No Right Answer: Best Comic Book Universe Ever

[makmende]

Marvel all the way! Characters are more likeable and are not as overpowered and omnipotent as DC characters. Batman and maybe wonderwoman and teen titans are the only enjoyable DC characters. Marvel has x-men, avengers, spider-man and deadpool and all of them have different powers and abilities and personalities ranging from bloodthirsty mercenaries to charismatic scientist and space gods. Most of DC Heroes are bulletproof gods who can fly and punch a planet in half and only their banal weaknesses ( yellow color, fire , kryptonite, getting tied up by a man,weaknes to all natural and unprocessed materials, over reliance on water) is what sets them apart/

 

[Apothecary2]

If I have to pick from the Big 2, I'd go with Marvel. Better characters almost always translates to better story


All publishers in play? Image Comics

Bomb Queen, Chew, Invincible, The Walking Dead, to name just a few

That is not a universe, just a publisher.

 

[Trishbot]

Here's my problem with BOTH Marvel AND DC...

At one point, this was my favorite superhero comic:

Great character, great supporting cast, great villains... and then DC killed him off.

Later, this became my favorite superhero:

Great character, great supporting cast, great stories... and then DC killed HIM off.

Well, then this guy became my new favorite superhero:

Marvel got cold feet about him and killed HIM off...

Then I grew to like this guy:

Then Marvel killed him and replaced him with a dubstep-loving annoying little teenage version that nobody wanted...

Who else have I loved growing up reading comics?

DC erased him from their universe.

Her too.

Sure, X-men characters die and come back all the time... unless you're Jean Grey...

Oh yeah, my second favorite X-men character is also still dead.

I think you get my point...
I stopped being invested in ANY comic universe because every time I get attached to a character, both companies decide to kill 'em off for several years, sometimes permanently, rather than doing something much more sensible like having them just go off, retire for a bit, or do anything other than slamming the door shut on other creators to use unless they pull the eye-rollingly tired "just bring 'em back from the dead" trope that has made all death meaningless in comics (except for all the heroes I apparently like, who mostly all still remain dead...)

 

[Dak_N_Jaxter]

MARVEL.
I like Batman and the Teen Titans show, and as a kid I watched the New Adventures of Lois and Clark, but I'm generally unenthralled by the DC universe.

 

[Rellik San]

Third option;

2000AD, the British fore runner in the world of comics, and whilst granted writers like Abnett, Gaiman and Moore all have done works for the big 2, without 2000AD and without them consistently returning to 2000AD and it's passion for the out there creativity they undoubtedly wouldn't be as popular as they are;

2000AD top reads:

Judge Dredd,
Nikolai Dante,
The Ballad of Halo Jones, (which deffo comes across as a strong pre-cursor to the work Adam Warren would do on the Dirty Pair and later his own Empowered series.)
ABC Warriors,
Strontium Dog,
Slaine,
Sinister Dexter,
Atavar,
Kingdom,

And of course the long running one shot stories known collectively as; Future Shocks.

However for consistent universes, it's established that Dredd, Strontium Dog and ABC Warriors are all in the same universe, not to mention; DREDD BEAT THE MOTHER FUCKING BATMAN DOWN YO!

 

[crazyburnerboy8]

Image (but mostly for Chew) other than that DC because it also has Vertigo as well and they cross over all the time (see new 52 swamp thing)

actually gonna change my vote

VERTIGO

 

[RedDeadFred]

My opinion can't count for as much on this since I haven't read any of the comics but going strictly off of the movies/TV shows I've seen, I'd have to give it to DC. Although it's pretty even and I'm pretty hyped about them right now because of how much I liked the Arrow season finale (seriously that show got a lot better as it went on IMO).

 

[Whodat]

I like Image Comics what with Spawn, Walking Dead, and Invincible; though Dark Horse is a close runner-up because of Hellboy and the old AvP comics.

Spawn has always been my favorite character because of his sheer badassitude, though it does get ridiculous at time (giant robo-gorillas and trash monsters), I feel like it has some genuinely deep moments like the issue where he tries to save the two kids in Alabama and where he saves a family from the KKK.

