It might seem odd to a lot of people that Marvel's first superhero theatrical film was their last one to feature a black hero as the protagonist. To be fair, you have to know the history of comic book heroes. Many of Marvel and DC's stable of superhero characters pre-date the era of the blockbuster superhero film by decades. The characters were products of their time and a large majority of them were white. As time progressed, more and more ethnic heroes were introduced in the comics. A large portion of them served mostly as sidekicks such as the Falcon and to some degree War Machine. This is why the black heroes we have currently been seeing on screen are supporting players fighting alongside the title hero like Captain America and Iron Man. What makes Blade even more interesting than being one of the few black heroes headlining his own movie is the fact that Blade was never featured in a comic series running longer than 18 issues. The character was not as well known to comic readers as some of his contemporaries such as Black Panther or Jon Stewart's Green Lantern. If any black superhero in recent time would have been primed to headline his own film it would have been Jon Stewart. Thanks to the Justice League animated series Stewart was the Green Lantern in the public consciousness and yet it was the recently resurrected Hal Jordan who was featured in the Green Lantern film. The purpose of this entry isn't to create a debate on racism in Hollywood; each reader will have their own thoughts on the issue. The point is that if one studio decided to take a chance on a relatively unknown comic book superhero who happened to be black, couldn't others? While Blade's influence on the genre seems minimal now, it remains one of the most unique of Marvel's films and one of their best. It would behoove superhero movie fans to give it another look and see the glimmer of the possibilities that were ahead for comic book heroes on film. Plus, it's a pretty darn good movie too. Do you think super hero movie makers need to heed the lessons of Blade? Share your thoughts below in the comments thread.
Daniel is a writer/artist/filmmaker currently overseeing post-production on his film Avenging Disco Vampires. He is also the co-creator of the all-ages comic book series The Adventures of Nightclaw & Prowler published by Old World Comics.
