Some Twitter pals got me thinking about my favourite b-list Superheroes the other day and inevitably that also got me thinking about my a-list too. I spent a lot of time reading comics as a kid, probably too much if I'm honest, but I still have a lot of love for them.
1. Spider-man (created by Stan Lee & Steve Ditko) - Spidey was always number one for me. The late sixties cartoon series (with it's character defining theme tune) was probably where I first discovered him, either that or the late seventies live-action TV show starring Nicholas Hammond. Watch either now and you'll probably struggle to see much to admire but back then you took your thrills where you could and seeing some bloke climbing skyscrapers in an ill-fitting costume was way more exciting than anything else at the time. I got into comics entirely thanks to Spider-man. Initially the UK produced black & white reprints but soon after the full colour US originals. Spider-Man was a hero it was easy to identify with, funny and sharp witted yet a bit awkward in normal life.
2. Batman (created by Bob Kane & Bill Finger) - Again it was the kitsch TV series that first got me interested in Batman. I was a confirmed Marvel Comics fan though and didn't have a lot of time for DC comics but the Batman series is one of the best superhero tales ever written. I would buy DC titles occasionally (usually if the latest Marvel title wasn't in and I didn't want to go home empty handed) and the various Batman comics were always good value. Frank Miller's Dark Knight era got me reading more regularly and for a long time the films were the only really successful superhero franchise on the big screen.
3. Wolverine (created by Len Wein & John Romita Sr) - The Chris Claremont era of X-Men titles was what tipped me over the edge. Previously an occasional comic book buyer, discovering The Uncanny X-Men led me into slight obsession with collecting comics. Claremont redefined the X-Men with a new set of characters and costumes. There was a slightly grittier reality. Wolverine was core to this and not your typical all-American hero. He was Canadian for a start, had a dark sense of humour and could be disruptive to the team dynamics. His background story hinted at a troubled past which eventually opened the door to his own series of comics.
4. Iron Man (created by Stan Lee & Jack Kirby) - One of the big five Marvel characters (I think, there's a possibility I'm making that up) who was also a founding member of The Avengers. I read that Stan Lee created billionaire industrialist Tony Stark as the sort of character that Marvel readers would hate. The archetypal capitalist business man that went against the grain of the 60s counter-culture. I'm pretty sure Iron Man wouldn't have featured quite so high in the list without the recent trilogy of films but it was a title I bought & enjoyed for many years.
5. Hulk (created by Stan Lee & Jack Kirby) - Hulk! Smash! Who couldn't love the big green bundle of anger? Another character I first discovered through the TV. The Bill Bixby/Lou Ferringo series was a big part of my Saturday night entertainment growing up and the Hulk comics were great fun too.
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I'm getting needlessly excited about the release of the Watchmen movie. Most of the superhero films I saw as a kid were major disappointments. The technology wasn't capable of coping with the most basic of powers, the plot lines and acting were rarely good enough to compensate. Hollywood also concentrated most of it's early financial backing on DC characters and I was a Marvel fan. Nowadays, in an echo of the golden age of comics, Marvel characters are claiming the limelight.
1. Sin City (2005) dir: Frank Miller/Robert Rodriguez
A visually stunning movie that perfectly captures the tone and feel of Frank Miller's original comic. Tarantino and Rodriguez know how to film pulp fiction and the addition of creator Frank Miller as a director also paid dividends. I don't think it's possible to create a closer version of the original material as they achieved with Sin City.
2. Iron Man (2008) dir: Jon Favreau
It doesn't get bogged down in having to explain what the comic was all about yet manages to capture all the important elements of the story. Iron Man was never my favourite Marvel title and that might have let me enjoy the film without spotting all the irritating mistakes. Not that I think they made any. Robert Downey Jr is the perfect Tony Stark and the plot manages to explain his transformation into Iron Man without slowing the pace of the film. Favreau is already lined up to direct a sequel but what I'm really excited about is The Avengers movie which is expected to follow it.
3. Spider-man (2002) dir: Sam Raimi
I think this was the film that showed Hollywood it was possible to create a "comic book" movie that was a good film and not just a cash in. My memory had this out before X-men but it seems I'm wrong about that. Raimi gets everything right including the casting of Tobey Maguire as the awkward and fallible Peter Parker. Spider-man 2 maintains the quality and possibly benefits from not having to deal with the origin story but for me the original edges it.
4. X-men (2000) dir: Bryan Singer
It's not perfect but Singer gets more things right than he gets wrong. Possibly higher placed than it would be if I didn't love the original X-Men comics so much. Wolverine is a fantastic character but he's dominated the sequels to the detriment of the rest of the cast. This film gets the balance just about right and benefits from focusing on a smaller group of superheroes.
5. Batman Returns (1992) dir: Tim Burton
My favourite Batman film. Burton gave the studio what they wanted with "Batman" (1989) then got to make the film he wanted with this film. Keaton isn't perfect as Bruce Wayne but Danny DeVito's Penguin more than made up for that. I considered "The Dark Knight" in this spot but (and this might be a symptom of getting old) felt it a lacked some subtlety in it's story telling. Too many guns and explosions which didn't really evoke the feel of the original Frank Miller story.
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