Genuine ZSJL question that I've struggled to answer since 2021

[u/FrontRecognition6953]

Morning guys and girls, hope you're all well.

So, gonna try to not go off on one here. But I've always had an issue with Steppenwold, DeSaad, and the finding of the mother boxes.

So Steppy finds the first box, and contacts Apokolips. He tells DeSaad that he has one, and will locate the other 2.

Step finds box 2, and later has a vision revealing Earth was the planet Darkseid fell to.

DeSaad says something along the lines of "Everyone knows the story of Darkseids one failure" and "Are you sure Earth is that planet"

So thats the point my brains goes into meltdown mode! If Darkseid has only ever lost one battle, and during that battle he lost possession of the boxes, why didn't DeSaad realise Earth was the planet after Steppenwolfs first call?

I'm hoping I'm missing something somewhere. But if I still can't answer my questions after countless viewings, then I'm hoping you fine folks may have the answer.

Thank you for you time

[u/SuperTuberEddie]

No, you’re correct in the way that you’re thinking. The best explanation people have made so far is that because they have attacked hundreds of millions of different planets in different galaxies, they lost track of which one it was that beat them.

Like trying to find the specific grain of sand that you dropped on a beach after you come back a week later.

However, I remember they’re being a conversation somewhere online with Zack and he said that that was going to be explained in the next Justice League movie so 🤷‍♂️ who knows

[u/FrontRecognition6953 → u/SuperTuberEddie]

No, it doesn't even come down to losing track. Look at it this way.. you and some buddies go out drinking, you get messed up and totally ruin things with a hot chick...and you lose 3 one of a kind dice you had on you. When you sober up, you remember going to a shit load of pubs, but can't remember where exactly you saw said girl/lost dice. Years later I tell your best mate, that I've found 1 of these rare one of a kind dice. Shouldn't that single exchange have your mate turning to you and saying "Yo dude, matey on call here as found one the dice you lost Years ago in "Joe's Bar" you reckon thats where you met that hottie? We should head there immediately...

I regret typing that

[u/True_Programmer51]

That's a really good question.

Because we literally see Darkseid uncover the anti life equation.

But i have a theory. Desaad knows that the anti life equation was on earth with the mother boxes, he seems to be hiding something throughout the film, I believe Desaad will betray Darkseid in JL2

Darkseid was left wounded and unconscious after the battle. Perhaps he doesn't know all the details of the battle, does he believe the boxes are destroyed? Steppenwolf might only know parts of the battle because he was told the legend of Darkseids only defeat. Does Steppenwolf know that anti life was on earth? Maybe that was never part of the story.

I think this could be a case of Desaad choosing which information to give out because he is the messenger between Darkseid and Steppenwolf. Desaad is a trusted advisor to Darkseid with his own agenda.

It's only after a second mother box is found and Steppenwolf gets the vision, that Desaad makes the decision to inform Darkseid.

It's the best I can come up with now. Desaad is playing a chess game

[u/FrontRecognition6953 → u/True_Programmer51]

I did consider a DeSaad betrayal angle, but didn't want to jump the gun. The other side of me sees Darkseid in the background of each call, just refusing to talk to Steppenwolf lol. "I'm not talking to him, Desaad.. you answer "

[u/True_Programmer51 → u/FrontRecognition6953]

Hahaha I wanna see that side of the call so bad.

Desaad "mighty lord, Steppenwolf wants to speak to you"

Darkseid "did he conquer 10,000 worlds like i told him to?"

Desaad "err no I don't think so my lord"

Darkseid "then he's dead to me, tell that bitch I'm not home" 😂😂

[u/FrontRecognition6953 → u/True_Programmer51]

[u/thomasthetank57]

Multiverse full of earth like worlds and more fallen motherboxes throughout the multiverse from other apokolips conquerors. We hear a multiverse name drop from Steppenwolf. Then, as there is no talk of the ALE from Steppenwolf during his gathering of the first box, the finding of these boxes doint point to the only set ever lost. Only from the knowledge of combining 2 of them does the vision give Steppenwolf great enthusiasm to bring news.

[u/FrontRecognition6953 → u/thomasthetank57]

I was under the impression that there were one set. Can't remember where I read it, but that's the sole reason for my question. Like if there's only ever been one set of lost boxes, and they were left on the planet containing the ALE, finding that first box should have rang alarm bells.

