DC has their Big Three, who are Marvel's Big THree?

[Binker]

DC's Big Three are Superman, Batman & Wonder Woman. But what about Marvel? I know Spider-Man is one, but who are the other two?

 

[deemar325]

Captain America

Ironman

Thor

If your talking in continuity Importance and stature, now if it's sales and popularity....


Spider-man

Wolverine

Hulk

 

[Banshee]

I think that about sums it up.

 

[deemar325]

Heh, yep it's funny how that works out for Marvel. While DC's big three are the most popular and make them the most money, while at the same time the core of their comic universe.

I wonder if thats a good or bad thing for DC and Marvel?

 

[deemar325]

What's the pros & cons for each company?

 

[losboysz]

Marvel's big three would be supergroups since just about everything revolves around them. They would be the Avengers(Spider-man is currently an Avenger and has been a reserve in the past), Xmen and the fantastic four!

 

[Eros]

well the big three o Dc comcis are all atleast friends, and are known as the trinity. I would not call Hulk friends of Wolverines or spidermans. Marvel needs a big three badly.

 

[The PhantaZm]

DC's big three are the most respected characters both by the fans and within the Marvel U.

How well respected is spiderman in the MU?

 

[deemar325]

DC has been around longer.

Spidey was always meant to be the underdog.

 

[The Question]

In the MU, Spidey's status is about the same as a highly opiniated indi rocker. A few average people love him, and most of the authorities despise him.

 

[Ben Urich]

Heh, yep it's funny how that works out for Marvel. While DC's big three are the most popular and make them the most money, while at the same time the core of their comic universe.

I wonder if thats a good or bad thing for DC and Marvel?

I think it makes DC stronger. The most popular characters are also the ones with (arguably) the most depth and importance...
With Marvel, in a realistic standpoint, their universe is much weaker if they lose Thor (arguably Marvel's most powerful hero), yet their business is much weaker if they lose Spider-Man. That sort of imbalance... it just doesn't sit right with me.

 

[The Question]

I think it makes DC stronger. The most popular characters are also the ones with (arguably) the most depth and importance...

Not true. Not even in the slightest. There are many unpopular characters who are just as deep as Batman or Superman, if not moreso.

 

[Kotagg]

Marvel needs a big three badly.

Umm...why? Marvel is leaps and bounds better than DC in my not-so-humble opinion. To shape themselves to the inferior mold of DC would be a bad thing.

And Ben, I would definitely disagree with your assessment. The Marvel universe could do easily without Thor, as they've been doing for a bit here. I feel as if Thor is one of the least inspired characters Marvel's ever had; the tiny bit of characterization that hasn't been lifted from Norse mythology leaves much to be desired.

By your own logic, Marvel's better off than DC. Since both the money and in-universe importance in DC is tied into those three characters (all of whom are one-dimensional and boring, IMO) were they to lose them they'd be totally screwed. In Marvel, any three characters could be taken out (yes, Spider-Man, Hulk, and Wolverine even) and they'd still be pretty solid.

 

[The PhantaZm]

Marvel isn't that good at the whole big crossover thing, which is why I tend to stick to the individual titles. They don't need a big three.

 

[ShadowBoxing]

Captain America, Thor, Iron Man.

I always made an agrument for DareDevil, Wolverine, Spider-Man as being the big three since they kind of embody these street tough superheroes who have become a staple in Marvel.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

I don't think Marvel really has a big three in popularity. Everyone in the world knows who Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman are, but I think it'd be tough to find that same level of common knowledge among non-comic readers for any Marvel characters besides Spider-Man and Wolverine.

 

[deemar325]

Umm...why? Marvel is leaps and bounds better than DC in my not-so-humble opinion. To shape themselves to the inferior mold of DC would be a bad thing.

And Ben, I would definitely disagree with your assessment. The Marvel universe could do easily without Thor, as they've been doing for a bit here. I feel as if Thor is one of the least inspired characters Marvel's ever had; the tiny bit of characterization that hasn't been lifted from Norse mythology leaves much to be desired.

By your own logic, Marvel's better off than DC. Since both the money and in-universe importance in DC is tied into those three characters (all of whom are one-dimensional and boring, IMO) were they to lose them they'd be totally screwed. In Marvel, any three characters could be taken out (yes, Spider-Man, Hulk, and Wolverine even) and they'd still be pretty solid.

I totally agree! Marvel is not beholden too their big characters succeeding like DC is, If Batman,Supes and Wondy where never to be seen again in a DC comic, their whole source of income would be gone. Marvel's characters are strong enough and the popularity of their roster of heroes spread out enough that if Spidey or Wolverine were never used again, Marvel would be alright cause they have characters who have such potential that Ghost Rider or Daredevil could easily gain importance and popularity that Marvel could go on.

What does DC have other than the Flash,Green Lantern or Aquaman?

Marvel has Thor,Hulk,X-men,Fan Four,Daredevil,Silversurfer etc...

