whether Thomas actually touched Christ's wounds), Thomas professed his faith in Jesus, exclaiming "My Lord and my God!"; on this account he is also called Thomas the Believer."(wikipedia)
so we have a transformation from a doubter to a believer.
well, they both look upset.
Cyborg Superman= James the Greater
"making him one of the patron saints of pilgrimage" (wikipedia)
"The Acts of the Apostles 12:1-2 records that King Herod had James executed by sword"
and who is King Herod now?
but a very interesting thing:
"he miraculously appeared to fight for the Christian army " (wikipedia)
"St James the Moorslayer, one of the most valiant saints and knights the world ever had ... has been given by God to Spain for its patron and protection."
he is a saint and protector..but for whon?
I don´t say that they look like each other. I think I´d be terrified if they would. ....but they do, a bit.
Superman Prime (Ok if I call him that?) = Phillip
"He was martyred by crucifixion in the city of Hierapolis"(wikipedia)
(ok, I´m now a point where I have to ask: Which apostle did NOT die as a martyr?)
"Philip and Bartholomew were then crucified upsidedown, and Philip preached from his cross. As a result of Philip's preaching the crowd released Bartholomew from his cross, but Philip insisted that they not release him, and Philip died on the cross."(wikipedia)
...not so much look-alikes, are they?
Trickster = Matthew
"He is usually depicted with a winged man,"(wikipedia)
well, Matthew, one of the evangelists. Each one of them is symbolied by an animal. Trickster´s "animal" is an angel.
What should that tell us?
the poses match. 1:1.
Desaad = Jude Thaddeus
"Saint Jude's attribute is a club. He is also often shown in icons with a flame around his head. This represents his presence at Pentecost, when he received the Holy Spirit with the other apostles. Occasionally he is represented holding an axe or halberd, as he was brought to death by one of these weapons. In some instances he may be shown with a scroll or a book (the Epistle of Jude) or holding a carpenter's rule." (wikipedia)
"Tradition has it that Jude's father, Clopas, was murdered because of his forthright and outspoken devotion to the risen Christ" (wikipedia) *hint Darkseid?*
"Saint Jude suffered martyrdom about AD 65 together with the apostle Simon the Zealot, with whom he is usually connected" (wikipedia)
If Simon is supposed to be Penguin.....I wonder...
flames? weapson?...yep, reminds me of Apokolips and Desaad.
Desaad looks in the wrong. direction.
Penguin = Simon the Zealot
"Simon is often associated with St. Jude as a proselytizing team; they share their feast day on 28 October. The most widespread tradition is that after evangelizing in Egypt, he joined Jude in Persia and Armenia, where both were martyred" (wikipedia)
"he travelled in the Middle East and Africa; another says he visited Britain -- possibly Glastonbury -- and was martyred in modern-day Lincolnshire. Another, doubtless inspired by his title "the Zealot", states that he was involved in a Jewish revolt against the Romans, which was brutally suppressed." (wikipedia)
"In art, Simon has the identifying attribute of a saw because he was put to death by a saw" (wikipedia)
and another painful death for the apostles
well, that much I can say for Pengy.
I don´t think he´s teaming up with Desaad, I don´t think he´s going to be a great revoluzzer and...ok, maybe he will be murdered with a saw.
That was the Villains= Apostles theory.
Some parts seem to fit, some don´t.
So, if the villains ARE the saints...what are the heroes?
Trinity
"The painting contains several references to the number 3, which may be an allusion to the Holy Trinity. The Apostles are seated in groupings of three; there are three windows behind Jesus; and the shape of Jesus' figure resembles a triangle." (wikipedia)
who has not thought of the DC triangle here? Superman, Wonderwoman, Batman
we have Supe´s cape, Batman´s cowl and WW´s sword here.
the teaser is clearly planned as a "pun" on three; it follows the Last Supper in this part.
It could allude to the celtic idea of holy trinity (virgin, mother....grandmother/old woman), but I doubt it.
Villains
In this, we have villains only. As Apostles.
About Trickster holding Piper´s flute:
actually it´s more a clarinet than a flute
My personal theory. Piper isn´t in this pic because he´s not a villain. NOT DEAD!
