Issue #64: Comic Books For The Week Of Wednesday, July 15, 2009 & Is Superman Too Old Fashioned For DC Comics And Warner Brothers?

Action Comics #879 (DC)

This week I wasn't able to go to my local comic book store at Acme Comics http://acme-superstore.com . I had some other things I had to do and didn't have time to go this week. If I don't make it on Saturday I'll have to wait until next Wednesday.

This week I thought I would take this opportunity to comment on some quotes by DC and Warner Bro's. executives from the recent court ruling in the ongoing Siegel family lawsuit against DC Comics. I won't quote them directly here, they can be found on any comic book news web site. Their comments seemed to suggest that they felt that Superman was a little outdated, too optomistic for today's entertainment market. Part of their reasoning may have been to present their case in a more favorable light, but if this is their honest opinion, it is very pitiful.

To me, this is another example of the entertainment industry's race to be first to be second. It's easy to understand that dark and gritty super hero movies, like The Dark Knight, are popular, but some executives, like a WB executive earlier this year, seem to think that "dark" heroes are the only in thing with comic book movie adaptions. While Iron Man had some dark scenes, it had some comedic and light moments, due in no small part to to Robert Downey, Jr. as Tony Stark / Iron Man.

As for the earlier comments by a WB executive about Superman, he seemed to think that the next Superman movie would need to be as dark as the character would allow. With Superman, the character can't be made very dark before he stops being Superman and becomes just another nameless dark and gritty character. Part of the problem with Superman Returns (spoiler alert) was that the film strayed from the classic Superman. Producers felt his traditional colors were too bright and created a costume that sported darker hues. And scenes showing the Man of Steel using his x-ray vision and super hearing to spy on Lois Lane, and then sneak into her home to look at his son. That was too much of a departure for many Superman fans.

That is not to say that a Superman movie cannot be made showing him in a darker world. Superman may be very powerful, but you can break his heart and vex his soul. That would be a way to make a "dark" Superman movie without straying from the classic character, and please trend following movie executives. Showing Superman overcome the conflict of a darker world without compromising what makes Superman the Man of Steel would make an original story, instead of playing to the trend of "dark" comic book movies.

It's not Superman that is the problem. DC and movie executives who seem to want to make Superman not be Superman are the problem.

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