San Diego Comic-Con revealed a lot of big news, particularly as it pertains to Marvel. With the announcement of Robert Downey Jr. stepping in to play Doctor Doom in the next Avengers movie, here’s a question: what the heck is this going to do to the comics? The relationship between superhero comics and their expanded media hasn’t ever been even-sided .
At best, movies, shows, and games draw upon (and properly credit ) the source material in satisfying ways that don’t feel like a more expensive retread. But too often these days, it can feel like comics and characters are introduced with the hope that they come to live-action or animation in two or three years. It’s a problem that extends beyond the Big Two, but they operate in this space the most.
In DC’s case, it usually releases a tie-in comic set in the movie’s universe, or just make a character look more like their silver screen counterpart. These are fine compromises, since they theoretically invite movie viewers to check out comics and don’t interfere with the mainline books too much. And then you have Marvel, which basically dove headfirst into the synergy game and never really got out.
If there’s a big movie on the horizon, you can bet there’ll be a miniseries, comic book arc, or full-on event with a similar premise. Think Civil War II, the later Spider-Verse comics, and whatever’s store for Doctor Doom in 2025: all done to catch the attention of non-fans or remind readers of the big movie that’s .
