I can't emphasise enough how good this movie is - it has to be one of the best cartoon movies DC has made - and urge everyone to run, not walk, and go and see it.
One of the reasons why I love the Paul Dini and Bruce Timm cartoons is that they respect and love the 'old' DC - the DC universe that existed before 1985's Crisis on Infinite Earths - as much as I do. Their work feels like home to me. While DC continues to upend the entire DC universe as part of the latest multi-part crossover marketing gimmick and change the fundamentals every other month, the Dini and Timm universe proceeds in its own way, unaffected by trends.
Having said that, the characters in Gods- depart - and depart a great deal - from the norm. They don't resemble the Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Lex Luthor that we all know: the MBTI types differ radically from those in the mainstream DC universe, where Superman is an ESFJ, Batman an INTJ, Wonder Woman an ENFJ, Lex Luthor an ENTJ... Gods- does a brilliant and skilful job of keeping the viewer off-balance and challenging (and thwarting) his expectations.
I think that this movie would make a great introduction to MBTI. Out the of 16 types, Gods- 13 (see below) and the characters can all be typed with minimal difficulty. They can all be understood using the basic Keirsey dichotomies (sensors versus intuitives, perceivers versus judgers, thinkers versus feelers).
Unlike many other superhero cartoon movies, Gods- relies on plot twists a great deal: except for the last quarter (which is a rather dull superhero slug fest) I was kept guessing the whole time. This is why I must give a
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Spoiler Alert! You have been warned!
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Now let's go through the characters.
Superman characters
Superman (Hernan Guerra):
In the Wiki entry, we find:
A bit political, don't you think? Our undocumented Kryptonian (undocumented superhero? unpapered Kryptonian?) should be typed as an ESTJ. The leader of the team, ruthless and undoubtedly a sensor, Superman-Guerra fits the ESTJ description. (He inherits the extraverted thinking characteristic from his father, General Zod).
Lois Lane:
I found her hard to type at first, but after a while realised I was overlooking the obvious. In the comic books, Lois Lane belongs in the ESTP category: here, she's an ENTP. She's critical of Superman and the Justice League, sceptical and as a reporter, bent on tearing their reputations down. ENTPs are often accused of wanting to dismantle ideals and replace them with - nothing.
General Zod:
No question, the would-be dictator of Krypton (who inadverdently ends up destroying it) is an ENTJ.When he breaks into Jor-El's lab, he's accompanied by a posse of guards (who are loyal to him to the bitter end). As EJ Arendee says, an ENTJ never travels with his posse.
Lex Luthor:
In the comic books, he's an ENTJ; here he winds up becoming an INFJ (in one of the surprising twists). INFJs act as counsellors, and here Luthor acts as a mentor of sorts - to Hernan and then Bekka. Bald and confined to a wheelchair, he reminds us of Professor X in the X-Men - another INFJ. The withdrawn, solitary Luthor lives in a satellite orbiting the Earth; he spends his time pondering the cosmos. Most INFJs in the comics seem a little cosmic or mystical, and Luthor here is no exception.
I couldn't help notice the resemblance between him and Metron in Jack Kirby's Fourth World. Indeed, by the end, he turns into Metron.
Wonder Woman characters
Wonder Woman / Bekka
While Bekka in Jack Kirby is an ESFJ, here she displays ISFP characteristics: swordfighting (ISFP characters often like melee weapons), an elfin appearance and strongly-held convictions. You can find plenty of ISFP characters at Taylor's site here.
While at first I thought Wonder Woman would be an Amazon, the 'Kirbytech' circuitry on her sword gave her away.
Steve Trevor
Hard-nosed, authoritarian, by the book, an army man with a buzz haircut - obviously an ISTJ. Most ISTJ characters in pop culture strike us as being somewhat unpleasant and creepy, and Trevor is no exception. While they get the job done, you don't want to be friends with them.
Izaya the High Father
At first, Izaya appears to be what he is in the comic books: an INFJ. But, in a brilliant twist, he's revealed to be an evil, scheming mastermind - an INTJ - whose calculated coup against Darkseid succeeds perfectly. His granddaughter Bekka goes against his wishes, being an ISFP, because, being a perceiver (Keirsey categories again) she can't see the big picture, unlike Izaya, who's a judger.
Orion
Batman / Kirk Langstrom
We find, in Langstrom, an instance of an INTP subtype - here the Ne secondary function in the INTP makes itself just a little more than the dominant Ti function. This INTP subtype, being soft and dreamy, reminds us more of the Peter Parker INTP than the more hard-edged Reed Richards or Sherlock Holmes INTP (both of them Ti subtypes). But make no mistake, Lanstrom's scientific and analytical abilities, ineptitude and lack of social graces make him an INTP.
Vampirism, as a superpower, strikes me as being more an intuitive's power than a sensor's. Langstrom definitely seems to be an intuitive, not a sensor (Keirsey again).
