What’s Wrong With the DC Comics Movie Franchise?

The Atlantic ^ | August 3, 2016 | David Sims

[C19fan]

When a studio is launching a franchise, one bad movie is an anomaly, two is a problem, and three in a row spells possible disaster. This is the issue facing Warner Bros., which on Friday is releasing its third and newest entry in the universe of films based on DC Comics. Early reviews for Suicide Squad have been largely unkind. Fan outrage is already reaching fever pitch: A petition calling for the shutdown of the review-aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes has 13,000 signatures from viewers upset with Suicide Squad’s poor ratings. Rumors of massive studio interference with the film are already beginning to leak out. As a narrative of damage control takes hold, it’s becoming clearer what mistakes the studio has made in trying to roll out an entire cinematic universe—and how it can turn things around for the future.

[Arm_Bears]

Maybe customers object to having a political agenda shoved down their throats when all they wanted was a few hours of escapist entertainment.

[Rurudyne]

A fellow going by Jolly Jack pondered this exact question and this is how he envisioned it going down: http://jollyjack.deviantart.com/art/Cinematic-Universes-600853193

[GSWarrior]

If they are successful in shutting down Rotten Tomatoes will they go after Metacritic?

[a fool in paradise]

never read the comic, saw some of the trailers.

Maybe the general public is tired of looking for heroes or anti-heroes in the gutter.

[cincinnati65]

In the DC Universe, they still think comic movies are just for kids. In the Marvel Universe, they realize that there are legions who were fans as kids that have grown into adults. They handle adult conflicts --

Civil War was a great example -- there was no real "right" or "wrong" on either side, and it was thoughtfully presented that way. Neither Cap nor Iron Man was the "bad guy".

[escapefromboston]

BvS wasn’t any worse than marvels usual crap. Maybe I’m getting to old but Civil War was absolutely awful even for a kids movie.

[jsanders2001]

> Maybe customers object to having a political agenda shoved down their throats when all they wanted was a few hours of escapist entertainment.

I think you nailed one of the main reasons people are getting tired of them other than the fact they are completely fictional characters with superpowers that remind us of millenials we want to slap for handing us 8 years of the socialist agenda and King Obama. Every one of these movies looks like the WH and it's Communists handed Hollywood a set of guidelines and some script ideas to ensure the film is a propaganda piece that has to convey political messages in them to influence the public's opinion. If you watch just about any of these movies you will almost always may see gay marriage / LGBT PC characters, global warming (a lot), and gun grabbing messages for "safety of the people" intertwined into them.

[a fool in paradise]

DC’s comic-book rival Marvel has released four billion-dollar grossers so far, and its future lineup looks stacked with more guaranteed hits.

Look up the Marvel Zombie phenomenon of the 1990s. There is a brand loyalty among some fanboys that drives them to consume all of the company's product.

[T-Bone Texan]

"...A petition calling for the shutdown of the review-aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes..."

I don't get it.

The movie sucks and folks want to shut down a website that elucidates how bad it sucks?

Makes no sense.

[RayChuang88]

The thing that helps the Marvel movie franchise—at least the part owned by Disney—is that the writers of all the movies work closely together so all the movies have plot connections. And they’re a lot more fun to watch than the Warner Brothers-produced DC Comics movies.

[rlmorel]

"Maybe customers object to having a political agenda shoved down their throats when all they wanted was a few hours of escapist entertainment..."

WE HAVE A WINNER!

"DING DING DING! What do we have for him, Johnny?"

[Donglalinger]

“Maybe the general public is tired of looking for heroes or anti-heroes in the gutter.”

Deadpool was a huge success

[pepsionice]

I think if you’d gone with the Deadpool script and idea in 2005, they would have turned you down flat. They’ve reached a stage where some Marvel project can be funny and cynical.

[Williams]

Well if you need an example of how bad the DC movies are, I spent my youth as a devoted DC comic fan, and had no use for Marvel.

For me it was Superman, Supergirl, Superboy, Flash, Batman, etc.