Flaws in this theory:
Not sure about Catwoman and Trickster. Trickster´s appearence can be excused by the fact that he´s THE Trickster. He can leave whenever he wants to.
Evangelists
Well, we had Trickster as Matthew; whose symbol is the winged man (Angel)
we had John, whose symbol is the eagle. (Catwoman)
Mark has the lion
Luke with the bull
What do you think of this symbolism?
Both, Trickster and Catwoman, whom I believe to be not really villains have avatars capable of flight. Ascension (if biblical or not) is always a positive sign.
(for example, love can lift you up.
Sorrow can depress you (press you down). Like a heavy weight on your shoulders.)
So basically, up is good. And down is bad.
Tricks and Catwoman can go up = good sign?
LAST SUPPER
From wikipedia:
"
The Last Supper specifically portrays the reaction given by each apostle when Jesus said one of them would betray him. All twelve apostles have different reactions to the news, with various degrees of anger and shock. From left to right:
These names are all agreed upon by art historians. In the 19th century, a manuscript (The Notebooks Leonardo Da Vinci pg. 232) was found with their names; before this only Judas, Peter, John and Jesus were positively identified.
In common with other depictions of The Last Supper from this period, Leonardo adopts the convention of seating the diners on one side of the table, so that none of them have their backs to us. However, most previous depictions had typically excluded Judas by placing him alone on the opposite side of the table from the other eleven disciples and Jesus. Another technique commonly used was placing halos around all the disciples except Judas. Leonardo creates a more dramatic and realistic effect by having Judas lean back into shadow. He also creates a realistic and psychologically engaging means to explain why Judas takes the bread at the same time as Jesus, just after Jesus has predicted that this is what his betrayer will do. Jesus is shown saying this to Saints Thomas and James to his left, who react in horror as Jesus points with his left hand to a piece of bread before them. Distracted by the conversation between John and Peter, Judas reaches for a different piece of bread, as, unseen by him, Jesus too stretches out with his right hand towards it. All of the angles and lighting draw attention to Christ.
The painting contains several references to the number 3, which may be an allusion to the Holy Trinity. The Apostles are seated in groupings of three; there are three windows behind Jesus; and the shape of Jesus' figure resembles a triangle. There may have been many other references that have since been lost to the painting's deterioration."
edit: still under construction. computer isn´t stable these days and I need to save this before my pc shuts itself down again
Each one of us has theories, hunches.
So, let´s analyze, compare, discuss, rant....
(I sized the first two down to 1204x768 cause photobucket says that´s that the limit.
If you have links to the bigger pics, leave them here.
Or maybe I will search for them myself, that depends.)
and now for the discussion:
VILLAINS DEFIANT
Well, that´s called forshadowing. I say simply that James is wearing the costume of Axel because you wouldn´t recognize him if he didn´t.
I mean, James doesn´t wear gloves at all.
We would have then a green hand (and an arm clad in black)
with a bare hand (with an arm clad in yellow ).
And that wouldn´t say anything to me.
But please, leave your thoughts. Tell us what you think.
noticable gloves.
no gloves.
See?
Well, here´s what Didio said about this.
*Why did you have to bring ted back up? Twisting the knife?
...unless this is a prologue to who gets resurrected (please Ted) I whish I had a baseball bat, superstrength and Didio when I am in a bad mood.*
so....AND EVIL SHALL INHERIT THE EARTH
official statement: here
my thoughts
Who do we see:
Granny Goodness + Mary Marvel + Eclipso
Martian Manhunter + Joker + Catwoman
Lex Luthor
3 Supermen (Kingdom Come, Cyborg Superman and "just came back from death"-costume Superman. (who turned out to be Super"boy" prime I think)
Trickster I + Desaad + The Penguin.
What do we see:
left to right:
we see a shield behind Granny Goodness.
I read that the shield should symbolize the return of Hippolyta, Diana´s mum. Hint on Amazon Attack and those "woman shelter". Why is it behind Granny?
It is with the first group of three..which is also the female-only group here...
a broken "Green Arrow" on the ground.
Well, things don´t look to well for Oliver Queen here. Or maybe this alludes to Connor Hawke?
