DCAU

A place for people to debate whether or not the DCAU is an official thing or not. I think it is, but some others on here don’t agree.

I suppose it’s all in a definition. I find it interesting that even the Wikipedia page notes to a “DCAU” and points to a “DCAOM” which also includes movies that reference and/or have recurring characters and/or use some of the same voice actors for the same character. Of course even with those two it still leaves a lot of DC animated series in “limbo”. Not to mention that Bruce Timm has been involved in any number of these non-DCAU projects.

I think people have become jealous of the success of Marvel’s Cinematice Universe, completely forgetting that X-men, FF, Hulk & Spider-Man exist in Marvel’s Universe of Cinema. To me it is unavoidable to discuss Marvel as a cinematic medium and avoid the other non-MCU films as being disassociated from Marvel. For right or wrong, they are part of what makes up Marvel cinema.

DC has a get set of animated properties and it is worth looking at them as a conglomerate. I’d also argue that “Batman and Harley Quinn” and “JLvF5” are not part of this narrowly defined “DCAU”. As Timm said, they used the JLU character designs to save time because of time and money restraints. So of all of DC’s animated properties, This narrow defined DCAU is comprised of BTAS, STAS, JL, JLU, Batman Beyond, and 4 films (Sub-Zero, Phantasm, Mystery of The Batwoman, & BB, Return of The Joker. If we go back to the starting point of this DCAU, BTAS & STAS, we will find virtually as many non-“DCAU” as “DCAU” tv episodes, and considerably more films.

Again, I look at this “DCAU” as a very narrow definition and is equivalent to saying there is a DC Comics Universe a DCCU that existed before the original Crisis on Infinite Earths, and anything after is not the a part of the DCCU. That is applying the same rational.

I don’t think most people look at the DC Comics Universe that way. There may be events COIE, FLASHPOINT, New52 that change how the universe works or who exists or doesn’t exist, or who knows who now and who doesn’t. But, it still is all the DCCU

So let’s just say, for the sake of argument, that this narrow definition of DCAU is what should be used. Do we have an appropriate acronym to discuss the entirety of DC animated tv & movies?

DCAMU, DC Animated Media Universe. What term should we be able to use to describe, compare and contrast, discuss and debate the various animated media of DC. We have “Ages” in print media. Perhaps we need to apply this premise to animation media?

What would you suggest?

I’m not saying that non-DCAU shows and movies are not associated with DC. If you are thinking that such a general term as DC Animated Universe being applied to such specific group of shows and movies means that people do not associated the non-DCAU animated shows and movies with DC, that is incorrect.

An example is the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The Spider-Man trilogy of films are both Marvel and cinematic, but they aren’t part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. But nobody I know wouldn’t associate the Spider-Man trilogy with Marvel just because a general term like the MCU exists.

It’s the same for something like the Teen Titans cartoon. It’s DC and it’s animated, but it’s not part of the DC Animated Universe. But nobody I know wouldn’t associate the Teen Titans cartoon with DC just because a general term like the MCU exists.

We don’t need a specific term that applies to all DC animated media, because people are smart enough to tell when something is DC and animated. It’s just convenient to have terms like the DCAU so we can refer to that specific universe.

And the DCAMU already stands for the DC Animated Movie Universe.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/DC_Animated_Movie_Universe

Besides, the DC Animated Media Universe would imply that their all connected or meant to be connected, which they’re not.

If we need to refer to everything DC that’s animated, “All DC animated movies and shows” should suffice. Or “Animated DC movies and shows”.

And yes there are more shows and movies that are not part of the DCAU than shows and movies that are part of the DCAU. But it’s wrong to assume that just because a term like DCAU exists that it’s the only thing people are discussing. The DCAU isn’t even the main topic of discussion most of the time. Look at these forums. People are asking for a second season of GL:TAS, discussing who Red X is in Teen Titans, talking about Batman vs. TMNT, showing their excitement for the upcoming Batman: Hush, ranking the seasons of Young Justice, having watch alongs for the Legion of Superhero cartoons, discussing the multiple Lego movies based on DC, gushing about how good the Fleischer Superman stuff is. Or, like the thread we came from, talking about ALL the DC animated movies. Threads talking about non-DCAU movies and shows probably outnumber threads discussing DCAU shows.

What I’m trying to say is that not including absolutely everything in the DCAU doesn’t take away from everything that’s not in the DCAU. It clarifies the discussion surrounding both the DCAU shows and movies and the non-DCAU shows and movies.

Ok, I see the rationale. So animated media has reboots/post “Crisis” type events. One can view the “DCAU” as is done with DC comics in pre & post COIE context.

Just as this “DCAU” has the implication that a set of things are related and have continuity within such bounds, there are sets of non-DCAU media that are related and take place in the same continuity. This is clearly the case & has been discussed that such continuity exists. (Any JL that includes Cyborg, for example) These then would have there own universe(s). So there are multiple universes within DC Animation. A multiverse, if you like. DCAM. Such a concept would allow for cross universe discussions and dissections. As has been done before in the pre-Crisis era when DC defined certain continuities where earths existed within the multiverse, separate and had no contact with EARTHs 1, 2 & 3, for example. DC has already developed a framework for such. It is clear that God’s & Monsters is a separate universe from the DCAU.

I thus propose the term DCAM as an umbrella term to encompass all of these universes. (I could put this in Wikipedia to solidify the term. After all, anyone can create a Wikipedia page.)

Any issues or suggestions regarding this?