Marvel has managed to topple DC off its decade-long pedestal
While on one hand Marvel gave us a range of superheroes who are extremely relatable, on the other hand, DC had given us an animated spectacle which never made its way to films.
With ‘The Avengers: Endgame’, Marvel has established itself as the ultimate universe for superheroes. And unlike its arch-enemy, DC; Marvel universe has only begun to unfold itself. A journey that is nothing less of than a prolonged wait from rags to riches, the Marvel universe has quickly become one of the most successful superhero franchise. It is no new information that ‘The Avengers: Endgame’ is barely a few feet away from beating James Cameron’s 2009 iconic movie, ‘Avatar’ which had earned a massive $2.788 billion. ‘The Avengers: Endgame’ earned around $10.7 million in North America alone, and Cameron himself is pretty worried about this close race.
While speaking with IndieWire, he had said, “I’m hoping we will start getting ‘Avenger’ fatigue here pretty soon. Not that I don’t love the movies. It’s just, come on guys, there are other stories to tell besides hypogonadal males without families doing death-defying things for two hours and wrecking cities in the process. It’s like, oy!” Yet, barely a decade ago no one would have imagined that it wouldn’t be DC that would cultivate such a fear among directors across the industry. DC has held the highest pedestal in superhero storytelling for the longest time. As the oldest universe in the superhero genre, DC has given us some of the most quintessential instances of super beings with back stories that are relatable and flaws which go not amiss even for the most immature viewer.
DC has ruled upon the superhero universe for the longest time. (IMDb)
When it came to animation, since the ‘50s, DC has dominated the superhero universe with several storylines for some of its most popular heroes such as Superman, Batman, the Flash, Wonder Woman and so on. What actually established DC as a fan favorite was its one and only gang of heroes, the Justice League and in the 2000s the animated series literally put DC as the ultimate harbinger of superhero storytelling. Unfortunately, the studio failed terribly when it came to live-action movies. Although Christopher Nolan had managed to give the Batman franchise an artistic overview with excellent cinematography, and a brilliantly foiled Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne; somewhere DC failed to execute what Marvel achieved the moment it began with the live-action Iron Man movie.
Marvel attained cinematic excellence with Marvel. (IMDb)
Perhaps the Batman series was the last (for now) of the DC movies that truly gave us a wholesome cinematic experience. When we came across movies such as Batman vs. Superman or Justice League, we were left baffled at the sheer callous portrayal of the very superheroes who were so authentic in the animated franchise. The Justice League whom we met back in Cartoon Network were reduced to costumed models trying to get their act together. When it came to execution, DC’s action sequences failed terribly with only a few fist punches and empty kicks that were nothing but the combination of CGI editing. On the other hand, this is precisely where Marvel hit the chord. Although Marvel superheroes are not as charismatic as DC’s their relevance in the present time urban setting- unlike DC’s fictional habitats such as Gotham- had already made them more relatable. The well-choreographed action sequences added an edge to the storylines, and with every approaching year the dialogues took a lot more contemporary turn as compared to DC’s ‘50s ideological quotes.
Finally, what actually made Marvel a fan favourite was the fact that its superheroes were more humane in nature? Like DC’s Wonder Woman and Aquaman, Marvel too has god-like heroes in Thor but even then there is a tendency in the storyline to keep the characters and their intentions as grounded as possible. Unlike Wonder Woman or Superman, we do not hear Captain America or Thor rambling about what is right and what is wrong. Instead, most of Marvel’s superheroes dwell in the grey zone which is almost a rarity in DC’s heroes- except Batman.
DC’s animated series were way better than its live action franchise. (IMDb)
However, perhaps the only thing that Marvel is lacking at the moment is an iconic villain. DC has already given us the Joker, an unrivalled villain with an authentic backstory, sharp wit and excellent manipulative skills - something that we don’t really find in the super villains of Marvel. Joker’s realism is what has made him an inimitable character, and it would perhaps take a while for Marvel to create a villain as peerless as this ever-grinning villain. We can only hope that the Joker finds his true real life representation in Joaquin Phoenix, as we already know the movie is set to release later this year.
