Demanding Legacy Continuity In The Comic Book Medium
Oh, don’t fool yourself here. Comic books aren’t impacting the film universes; it’s actually the other way around. Think about it: how many of your friends have gotten into comics solely because of these movies? When the DCEU launched with Man of Steel in 2013, DC Comics was in the middle of the New 52 – a gloomier, edgier revamp of its entire line. In February 2016, as the warning signs of Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice‘s potential reception became as loud as a klaxon to the senior execs, DC hit a mild reset button with Rebirth – a soft reboot of its characters that launched in June 2016. From the art to the writing, everything turned 180, going back to the familiarity of characters and stories that most fans were accustomed to.
On the other hand, Marvel Studios hasn’t been too concerned with the comic book world. Most of the narratives have managed to exist without relying on the current source material, choosing to recall the older stories as reference points instead. It’s a smart choice, too, since the majority of Marvel Comics’ output for the past few years has been hot garbage and the stories have gone down wormholes which have destroyed legacy characters beyond repair. Hence the need for Marvel Legacy, which will likely clean up the mess made in recent times and allow the films to push the comic books as well. After all, who wants to see Iron Man on screen and then buy a book where he’s a hologram? At least someone saw the value in aligning things here.
While the cinematic universes will always rake in more money than the comic books, it’s important to not cannibalize your own business by operating in self-destructive silos. This is why it’s becoming tantamount to align all your properties to one set goal. DC did it, and Marvel followed. Frankly, we think this was a wise decision made by both companies.
Tell us, do you think the MCU and DCEU are borrowing from each other, or are they different beasts? Let us know in the comments section!