Clash of the Comics Titans

Marvel, back then: Put out a comic book starring the rock band Kiss.

DC: "Sgt. Rock."

Marvel: "Doctor Strange."

But look at DC now: It has become a retreat for grown-ups who've had it with the Marvel characters' endless angst. When you weary of 22-year-old mutants, Batman can seem comfortably adult. Superman feels right. Green Lantern is a terribly interesting idea, a meditation on burden. Wonder Woman and Aquaman are filled with what seems like literature and history.

And look at Marvel now: After decades of fawning over bad-boy Wolverine, everyone started paying a lot more attention to Captain America. He kind of rocks, in a way you never knew, and so does Iron Man. For years nobody except total Marvelheads read "Iron Man." The World Trade Center collapsed and Marvel took it personally, bub, and started drawing firefighters and cops more. Started drawing flags and sunsets. Had a moment.

But look at DC: Still more rigid, linear.

But look at Marvel: Still naughtier, weirder.

Open a title from either, look at a panel or two, and see if you know where you are.

In Marvel's "Civil War" series, the government has decided to regulate superheroes and require them to register and report for duty as federal employees. Captain America is opposed to the idea. Iron Man is for it.

She-Hulk: "Will we still technically be super heroes after all this, Tony? Won't we just be S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents when we're all on the federal payroll?"

Iron Man: "No, we're super heroes, Jennifer. We tackle super-crime and we save people's lives. The only thing changing is that the kids, the amateurs, and the sociopaths are getting weeded out."

That dialogue is so Marvel. Tony and Jennifer, worrying about work.