Years ago, when I was a kid, if you asked any child who his favorite superhero was, they would answer Batman, Superman, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, the Flash, in many cases a DC Comics character in their mythos. While is can be said that back in the day there were DC fans and there were Marvel fans, DC's characters always seemed to stand out more to me when I was growing up. Don't get me wrong, Marvel has always had a massive following over the years for die hard comic book fans and always had a special place in my heart, but the younger generation was mostly familiar with Spiderman and the X-Men, while everyone was obsessed with Batman and Superman.
What happened to the DC Comics Franchise?
Something happened over the last decade, and we all are very familiar with how it went down. Marvel took over and took hold of comic book movie franchises, and they did it in the most brilliant way possible. They took a "B" superhero (Iron Man), and turned him into the central figure of their entire film universe. For those of us that have been reading comic books since long before any of this was happening, we all knew that Iron Man was pretty much the last person you ever called when things went bad. He was an alcoholic, a womanizer, and was only really interested in things that suited his own purposes. But now, Iron Man and Tony Stark are the force that ties the Marvel film franchise together.
Marvel Comics has cracked the code on how to make great comic book films, as was evident in the release of Guardians of the Galaxy. For us comic book nerds, the Guardians of the Galaxy were extremely obscure superheroes in the Marvel universe, yet now they are set to become some of the most popular figures in the franchise. And now, if you ask most kids who their favorite superhero is, they'll say Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, the Hulk, and soon to be Rocket Raccoon or Star Lord. And don't even get me started on the awesome new Spiderman franchise that is really starting to deliver, and will most likely continue to do so.
What has Marvel got that DC doesn't?
It's apparent that Marvel has a larger goal with what to do with their movie franchise, a larger story that is just waiting to be told, but DC is struggling to catch on to Marvel's success. DC comics, however, has been releasing incredible content in the animated movie sector, and hardcore fans have seen every single one of them. The Flashpoint Paradox, Justice League: War & Doom, Batman: Year One, and the incredible new Son of Batman that was just released in May of this year, are all amazingly told stories that make us old school DC fans squirm in our seats.
Yet it seems that DC is having some serious trouble getting in on the live action film market. We all saw the Ryan Reynolds Green Lantern movie, and being that the Green Lantern has been my favorite superhero since I was a kid, I was sorely disappointed with how that movie turned out. Also, each of us has a different opinion of Man of Steel. Yet in my opinion, as a long-time fan of Superman, it really fell short of the mark, regardless of how big a beefcake the new Superman is.
Plus, every single one of us is very worried about the new Batman vs. Superman movie that is in the works right now. All of us are scared that it will fall short of the mark, and this time, even further than the first movie in the series. True, Ben Affleck has really grown into a phenomenal actor, but a lot of us are worried that he was a very poor choice to play the Dark Knight. There's plenty of hubbub on the net to support this.
On the flip side, Marvel has figured out a way to make their characters seem more human, while still seeming to be larger than life. Marvel has taken the comic book movie and turned it into a fluid machine, and they are cranking out two to three movies a year, each of them making a huge splash at the box office while DC waits and bides their time.
Is it too late for DC to catch up?
I understand what DC is trying to do with this new movie. They are trying to put together a Justice League movie to try and latch onto Marvel's success that seems to gain more momentum with each film that is released. But there is still that fear that DC is going to throw together a movie that has as many characters in it as possible without taking the time to really establish a franchise.
I recently read that the new Batman v. Superman movie was set to release the same day as the third Captain America movie. Instead of standing their ground and really letting the war between DC and Marvel come to a head by letting the films come out on the same day, they pushed the release of Batman v. Superman back a week. That seems to be a submissive move from where I'm sitting, and could be a taste of things to come in the battle between these two entities.
If this is any indication that DC is suffering the wrath of Marvel at every turn, then where does the Justice League franchise stand in the minds of its long-time fans, all of whom are crippled with fear over the movie we've all wanted to see since we were in elementary school? Marvel movies instill a sense of wonder whenever they are set to be released, a giddy kind of excitement that we get to see more of the fabric of the Marvel story unfold on screen. So if we are afraid of DC movies and excited for Marvel movies, doesn't that tell you everything you need to know about how this war is progressing?
So where does the war between DC and Marvel go from here?
Marvel has reported that they have films planned to be released on regular basis for at least the next fifteen years. We're talking about another two dozen movies, all of which will continue to paint a much larger picture, to weave a much vaster story that we are all dying to witness. Not to mention talks of putting together a "Defenders" miniseries on Netflix. Marvel is cranking out content left and right, and where is DC while all of this is going on?
Don't get me wrong, I'm a huge fan of DC Comics characters. I have been my whole life and will be as long as I live, but the children are no longer running to see Batman or Superman, because all they see is Captain America and Iron Man duking it out with aliens and neo-Nazis. The adults are all nervous for what DC has in store for us in the near future, and it seems that they have already plotted out a huge film franchise of their own. But can they really deliver the quality of films that we've come to expect from the Marvel production company? We've been spoiled by the good writing and good storytelling that can be found in Marvel movies, and we're all waiting patiently for DC to deliver similar results. Whether they ever come, however, is quite another story.
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