Ever since it began in 2013, the DC Extended Universe has been far less successful than the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Many times far darker and far less well-received than their Marvel counterparts, the DC flicks have been some of the most controversial superhero movies in the past decade. At the same time, their fortune has been changing as of late, and it seems that they're no longer much worse than the latest Marvel movies.
Phase Four of the MCU has not been beloved by fans, with certain entries being outright hated. The DCEU, on the other hand, has been on an almost continuous forward march after 2017. Does this speak more to the increasing quality of DC's movies or the decline in Marvel's? With two electrical heroes ruling the screens this year, it seems that the hierarchy of power in the superhero movie landscape is about to change.
Marvel Studios Has Been Slipping Ever Since Endgame
It seems that since the massive success of Avengers: Endgame, Marvel Studios has gotten veritably lazy. Since that movie's 2019 premiere, there have been seven other MCU movies released, only two of which were considered financial and critical knockouts. Ironically, these were also both Spider-Man movies, proving once again that the Webslinger is Marvel's true mascot. To make matters worse, one film was a crossover with two previous cinematic Spider-Man franchises from Sony. The other movies from Marvel Studios, conversely, have only done OK to poorly.
Shang-Chi was the most well-received of 2021, but it was by no means a critical, cultural or financial smash hit of the caliber of the MCU. Black Widow was seen by many as a huge disappointment, namely for releasing several years too late. Eternals was the worst-reviewed MCU movie yet, and it's had essentially no cultural impact when compared to past Marvel properties. Even the classic Avengers characters can't help but let fans down, with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness leaving people wanting more after the massive hype it had built up before release.
Now, Thor: Love and Thunder is the latest letdown from Marvel Studios, with the God of Thunder's new movie being the second worst-received MCU picture. Then, there's the matter of the various Disney+ TV shows. WandaVision was admittedly spoken about and highly anticipated, but part of that can be attributed to both its status as the first MCU Disney+ series and the potential appearance of the X-Men in some capacity. Since then, none of these shows have made the expected splash, with Ms. Marvel, in particular, scoring low views. Things seem to be on the downward spiral for Marvel Studios while they're finally looking up for DC.
The DCEU Is Finally Getting Good
Though they both have their fans, many of whom are extremely loyal, there's no denying that Zack Snyder's Man of Steel and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice were incredibly controversial movies. Their reception soured the trajectory of the DC Extended Universe, with the horribly received 2017 version of Justice League flopping in response. Since then, however, the DCEU has had much more success, both critically and financially. Aquaman was a surprise hit, netting over $1 billion at the box office. Shazam! was also well-received, as were Birds of Prey and Zack Snyder's Justice League, the latter of which was seen as being light years better than the theatrical version, even by some of Snyder's biggest haters.
Though it didn't quite succeed at the box office, The Suicide Squad was a vast improvement from the 2016 prequel and one of the most well-reviewed superhero movies in years. In fact, the only real dud among the DCEU since 2017 is Wonder Woman 1984, ironic given that the first film was the only universally liked DCEU movie for the longest time. This trajectory for the DC Extended Universe is quite the opposite of Marvel's current status, and it's all made stranger given that Thor's latest movie will soon be followed by one from DC featuring the equally electrical Black Adam. What's going on, and why is DC suddenly succeeding where Marvel can't seem to get things right anymore?
DC's Darkness and Depth Paid Off In the End
One of the biggest criticisms of the new Thor movie, as well as the Marvel Cinematic Universe in general, is that there's too much humor. This not only removes the individual stakes from a film but also ends up making the MCU as a whole feel rather "samey," like an assembly line of movies. While the DC Extended Universe movies were initially criticized for being so dark, it actually has far more tonal diversity than their Marvel counterparts. Anticipation for the serious Zack Snyder's Justice League was especially high after the cheeseball corniness of Wonder Woman 1984. Now, the serious films coincide with bombastic adventures such as Aquaman, the dark humor of The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker and the family-friendly nature of the Shazam! movies.
Marvel seems to have gotten too comfortable in its formula, producing too much of the same that's not released far enough apart to feel special anymore. The Disney+ shows have only further diluted things in terms of both spectacle and quality, whereas Peacemaker was a huge win for both the DCEU and HBO Max. Hopefully, that trend continues with the upcoming Black Adam, but in the case of the once unstoppable MCU, it seems that it's finally the one who needs to earn back audience trust.