''The Guardians of Justice'' (a.k.a. ''Adi Shankar's The Guardians of Justice (Will Save You!)'') is a

Netflix Original Netflix is an American global Internet streaming-on-demand media provider that has distributed a number of original streaming television shows, including original series, specials, miniseries, and documentaries and films. Netflix's original pro ...

live action/

adult animated An adult is a human or other animal that has reached full growth. In human context, the term ''adult'' has meanings associated with social and legal concepts. In contrast to a "minor", a legal adult is a person who has attained the age of majori ...

mixed media In visual art, mixed media describes artwork in which more than one medium or material has been employed. Assemblages, collages, and sculpture are three common examples of art using different media. Materials used to create mixed media art incl ...

superhero television series created, directed, written, and executive produced by

Adi Shankar Aditya Shankar (born January 8, 1985) is an Indian-American film producer, screenwriter, film director, television program creator, television showrunner, and occasional actor. He is best known for ''Dredd'', ''Castlevania'', and his " Bootleg U ...

. The series is a Bootleg Universe production and a satire of

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...

and the

Justice League The Justice League (also known as The Justice League of America) are a team of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #28 (March 1960). The team was conceived ...

starring

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...

Hall of Famer

Diamond Dallas Page Dallas Page (born Page Joseph Falkinburg Jr., April 5, 1956), better known by his ring name Diamond Dallas Page (often stylized as DDP), is an American actor and retired Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. In the course of his wrest ...

as Knight Hawk, a parody of an older grizzled

Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...

. The series was released exclusively on Netflix on March 1, 2022, and marketed as "An Adi Shankar Experience."

Plot

After defeating Robo-Hitler and ending World War III, peace has been maintained on Earth for 40 years thanks to the alien superhero Marvelous Man (

Will Yun Lee William Yun Lee (born March 22, 1971) is an American actor and martial artist. He is best known for his roles as Danny Woo in the supernatural drama ''Witchblade'' and Jae Kim in the sci-fi series '' Bionic Woman''. He has also appeared in th ...

). In 1987, this peace is thrown into chaos with Marvelous Man's death. Marvelous Man's former lieutenant, Knight Hawk (

), investigates his death with the help of the idealistic hero The Speed (

Sharni Vinson Sharni Vinson (born 22 July 1983) is an Australian actress and dancer. She is known for her roles in the television soap opera ''Home and Away'', and in the films '' Bait 3D'', ''Step Up 3D'' and ''You're Next''. Early life Born in Sydney, ...

) in order to prevent a nuclear war and World War IV from breaking out.

Cast

as Knight Hawk (Batman) *

as The Speed (Flash) *

as Marvelous Man (Superman) *

RJ Mitte Roy Frank "RJ" Mitte III (; born August 21, 1992) is an American actor, best known for playing Walter "Flynn" White Jr. on the AMC series ''Breaking Bad'' (2008–2013). Like his character on the show, he has cerebral palsy. After moving to H ...

as Mind Master *

Christopher Judge Douglas Christopher Judge (born October 13, 1964) is an American actor best known for playing Teal'c in the Canadian-American military science fiction television series ''Stargate SG-1,'' and Kratos in the 2018 video game ''God of War'' and its ...

as President Nicholas E. Nukem *

Jane Seymour Jane Seymour (c. 150824 October 1537) was List of English consorts, Queen of England as the third wife of King Henry VIII of England from their Wives of Henry VIII, marriage on 30 May 1536 until her death the next year. She became queen followi ...

as Addison Walker *

Denise Richards Denise Richards (born February 17, 1971) is an American actress, television personality, and former fashion model. Her most recognized roles are Carmen Ibanez in ''Starship Troopers'' (1997), Kelly Van Ryan in '' Wild Things'' (1998) and Bond gi ...

as Laura Louis (Lois Lane) *

Hal Ozsan Halil Özşan (; born 26 October 1976) is a Turkish Cypriot-origin British-American actor, screenwriter and producer. As an actor, he came to prominence for his role as Todd Carr in ''Dawson's Creek''. He has gone on to appear in various series ...

as Van Dawson * John Hennigan as Red Talon (Nightwing/Red Hood) *

Derek Mears Derek Mears (born April 29, 1972) is an American actor and stuntman. Often appearing in horror and science-fiction titles, he came to prominence for portraying Jason Voorhees in the 2009 reboot of '' Friday the 13th''. His film roles also includ ...

as Awesome Man (Captain Marvel/SHAZAM) *

Andy Milonakis Andrew Michael Milonakis (; born January 30, 1976) is an American actor, comedian, rapper, and streamer. He is best known for his work on ''The Andy Milonakis Show'', a sketch comedy series that aired on MTV and MTV2 from 2005 to 2007. Other no ...

as Phil Hart *

Brigitte Nielsen Brigitte Nielsen (; born Gitte Nielsen; 15 July 1963) is a Danish actress, model, and singer. She began her career modelling for Greg Gorman and Helmut Newton. She subsequently acted in the 1985 films ''Red Sonja'' and ''Rocky IV'', later retu ...

as Anubis Queen *

Jackson Rathbone Monroe Jackson Rathbone V (born December 14, 1984) is an American actor, singer, and musician best known for his role as Jasper Hale in ''The Twilight Saga'' film series. From 2008 to 2012, he was the vocalist and occasional guitarist, bassist, ...