The bumbling, self-effacing, adorable servant who performs useful tasks around the house - such as taking out the garbage - Tin is an ISFJ. He remains loyal to his master to the end, and loyalty defines an ISFJ.
Tina / Platinum
Deadly and efficient, smooth and graceful, doesn't talk a lot, good with weapons, tenacious and unyielding - how could robot Tina be anything other than an ISTP? Wheres the Platinum in the Metal Men comic books seems to be more of a zany, emotional, annoying type (ENFP?), Platinum here reminds us more of Elektra or Lashina in Jack Kirby's Fourth World (both ISTPs) - a slick and deadly female assassin.
That's the 13 characters - who did we leave out? The ESTPs, INFPs and ENFPs. Well, you can't fit all the types into one short movie... Gods- gives us thirteen, and what's more, we don't find any double-ups (more than one instance of a type).
Mark Hootsen signing off.
Wonder Woman / Bekka
While Bekka in Jack Kirby is an ESFJ, here she displays ISFP characteristics: swordfighting (ISFP characters often like melee weapons), an elfin appearance and strongly-held convictions. You can find plenty of ISFP characters at Taylor's site here.
While at first I thought Wonder Woman would be an Amazon, the 'Kirbytech' circuitry on her sword gave her away.
Steve Trevor
Hard-nosed, authoritarian, by the book, an army man with a buzz haircut - obviously an ISTJ. Most ISTJ characters in pop culture strike us as being somewhat unpleasant and creepy, and Trevor is no exception. While they get the job done, you don't want to be friends with them.
Izaya the High Father
At first, Izaya appears to be what he is in the comic books: an INFJ. But, in a brilliant twist, he's revealed to be an evil, scheming mastermind - an INTJ - whose calculated coup against Darkseid succeeds perfectly. His granddaughter Bekka goes against his wishes, being an ISFP, because, being a perceiver (Keirsey categories again) she can't see the big picture, unlike Izaya, who's a judger.
Orion
In the comic books, an unstoppable juggernaut, a cold, relentless ISTJ; here, an ESFP who a) breaks with tradition; b) appreciates beautiful things; c) is none too bright. Not what you'd expect Orion to be, and not what you'd expect of a scion of Darkseid. This is why Bekka pleads with High Father to spare Orion's life, but to no avail.
Batman characters
Batman / Kirk Langstrom
Created by Denny O'Neil and Neal Adams, Langstrom in the comic books turns himself by mistake into Man-Bat; as a classic mad scientist type, he's an INTP. Here he's an INTP also - only he turns himself into a vampire, not a bat.
We find, in Langstrom, an instance of an INTP subtype - here the Ne secondary function in the INTP makes itself just a little more than the dominant Ti function. This INTP subtype, being soft and dreamy, reminds us more of the Peter Parker INTP than the more hard-edged Reed Richards or Sherlock Holmes INTP (both of them Ti subtypes). But make no mistake, Lanstrom's scientific and analytical abilities, ineptitude and lack of social graces make him an INTP.
Vampirism, as a superpower, strikes me as being more an intuitive's power than a sensor's. Langstrom definitely seems to be an intuitive, not a sensor (Keirsey again).
Will Magnus
In the comic books, an INTP; here, an ENFJ. A crazy messianic type who wants to meld all of humanity into a uni-mind, he's definitely an ENFJ. Unlike the INFJ, who wants to redeem humanity through one-on-one counselling, the ENFJ wants to reach as wide an audience as possible and bring them together as one; Magnus' scheme - of showering billions of mind-controlling nanobots onto humanity dropped through boom tubes - serves to do just that.
Tina
The human Tina here gives a stock ESFJ who cares for just about everyone. She shows a lot of consideration for Magnus' friend Kirk Langstrom, which arouses Magnus' jealousy - even though it's a case of an ESFJ being an ESFJ. Whereas an ENFJ wants to convert and redeem as many people as possible, the ESFJ wants to take care of many as possible.
Tin
The bumbling, self-effacing, adorable servant who performs useful tasks around the house - such as taking out the garbage - Tin is an ISFJ. He remains loyal to his master to the end, and loyalty defines an ISFJ.
Tina / Platinum
Deadly and efficient, smooth and graceful, doesn't talk a lot, good with weapons, tenacious and unyielding - how could robot Tina be anything other than an ISTP? Wheres the Platinum in the Metal Men comic books seems to be more of a zany, emotional, annoying type (ENFP?), Platinum here reminds us more of Elektra or Lashina in Jack Kirby's Fourth World (both ISTPs) - a slick and deadly female assassin.
That's the 13 characters - who did we leave out? The ESTPs, INFPs and ENFPs. Well, you can't fit all the types into one short movie... Gods- gives us thirteen, and what's more, we don't find any double-ups (more than one instance of a type).
Mark Hootsen signing off.