My thoughts: This is a symbol for cupid´s arrow. It´s broken, so the relationship between Ollie and Dinah won´t work.
J´onn has a bloody knife
well, besides from the obvious...this could be from the Apostle thing. If he is Judas...
Looks like he rammed the dagger in someone´s back (proverb from home country)
I think it´s a sign for betrayal
joker has a joy buzzer
I would expect something like this from Joker. He has to have a whacky, dangerous toy. And why not use it on Catwoman, Batman´s love interest? (Id that IS selina...) Maybe this should tell us that Joker is a double-crossing bastard that no one can trust, not even his fellow villains. But that he isn´t exactly trustable...we knew that before.
a red box thingy next to Eclipso.
I see a rectangle red box with a golden sun on top. I really don´t know what this is.
This is a mother box. Used by the new gods on New genesis I think.
It lays on the ground = doomed. So, goodbye Fourth World?
some sticks (I want to call them skiing sticks)
dammit, these are skiing sticks and broken skis. I don´t know why there are skis on that page?
the only connection I can made is an opponent from G´nort, called the Scarlet Skier. But these skies are black.
I have no idea.
edit: these could represent the "Death on skis" from Kirby´s fourth world. So, death is no more?
or the fourth world is no more?
a book
isn´t that the crime bible from 52? I thought some freaky cult wanted to sacrifice Batwoman...don´t know why, but they tried to. Isn´t it re-appearing Countdown to Adventure 3?
And: bible pun!!
It looks like it was stabbed (J´onn´s dagger?) and it looks like it´s bleeding.
Kingdom Come Superman has the Palmer-mark on his hand
either Ray is trapped in his hand and tried to get out
or Ray put that mark there. I think in the recent "Search for Ray Palmer" there was a mark like that on Babs...who was a vampire and tried to kill Dick, before he managed to stab her.
Is he eeeeeeeeeeeeevil?
Or is he doomed?
next to Luthor there is some device (Boom Tube?)
don´t know what that is.
Trickster is standing on a torn Superman cape,
seeing someone standing on the torn, ripped cape of a superhero (who is invulnerable)..that´s just a bad sign.
And we may get some hope for Tricks. The official statement "everyone who stands on barren land is doomed" may not apply to Tricks because he´s standing on a cape and NOT on the ground.
next to that is Batman´s cape+cowl
Same as above, bad omen.
and a sword
well, the sword could stand for battle. It´s lying on the ground, but look at the grip. Light reflexes! And it´s still shiny, not rusted, or broken. Things look better for Wondy than for the world´s finest.
AND: the fact that the sword seperates the two capes, this could symbolize a rift between Supes and Bats, caused by Wondy. (yeah, I noticed that I used all three nicknames in one sentence)
Maybe Amazon Attack?
Tricks is holding Piper´s flute
first, it looks more like a clarinet.
1) Piper isn´t in that image because they had enough people for their last supper, and they didn´t want to mess around with the plot lines and crowd too many people here.
2) This is a villain page and Piper is not a villain.
3) He´s supposed to die *lalalalalalala I can´t hear you DENIAL*
4) the clarinet is a symbol that Piper helps Trickster through his crisis
a strange sky (Boom tube? Apokolips?)
aaaaaand Darkseid´s head (analogy to the statue of liberty in the first teaser...or he will die/will lose his reign...you catch my drift.
AND: look at the lights in this picture:
We have light on the shield, on the sword, on the mother box, on the arrow, on the clarinet (flute) and the two capes.
Either that symbolies hope, or that these artifacts belong to good people.
AND: look at what objects we have:
-a sword
- a shield
- an arrow
clearly weapons; classical weapons.
- a mother box; highly developed computer
- a flute (perhaps also a sign of high-tech or maybe a bit "magical", because it is a musical instrumemt first, then a weapon)
...what does that tell us?
Fight? Attack and Defense?
Artifacts:
as
wark_leementioned, there are villains in this picture, but only the artifacts of the good guys!
If that makes Piper in one league with the trinity, a new god...I´m okay with that.
