NEST Speculative: Marvel VS DC Part One- Cinematic Success and Failure

 Disambiguation 

When I discuss any Marvel property in films, I will not be including Sony's Spiderman trilogy or the recent 2012 reboot nor will I include Fox's X-Men and Fantastic Four films. I am sticking to Marvel's core cinematic universe for the sake of clarity.

Rivalry and Failure

Marvel and DC, two of the biggest rivals in all of geek culture, have very different approaches when it comes to putting their characters on the big screen. Everyone has seen a beloved comic book movie franchise tank, from Batman and Robin, considered to be one of the worst comic book movies ever, to Superman IV. However, recently Marvel seems to have finally created a cinematic universe that has stood the test of time. What's their secret?

Casting

Quick, name me an Avenger. I'm willing to be quite a few of you said Iron Man, played perfectly by Robert Downey Jr. Not only is RDJ an excellent actor, he pulls of the very difficult job of making a cocky, self-absorbed character likeable. In fact, he turned Iron Man from a background character to one of Marvel's major sellers. Christian Bale's contrast between the mild-mannered Bruce Wane and the raspy vigilante Batman.

Believability

 There are two very different approaches to a comic book movie. You can either create a universe that wholeheartedly accepts superhero logic, or put superheros into a believable world. For example, Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy features absolutely no superpowers and tries to ground Batman and his villains in a world exactly the same as our own. It works because the logic is consistent. Joss Whedon's Avengers features insane superpowers, alien invasions, and gods fighting radioactive rage monsters. The logic in that world is that the supernatural is perfectly normal in that world,  and so then the logic is conistent.

Interconnection

The Dark Knight Rises and Man of Steel were both far and away box office successes, so why is Marvel's cinematic universe doing so much better? Iron Man 3 may not have been as been as wildly successful as The Avengers, but it still outdid Man of Steel by hundreds of millions of dollars. (Iron Man 3 grossed aprox. 1,200,000,000; Man of Steel grossed approx $648,423,009) What's the secret to Marvel's success? Their interconnection between films means that if you enjoyed the Avengers, you have a higher chance of seeing Iron Man 3. With every film, Marvel's fan base grows, whereas DC relies on a "Makers of the Dark Knight Trilogy" to recapture fans. Warner Bros. hopes to create their own universe, offering Christian Bale $50 million to play Batman in their upcoming Superman VS Batman film.

Outcome

Will DC be able to create their own cinematic universe? After Iron Man 3 was slightly less successful than The Avengers, does that signal a decline in Marvel's success? Only time will tell.