If you're into comic book characters, this current explosion of superhero cinema is basically an ongoing orgy of amazingness. Even weirdos like Deadpool and Ant-Man are getting movies and, more surprisingly, they're actually profitable. Hollywood could probably have Armless Tiger Man battle Snowflame, the cocaine-powered supervillain and, at worst, double their money. It's that much of a spandexed renaissance.
If you're into comic books, however, you should be pretty pissed off right now. Why? Because it turns out those gorgeous movie types cosplaying as your favorite ink-and-paper creations are ruining them more than they'll ever know or care about. Before you buy a ticket to the latest cowl-heavy blockbuster, consider that ...
6
The Moviemakers Regularly Shit On The Comics
Warner Bros.
Along with Sam Raimi's Spider-Man, Bryan Singer's X-Men movies are often credited with digging the superhero genre out of the gutter by finally treating the source material with respect. This is slightly ironic, considering that Singer apparently hates that material. In fact, according to Hugh Jackman, Singer outright banned X-Men comics on set.
20th Century Fox
"Yeah, I love #137 but, personally, #142 is ... Bryan! H-How long have you been there?"
"You're both fired."
Singer's reasoning? He wanted realistic, three-dimensional acting and feared reading weird, dumb baby comics would possess the actors into performing "over-the-top" and thus killing believability. Because when you're making a movie about a 160-year-old man with giant steel claws and a flying woman who can control the weather by shouting, "WEATHER, DO THE THING NOW," you absolutely must be subtle about it. Josh Trank, who directed the 2015 Fantastic Four reboot, also told actors not to read Fantastic Four comics at all, but, OK, you probably saw that one coming.
Then there's director David Goyer, who understands literally nothing about comics and respects them even less, despite writing three Blade films, two Ghost Rider films, two Superman films, and four Batman films. When asked about Marvel's She-Hulk, he dismissed her as nothing but "a giant green porn star," created by horny, powerless men and masturbated to by hornier, even more powerless men. And the Hulk. According to Goyer, She-Hulk exists simply to be the only girl Hulk can bone without squashing her like Bambi under Godzilla's foot. There's a tiny hole in this theory: She-Hulk isn't Hulk's girlfriend; she's his cousin. And a lawyer. And a feminist icon.
Marvel Comics
And awesome, if that wasn't clear already.