by TC. Harris
This post is not about which is better, or what you personally feel about either film, it is to discuss the impact of a possible plot point for a future film in the Marvel franchise, and to discuss the impact of a hero. I don’t like censoring, but understand this before replying to this thread, as both movies are polarizing, but one is definitely more so than the other*
It doesn’t appear as though Chris Evans is coming back after his six-picture deal is over, lending some to believe that Cap is going to die in Infinity Wars. Even if he just retires from hero work, the MCU (for now) looks to be without it’s “man out of time” after the next big film. That being said, let’s talk about the impact of death, and reflect on the life we’ve seen depicted on screen. If Steve dies sacrificing himself, or by other means, I feel he’s earned the emotions moviegoers will feel at his passing, as he possibly passes the torch to either Bucky or Sam. That being said, I feel one of the biggest failings of BVS was killing Superman when they did. I understand why it was done, and the overarching theme of the films (yes, there is one) but I don’t feel that we’ve seen enough of Clark for there to have been a true impact for us, regardless of the scripted impact left on the people of the world as they finally realized that he was truly there to protect them. I also understand that plotwise it was necessary to do, in order to uphold the theme of redemption both Bruce and Diana share, while addressing the consequences of the previous film.
Still I feel that WB chose the wrong direction in regards to how (and when) they decided to introduce a Death of Superman arc onto the big screen. I think that if they’d stuck to a solo Man of Steel sequel, and allowed us to see more on-screen growth while restoring a base level of confidence to the character, they could then have easily pulled a BVS (with some mild tonal changes) and ended up with a less polarizing film. Christopher Nolan introduced the idea of each Batman movie having a theme, as opposed to simply dealing with the villain of the hour, and for the most part, it worked. Batman Begins was fear. Dark Knight was chaos and deception. DKR was consequences and sacrifice. The current films are no different, but at the end of the day, audiences didn’t want an arthouse piece, they wanted their heroic characters faced with great odds, overcoming them in the end, with a feeling of optimism. The optimism is coming and was coming after the dark days that forged the path to the league, but ultimately I feel that it’s too little too late. Marvel has a formula. It’s become dated, but it works. They also have (had?) focus, and although I don’t like what they’ve done with some of their heroes, Cap has been a joy to watch from the beginning until now. I sure hope Chris stays on because I’ve grown to admire him both on and off the screen. His impact will be felt. He will be missed. I can’t honestly say I feel the same way about Clark, and now that they’ve pulled that rabbit out of the hat, they can’t put it back in or pull another. Just my two cents…
