We recently published our list of the 100 Greatest Comic Book Movies Of All Time. Predictably the list split our readers right down the middle as comic book fans are notoriously vocal about their favourites and why one hero is better than another. The biggest argument however was not that Catwoman was placed at 100 (we had to fill 100 spots for goodness sake, cut us some slack) but the fact that we placed The Avengers at number one over the technically superior The Dark Knight.
Yes, it’s fair to say that The Dark Knight is a better movie on the whole, but the criteria for the list was the best comic book adaptations and in that respect The Avengers was superior. But if you think about it, isn’t The Avengers a superior comic book movie to all of Nolan’s trilogy? This writer thinks so, but because he’s also a MASSIVE Batman fan he’s also added a nice counter argument underneath each point. That should help him avoid being hunted down by rabid Bat fans!
5. Fun Factor
Avengers is, simply put, a fun feel good movie that is accessible to anyone and everyone. Batman Begins, The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises are not. They are much darker, often bleak and more sombre in tone and will alienate anyone looking for a traditional popcorn action flick. Would you be more likely to take your kids to see Iron Man and Hulk battle Loki and some Aliens or would you want them to sit through the trials and tribulations of Bruce Wayne as his friends are murdered and his back is broken? We’re not saying that Nolan’s movies aren’t equally exciting, and fun for pure comic book readers what we’re arguing here is that Avengers is a far more enjoyable movie going experience.
Counter Argument: The Avengers may be fun but it’s simply a giant toy commercial. Parents will go see it over The Dark Knight Rises and then they will then go out and buy the action figures as well as the much more kid friendly DVDs that explain the lead characters origins. Chris Nolan sacrifices ‘fun’ per se to make the Batman movie we needed after the camper than average Schumacher movies.
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23 Comments
The Avengers has a Hulk? The Dark Knight Rises has a Joseph Gordon Levitt. *swoon*
Noooooooo – quite the contrary, I feel this article has let batman down and he will never forgive me. Sigh.
Just as batman says ‘batman could be anyone’ . . . . . . . , . . . . . . . , . . . Can anyone from ‘the avengers’ perform other’s role . . . . . , . . . .? ‘Iron man’ cant turn into ‘hulk’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . ‘Captain america’ cant shoot hawkeye’s arrows . . , . ‘Thor’ cant have a artificial heart of tony stark and ‘nick fury’ cant just fit into ‘black widow’s’ sexy outfit. . . . , . . . . . But in nolan’ batman . . . . . . , ‘comm. Gordon’ can drive batpod . . , . . . . . . . , ‘catwoman’ can drive batbike and ‘john blake’ can be the next batman . . . . . And who cares sm1 from the avengers like our loyal alfred does for bruce/batman . . . .by the way, good effort
cheers
Lets wait for The Avengers VS The Justice League…
It’s surely folly to compare these films when they are so different, one is a serious film for movie-lovers and the other is a glorified kiddy flick for Joe Popcorn.
It’s a nice try from the life long wresting (sic) fan but this article picks and chooses arguments for and against both TDKR and Nolan’s series when it sees fit to make it’s point.
Wresting is like wrestling but lazier
Touche, Sir.
The Avengers fights great, but The Dark Knight is a great fighter
as a Comic Book adaptation i prefer IRONMAN over “the avengers”, the avengers as a whole was many mistakes but IRONMAN solo, with Robert Downey Jr (the best choice for the role, just a perfect Tony Starks)… the plot, the actors, the special efects, for me is the best.
but as a BATMAN fan… i would like to say … I JUST LOVE NOLAN ADAPTACION… i always prefer batman because he was a posible superhero, simply astute with great training he can be better than all the other superhero. Nolan make BATMAN and with Villians even more real, real fights, posible tech and the internal fight (good vs evil). The “not to kill” that DC heros have.
THE AVENGERS IS BETTER THAN DARK KNIGHT RISES , I LOVED TDKR BUT I JUST LOVED THE AVENGERS MORE AND THE AVENGERS DOES HAVE IT DARK BITS IN IT AS WELL AND WOULDNT CALL IT A KIDS MOVIE AT ALL
Avengers is a kiddy film, nothing but explosions and Downey Jr being over-confident… TDKR is a serious film with a great story…sure little kids might think the Avengers is good, but anyone with a good taste in films will prefer TDKR.