Other theory:
I found a post on
scans_dailywhere
darkchaosx94posted some thoughts:
Here, take a look and here
Characters and poses/positions:
We have three areas:
Front is Luthor;
second is the Granny/Mary/Eclipso -group and the Trickster/Desaad/Pengy- group.
third is J´onn/Joker/Catwoman and the three Supermen
the capes indicate that there is wind blowing from left to right. -----> this direction.
We have a crossroad in the picture:
female group left, T/D/P-group right, and Luthor in the middle of it all. And one street points to us.
Granny Goodness:
left, second area;
she stands on barren ground ...is she doomed?
she seems happy (evil, but happy);
she is rubbing her hands together (points to the sky?)
and she looks at Mary.
proud of Mary? what is she planning?
Mary Marvel:
left, second area;
she is levitating and therefore NOT on barren ground = hope?
she seems confident, satisfied;
her one hand points to the sky and ligthning (Shazam!), the other is on her hips.
she is looking upwards (to the lightning)
she focuses on power...is she corrupted absolutely?
Eclipso:
left, second area;
standing on doom-ground;
she leers (watch that tongue°)
her one hand is around Mary´s taille, the other is on her side, formed as a claw.
she is looking at Mary.
what will she do with Mary?
J´onn:
left, third area;
I can´t see his feet, but I suppose he´s standing on/behind Darkseid´s head
his face is cast in shadows (Judas reference?), his head slightly bowed
with one hand he is holding the dagger, the other makes a fist between Joker and Catwoman.
he is looking down
what has he done?
Joker:
left, third area;
same with J´onn,
he seems happy (does not mean anything), he turns towards Catwoman...but doesn´t he look into the other direction?
His one hand holds the joy-buzzer (threat?) and this looks as a pose of familarity/"friendship"/or "come closer, I´ll tell you a secret"; his other hand points at KC-Superman, doesn´t it?
he looks at Catwoman and he grins (but that doesn´t have to mean anything)
what is he tinking?
Catwoman:
left; third area;
same as above
her face expresses discomfort (no one trusts Joker)
her one hand is at her whip-belt (ready for attack) , the other as a claw (same as Eclipso!)
she is looking at Joker.
whom will she fight?
Luthor:
middle; center!, first area.
he is down on his knees, barren ground; at the crossroads
facial expression: terror, guilt, fear, anguish, he is screaming.
his arms..stigma? crucifixation? and his hands are bleeding...blood on his hands? or his wounds?
he is looking in the sky
what has he witnessed? or what has he done?
Kingdom Come Superman
right, third area;
probably on/behind Darkseid´s head;
he looks upset
he is looking at his hand with Palmer-mark
...is that heat vision? are the eyes red?
Cyborg Superman
right; third area;
same as above
he looks pretty sinister, but I can´t interpret his face.
his metal hand is forming a fist; I can´t see the other one
he is looking at the other Superman
Superman Prime
right; third area;
same as above
he looks ...I want to say TRAITOR
he is whispering something to Cyborg Superman; a secret?
his hand is in "whisper"-pose, the other one on his hip (Mary Marvel pose?)
he is looking at Cyborg Superman
I say Conspiracy.
Trickster:
right, second area;
standing on Superman´s cape; not doomed?
he looks pretty upset....and it´s not a good omen when Trickster is NOT smiling
he hold the flute and points to Luthor
he is looking either at Pengy´s hat or in the group
He is the TRICKSTER...what can we expect from him?
Desaad:
right, second area
barren ground.
he is smiling, he is evil-happy.
he has his arms crosssed; not pointing at anyone or making a special gesture
he´s looking at Luthor
Penguin:
right, second area;
standing on Bat´s cape (doomed or not? same as Trickster?)
he looks neutral
he points to Luthor (or maybe the strange device?), his other hand holds one umbrella
he is looking at Luthor..I think
Costumes:
what is the deal with the costumes?
First thing you notice is that Trickster (James) is wearing the wrong costume! It belongs to the second Trickster.
WHY?
Then Superman Prime?
wasn´t that Superman´s -just -back -from -the -dead-healing suit?
Is he wearing the costume of a dead man, or should this symbolize healing?
I don´t know the costumes so well that I could interpret further, but what do you say?
