For the past few years, DC Comics has been taking a backseat when it comes to fan and audience hype.
Marvel was and is still the top dog of the comic book industry with blockbuster hits like their most recent entry, “Deadpool and Wolverine.” Also, eight of their biggest titles hit the top ten in comic book sales with DC only having one. Despite all of this success, it’s become sort of a surprise that the hype Marvel has had for the past decade is starting to fade away.
Many have worried about what Marvel could do after having such a bombastic conclusion with “Avengers: Endgame,” and with anticipation of what could come, the hype was running wild. However, that hype was taken in vain as Marvel did not deliver on their next chapter after the “Infinity Saga.” Marvel’s fourth phase, or the “Multiverse Saga,” was a massive letdown for many fans to the point that many have dropped out of following the franchise due to the amount of unnecessary projects and lackluster storytelling.
Although there are a few exceptions to newer films that fans mostly universally enjoy such as “Spider-Man: No Way Home” and “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3,” fans overall have not been enjoying what Disney has been contributing so far for this new saga. The premiere of “Agatha All Along” doesn’t help Disney’s case either since many fans were disappointed by the ending of “WandaVision” and care very little about a side character from that show getting her own spin-off.
As Marvel slowly crumbles in the eyes of fans, DC has been making promising moves for what they have in store for fans in the future for not only film and television but for comic book fans as well.
On June 4, DC released what they call compact comics which are miniaturized versions of some of their most iconic stories such as “Batman: Hush” and “All-Star Superman,” which contain the full story but in a more accessible format both financially and physically. Unlike the heavy graphic novels these stories are usually collected in, the compact comics are shaped like an average book and only cost $9.99. This product is meant to bring in new comic readers as well as avid collectors who may want to add a certain story to their collection at a convenient size and price.
When it comes to television and movies, DC has also been winning over fans with its new universe led by fan-favorite director, James Gunn. He will be the head of all DC entertainment film and television content and has created the first chapter of this new universe titled, “Gods and Monsters.”
The first entries of this chapter will be “Creature Commandos” coming to MAX in December and “Superman” coming July 2025. On top of that, he will also be leading what is called, “the Elseworld stories,” which are movies and shows that are under the DC umbrella but aren’t involved with the main DC universe, such as “Joker: Folie a Deux” and “The Batman 2.” This announcement and these projects gained much momentum from fans as these are all projects that fans have been looking forward to made by a lead creator that fans can get behind.
Where did Marvel go wrong?
In 2021, Marvel decided to drop a multitude of projects around the time quarantine was reaching its end. Marvel debuted “WandaVision,” “The Falcon and The Winter Soldier”and “Loki” around the same time. Several fans watched due to the craving of content during the pandemic. Then, Marvel released “Black Widow” that year in July, and this is when fans began to turn on Marvel with the belief that Marvel was focusing on quantity rather than quality.
Their assumptions were proven correct when Marvel released six films after “Black Widow,” all in 2021 and 2022. Many fans were outraged by not only the poor quality of these films but from how lackluster and messy the storytelling has become due to the amount of projects that were coming out. There was too much going on for the viewers to enjoy and too little for them to care for because Marvel was introducing new characters one after another, even some that were introduced in Disney+ originals before their big screen debut.
Also, all the hype the new big bad Marvel built up since season one of “Loki” was all for nothing due to the actor getting into legal trouble. Although this was out of Marvel and Disney’s control, it is still such a let down that Kang now has been scrapped after all of the buildup.
This year’s San Diego Comic Con didn’t really help Marvel’s case either.
DC released more footage and even a teaser for the upcoming MAX show, “The Penguin” that many fans are excited about due to the positive fan reception for the show’s predecessor, “The Batman.” They also talked about future plans with the upcoming “Creature Commandos,” which fans are also coming around to.
However, Marvel took a big swing with their announcement of the upcoming, “Avengers: Secret Wars” and “Avengers: Doomsday” with fan-favorite villain and new Marvel big bad, Doctor Doom being played by Robert Downey Jr. This casting decision has divided fans due to RDJ once being the face of Marvel.
Marvel wants what they had back in 2019 so badly with audiences around the world lining up to see their next big blockbuster. Marvel’s fall from success all comes down to one detriment and that is corporate greed. Disney is the reason why projects were rushed out and why fans have fallen out of love with the franchise.
Will the success of “Deadpool and Wolverine” bring Marvel back up? The answer is honestly no.
“Deadpool and Wolverine” was fun but it didn’t bring any hope for the future of Marvel. DC is giving the fans what they want while Marvel is giving what the studio heads what they want.