I liked Avengers and was excited to go and see it but if i’m honest, take away all the fancy CGI and stuff there is very little to it. It’s easy watching fun. I love long films but only when they’re long for a reason – such as character development but this was lacking (not to suggest I didn’t like them – the opposite in fact. Thor, Hawkeye, Scarlett Johansson.. I mean Black Widow being my particular favourites) Agent Coulson’s death is the only notable one and even then I don’t get a great sense of sadness. The Dark Knight Rises wasn’t perfect but it was better than The Avengers (in my opinion). I never really got the impression that Loki was a realistic threat. He didn’t interest me that much (unlike Ra’s al Ghul, Scarecrow, The Joker, Bane in the Batman series). I felt he was a bit more interesting at least in Thor. He was actually cunning but in the Avengers he got his ass kicked in pretty much every scene he had. When he got hulk smashed it summed it up for me. Yes the numbers suggest The Avengers is better but to base it on numbers is stupid. If we base it on numbers then the Star Wars prequels are better than the originals.. Transformers is better than Shawshank Redemption by that way of thinking. Yes The Avengers is fun but I just can’t accept how anyone (other than kids) could possibly think it is better than Batman. Don’t get me wrong, I did enjoy The Avengers and it may seem like i’m bashing it but I did see positives about the film and I reckon the Avengers will be better than any Justice League film.
TDKR plays in a “different league” of The Avengers … are simply not comparable. I loved The Avengers movie, but the TDKR is more interesting.
Rises is horrible! IE:you mean being underground for months and coming out clean shaven and a pressed suit? How about batman having a bone sticking out and then falling fifty feet twice more and still getting healthy in 3 months and then getting halfway around the world in time let alone getting into a city cut off and no access, or talia making no sense and being shoved in to make bane a henchman and or how abkut catwoman killing bane in a second…ohoh or how about batman being a genious but being needy as hell in this movie…oh oh or how the bat just sits un detected under a camo cover…oh oh or how the f bane finds access to foxs and bruces top secret area when no one else knows about it…oh and john blake calling out bruce and saying he knows hes batman?! WTF….ITS AN FING MESS OF A MOVIE…HELL JUST ADD SOME MORE DUMB ASS SELECTIVE RAMPS SO BATMAN AND BANES GOONS CAN GET AWAY?!?! How the hell can people be so blind to this big overstuffed mess?!?!?
… you are just an eight year old Avengers fanboy.
Avengers… the entire movie waiting for the so called “War”. That was dured for 40 min. With nothing like taht 3 months preparation for Bruce comeback.
Dude i have to admit, Avengers was a fun movie, Heall of a movie. But Dark Knight Rises beat Avengers so hard in acting, plot atmosphere. After watching TDKR, as i was leaving the movies, all i had in mind was… That was it. That just hit the spot. I can’t remeber that feeling since The lord of the rings (the extended version).
And the soundtrack… breathtaking.
you guys kill me. i guess batman was not real enough for you. meanwhile, we got 7 guys we powers running around with no plot. just a lot of action. TDKR was more realistic meaning you or i can be batman. the avengers and DKR are too different types of movies. apples and oranges my friend
Damn straight
Love both films, why the hate?
The dark knight Rises is a grownups intelligent awesome movie….while THE AVENGERS is a childish enjoyable movie not bad though. conclusion is The Dark knight Rises
is better than The Avengers….
Avengers was more fun, TDKR was more adult. It just proves that you really can have your cake and eat it too.
Just as batman says ‘batman could be anyone’ . . . . . . . , . . . . . . . , . . . Can anyone from ‘the avengers’ perform other’s role . . . . . , . . . .? ‘Iron man’ cant turn into ‘hulk’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . ‘Captain america’ cant shoot hawkeye’s arrows . . , . ‘Thor’ cant have a artificial heart of tony stark and ‘nick fury’ cant just fit into ‘black widow’s’ sexy outfit. . . . , . . . . . But in nolan’ batman . . . . . . , ‘comm. Gordon’ can drive batpod . . , . . . . . . . , ‘catwoman’ can drive batbike and ‘john blake’ can be the next batman . . . . . , . . . .