Anything wrong about other costumes?
Variations? Modifications?
LAST SUPPER
Now: this picture resembles the Last Supper by Leonardo. We have triple groups of persons, and one "Jesus" in the middle.
if we go from right to left and identify the persons with the apostels we get:
Granny Goodness = Bartholomew
" he was flayed alive and then crucified upside down. This fate has led to him being adopted as the patron saint of tanners." (wikipedia)
He was a martyr. Does that apply to Granny? Foreshawdowing?
Or does it mean nothing because the poses don´t match?
...but at least the clothes match. Same color^^
Mary Marvel = James, son of Alphaeus
" He is reported to have been martyred by crucifixion at Ostrakine in Lower Egypt, where he was preaching the Gospel. A carpenter's saw is the symbol associated with him in Christian art because it is also noted that his body was later sawed to pieces" (wikipedia)
another martyr...this time sawed to pieces. Future´s not looking so bright for little Mary, huh?
besides a similar haircut I see no resemblance. Not the clothes, not the pose...
Eclipso= Andrew
"He is said to have been martyred by crucifixion at Patras (Patrae) in Achaea, on a cross of the form called Crux decussata (X-shaped cross) and commonly known as "St. Andrew's cross", at his own request, as he deemed himself unworthy to be crucified on the same type of cross on which Christ was crucified." (wikipedia)
..and he was a fisherman.
ok....
...I don´t they´re connected.
J´onn= Judas
this is big. BIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGGGGG! J´onn a betrayer?
first clue is the knife he´s holding. The surname "Ischariot" is supposed to mean "dagger"
then the fact that he´s on the villain page. Baaaaaaad sign.
what Judas did:
"betrayed Jesus for a bribe of "thirty pieces of silver" by identifying him with a kiss-the "kiss of Judas"-to arresting soldiers "
what did I tell you? baaaaaaad
how Judas died:
1) "The traditional Christian explanation is that Judas hanged himself in the field, and afterwards the rope snapped, and his body burst open on the ground" (wikipedia)
2) "it is implied that the other Apostles stoned him to death for his perceived betrayal." (wikipedia) ...ouch.
Joker= Peter
"Peter's role as the "keeper of the keys of the kingdom of heaven" (wikipedia) HINT? Joker is the solution to all this?
"Jesus said unto him, "Verily I say unto thee, That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice."
Joker denying Lex-Jesus? I can totally buy that.
"According to John, Peter cut off the ear of a servant of the high priest with a sword at the time of the arrest of Jesus(wikipedia)
I can believe that. Joker cutting off someone´s ear. yep
"'Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church" (wikipedia) ...what to say to this?
"Peter asks Jesus to "make Mary leave us, for females don't deserve life." (wikipedia) he means Mary Magdalena...
Peter appears to be jealous of "Mary" (probably Mary Magdalene). He says to the other disciples "Did He really speak privately with a woman and not openly to us? Are we to turn about and all listen to her? Did He prefer her to us?" (wikipedia)
well, it is rumored that the person next to Peter in the Last Supper is not John, but Mary Magdalena (now combine these sentences with the knife in his hand, put Mary next to him.....)
and a special:
in the last supper, it´s not Judas with the knife, it´s PETER (Joker)
so, if we associate Joker with "key", "knife" and his obvious dislike of Maria Magdalene (who may or may not be Catwoman)...I -can- see that happen.
Catwoman = John (although it is rumored that this person is Maria Magdalena) (I bet you read Dan Brown)
"he and the Virgin Mary moved to Ephesus, where both eventually died" ...
"John was banished (presumably to Patmos) after being plunged into boiling oil in Rome and suffering nothing from it"
but the most important:
"the disciple whom Jesus loved". Faithful to the very end and beyond...
to Jesus-Lex?
John was the only apostle to live till old age and who was NOT martyred
And the next question: is that Selena? Holly?
yup. Resemblance.
Lex = Jesus
Well...savior of mankind? Son of God? LEX?
Well, he tried something like that in Justice. But...no. Just no.
But the blood. Either it is literally "blood on his hands" or this could be a refernce to stigmata and crucifixation.
the poses don´t match. The colors don´t match. The hair doesn´t match.
