Superhero movies and television series are all the rage these days. This year alone six of the top 10 box office successes are comic book based. On TV there have been a number of new additions to the television landscape that was already crowded.
I recently saw Thor: Ragnarok, which features the God of Thunder himself, his brother Loki and Avenger-mate Hulk. Other than about five minutes, the movie takes place on different planets in outer space. The action is great and the battles between all the good guys and the bad guys are exhilarating, but the best part of the movie is the humour.
Ragnarok could've been listed as a comedy, it is just that funny. Who thought that stuffy old Thor could be so hilarious. From the first scene where he is locked in a cage to the end credits, it's joke after joke and they don't seem forced.
I think we can thank Deadpool and Guardians of the Galaxy for the newer, lighter Marvel superhero movies. Both those movies featured some lesser lights from the Marvel Comic universe, but leaned heavily on humour and were rewarded with strong box office sales.
Meanwhile, D.C. with their darker, more serious movies have struggled at the box office. Justice League is supposed to be the big superhero group unifying movie for D.C. similar to Avengers with Marvel. But from all accounts it has struggled at least early on at the box office. This is undoubtedly disappointing especially after the solid reception from Wonder Woman.
I really believe people are sick of seeing Superman and Batman mope around complaining. The Dark Knight movies did well a few years back, but they had Christian Bale as Batman and Heath Ledger as Joker. Those great actors were transcendent and brought depth to those well-established characters. Sure, they've had it tough losing their parents at a young age (Batman) and entire planet (Superman) and those losses are what guide them. But eventually you have to move on as best you can.
- Craig Lindsay is the reporter for the Mountain View Gazette
