I think you underestimate Captain America's place in pop culture prior to his film. He was Timely's biggest character in the 40s, and was able to stake out a big spot in pop culture prior to the creation of the mainstream Marvel Universe.
Compared to Superman, Captain America was nowhere near as iconic as the Kryptonian. Steve Rogers' popularity never caught on outside the United States (for obvious reasons). Kal-El, although sporting the flag in iconic poses and kicking Nazi and Commie ass in 40s, 70s and 80s, still managed to be a very popular superhero overseas.
There have always been Captain America Pajamas, Captain America T-Shirts, a Captain America & The Avengers (note how the emphasis was on him) arcade game that was highly popular, a serial, two tv movies, and a straight to TV flick, at least one animated appearance in each decade since the 1960s.
I'm not stating Captain America possesses no popularity. He definitely had his moments in the sun [domestically] on numerous occasions. Yet, if you were to go to a third world country and flash symbols, Superman's insigna would easily be identified.
That's the argument I'm making.
Iron Man wasn't an entire unknown either; He had an animated series, his own action figure line, his own video game, and many appearances in crossover promotional material (which is really all that anyone here has used for justification when calling The Flash and Wonder Woman "Universally known.")
Even with those mid-sized accomplishments from Iron Man, Wonder Woman still demolished and trumped him in the pop-culture department as a symbol for females during World War II and the Feminist Movement. Iron Man unarguably garnered more attention from the males than Wonder Woman did (due to gender -- sad, but true) but Iron Man was never on poster boards, buttons, banners and shirts during the riots, protests and factory shifts.
Superman will always be the #1 superhero in my eyes, but I don't know that he's exactly been kept relevant either. Still more popular than Captain America or Thor, but much like The Incredible Hulk in 2008, Man of Steel is facing the stigma of following up a disappointing last movie, and hasn't been positioned as anything other than an ensemble character in crossover media for the past several years.
I wouldn't call Superman irrelevant. He's just stuck in the identical position where Batman suffered in for nearly a decade -- thanks to Superman Returns. That isn't to say Returns was a mediocre film (it was a good, yet forgettable CBM) but Singer created a movie which belonged in the 80s. To me, Singer's Superman Returns was nothing more than a love letter to Donner and his universe.
Man of Steel already appears to be a 'modern' take on the character that will likely satisfy the audiences' taste for an edgier hero -- from tone and personality to suit and transformation (rumored). So, Snyder's, The Nolan's and Goyer's interpretation and treatment of Superman [much like Batman before him] could revive massive interest in the character again, and lead him to a new 'golden' era (if done and executed well).
Justice League's single advantage over the Avengers right now is Batman, easily the most marketable superhero of all time. Even that's a wild card though. Just like Spider-Man before him, shoving a new Batman down the public's throat just a few years after a well-received multi-billion dollar trilogy might result in a lukewarm reception.
Oh yeah, I agree. There's rumors circulating that a Batman reboot/relaunch might be ready to go in under three years, and to me, that profusely sounds like a deleterious idea. Nolan's Dark Knight Trilogy is presently wrapping up after eight years of acclaim, praise and accolades.
Three years is not enough time to let the new franchise breathe. This has bad idea written all over it, to be honest, but WB needs a cash cow. As a result, I fear the new franchise may undergo a corresponding route that TASM endured (subjected to backlash and mixed reactions from both fans and the general audience).
Due to DC's lack of "tending" the garden so to speak, Wonder Woman has been reduced to basically a Halloween costume, and a supporting character to Superman and Batman in the eyes of the general public. Her animated series and toy line in the 90s was canned before it hit production, and her live action TV pilot wasn't picked up. Her role as the pre-eminent female action heroine has been usurped several times. I'd say it's hard to argue that Wonder Woman has the cache of say Katniss Everdeen or even Laura Croft (who's also fallen to the wayside.)
At this endeavor, I concede with that comparison. Wonder Woman, as of late, has fallen from what diminutive grace she occupied to being a second-rate female hero. Catwoman (an anti-hero) is currently the most popular feminine figure from the comics (amongst the younger demographic).
I feel like many people know who Wonder Woman, Flash, and Aquaman are, but very few people know anything about them beyond that and little tidbits (Invisible Plane, talks to fish, crap like that.) I feel like a JLA movie would resonate more out of the gate if these characters were somewhat fleshed out for the general audience, and not just a bunch of people in familiar costumes.
That's the advantage the writers and director have when coming to the adaptation, since so little is known about Wonder Woman, Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter and Aquaman as characters. Similar to Bane in TDKR, liberties could be taken (for better or worse), and it paid off.
If DC wants "Avengers money" they're going to have to put in Avengers effort, and that doesn't mean just rolling out a JLA film with no build up and expecting people to go crazy for it....don't get me wrong it'd be a hit that way (At least $1 B), but why not do it the right way and make $2 Billion off of it? Why not put in the extra effort to curb stomp Avengers?
I'm not saying Justice League CAN'T be bigger than Avengers. I think it definitely can, I just don't think it has an automatic "free pass" to becoming the 3rd highest grossing film of all time. Marvel right now is the average kid who busted his ass in school and got great grades, while DC's film division is the gifted kid who sits his ass on the couch eating potato chips and squandering his potential.
I have confidence, believe it or not, that a JL film can be a smashing success without a build up. After 2013, both Batman and Superman ought to be set, and in reality, that's all WB needs for a JL movie. If properly marketed, the concept of Batman and Superman sharing the screen together for the first time will singlehandedly rake in a billion. The rest of team can be established around Superman and Batman. If the film is a success, then WB will branch out (spin-offs to Wonder Woman and Flash could be done to develop the characters further).
You're right. WB, right now, has accomplished very little in the CBM genre -- of recent times. They struck oil with Chris Nolan but struggled, for the most part, with other titles/characters. Hopefully, WB has seen the light and will push forward in investing and conceiving high quality comic book movies.