(ok, th poses can be intepreted as similar, but Jesus is pointing to something...Lex isn´t.)
I don´t know if that was always a part of his costume, but the X on his chest...maybe a Saint Andrew´s Cross?
Superman (KC) = Thomas
"In Thomas's best known appearance in the New Testament, John 20:24-29, he doubts the resurrection of Jesus and demands to feel Jesus' wounds before being convinced. Caravaggio's painting, The Incredulity of Saint Thomas (illustration above), depicts this scene. This story is the origin of the term Doubting Thomas. After seeing Jesus alive (the Bible never states whether Thomas actually touched Christ's wounds), Thomas professed his faith in Jesus, exclaiming "My Lord and my God!"; on this account he is also called Thomas the Believer."(wikipedia)
so we have a transformation from a doubter to a believer.
well, they both look upset.
Cyborg Superman= James the Greater
"making him one of the patron saints of pilgrimage" (wikipedia)
"The Acts of the Apostles 12:1-2 records that King Herod had James executed by sword"
and who is King Herod now?
but a very interesting thing:
"he miraculously appeared to fight for the Christian army " (wikipedia)
"St James the Moorslayer, one of the most valiant saints and knights the world ever had ... has been given by God to Spain for its patron and protection."
he is a saint and protector..but for whon?
I don´t say that they look like each other. I think I´d be terrified if they would. ....but they do, a bit.
Superman Prime (Ok if I call him that?) = Phillip
"He was martyred by crucifixion in the city of Hierapolis"(wikipedia)
(ok, I´m now a point where I have to ask: Which apostle did NOT die as a martyr?)
"Philip and Bartholomew were then crucified upsidedown, and Philip preached from his cross. As a result of Philip's preaching the crowd released Bartholomew from his cross, but Philip insisted that they not release him, and Philip died on the cross."(wikipedia)
...not so much look-alikes, are they?
Trickster = Matthew
"He is usually depicted with a winged man,"(wikipedia)
well, Matthew, one of the evangelists. Each one of them is symbolied by an animal. Trickster´s "animal" is an angel.
What should that tell us?
the poses match. 1:1.
Desaad = Jude Thaddeus
"Saint Jude's attribute is a club. He is also often shown in icons with a flame around his head. This represents his presence at Pentecost, when he received the Holy Spirit with the other apostles. Occasionally he is represented holding an axe or halberd, as he was brought to death by one of these weapons. In some instances he may be shown with a scroll or a book (the Epistle of Jude) or holding a carpenter's rule." (wikipedia)
"Tradition has it that Jude's father, Clopas, was murdered because of his forthright and outspoken devotion to the risen Christ" (wikipedia) *hint Darkseid?*
"Saint Jude suffered martyrdom about AD 65 together with the apostle Simon the Zealot, with whom he is usually connected" (wikipedia)
If Simon is supposed to be Penguin.....I wonder...
flames? weapson?...yep, reminds me of Apokolips and Desaad.
Desaad looks in the wrong. direction.
Penguin = Simon the Zealot
"Simon is often associated with St. Jude as a proselytizing team; they share their feast day on 28 October. The most widespread tradition is that after evangelizing in Egypt, he joined Jude in Persia and Armenia, where both were martyred" (wikipedia)
"he travelled in the Middle East and Africa; another says he visited Britain -- possibly Glastonbury -- and was martyred in modern-day Lincolnshire. Another, doubtless inspired by his title "the Zealot", states that he was involved in a Jewish revolt against the Romans, which was brutally suppressed." (wikipedia)
"In art, Simon has the identifying attribute of a saw because he was put to death by a saw" (wikipedia)
and another painful death for the apostles
well, that much I can say for Pengy.
I don´t think he´s teaming up with Desaad, I don´t think he´s going to be a great revoluzzer and...ok, maybe he will be murdered with a saw.
That was the Villains= Apostles theory.
Some parts seem to fit, some don´t.
So, if the villains ARE the saints...what are the heroes?
