DC Comics versus Marvel: Who is the better superhero creator?

From TV to the film reel, which comic creator rules the screen?

More stories from Hayley Jacobson

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Photo by Can Stock Photo

Superheros are some of the original influencers of young children in media.

Superheroes were a main staple of my childhood. From shows mixed with drama and action like “Teen Titans” to all the remakes of “Spider-Man” throughout the years, they shaped my moral compass. But by far, Marvel has been my favorite go-to for superhero movies within the past decade.

Starting from Marvel’s “The Avengers,” my love for superheroes evolved. I was already in love with Spider-Man — just his powers alone were incredible. Seeing superheroes on the big screen could not be compared to seeing them on my tiny TV back home. But I was disappointed with DC Comics movies. They just could not hold up to the cinematic masterpieces that Marvel created.

With the new release of Marvel’s “Avengers: Endgame,” I have seen the discussion about Marvel versus DC appear more frequently among my friends and in public spheres. So let’s talk about what each does well and what needs to work on.

Marvel has a firm grip on the box office when it comes to superhero movies. Their average gross box office ticket sales for opening weekends is $126 million, according to Box Office Mojo, an online ticket sales tracking website.

The newest movie, “Avengers: Endgame,” is projected to break the worldwide box office record, according to CNBC. “Black Panther” was such a hit it it’s opening weekend that it earned $202 million, nearly beating the original “Avengers” movie for second place in opening weekend ticket sales.

In comparison, DC is only able to bring in $50 million on average, according to Box Office Mojo. While that is still a lot of money, it is nothing in comparison to Marvel’s ticket sales.

DC movies are getting better however, as “Shazam” has been in the top five for movies in theaters since its opening weekend, according to Box Office Mojo, and “Wonder Woman” was a commercial hit.

However, Marvel has done a much better job of tying their cinematic universe together and getting people hyped for each new film. People are willing to go see movies just because they have the Marvel name attached to them.

While Marvel is great at making movies, their TV shows leave a bit to be desired. Marvel knows how to space out a movie, but they tend to overspace shows.

In my experience, it feels as if the plots are dragging on to the point that when it finally is resolved, it’s more of a relief for it to be over than that the good guys won. Or the plots overshadow each other, and there is no priority to which one is more important than the others. It is distracting, and more often than not it will confuse the watcher.

DC has made plenty of good TV shows though: “Arrow,” “Teen Titans” and “Young Justice,” just to name a few. They know how to space out character plots as well as keep the audience interested. Nothing is thrown at the audience too quickly, but it is not sparse either.

This is lost every time they try to make a movie though. While “Wonder Woman” was one of the better movies made in the past decade, it ranked only third among other DC movies. At the top is 2008’s “The Dark Knight,” and “Shazam” has done wonderfully, but the many DC movies fall to the side.

Overall, I would rather watch Marvel’s “Avengers: Endgame” than “The Dark Knight,” but when I sit down to binge a show, I’ll go with “Arrow” over “Spider-Man” any day.

It all comes down to personal preference.

Jacobson can be reached at [email protected].