DC versus Marvel

by Charlie Albuery and Hugh Summers

Marvel Comics
(source: ditko-fever.com)



DC Comics
(source: shirtoid.com)



Since superhero comic books became popular in the 1960s, two  main companies have been vying for the attention of the masses. This is one of the most climactic battles in history, going down alongside such epic conflicts as Roundheads vs. Cavaliers, Red vs. Blue and, of course, Kramer vs. Kramer.

We are about to lay out the main points of the (clearly one-sided) argument, for you, the readers of this blog to make the decision for yourselves.

I, your friendly neighbourhood comic-book blogger, Charlie Albuery, am fighting for Marvel and my friend (although not for the next hour or so while we write this), Hugh Summers, is on the side of the (clearly inferior) DC Comics franchise.

Round 1 – Iconic Characters

Marvel – As a child, who didn’t want to be Spiderman? I know I did. The fact is, Marvel comics characters have permeated pop culture and become role-models and icons for generations of children. From Captain America, the living embodiment of patriotism, to Iron Man, the billionaire playboy with a heart of gold, Marvel’s characters span everything that we love about icons.

DC- Well, I don’t know about Charlie, but I myself was more of a Batman kid, with the Batman Begins film being released when I was seven, with a Batman who was dark and serious. Let’s be honest, Batman is far cooler to a small boy than a radioactive youth who lives with his aunt and flies around the New York skyline in tight red lycra shooting webs from his wrists. 

Round 2 – Villains

DC- The first thing to consider when deliberating between Marvel and DC villains is that DC villains have much, much deeper backgrounds than those of the Marvel villains. Superman has Lex Luther, an evil genius/ politician who’s out to rule the world. Now Batman has the Joker, a crazed psychopath who escapes from the most secure mental asylum in the world. I mean, he put a razor inside his mouth and carved a smiley face into his cheeks; all Spiderman has is a guy dressed as a goblin on a hover board and a robotic octopus.

Marvel-Awww, how quaint, a prisoner and clever Boris Johnson. Great. What super villains are really all about are POWERS: a mutant with control over all metal, an alien who has the ability to literally mould reality to his will, and, of course, Galactus, who can eat universes as if they were M&Ms. Those are real villains, real dangers. Also, for the record, the Green Goblin sometimes has an energy sword that is basically a lightsabre, I WIN.

Round 3 – Teams

Marvel- I was looking forward to this one; Marvel has, of course, the most iconic super-team in all of everything, ever. The Avengers had a blockbuster film this year, the third highest grossing film ever, by the way (behind Avatar and Titanic), and let’s look at the contents of The Avengers:

The Hulk – giant green rage monster;

Thor – god. That is all;

Captain America – genetically engineered super-soldier;

Iron Man – genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist.

And what does DC have? A man who dresses as a bat, a guy named after a lantern, Usain Bolt in lycra and a merman (well, I better not start a fight with him IN THE OCEAN).

DC- Well, of course, Marvel has the Avengers which are, well, dysfunctional, I mean, they barely get along. Unlike DC’s Justice League, who control the land, sea and sky and act like one big happy family chilling out at Superman’s ice palace. So how about we take a look at the Justice League in a bit more detail:

Wonder Woman- one of the most impressive, powerful and most attractive super heroes of all time.

Aqua man- Charlie can make fun of Aqua Man all he wants, the globe is two thirds water, making him one of the most effective superheroes on earth.

Batman- a billionaire who physically dominates Tony Stark; he is one of the coolest and most inspiring super heroes of all.

The Flash- he runs approaching the speed of light! So one can’t blame him for wearing a more, well, aerodynamic piece of apparel.

Green Lantern- Charlie may be insulting him, in this article, when I know for a fact that, at this instant, as we are writing this article, Charlie is drinking from his green lantern mug! Also, he can fly through space, shoot energy and create hard structures made of this energy. So he can effectively create anything he wants!

(NB-Everyone knows Aqua Man sucks and Green Lantern is literally vulnerable TO THE COLOUR YELLOW-- Charlie)

Round 4 – Franchises

DC- Let us begin, starting with Superman. There have already been a number of Superman films including another one which is due to come out soon. Then, there is Green Lantern which we all know has had a film come out recently starring Ryan Reynolds. And now, for the grand finale, the Batman franchise, probably the best movie franchise in comic book history! What one must also consider is that the only reason Batman: the Dark Knight isn’t the higher up the box office tables than The Avengers is because it made it here all by itself, unlike The Avengers which have had an extremely large build-up of the Iron Man films, the frankly terrible Hulk films, the Captain America film and the Thor film; I believe DC should be commended for its success as it is the smaller franchise.

Marvel –It is foolish to suggest that The Dark Knight had any chance of beating The Avengers; the fact is that The Avengers has a far wider appeal, anyone can enjoy it. Hence its position on the in the box office rankings. Number 1 opening weekend box office and number 3 all-time box office positions speak for themselves. Also, seriously, when was the last time you saw a kid in an Aqua Man Halloween costume? Yes, I was drinking out of a Green Lantern mug but there’s a life-size Captain America shield on my wall and a drawer full of Marvel Comics in my desk; the Marvel franchise dominates the universe --- well my universe, anyway.