It all started it all in 1978. Superman The Movie was the first super-hero film for a new generation of audience. Special effects were starting to look realistic and larger than life characters were able to be brought to the masses for about $2.50 per ticket.
1989 was huge with Batman. Burton's vision forever changed the campy 1966 caped crusader into a macabre dark knight, spawning 3 sequels and a Toy Biz revolution.
At the turn of the century, Fox got their game on with X-Men and Spidey. A few successes, a few flops. They seem to be holding on to their properties tightly. Afraid to be eliminated from the game.
Lately, it's Marvel studios at the top. Having been very successful bringing their brand to the big screen. They Churn out film after film. Telling stories of impending doom with a side of lighthearted humor.
How much is too much?
Is the industry trending toward a great fall?
If studios keep putting out films at this rapid pace, eventually, the quality of the production will be compromised. Not dissimilar to the comic book crash of the 90's or the video game crash of the 80's, greedy executives who notice a strong demand for a product will always try for the quick buck before the quality buck. Soon, people will start to notice that basic hero motivation can seem awkwardly redundant.
Let's take a minute to look at some of our heroes' personality traits.
Professor X teaches equality and tolerance...Yawn. Spider Man honors his dead uncle...Ho Hum. Batman avenges his parents murder...Been there, done that. Superman lives to emulate the ideals of his two fathers...Huh? This goes on and on. Every hero seems to have some sappy boring background story that aims them toward the light of goodness.
I say change things up, let the heroes rest and the villains shine!
Executives sit in their offices trying to find writers that are going to tell the same redundant story in a different way. Stop. How about telling an interesting story? Instead of another "Batman" wouldn't it be more interesting to see a movie where The Joker is the main character? How about Kingpin?
Frankly, if Warner Brothers would stop trying to copy the Marvel format and started looking toward their own Rogue's Gallery, they might be able to tell their stories in a much more interesting way. In fact, if there is one thing that truly separates DC from Marvel, it's their well known villains.
I would love to see a Batman movie told from the perspective of the Riddler.
Sinesrto was the best part of Green Lantern. What if the movie was his origin story and Hal was brought in at a later time?
Wouldn't Brainiac be a fantastic sci-fi flick?
Solomon Grundy as a Jason character.
The Joker in a Hannibal Lecter theme.
Lex Luthor origin and rise to fame and fortune.
Gorilla Grodd in a Planet of the Apes scenario.
Lets face it fans. It's only a matter of time before every CBM plays like Ghost Rider 2. Studios will saturate the market with the same recycled story. Just told from the perspective of a guy in a different costume.
Villains are always more interesting. It's time to break the mold. Everyone is waiting on Avengers 2 and Justice League. I want to see the Legion of Doom!