IN A LEAGUE OF ITS OWN

JagWire reporter Emma Cooper thinks DC’s animated and live action series cover themes and tell stories that can connect more with their audience than Marvel’s

As a kid, I loved DC. I was obsessed with the Justice League and Batman in particular. But as I grew older, I felt I could align more with Marvel’s storytelling and themes.

Marvel is built on the idea of ordinary people becoming heroes. Marvel’s characters are written extremely well and kept grounded to be more relatable. While DC heroes are made to be gods among men, Marvel characters are made to embody the idea that characters could be ordinary people.

In addition, Marvel’s use of the multiverse and alternate dimensions provides a wide variety of character types and additional variants of characters that always result in new and fresh stories, which keep me interested and wanting more content. This, combined with their ability to create characters that are relatable, has given me a really sentimental connection to the franchise.   

Marvel has also revolutionized comic books with their unique art styles. Their comics use format changes on their pages to show more artwork instead of keeping the same dimensions. This is thanks to legendary Marvel comic artist and writer Jack Kirby, who shaped the way comics look today.

Another area that I believe DC comes in second is the quality of their different media programs. Marvel Studios has a wide variety of distinct programs that specialize in unique mediums of storytelling like animation and video games.

In addition, the DC movies don’t even begin to rival the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Marvel is responsible for the most successful superhero movies ever made, according to audience ratings on CinemaScore that gave 18 Marvel projects an ‘A’ rating. Marvel has also won multiple Academy Awards for “Black Panther,” “Avengers Endgame” and “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.”

Unlike the DC universe Marvel has been able to make their movies and TV fit into their own dimension in the comics without making it feel repetitive or dull. Marvel’s world building and message appeal to me in a way that no other media has been able to, that is why Marvel’s heroes and stories will mean so much to me and many others.

WHAT A MARVEL

JagWire reporter Ryan Bloomer believes Marvel’s refreshing comic book style, interesting themes and consistent cinematic universe put it miles above DC

Since seeing James Gunn’s interpretation of “Superman” last summer, I’ve become a Detective Comics (DC) nerd. Whether it was amazing visuals or the connection to the real world, that movie got me hooked. Since then, I have read many comics and watched live action and animated movies, and I am very set in my opinion that DC is better than Marvel.

For a majority of my life, I have read and watched Marvel, mainly because nobody in my life really talked about, read or even watched DC, apart from The Dark Knight Trilogy. After getting into the world of DC, it is really clear that the DC characters and storylines have been made with much more depth and meaning than Marvel.

While Marvel has some amazing movies, the DC Universe and largely the DC Animated Universe capture more emotion and purpose, consistently outshining Marvel. While DC’s live action movies may not be as consistently good as Marvel’s, their animation makes up for it, especially in series like “Justice League,” “Batman: The Animated Series” and “Young Justice.” When it comes to cinema, DC is unmatched in storytelling and impact.

Aside from films, DC also has amazing comics. DC has always used its comics to help deal with real world issues. DC often explores topics like mental health and inequality, using symbols, making the stories more meaningful and touching to readers. My personal favorite example of this is Wonder Woman, whose impact on women in comics led the comic industry to start incorporating women in their comics.

The School Journal Library says that Wonder Woman’s ropes and chains are symbols of patriarchy and the use of drama showcases her ability to break the male domination they symbolize, showing how DC was trying to break through stereotypes. On the other side of things, Marvel typically focuses on action and humor, which is great, but DC is able to make its comics more serious and relatable to the real world.

At the start of my DC journey I was invested because of the superheroes, but now having more knowledge of this universe, I’m invested not only in the superhero but also the deeper meanings. Overall, while both DC and Marvel have amazing films and comics, DC truly stands out because of the deep storytelling and real world connections they make.