as Blue Scream (Black Canary) *

Tiffany Hines Tiffany Hines is an American actress, known for her roles as Birdie Scott in '' Beyond the Break'', Michelle Welton in ''Bones'', Jaden in ''Nikita'', Didi Miller in ''Devious Maids'', Tamar Braxton in '' Toni Braxton: Unbreak My Heart'', Aisha ...

as Black Bow (Green Arrow) *

Kellan Lutz Kellan Christopher Lutz (born March 15, 1985) is an American actor and model. He made his film debut in ''Stick It'' (2006), and is best known for playing Emmett Cullen in ''The Twilight Saga'' film series (2008–2012). He has since played Pos ...

as King Tsunami (Aquaman) *

Zachery Ty Bryan Zachery Ty Bryan (born October 9, 1981) is an American actor and film producer. He is best known for his role as Brad Taylor on the ABC sitcom ''Home Improvement''. He also appeared in the films ''True Heart'' and '' The Fast and the Furious: To ...

as The President's Aid #1 *

Alyson Stoner Alyson Rae Stoner (born August 11, 1993) is an American actress, singer, and dancer. Her film roles include ''Cheaper by the Dozen'' (2003), '' Cheaper by the Dozen 2'' (2005), and the ''Step Up'' franchise (2006–2014). Her television roles i ...

as The President's Aid #2 *

Preeti Desai Preeti Desai is a British actress, supermodel, and former Miss Great Britain. She made history by becoming the first woman of Indian descent to win the title in 2006. Desai made her acting debut with acclaimed film ''Shor in the City'' (2011) a ...

as Golden Goddess (Wonder Woman) *

Edi Gathegi Edi Mūe Gathegi (born March 10, 1979) is a Kenyan-American actor. He appeared as recurring character Dr. Jeffrey Cole (aka "Big Love") in the television series '' House'', as Cheese in the 2007 film ''Gone Baby Gone'', Laurent in the films ''Twi ...

as Mr. Smiles (The Joker)

Episodes

Production

Development

On July 29, 2015,

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

was set to develop "Adi Shankar's Gods And Secrets" with

writing,

showrunning A showrunner (or colloquially a helmer) is the top-level executive producer of a television series production who has creative and management authority through combining the responsibilities of employer and, in comedy or dramas, typically also the ...

and directing the tragic superhero satire. On September 27, 2021, the series became “The Guardians of Justice” with

showrunning the hybrid-animation tragic superhero satire. On October 13, 2021, Shankar revealed that his vision included the use of multiple mediums and tones.

Casting Process

On July 29, 2015,

and

were cast in the series. On September 27, 2021,

, and

were revealed to be in the series. Believing that most artists have a broader range of performance capability than the professional industry classifies them into, Shankar said he wanted to cast the series with an eclectic mix of actors to capture the feeling of the world coming together. Carmen Aiello was the casting director for the entire series and was later credited by Shankar as the first Inclusivity Advocate on a television series.

Animation

On September 27, 2021, Graham Hughes was revealed to be lead graphic designer of the series. On October 13, 2021, Shankar revealed the origin of the multiple mediums were used.

Release

Film Festivals

On October 12, 2021, the series played in competition at the prestigious Canneseries festival in France.

Reception

'' Paste'' wrote that if a viewer can handle the combination of tongue-in-cheek filmmaking and extreme gore, the show was "worth the watch" to see its mixed commentary on the rise of the superhero genre in popular culture.

Decider Decider is both a real word and a "Bushism". It may refer to: * ''Decider'' (website), a pop culture website operated by the ''New York Post'' *'' Bill Maher: The Decider'', a stand-up comedy special * Decider (Turing machine), a Turing machine th ...

recommended the show with a "Stream It" rating, citing the show's "riot of visuals and breathless narrative. Winteriscoming.net praised the show for its "inventive, creative, and fast-paced" approach. Gamerant.com called it a "mixed-media experience that must be seen to be believed."

Comicon.com Richard Veitch (born May 7, 1951) is an American comics artist and writer who has worked in mainstream, underground, and alternative comics. Early life Rick Veitch is a native of the small town of Bellows Falls, Vermont. One of six children, he ...

compared the show to early Hip Hop artists, saying "Just as graffiti will appear as vandalism to some and street art to others ''The Guardians of Justice'' will be a polarizing series"

SportsKeeda Sportskeeda is an Indian sports and esports news website, founded in 2009. It is operated by Absolute Sports Private Limited and owned by Indian video game company Nazara Technologies. The website has news, features, commentary and videos on spo ...

called it "refreshingly unique and made for the present-day audience." MintLounge said of the show "Shankar has created something highly original out of something all too familiar." ReadySteadyCut gave it four out of five stars, saying "Any even remotely geek-savvy viewer will delight in picking up every reference"

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Guardians of Justice, The 2020s American adult animated television series 2020s American animated comedy television series 2020s American satirical television series 2020s American superhero comedy television series 2022 American television series debuts American adult animated comedy television series American adult animated superhero television series Animated satirical television series American television series with live action and animation Animated television series by Netflix English-language Netflix original programming