Sunday, December 27, 2020

Why do I like Marvel movies and not DC movies?

Someone recently asked this on a fandom group on Facebook, and here's my answer: 

The difference between Marvel and DC started in the comics and only got bigger in the movies and it's this: Marvel involves "real" people in the real world; DC doesn't. 

Superman used to pick up whole buildings; meanwhile, Spider-Man had a building collapse on top of him, exposing wiring and bursting pipes -- because in the real world you just can't pick up a building without it falling apart! 

Superman is a superpowered alien. Batman is a rich guy who can build any tech he wants. (Sure, Tony Stark has that too, but he mostly builds tech to get rich and improve his life, not to live out a revenge fantasy. Tony Stark is like Elon Musk but more...realistic?) 

The Fantastic Four are a family, like most families. Does the DC universe have a real family that acts like a family? I don't know.

Marvel's mutants represent intolerance toward minorities.

While both Wonder Woman and Captain Marvel represent powerful women, most of us didn't grow up on an island of goddesses. Captain Marvel, on the other hand, grew up with an abusive dad, and she learned to get back up every time she was knocked down. It's easier to relate to Carol than Diana. Most of us women could be Carol. None of us could be, well, a goddess. 

Thor is different, but his relationships with Loki and Jane humanize him. Heck, in his first independent movie, he was, in fact, reduced to a human. Way to be too on the nose, Marvel. 

Keep in mind that Marvel movies that weren't controlled by Kevin Feige were created by people who didn't get what made people love Marvel, which is why they got it so wrong almost every time. MCU movies, though, they absolutely get it. Make it real and relatable, and audiences will love it. 'Nuff said. 

Now Zack Snyder understands some of what makes DC comics great, but he's very one note. He only knows how to paint in one color, and it's the darkest color there is. That's not the real world, and there's only so much of it audiences can take. 

I did like Wonder Woman, though. (No Zack Snyder, thank goodness.) And Birds of Prey, which made one very significant change but otherwise remained true to the silly mayhem that is Harley Quinn in the comics. And I liked the Deadpool movies that Feige didn't work on, although Ryan Reynolds is such a huge Deadpool dork there's no way he would have changed a thing. 

But I digress. 

Marvel is great, because it's relatable. DC's heroes are larger than life, and that can make them less relatable. It works for some audiences, but it doesn't work for you or me.

I found this online, and I'm pretty sure it's not a real movie poster. Kudos to whoever made it. It's very well done.

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