Who really gives two shyts about Hourman or PowerGirl?

 

[TheCorpulent1]

That's a ridiculous assessment of both major publishers. Neither of them could succeed without their major characters. Marvel would crash and burn without Spider-Man and Wolverine just as much as DC would crash without Superman or Batman. Wonder Woman's not even necessary, really, given that her comic's never been a huge seller.

Also, for every DC character that you can list under a "who gives a ****" column, there is a Marvel counterpart. Who cares about Hourman? Probably about the same number of people who care about Marvel's Black Knight. Who cares about Power Girl? Probably about the same number of people who care about Marvel's Wonder Man. People really need to stop with the pissing contests between the companies. Each has its fans and many, many people are roughly equal fans of both.

I can't speak for every DC fan, but I personally prefer the Golden Age Green Lantern and the android Hourman to any of DC's major characters. Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, the Flash, and the Corps Green Lanterns could shrivel up and die and I'd still have plenty of amazing characters to invest my time and money in at DC: Cassandra Cain, Connor Hawke, Mr. Terrific, Dr. Mid-Nite, Green Arrow, etc. The fact that you're not familiar with them or you find them boring doesn't detract from the fact that DC's characters have their fanbases that would probably remain intact regardless of what happened to the big sellers.

 

[Kotagg]

And yet, we're here on a Marvel forum. I wonder where the bias is going to lie?

My opinion remains that Marvel is BY FAR better to read than DC - it will stay that way until DC writes at least ONE book that is interesting.

 

[The Question]

Who really gives two shyts about Hourman or PowerGirl?

I do. In fact, I give multiple ****s about them.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

And yet, we're here on a Marvel forum. I wonder where the bias is going to lie?

My opinion remains that Marvel is BY FAR better to read than DC - it will stay that way until DC writes at least ONE book that is interesting.

Are you reading any DC books?

And yes, we're on the Marvel forum, but I figured it wouldn't be too much to hope that people wouldn't blindly follow one company like sheep and dismiss everything from the other. Guess I was wrong in at least a few people's cases, though.

 

[deemar325]

I do. In fact, I give multiple ****s about them.

You guys got me all wrong, I like DC well enough, but I'm hardcore Marvel.

Let's be honest yeah DC got the big seven, but aside from that who in the general populous cares about anything aside from that?

Everything else of note is whatever Alan Moore produced for DC.

Marvel has very strong characters who whether well known or not have way more appeal than most of DC's lesser known heroes.

That's how I see it, Marvel's A,B,C even D list characters are overall better concepts and have better visual/origin/power appeal over DC second teer heroes.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Again, that's a gross generalization that doesn't apply at all. Tell me, outside of Spider-Man, Wolverine, the Hulk, and maybe Iron Man and a few other assorted X-Men, who in the general populace gives a damn about any Marvel characters? Have you ever passed someone on the street, mentioned that Thor died, and gotten a "WHAT? Man, **** Marvel!" as a response? No, you'd get the same response as if I stopped someone and said the android Hourman was destroyed in place of the Golden Age Hourman: "Who? Dude, get away from me." The general populace isn't a good measuring stick for character appreciation. Find an obscure Marvel character with a hardcore following and I could probably find an equally obscure DC character with an equally hardcore following.

 

[The Question]

You guys got me all wrong, I like DC well enough, but I'm hardcore Marvel.

Let's be honest yeah DC got the big seven, but aside from that who in the general populous cares about anything aside from that?

Everything else of note is whatever Alan Moore produced for DC.

Marvel has very strong characters who whether well known or not have way more appeal than most of DC's lesser known heroes.

That's how I see it, Marvel's A,B,C even D list characters are overall better concepts and have better visual/origin/power appeal over DC second teer heroes.

All kinds of not true. I find that alot of the second teir DC characters are just as good as the Marvel ones. And there's alot more noteworthy work in DC than just Alan Moore. Neil Gaiman is an excelent example.

 

[Kotagg]

And yes, we're on the Marvel forum, but I figured it wouldn't be too much to hope that people wouldn't blindly follow one company like sheep and dismiss everything from the other. Guess I was wrong in at least a few people's cases, though.

I don't think it's fair to pass that judgment, considering you didn't give me the option to answer you on just how many DC books I've read. In the last few months, I've read multiple Superman titles, a few Batman (although he makes me sick to my stomach), and tried Infinite Crisis. I also looked at some of the smaller titles like Nighthawk (at least I think that's waht it was called), some Green Lanter stuff, and Teen Titans.

And it all sucked. Hard.

I don't blindly follow *anything* in life; if you knew me in person, you'd laugh at how inappropriate that staple is when referring to the way I think.

And in answer to your last post, it's not so much that the two companies are so dissimilar that I can argue wholesale with your assessment. However, I feel comfortable in saying that while Marvel invests heavily in Spiderman, Wolvie, and Hulk, DC invests so much more in their main three. An erasure of these two sets of three from their respective universes would affect DC on a much higher level than Marvel.