In the seemingly endless discussions we have on who can beat whom. 1 Thing that is abundantly clear is the 2 big companies are built on 2 different philosophies. With few exceptions DC heroes are built on creating Icons, Marvel heroes are built on creating flawed heroes and an every man who just happens to have powers. Here's a few major difference DC is very good at Top Tiers & Street lvl but has a major problem creating mid Tier heroes that sell outside of team books. Marvel with few exceptions specialize in Mid Tier & Street lvl heroes and outside of Thor & Hulk has a problem creating Top Tier heroes that sell outside of team books. Ok the floor is open do you see any other major difference between them.
They should merge. The differences of both universes begin all the way at the top. The heroes would all work out if they were placed in the opposite universe. DC specializes in magic and religion, while Marvel specializes in cosmic entities/deities that turn the wheels of reality. The one reason that the universe's were unable to merge, was because of the fundamental differences that hold the universes together. This has very little to do with the minor aspects (the heroes). If both companies did away with a few minor dichotomies, a merger would be very possible. Unless of course people believe that Jimmy Olsen would be as powerful as Superman if he were to be placed in Marvel.
Also, what they have both done instead of outright merging, was to just create reasonable facsimiles of major characters, and portrayed them based on how they saw that they would fit into their continuity. Why rip up the world when they could simply add to it?
I'll go with some of what i agreed with on the subject at HC...
DC creates gods. Marvel creates people.
Marvel is usually about the struggles of transcending harsh circumstances and other limitations to achieve greatness in spite of it all. The 3 main pillars of the DCU are about how good people who've inherited the fruits of those struggles (ludicrous wealth, immense power, vast resources) handle it.
...and add something i posted earlier today in a different thread here...
Marvel routinely shows how tough their characters are by the damage they can take. DCs more of a watch me bench the earth kind of Company.
I have to disagree with you on most. DC isn't about who can bench the Earth because there simply aren't that many main characters that can actually pull it off. Superman is one character, he does not justify making a claim that the majority can fill his shoes. There are just as many powerful characters in both universes. What makes the universes differ is the universes themselves. Marvel portrays almighty characters differently than DC does. Marvel keeps it very science fiction-ish while DC has on occasion delved into theology, and outright Witchcraft. The forces that hold both universes is what differs, not the power sets. Marvel and DC have Superman type multi purpose characters, they have the dark lords (Darkseid, Thanos, etc) they have the fire characters, ice, demi gods, speedsters, mega tanks, etc. Continuity has plagued both companies.
I wasnt being literal, Stoic, my bad.
It was simply a way of saying, DC is more about making their characters look good via feats (the brock lesnar of companies) whereas Marvel makes theirs look good by going through the grinder (ala Mick Foley).
Is there overlap? Of course there is. Nothing we say about the companies will be universal, its more about the overall impression we get from each.
Being individuals our impressions will be different.
I like a lot of what you said that i didnt directly quote BTW.
The main difference I see is, with it's event-arcs, Marvel has a lot more of a sense of continuity and being interlinked, while DC books are more likely to have direction changes with new writers and so on, and the big crossovers don't have the line-wide effect.
As for flawed heroes, DC is the company that doesn't like it's people in happy relationships and depowered & outed Superman, made Wonder Woman come from an island of murderers, etc.. I think if anything they go too far in that direction!
For mid-tier DCs that sell, there's Starfire and Aquaman that come to mind, though DC, granted, doesn't have a lot of solos outside the Bat family, GL family, or Superman/Wonder Woman.
For high-tier Marvels that sell, there's Hulk, Thor, Surfer. Not all that far down are Iron Man and Captain Marvel too.
So the 3 main pillars of the DCU are:
ludicrous wealth - Batman
immense power - Superman
vast resources - Aquaman
Both companies have their strange dimensions and hidden lands, magical entities and cosmic entities, sci-fi heroes and streets and mystics and swamp creatures, and flawed characters. The big difference between Marvel and DC which means a lot of characters wouldn't fit the other and some fights would be one-sided: SPEED!!!! DC has a lot and Marvel has not a lot.
Marvel was about people who got some amazing powers at a price. Nothing was for free and the society treated them suspiciously most of the time. They had to fight harder to just survive and have a good life. The Heroes were significant and powerful but paled in comparison with the Cosmic beings our there that threaten their very existence.
DC was about Heroes who were the protectors of their Cities, their Worlds, most of them famous, almost flawless, cherished and loved by most. They always save the day, they always know what's right and whats wrong. They are cosmic powers by themselves and their turf is not only earth but the whole Multiverse.
This changed over the time, DC Heroes got some flaws, real life problems to fight, like drugs etc., the Marvel heroes started to become more powerful and some of them less flawed. But overall this was the impression I got in the 90ties.
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They are the same and some of the characters from both Universes have insane fts (Hulk, Superman, Surfer, Thor). As of right now, I'm liking DC more. Marvel sucks.
Here is the major difference between Marvel and DC:
The Marvel universe is the world outside your window. The DC universe is a fairy tale.
My favorite character is Sentry, while my least favorite character is Superman.
The interesting thing about that though, is that I don't necessarily like Sentry for what the Sentry himself is, just like I don't dislike Superman for what Superman himself is.
I like / dislike them, because of how the universe they live in affects them.
If you had the powers of either one of these characters, in your mind (and the DC universe) you would be Superman. In actuality (the Marvel universe) you would end up as the Sentry (or Plutonian, if you're not schizophrenic and agoraphobic).
- Superman fights Brainiac to save the entire world and then makes out with Lois Lane in the end! Everyone loves him, everyone admires him!
- Sentry has to save thousands of people on day to day basis without an end to it... and he slowly starts cracking under the pressure. His wife is considering an affair, since he is never at home. Everyone fears him or wants to use him as a weapon.
My second favorite character is Spider-Man, while my second least favorite character is Batman... again for similar reasons.
- Batman was a kid, when his parents died. There is nothing he could have done against it. His sidekick died, but that didnn't matter, since he got a new one and the old one come back anyway.
- Spider-Man however lost his uncle, because Spider-Man made the mistake of being full of himself and stubborn. Oh, and his girlfriend died, because he was too bad at saving her. So she won't be cheering him up anytime soon.
Long story, short: It's so much easier to relate to the Marvel universe. The Marvel universe is far less forgiving and doesn't shy away from putting its characters into situations, where DC on the other hand would be more careful about that.
PS: However, I do think that every now and then (although very rarely) DC does it right. For example, one of my favorite stories of all time is "Superman - Peace On Earth".
I really liked Superman in that story, because in my opinion that's how Superman needs to be portrayed as a character. In that story Superman tries to do something, that actually matters - Only to ultimately fail, since saving the world is an impossible task.
The only great thing to come out of DC is Batman. Unfortunately most of their other heroes fall flat and that's why all of DC's movies that aren't Batman related flop.
KMC Community Forums
Oct 25th, 2015 06:20 PM
Wow.
