After the hero Groundhawk (John DiMaggio) goes rogue, Nubian Prince (Don Cheadle) and Nubia (Aisha Tyler) subdue him while sparks fly between them. A few years later, after making a family with their daughter Maya Nubian (Somali Rose), the Nubian parents' relationship is on the rocks. Young Maya is determined to reenergize their love with the help of their former nemesis.
This short provides examples of:
- Adaptational Intelligence: Unlike the comics, Groundhawk can say more than "Gonna."
- All for Nothing: In the end the Nubians do rekindle their passion for each other - for about one night before they start arguing again. Meaning the whole fake-kidnapping scheme Maya came up with was for naught. Maya seems to realize this herself, as when her parents start arguing in front of her again, she just shoves the divorce papers towards them and bluntly tells them it would be best for everyone involved if they separated.
- Animesque: Uses variety of visual cues and tropes from anime design.
- Battle Couple: The Nubians are a Deconstruction. Yes, they are very good at fighting together and really passionate while doing so, but that also has strained their marriage and are constantly fighting for both major and minor issues.
- Be Careful What You Wish For: Maya wanted to prevent her parents' divorce, she succeeds with Groundhawk's help, but she has to witness him being beaten to a bloody pulp by them and endure hearing their "reignited passion" all night.
- Becoming the Mask: While the whole Battle Couple gig was fully staged (including having a script with lines) marketing gig, Nubians actually did get together and married, even having Maya. Then their marriage went into serious crisis.
- Break the Haughty: Nubian Prince and Nubia look rather shocked at their daughter's insisting that they should get a divorce.
- Crippling Overspecialization: Groundhawk having hammers for hands is shown to be extremely inconvenient for him, apparently he can't answer his door without breaking it down and even mentions having to be extra careful while peeing.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: Poor Groundhawk suffers this every time he has to go up against the Nubians. He barely manages to get a hit in and to add insult to injury, his opponents get turned on by absolutely demolishing him, so they don't stop when he's down for the count.
- Destructo-Nookie: The Nubians initiate a very passionate night after nearly killing Groundhawk. It gets so wild they summon a thunderstorm over their house. And poor Maya has to hear all of it.
- Eating the Eye Candy: In the opening flashback, Nubian Prince is clearly enjoying getting a look at Nubia's behind.
- Everyone Has Standards: Nubian Prince and Nubia both state it was extremely messed up when it was revealed "the guy from 7th Heaven" was a pedophile. This even causes them to double down on their beating of Groundhawk when they think he is a pedo.
- Face and Heel: Vought is openly setting up fake rivalries and even "bad guys", just to have some extra marketing going for their supes. The opening fight is all set-up, and Maya is aware of it, having memorised the script of it with her mom's lines.
- Freeze-Frame Bonus: During the fight with Groundhawk in the opening scene, Jessie and Barret can be seen
. - The Gimmick: The whole Battle Couple thing for Nubia and Nubian Prince: a pair of ass-kicking African-American supes that are fighting crime together (eventually as a married couple, no less). This is added on top of their own, separate gimmicks centering around their African ancestry - in case of Nubian Prince, even a fake accent.
- Groin Attack:
- The latest fight between Nubia and Prince comes from him getting his balls accidentally zapped by his wife.
- Groundhawk, due to having hammers for hands, mentions occasionally hurting himself while peeing.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Groundhawk might be short tempered and jaded, but he at least sympathizes with Maya and agrees to help her in spite of her blackmailing him. That makes him pretty decent in comparison to most Supes in the setting.
- Hard Truth Aesop: Sometimes it really is better for your parents to get a divorce.
- I Call Him "Mister Happy": Nubian Prince, while soothing his injured testicles, reminds Nubia they're called Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X.
- Interplay of Sex and Violence: Nubian Prince and Nubia get so turned on by beating Groundhawk, they don't care they traumatized their daughter and proceed to have loud and passionate sex that very night.
- Lazy Alias: Nubia's "alias" is just her actual name, but it fits around The Gimmick of her character.
- Male Gaze: Nubia gets a shot focusing on her rear during the beginning flashback, with her future husband Nubian Prince enjoying the sight.
- Meaningful Echo: Groundhawk tells Maya about his own parents' divorce to comfort her, telling her that his parents separating was better for all of them. When Maya hands her parents the divorce papers at the end of the short, she tells them "It will be better for all of us."
- Meet Cute: The Nubians met and fell in love when subduing a rogue Groundhawk. Subverted, as Groundhawk later reveals that the whole fight, including Nubia and Nubian Prince "falling in love" was staged by Vought.
- Mistaken for Pedophile: Groundhawk worries that Maya coming to him for help is how this could be interpreted, she even uses this to blackmail him. Her parents also beat him up for thinking this.
- Muggle Born of Mages: Keeping with the Compound V being the only source of powers, Maya is a perfectly normal (if foul-mouthed) 8 year old girl born out of a pair of supes.
- Mythology Gag: After the fight with Nubian Prince and Nubia, an injured Groundhawk can only say "Gonna", repeatedly, just like his comic counterpart.
- "Not So Different" Remark: Groundhawk admits to Maya that his parents also got divorced when he was young, most likely because they were unable to handle having a child with hammers for hands.
- Parents as People: While Maya's parents do love her, it's clear their marriage is failing and they aren't above trying to get an edge in their upcoming divorce.
- Pet the Dog:
- Compared to how Supes have acted to this point and despite the fact they constantly argue, it's clear that the Nubians do love their daughter.
- Groundhawk tries to comfort Maya over her parents' divorce and even agrees to let himself get beaten up by the Nubians to do Maya a favor.
- Publicity Stunt Relationship: Celebrity Superheroes Nubian Prince and Nubia were set up by their corporate backers Vought to act as a famous Battle Couple. While there were genuine sparks in the beginning, in the present their relationship has soured near irrevocably, and they begin divorce proceedings.
- Shout-Out: The title and general premise of Divorce Assets Conflict is one to Kramer vs. Kramer, only done as a black comedy.
- Take That!: When Nubian Prince mishears Maya as saying that Groundhawk is a pedo, he replies "like that guy from 7th Heaven?" This is a jab at Stephen Collins, who acted on that television series and later got in trouble for sexual misconduct with minors.
- Team Member in the Adaptation: Inverted. Nubia and Groundhawk were both members of the G-Men in the comic, but seem to be going solo in the series.
- Uncertain Doom: Groundhawk gets brutally beaten up by the Nubian family after falling for a staged kidnapping. When Maya is out of harm's way, they keep attacking him until he draws blood despite Maya telling them it was all fake (which the father mishears as confirmation that Groundhawk is a pedophile). They don't show what happened to Groundhawk afterward as it cuts to the couple having loud sex and the daughter pushing the divorce in the morning. The lack of guilt from Maya implies that Groundhawk was only hospitalized after what happened.
- Would Hurt a Child: Groundhawk, being pressured by Maya, has to play into this part in order to convince the Nubians to fight him. When accidentally drops Maya on the ground, he instantly feels regret, but does a great job getting Nubian Prince and Nubia to rock him senseless.
- X-Ray Sparks: When Nubia electrocutes Groundhawk near the end, his skeleton flashes.
