The Four Color Media Monitor

Yahoo's UK movies section spoke about the current trend of adapting darker-themed comics for TV rather than movies. Towards the end, the most interesting comment made is:

I rather doubt I'm alone among fans of comic book movies in wishing that the studios would have the guts to make movies geared toward older audiences rather than toning down - and, in some instances, dumbing down - for the sake of a PG-13/12A. If television presents the opportunity for such tales to be told to their fullest, then so be it - but I hope it isn't too long before the big screen catches up to the potential of more adult material, even within the realms of comic book movies.

Well if that happens, I hope it'll all be done with sensibility and NOT sensationalism. But, they raise an interesting point: unlike how the comics are being written today - stories unsuitable for children yet unappealing to adults - the movies are geared more to family audiences with few going for the R-rated category. Wesley Snipes' adaptation of Blade from the Tomb of Dracula was one of the very few modern comics movies that seriously went for a mature angle in an R-rated vein. But, since 1998, practically no Marvel movie has ever had that rating, as they've preferred to make the majority with PG-13 ratings.

Having said that, I'm not happy if nearly every one of these proposed TV adaptations will be darker themed with no brighter views to counterbalance the dark. I suspect DC will end up becoming a major offender in that regard, but even Marvel's bound to go for the same angle. There have been TV programs in the past with optimistic POVs, and I see no reason why they can't work today. It could actually be a good thing if they did for the simple reason that we can't trust the producers in charge not to plunge into overbaked leftist politics, and optimism could provide a good counterbalance to that too.

Labels: dc comics, indie publishers, marvel comics