Gotham

The premiere of the new show Gotham is upon us.  As a San Diego resident, I keep seeing trolleys plastered with advertising left over from SDCC.  I think it’s great.  There are still Agents of SHIELD trolleys from last year.  It feels like SDCC never ended.

I digress.

What I like about Gotham is that it is a series and not a movie.  It will allow for character development over time.  After all, these are stories worth waiting for. 

I’m starting to think that DC Comics is better off with television shows, leaving Marvel to the movies.  Just a thought, of course.  However it makes sense given that Warner Bros and DC are loathe to allow humor in their films, which makes their blockbusters dark.  Television has some great dramas, and Gotham will no doubt join them.  And while Guardians of the Galaxy would no doubt provide as many laughs per half hour as Big Bang Theory, the Marvel movies demonstrate ability to pack in action, drama, humor, and good storytelling into a two hour feature film.

DC can stay dark and gritty in the small screen world, and is fine.  Play to your strengths.

So welcome, Gotham. We’re ready for a long relationship with you.

Marvel is Already Winning the Box Office War Against DC

Here is a very interesting article from HitFix: http://m.hitfix.com/motion-captured/why-dcs-serious-superman-may-give-marvel-the-big-screen-edge

I have always been a Batman fan. I saw the 1989 version in the theater when I was 9.  I watched Christopher Reeves as Superman (and I adored watching him with Richard Pryor in Superman III)

My brother in law is a die-hard Marvel fan, to the extent that he has Captain America tattooed to his calf.  Recently, he and my sister initiated me into the world of Marvel. 

I’m hooked.

I spent most of my time at the Marvel booth at SDCC. It was fun. The people working there were nice.  The fans were great.

So reading this article about the Warner Bros “no jokes” policy is saddening.  As much as I enjoy Batman and Superman, their movies don’t hold a candle to Marvel.  I am not looming forward to Batman vs Superman nearly as much as I am Avengers: Age of Ultron. I loved Guardians of the Galaxy.  I want to love the DC movies. Truly, I do.  But they just can’t be the same if they remain as dark as they have been in recent years. (Even the Tim Burton movies were funny at times…and nipples on the Batsuit is the longest running joke of all…) No one is suggesting a return to the 1960s campy Batman, but even that Batman is making a comeback.

Warner Bros and DC: Please wake up! Jokes are needed in your franchises. Lighten up.  As Joker said, “Why so sad?”