Heres the really long Marvel Vs DC analysis I wrote cause I was bored; I finally realized why DC movies have begun to bother me so much and why Ive become more of a Marvel fan over the years... DC has taken the fun out of being a superhero. The reason most of us watch superhero movies is to be part of the fight for good and justice, having fun with cool superpowers and awesome gadgets, getting to fight bad guys and feel like we can help make a difference. But DC is taking that from us. Think about it; all Batman and Superman do nowadays (the only two superheroes DC will bother making movies about anymore) is spend most of their time lamenting and brooding over their responsibilities and how much of a curse it is to be a superhero all in the name of trying to be darker and grittier as is the norm for most modern heroes. News flash; being dark and brooding does not make your character three dimensional, as DC has yet to learn. Throwing character angst at us over and over again in every other scene doesnt make us feel bad for the character. It just makes us tired of hearing about it. And, while being a superhero is an important job that involves responsibilities and hardships, it doesn’t always have to revolve around the bad. Remember the old literary rule Show dont tell? DC likes to tell us that their characters are suffering instead of actually showing it. We get scene after scene of them complaining to someone about their burdens, maybe a rooftop to brood down at the city here and there, but thats about it. Meanwhile, Marvel has done a much better job at showing the inner turmoil of their characters but instead of coming off as whiny and brooding about their tragic backstories, which there are plenty to choose from, the small moments we see give better depth to their characters and make them more relatable and real to us. Lets face it, most people dont like showing their weaknesses. Only in rare moments of emotional distress do slivers of vulnerability and self-doubt usually seep through. These feelings we usually keep to ourselves as we deal with them or repress and refuse to face them. I picked out three examples from recent Marvel movies that stood out and gave the characters in each scene a pain and depth that most of the audience was sympathetic to. (Spoilers ahead for anyone who hasnt watched Guardians of the Galaxy, Avengers, or Iron Man 3. Also the Amazing Spiderman 1 and 2 later.) First was Bruce Banners scene in the Avengers where he talks about his suicide attempt. I put a bullet in my mouth and the other guy spit it out. Through most of the movie, Bruce is uncomfortable and defensive around most of the other characters but this is one of the few time we actually see him truly vulnerable and resentful about his condition. Not to mention, everyone else in the scene looks so surprised and shocked, its not hard to realize that this is a new confession instead of an old complaint. Bruce even continues afterwards saying, So I moved on. I focused on helping other people. He doesnt lament and dwell on it, as sad and heartbreaking as it is, and it gives great insight to his character’s strength. Second is Tonys panic attack scene in Iron Man 3. Not many are familiar with PTSD but after the events of Avengers, it wasnt surprising that a near death experience would shake Tony up a bit. Now granted, Tony does his fair share of complaining here and there throughout whatever movie hes in at the time, but its usually hidden behind sarcasm and indifference as is with Tonys character. We know he would rather joke about his problems and get drunk than actually face whats bothering him. When we actually see him break down and have a panic attack, multiple ones actually but mainly the first one, it shows how deeply his experience has affected him. And last but not least, the scene that broke my heart in Guardians of the Galaxy. Anyone whos seen the movie has probably guessed Im talking about Rockets drunk scene at the bar. First, though, I wanted to mention Peter Quill and a little quirk I noticed about him. Throughout Guardians of the Galaxy, Peter comes off as carefree and a little goofy but I noticed he seems to have a hidden resentment towards the ravagers. Whenever he would talk about his past, he would always stop himself from saying he was taken or abducted from his home and instead say, When I left Earth. Near the end while talking with Yondu, though, his vulnerability shows through and he confronts him briefly about being abducted and calls him out on it. It’s not a particularly dramatic or focused scene but still important to his character none the less. Anyways, back to Rocket. Now Rocket over all is very guarded about showing any sort of weakness, which is justifiable. Given his past of experimentation and mistreatment, hes not quick to trust nor to show any signs of vulnerability. He uses his condescending and sarcastic attitude in defense against others and is aggressive and confrontational to those that condescend or look down on him. He presents himself as indifferent to how others view him but reveals later that being called insults like ‘vermin’ and ‘rodent’ weigh heavy on him. He even seems proud at one point of being one of a kind saying, “Ain’t no thing like me ‘cept me,” though his bitterness towards being different come out later. “I never asked to be made. I didn’t ask to be torn apart and put back together over and over again and turned into some little monster.” It’s only in moments like this of high emotional distress, and in this case drunkenness, that he ever shows his vulnerability and pain. He opens up more by the end when he grieves over Groot and lets the rest of his team actually see him showing ‘weakness’. Because we see so little of his inner turmoil, we sympathize when he does break down and show more of his darker thoughts. Compared to the endless whining in DC movies, these sometimes subtle and small scenes carried a lot of weight and impact due mostly to the lack of complaining beforehand that give greater insight to the characters while still keeping them feeling real. Lastly, I wanted to mention the difference in responsibilities between DC and Marvel. Mainly between Superman, Spiderman, and Rocket. Yes, Spiderman. We all know the big Spiderman words of wisdom; “With great power comes great responsibility.” Being a high schooler with superpowers (I’m focusing mainly on the younger versions of Peter here), Peter enjoys his powers and has fun being a superhero but still carries quite a bit of responsibility on his shoulders. He’s very conscious of protecting the people of the city, swinging in to catch them or move them from harm’s way during his battles, catching falling rubble or flipped cars with his webs, and always being ready to step forward to handle a problem he caused (Harry turning Hobgoblin, Doc Connors the lizard man, Electro his biggest fan turned enemy). Even while dealing with the guilt of the deaths of his Uncle, Gwen’s dad, then Gwen herself, he continues to enjoy being a hero and helping people, corny jokes and all. Now, I’m not a Man of Steel fan. I tried watching it but the contradiction of words versus actions really bothered me. Clark always went on and on about how it was his destiny to protect the people of Earth and how they need a hero and so on but I noticed something crucial about the last fight of the movie; the lack of actually protecting people. During the finale, Superman is flying through buildings and destroying most of Metropolis during his battle while civilians are still in the city. Maybe this is just a problem in the newer reboots but if Superman’s main job title is to protect civilians, you would think his main concern would be evacuating the city or maybe leading the fight away from the city so no innocents would be caught in the cross fire (I mean even Goku had enough sense to do that). This has been brought to many people’s attention in contrast with Rocket’s actions during the final fight in Guardians of the Galaxy. While most of the main characters are busy infiltrating Ronan’s ship, Rocket and the other fighters are left to battle the rest of Ronan’s army. When the ships start to crash and endanger the civilians attempting evacuate, he strategizes to shoot the ships so protect everyone while they evacuate. Only after the city is cleared does Rocket go to join the rest of his team on Ronan’s ship. Overall, Marvel seems to be perfecting the art of relatable characterization and universe continuity while DC makes excuse of the Wonder Woman movie and rehashes Batman and Superman for the hundredth time. On your left, DC. On your left.
Posted on: Fri, 29 Aug 2014 04:18:47 +0000
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