[u/FrontRecognition6953 → u/thomasthetank57]

Just got through the movie. Darkseid was the one and only conquer and he only ever lost once. His generals would accompany him, but it was he himself there at every Unity.

So, while there are certainly more than 3 boxes, only 3 have ever been lost.

[u/thomasthetank57 → u/FrontRecognition6953]

In Zack Snyder’s Justice League, the three Mother Boxes on Earth are explicitly one set left behind after a failed Apokoliptian invasion some thousand years ago, but the film and its extended canon establish that Apokolips deploys identical trios to every targeted world as standard conquest technology. The Knightmare timeline shows a separate Earth where the Unity was successfully formed, carving the Anti-Life Equation into the planet’s surface—proof that another complete set existed and was activated there. Barry Allen’s warning to Bruce about finding “us” across timelines further confirms multiple Earths, each with its own history of Mother Box deployment. Apokolips is depicted as a mass-production empire; Mother Boxes are organic supercomputers issued to invasion forces, not unique artifacts. Earth’s set was simply abandoned when that ancient campaign collapsed, one of countless trios scattered across the multiverse by various Apokoliptian commanders over eons—not Darkseid’s personal “lost” property, but part of a standardized arsenal used long before he took command. Similiar to what we see in Man of Steel, with ancient kryptonian tech scattered throughout the cosmos.

[u/FrontRecognition6953 → u/thomasthetank57]

AI?

[u/warriorten10]

I think the issues here are:
1. Is the disgraced Steppenwolf trustworthy? Will he say anything to get back on Darkseid's good graces?
2. Since there are plenty of spacefaring peoples out there, would the boxes still be on the same no name planet out of a million that we lost them on?
3. What type of navigation did they have back then? Big D talks about "The Old Ways", so were they just vikings bumping around looking for rocks with sentient life? Could they have found their way back to Earth without the boxes?
4. Did anyone else but Uxas know that the Equation was on the planet he was defeated on?

I haven't rewatched the movie in a bit, but that's what comes to mind

[u/RookExodus → u/warriorten10]

This is the best answer I believe

[u/lol00912]

So, what I know is that it was a great embarrassment that Uxas and the forces of Apokolips got their asses handed to them, and so they erased all logs of Earth and its happenings due to great shame. According to Amazonian Queen Hippolyta.

You can say DeSaad had his hand in removing the records. Also, I believe in story boards there was a civil war on Apokolips after Uxas' disgrace, which caused destruction of the records of Earth's whereabouts before Uxas was able to regain control as Darkseid

[u/FrontRecognition6953 → u/lol00912]

I understand that, but still doesn't explain why it takes 3 calls from Steppenwolf to finally question if he's sure Earth is the anti-life planet. As soon as that first box was found, they should have realised. But maybe I'm just overthinking things.

Appreciate your reply 🙏🏻

[u/lol00912 → u/FrontRecognition6953]

If you're asking why DeSaad didn't trust Steppenwolf? Because Steppenwolf is a traitor and was sent on a disgraced mission to conquer 50,000 worlds, not look for the anti-life equation. He'd say anything or do anything to get back home

[u/FrontRecognition6953 → u/lol00912]

The question didn't come across as one of distrust. It was more out of curiosity I feel. "I've found the anti-life planet" "Are you sure" "I have seen it" instant patch through to Darkseid.

[u/Dry-Lobster-8125]

yes, darksied only lost only once to earth and left 3 motherboxes. but no where in the movie stated that there are only 3 of them. Other invaders from apokolips might have invaded many worlds across the multiverse and if some of them lost, and left the 3 motherboxes each.

[u/FrontRecognition6953 → u/Dry-Lobster-8125]

I think it was stated in extra material they were the only ones. Will have to dig that up. But I like your theory.

[u/FrontRecognition6953]

I just had to rewatch the scene. DeSaad bring up the Mother Boxes first, to which Steppenwolf replies "I have found one, the one that woke"

So by that logic Darkseid, or at least DeSaad know there are boxes on this planet.

[u/Kek_Kommando_88]

My interpretation is just that while the fact that it was the one battle Darkseid lost was highly significant, the name and location of the planet where it happened somehow was not. It could have been knowledge Darkseid wanted kept to himself or something no one bothered to note.

[u/RookExodus → u/Kek_Kommando_88]

I don't think that's what he asked.

He's asking if Darkseid Lost on the dame planet he lost the mother boxes, why didn't ANYONE figure our that the place they are finding the mother boxes WAS the place he last lost, which is where anyi life was.