Walking Dead is also very, very good and depressing, and uplifting, and funny, and so many others.

I just feel that Image's policy is very versatile, and its sub-company's stories are also very popular.

 

[Trishbot]

Then I grew to like this guy:

Then Marvel killed him and replaced him with a dubstep-loving annoying little teenage version that nobody wanted...

Well he's not dead, he's trapped in the Cancer Verse (a plot point Bendis and crew feel like ignoring) but your point still stands

To be fair, yeah, they gave themselves an "out", but every comic that's come out keeps saying he's dead and sacrificed himself, and nobody has explained why Thanos and Star-Lord are running around and got out of the Cancerverse but Richard didn't.

But we'll see. Marvel was hyping up the new Nova as "the next big thing" but his book is selling less than the prior Nova did at the same point. And, yeah, comic book logic of "no body, no death", but history has proven unkind to all my other favorite heroes. It took them nearly 10 years to confirm that Azrael was dead...

 

[Tisiphone1]

Between the two? Marvel, hands down. Of course, I actually like all the cosmic stuff you guys don't seem to. I thought Annihilation was one of the best crossovers in a while.

If any universe is fair game though, think I'm throwing that to Image comics and the Top Cow Universe. My subscriptions to the Marvel books shift around as teams come and go, but there's a line on my pull sheet that just says "All Top Cow".

Then I grew to like this guy

Totally with you. That Nova run was one of the best of any I've ever read and the art was fantastic too. I was sad when it ended. But the good news is Richard Rider isn't Jean Grey (Grrr...), so he should roll back around eventually (I'm still hoping he takes over for the stupid kid).

 

[shieldheart204]

I prefer Marvel, probably because it's slightly more consistent than the D.C. Universe. Also I feel it has more likeable heroes.

Outside Marvel... I say ATOMIC ROBO and Bravest Warriors.

 

[Ian Meier]

This is a tough call to make... both have and always will be the titans of the comic book world. Upon thinking about it's more of how the individual reader deals with this conundrum. I for one prefer character interaction and development, and for that you gotta go with Marvel. Yes, the characters deal with real world problems in addition to having super powers, or creating weapons to defend the world, or to be born with a great gift, but that's what makes the characters so endearing to readers because it harkens to Shakespeare's famous quote, "some are born to greatness, some achieve greatness, and others have greatness thrusted upon them" and yes DC does have those moments in them, but there is a larger pool of characters to choose from the Marvel universe, and almost all are very satisfying to read about and learn from.
My vote goes to Marvel.
Excelsior!

 

[Mr_Terrific]

Plus with DC, which universe are you talking about, whenever the DC fans get over a major plot point, like with the death of a major character, DC just comes out and says that "Owe, it's a different universe from the normal universe. Whereas Marvel a death is a death and it affects the characters deeply.
Also Marvel wins all because of Joss Whedon, 'nough said.

Yeah...because Marvel never pulls out the old alternate timeline crap which is the same thing. Almost everyone in the Marvel Universe is dead in Age of Ultron but you know they're gonna pull some different timeline crap as usual.

So DC leans on alternate universes too much and Marvel leans on time travel and alternate timelines wayyyyy too much.

 

[Evil Smurf]

I like Zeniscope because they do Charmed. Shallow reasoning yes, but because Batman is just as bad.

 

[Chris Pranger]

No, I wont do your job for you.

You two are the ones who tell us what you somehow find better, then we tell you you're wrong.

Fine, fine. Which between the two would you pick? Because we just decided the opposite.

 

[Yeager942]

This fight is pretty hard to judge because a lot of pro's and con's they bring up in the video actually applies to both sides. This is how I break it down.

Movies:
Overall, both companies have put out great and shitty movies, but DC has higher highs while lowers lows. Consistently though, Marvel has been making better movies, and we can only point to the Nolanverse so much before Green Lantern and Catwoman rears its ugly head, so I award the movie category to Marvel.

Television:
DC wins. Hands down. IMO, the only tv shows that Marvel has put out that can even come close to the DCAU and other DC shows (YJ, Teen Titans, GL:TAS) are Earth's Mightiest Heroes and Spectacular Spider-Man, but both were cut down in their prime. The winner here is DC.