And now I am a devoted fan of the Marvel films and don’t bother to see the DC films.

That’s how good / bad they are.

[Donglalinger]

Why can't Fox make a decent Fantastic 4 movie or Sony Spiderman movie. It's because the writer's and directors don't understand the source material.

When they hired James Gunn to do do Guardians of the Galaxy movie the first thing he did was throw the script in the garbage and write it himself.

[VanDeKoik]

Sometimes I wonder if Americans have had it TOO easy for too long.

[Mamzelle]

I was a big DC “funny book” fan. If I hadn’t read them into dust I could retire on the classic issues...same as you. I actually liked the Superboy, Supergirl and AquaMan best, although I wanted to grow up and be Lois Lane. Aqyaman was the only hero who actually got married and had a family...didn’t care for Spider-Man because he was so whiny! The Lous-Clark series in TV was a lot of fun. This newest Superman—can’t remember the name of the actor—is the handsomest if all the actors who has played him, but he’s lifeless and depressed...(little trip down memory lane...look what they’ve done to our Heroes)

[Dr. Sivana]

Well if you need an example of how bad the DC movies are, I spent my youth as a devoted DC comic fan, and had no use for Marvel.

For me it was Superman, Supergirl, Superboy, Flash, Batman, etc.

Same. I remember the problems began when DC was trying to be more like Marvel by bringing on Jack Kirby and redoing various legends, most of which had to be undone.

Lois got her own pad with two roommates (a fashionable black woman and a fat chick), I guess she was too cool to live with mom, but didn't want a reputation by having her own pad, or maybe J. Jonah Jameson took over the Daily Planet and was paid Peter Parker wages. But wait, Morgan Edge bought the Daily Planet and got the bright idea of making Clark Kent ANCHORMAN on the evening news, a job he didn't apply for. The Clark Kent I know would have walked out of Mr. Edge's office, and gone across the street with Perry White and sign up with The Metropolis Daily News. Wonder Woman lost her powers and took up Judo and Kung Fu, exchanging her Amazon pagan practices for far eastern pagan Mysticism with a male mentor. (??!!)

Kirby tried to retool Jimmy Olson as "cool". Bruce Wayne abandoned Wayne Manor and moved into a city apartment, and used a rather ordinary car for a Batmobile.

And then Warner bought DC, and never, ever, figured out what to do with it.

D.C. should be more upbeat than Marvel. Superman should be someone you can take your eight year old to see, and he should be looked up to, and not filled with doubt, though he still gets to mourn the loss of Krypton, he's Superman, and everyone loves him ... cool! Bright colors, vainglorious criminals, straightforward plots, more serious than the '60s Batman TV show, but not too much.

I would like Superman to perhaps be placed back in the very early '40s, with the powers dialed down a little bit, and no World Wars for him to not stop single-handedly. You can even call him Earth-2 Superman to keep comics continuity intact.

The Flash could go up against Vandal Savage, a great all time villain ( a cro-magnon man whose exposure to a mysterious comet made him immortal, allowing him to accumulate the knowledge of every era since then.)

The Justice League should omit Superman and Batman (Supes steals the show, Batman can't really go against space aliens convincingly) and have mainly the second tier (Flash, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, Black Canary, Green Arrow, and EITHER Elongated Man or Red Tornado [but not both]). Cameos by Supes and Batman if needed, but we don't want the story too crowded.

The Legion of Superheroes (Silver Age edition) is a huge untapped opportunity (and plenty of room for eye candy with Saturn Girl, Triplicate Girl, Princess Projectra) and if needed, the marriage between Bouncing Boy and Duo Damsel (formerly Tripicate Girl). Keep the names and the storylines Silver Age and politically incorrect even though it takes place in the 30th century. Worked for Star Trek!

We need COMIC BOOK fans to tell comic book stories. Mario Puzo should have stuck with mob movies. He messed up Superman and DC/Warner never got on the right track (save some Batman) since.

[W.]

It’s the mindset of the day—get a few names on a paper and they think that’ll let them shut down anything they don’t like. Just like whiny little kids...