The Fall of The Golden Age of Comic Book Films [Op-Ed]

Life is not linear. Human history is a circle. History seems to repeat itself time and time again through out the centuries. Take for example, ancient Rome. Here we had a city that was at the height of it’s time, a modern civilazation that ruled the Mediterranean with a iron fist. Working sewers, hot spring baths, rich grains and meats, art, and a booming trade market. Rome was in it’s “golden age” era and was the envy of all the land…until the fall of Roman Empire. During the late Empire, the city was a skelaton of it’s former self. Practically a ghost town of ruins and disease.

I know what your thinking, what the hell does any of this have to do with comic movies? I believe that we are living in the “golden age” of comic television and cinema. Every year, movie goers and tv viewers spend their time and money watching summer blockbusters and spending their weekday nights religously tuning in to Arrow orMarvel: Agents Of Shield for example. For a comic fan…life is good, but for how long? Will it come crashing down with no warning like a bursting volcano in Pompei? Does the term, “what goes up, must come down” apply here?

To take a good guess at any of these questions, you almost have to take a step back and look at Hollywood’s phases over the past 40 or so years and a pattern will begin to emerge. In the 1930’s-1940’s, it was all science fiction. H.G. Well’s War of The Worlds radio show captivated (and scared the hell out of) millions of people. The Day The Earth Stood Still followed in the 1950’s. Teenagers watched the original Star Trek series loyally week after week. Science Fiction was the focus of the movie and tv business, and friends…business was a booming.

Comics got some love too during this era with the 1950’s tv series , The Adventures Of Superman. However in the 1960’s , it was the Batman live action series starring Adam West that really knocked down some walls in comic media. Comics were no longer just for kids. The road to comic films continued to march on with live action Hulk, and Wonder Woman tv series in the next few years when Hollywood really began to focus it’s eyes on comic hero’s and their money making potential. However, it wasn’t exactly a straight jump. Again, Hollywood and it’s phases. In the 1970’s, Hollywoods focus were spaghetti westerns and independent films such as The Godfather,Scarface and Clock Work Orange. 

Then Hollywood lost interest in the genre and turned it’s focus back to comic and science fiction films such as Superman, Star Wars, and Batman during the end of the 1970’s and maintained that course for the decade of the 1980s. Movies were no longer gangster blood tales of reality. They were popcorn fun again. We saw wave after wave of Indiana Jones, Star Trek, Star Wars, Willow, Superman, and Aliens just to cherry pick a few favorites. This was the decade at the movies in a nut shell with a steady dose of supernatural horror flicks sprinkled in.

Then in the 90’s it all came full circle again. Goodbye Dr. Jones and hello Vincent Vega! With the emergence of fresh blood directors Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez landing in Hollywood, we got gritty and stylish films such as True Romance, Reservoir Dogs, El Mariachi, Desperado, and Pulp Fiction. With Pulp Fiction getting nominated for countless Oscars in 1994, the writing was all over the wall. Science Fiction pop corn flicks were moved to the Hollywood backburner again in favor of the more gritty reality films just like it happened a decade before with the Godfather stepping aside for Star Wars. Starting to see the patern yet? 

Cinema history is repeating itself. Out with the old and in with what was older and now fresh again. By 2001, movie goers were walking into theaters across the world with titles such as Star Wars, Lord Of The Rings, and The Matrix on their ticket stubs. Movies were fun again. Sure we still have the occasional griity gangster flick likeHeat for example, but not like when the genre was in it’s golden age of the 70’s and 90’s. Which brings us full circle too. How much time of the “golden age” of comic heroes in the movies do we have left?

Just like ancient Romans, we may not even be aware that the clock is ticking. Marvel is going very strong with it’s yearly releases from Spiderman to Captain America. DC is catching up as well with it’s successful Batman and Man of Steel blocbusters and both have much more on the horizon. Even Sony has announced plans for a yearly Spiderman film similar to Disney’s plans to have a annual Star Wars film.

Not too mention there is a explosion of qaulity television based off comic icons. We already have Arrow and Agents of Shield pulling in weekly top ratings and there is more to come. Casting and filming is happening as we speak for live action series The Flash and Gotham Nights which are shaping up to be just as big of hits. 

Never before in either film or tv, has the world seen such a steady dose of comic media. Not too mention, aside from live action blockbusters and tv series, we are getting animated comic based films every year to boot. I am not complaining… AT ALL. However, I got to say this. I love steak and lobster too, but if I ate it everyday, I would get burnt out. Who’s to say that is what’s happening now with Hollywood and it’s focus on comic cinema? How long before Hollywood enters it’s next phase? Do you think we will actually be watching a “Avengers 5” in the year 2023? One thing is for sure, I am certainly going to enjoy the comic ride for as long as I can before we see the repeat in Hollywood history.

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