Games:
This one's a lot harder, as they've both put out a ton of great titles. MvC vs. the Arkham games. Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction vs. Injustice. I view this category as pretty evenly matched.

Personally, I have to say Marvel. I find their heroes much more interesting than DC heroes, but this is only a personal preference because I'm so attached to the characters. DC has some great stories out there that worth every penny, and a kid picking up an issue of today's Animal Man, Wonder-Woman, or Demon Knights will be blown away, yet at the end of the day I'm giving the game to Marvel.

 

[Redd the Sock]

I've wavered between both over the years, and right now both lose pretty hard. Marvel's gone event / killing happy, and the events never seem to justify the cost. DC's new 52 is a continuity mess that produces some good books, but I can't see them not falling to the fate of Ultimate Marvel and existing solely to "re-invent" old characters. Prior to the reboot, I'd have given the nod to DC for better events, and a better ability to garner interest for lessor known characters while Marvel seems to have trouble selling anything not labeled X, Avengers, or Spider.

I miss the days Antarctic press had enough books for a shared universe. They could still play together and build off each other (particularly through some shared villains) without needing to constantly cross over.

 

[D.Strormer]

You know, it's funny, but as I was watching this I was realizing that most of the characters that I would consider my favorite characters (Kyle Rayner's GL, Jaime Reyes' Blue Beetle, and Batman Beyond) are DC properties, but if I had to choose one of the companies to be on top I would say Marvel. While they've never been my absolute favorite, Marvel has remained consistently good while DC has long stretches of absolute crap that I have to wade through to get back to something I really enjoy. That's not to say Marvel has never sucked, just that they are generally more you get what you pay for in style whereas DC often has its reach exceed its grasp.
All that said, I loved Vertigo (yes I know that's really just DC) for years and Dark Horse, Aspen, and even the monstrous shambling mass of failure that was image/top cow have produced books that I enjoyed immensely. I've recently picked up a couple books from Dynamite that have tickled my fancy as well. In the end, we should all be grateful for having such a great selection of comics to choose from.

 

[The Random One]

Oh God, Dan, it's you who makes the graphics, right? I love you. I love you so much.

 

[joehitman71]

As far as comics go manga is a strong contender but that seems to fit more in a genre rather than a single company production or franchise. So my favorite is still the Star Wars universe, illustrated by Dark Horse. Why? Well to fit Chris' criteria:

1. The star wars universe is just that, a entire galaxy to work from and how that galaxy interacts with others galaxies around it. This universe is very dynamic, the stories told talk about struggle between sides, empire vs rebellion, republic vs mandalorians, jedi vs sith. These conflicts are also pretty evenly matched and builds suspense, you never know whose going to win. It's not like Marvel or DC with GODS against Mr. Joe Schmo and you know Joe Schmo is coming back next week for the same fight to lose. Plus you don't need the world to be real for you to care about it.

2. Their are so many characters to choose from in this universe, and even if the audience gets bored of Han Solo and Obi-wan, Dark Horse just builds a character. Dark Horse has had more success in creating a character, build a story behind him or her, and making money off of the graphic novel(s) made for this character with stories that all seems fresh the first time you read them, and the characters (whether jedi master or average dude) that character can feel vulnerable if the writer wants to portray that and often do.

3. Marvel and DC have a problem of making a cluster f*** of heroes and villains in close time period. With Star Wars there is thousands of years with hundreds of events to choose from. Yes most people tend to gravitate around a new hope's time period. But their is still so many stories to tell, evenly spaced out in a six thousand year time frame.

SECRET CRITERIA 4. Marvel and DC have been around longer but Star Wars reaches a broader audience. Almost every walk or life seen the movies and even re-watched the so hated prequels. Marvel and DC have only had to content for comic book readers up until the recent years with the Dark Knight and the Marvel movies, but Star Wars has a broader audience longer, spilling over into other mediums like written novels comics and graphic novels, reaching people in those areas.

Yes Dark Horse didn't make the written novels and such but it's still not doubted that people still find much entertainment out of this view of a fantastic universe.