Trinity
"The painting contains several references to the number 3, which may be an allusion to the Holy Trinity. The Apostles are seated in groupings of three; there are three windows behind Jesus; and the shape of Jesus' figure resembles a triangle." (wikipedia)
who has not thought of the DC triangle here? Superman, Wonderwoman, Batman
we have Supe´s cape, Batman´s cowl and WW´s sword here.
the teaser is clearly planned as a "pun" on three; it follows the Last Supper in this part.
It could allude to the celtic idea of holy trinity (virgin, mother....grandmother/old woman), but I doubt it.
Villains
In this, we have villains only. As Apostles.
About Trickster holding Piper´s flute:
actually it´s more a clarinet than a flute
My personal theory. Piper isn´t in this pic because he´s not a villain. NOT DEAD!
Flaws in this theory:
Not sure about Catwoman and Trickster. Trickster´s appearence can be excused by the fact that he´s THE Trickster. He can leave whenever he wants to.
Evangelists
Well, we had Trickster as Matthew; whose symbol is the winged man (Angel)
we had John, whose symbol is the eagle. (Catwoman)
Mark has the lion
Luke with the bull
What do you think of this symbolism?
Both, Trickster and Catwoman, whom I believe to be not really villains have avatars capable of flight. Ascension (if biblical or not) is always a positive sign.
(for example, love can lift you up.
Sorrow can depress you (press you down). Like a heavy weight on your shoulders.)
So basically, up is good. And down is bad.
Tricks and Catwoman can go up = good sign?
LAST SUPPER
From wikipedia:
"
The Last Supper specifically portrays the reaction given by each apostle when Jesus said one of them would betray him. All twelve apostles have different reactions to the news, with various degrees of anger and shock. From left to right:
- Bartholomew, James, son of Alphaeus and Andrew form a group of three, all are surprised.
- Judas Iscariot, Peter and John form another group of three. Judas is wearing green and blue and is in shadow, looking rather withdrawn and taken aback by the sudden revelation of his plan. He is clutching a small bag, perhaps signifying the silver given to him as payment to betray Jesus, or perhaps a reference to his role within the 12 disciples as treasurer. He is not the only person to have his elbow on the table; the painting also shows Jude Iscariot with his elbow on the table, traditionally a sign of bad manners. Peter looks angry and is holding a knife pointed away from Christ, perhaps foreshadowing his violent reaction in Gethsemane during Jesus' arrest. The youngest apostle, John, appears to swoon.
- Thomas, James the Greater and Philip are the next group of three. Thomas is clearly upset; James the Greater looks stunned, with his arms in the air. Meanwhile, Philip appears to be requesting some explanation.
- Matthew, Jude Thaddeus and Simon the Zealot are the final group of three. Both Jude Thaddeus and Matthew are turned toward Simon, perhaps to find out if he has any answer to their initial questions.
These names are all agreed upon by art historians. In the 19th century, a manuscript (The Notebooks Leonardo Da Vinci pg. 232) was found with their names; before this only Judas, Peter, John and Jesus were positively identified.
In common with other depictions of The Last Supper from this period, Leonardo adopts the convention of seating the diners on one side of the table, so that none of them have their backs to us. However, most previous depictions had typically excluded Judas by placing him alone on the opposite side of the table from the other eleven disciples and Jesus. Another technique commonly used was placing halos around all the disciples except Judas. Leonardo creates a more dramatic and realistic effect by having Judas lean back into shadow. He also creates a realistic and psychologically engaging means to explain why Judas takes the bread at the same time as Jesus, just after Jesus has predicted that this is what his betrayer will do. Jesus is shown saying this to Saints Thomas and James to his left, who react in horror as Jesus points with his left hand to a piece of bread before them. Distracted by the conversation between John and Peter, Judas reaches for a different piece of bread, as, unseen by him, Jesus too stretches out with his right hand towards it. All of the angles and lighting draw attention to Christ.
The painting contains several references to the number 3, which may be an allusion to the Holy Trinity. The Apostles are seated in groupings of three; there are three windows behind Jesus; and the shape of Jesus' figure resembles a triangle. There may have been many other references that have since been lost to the painting's deterioration."
edit: still under construction. computer isn´t stable these days and I need to save this before my pc shuts itself down again