the geekocracy

A simple Man with Simple Plans

I usually like to consider myself a complex person with simple needs. So I asked myself what I want out of the companies that provide my entertainment. For the purposes of this exercise I’m sticking with the big two on this one. I decided to ask myself what are 5 things that I would like to see from Marvel and DC. But not from the comics. From their ventures outside of their comics. You’ll see what I mean as I present them in no particular order.

From DC:

1.  I’d really like to see DC form their own production company like Marvel. I know they’re owned by Time Warner, but it seems to be so difficult to have to clear everything with Warner Brothers. DC would have an easier time getting Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, and Flash movies going. And not only that they would have a better chance having the same actors for a Justice League movie.

2.  Let Mark Millar write the next Superman movie. He said he’d write it for free, which we all know wouldn’t happen, but even if you had to pay him it would be worth it. The guy is getting scripts approved left and right and his Superman Red Son is one of the best Superman stories in the past 10 years.

3.  Give me more Justice League Animated something. Sure the series was cancelled, but a TV movie or two wouldn’t hurt. The show was great and it had a big following. I’d buy those DVDs.

4.  Get a top notch writer and director for the Wonder Woman movie and get it cast already. I know things didn’t work out with Joss Whedon, but that was ages ago. There are tons of girls and young women who deserve a great female super hero on the big screen. They certainly didn’t get it from Elektra or Catwoman that’s for sure.

5.  Say what you want about Smallville, but the show has been pretty successful. DC tried to do the same thing in the Batman universe with Birds of Prey, but I think this was the wrong direction. Sure DC doesn’t feel comfortable using Batman himself as the star, so use the next best thing, Nightwing. I think with good writers, and there’s plenty of them out there doing both TV and comics, a live action Nightwing series could be a pleasant surprise.

From Marvel:

1.  Now that it looks like Warner will not be bringing back Bryan Singer for a Superman sequel, get him back on X-Men. X3 was so awful and yes I do think the director had a fairly took the brunt of the blame. That’s why the X franchise needs Singer to come back. And I have just the story. “Days of Future Past.” You can use the same actors and even introduce a few new mutants in future scenes. And it’s a self contained story.

2.  An X-Men cartoon that does not feature Wolverine as the main character. Which is exactly what Marvel has planned next. The reason the X-Men cartoon of the 90s was so successful is because you got the chance to see lots of X-Men with face time for each of them. And with so many stories to choose from this should be easy to do.

3.  Make sure the Avengers movie has all the same actors from the other Marvel movies. I want to see the same actors playing Thor, Iron Man, and Captain America that will be in their own films. This will probably be the case and therefore I probably have nothing to worry about. Unless all the sudden Robert Downey Jr decides he’s had enough of playing Tony Stark. That would look awful to have a different actor after all that.

4.  If Spider-Man 4 gets made, I want to see the Black Cat. Like I said I have simple needs. I think Felicia Hardy could add some excitement for those who have gotten sick of Mary Jane Watson.

5.  I would love to see Marvel put together a cohesive line of cartoons with a similar universe and art direction like DC did with Bruce Timm. It was such a joy to see the development from the original Batman Animated series all the way through Justice League Unlimited. How about we see the same thing from Marvel. Not like they tried back in the 90s with their cheap animation in Iron Man and the Fantastic Four. Marvel has its own production company and it doesn’t just have to be for movies or direct to DVD.

So there you have it. 10 simple things that I ask. It’s not so much really. One of these days I’ll try another one of these excercizes. But for now let’s give the Big 2 a chance at these first.