Movie or Comic Book? The battle

To sit and read the amazing novelty of Stan Lee and be dazzled by the breathtaking artwork of Don Heck, or to pop in the new "Ironman" DVD and enjoy Tony Stark blowing an enemy tank to smithereens with a heat-seeking missile?

That is the question for those witnessing classic comic book superheroes, such as Ironman, Batman and Spiderman, when put into screenplay.

For most, especially busy students, it is more convenient to take a seat in front of a tremendous screen, pig out on a big bag of popcorn and watch as Mary Jane Watson is helplessly dropped from nearly six stories, screaming for Spiderman to save her. To some, however, these movies are a disgrace, not giving the original comic book the praise and respect it deserves.

Since the release of the breakthrough movie "Superman" in 1978, more than 75 comic books have been put into movie form.

In a recent poll taken by geeksugar.com, 48 percent of voters said they love seeing their favorite characters on the big screen. Next to that, 43 percent said they didn't mind the film being made, as long is it is worthy.

"Most comic movies are initially a big help," Kathleen Miller, owner of local comic book store, Comic World, said. "After the new Spiderman movies, business picked up."

It's no secret that the comic book business is not what it used to be in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The late 80s saw a small jump in readers with the release of the first Batman. Directed by Tim Burton and starring Michael Keaton, this film did its part to try to save the comic book industry, Miller said.

"The Batman movie brought people in," Miller said. "Seeing the comic in movie form made them want to read."

This was a short victory for the comic book economy, however, as it saw a great crash in the early to mid 1990s.

In a recent article written on the Comic Book Galaxy Web site, a writer argues the decline was because of the lack of interest from investors.

They discovered that there were thousands upon thousands of copies of the comic books. They saw the books as a dead investment and many quit collecting.

On the other hand, the screenplay version of comic books are at an all time high. Most recently "The Dark Knight" made more than $155 million in its first weekend according to the Internet Movie Database. The movie it trumped to take over the No. 1 spot in that category? Spiderman 3.

"The Dark Knight" has grossed a total of $524 million since its opening in July. It is second behind "Titanic" for the all-time lead at the U.S. box office.

"Comics are better," Brad Allen, Marshall student and avid comic book reader, said. "The movies leave out things like character origins, complete lists of all character abilities or powers. It's just not as good of an experience in my opinion."

Aaron Glidewell, a Huntington native said, "To me, a movie [is better] because my eyes are bad, and I don't like to read. Plus, I miss things when I read."

With more and more comic book movies coming out, this debate seems to be never-ending. However, the comic book industry is still in question. The drop off of many collectors and readers has left many comic book stores with no choice but to shut their doors for good.

"With business being so up and down at times and so many independent comics coming out, there are a lot of bad times, but mostly good," Miller said. "It's been fun."

Comic books expand the imagination of all that experience them, whether in movie or book form. The debate may continue as to which one is better, but the reason behind the success of comic books and movies is simple, Miller said. "It reminds them of being a kid."

Flip Williamson can be contacted at williamson65@marshall.edu.