It's all about how they are handled.
When I used to read comics most of the stories were serious dramas.
Comic universes are chaotic places. The Marvel Universe is "616" which is an alternate version of the number 666 in the Bible. So, the implication is that living in the Marvel Universe is the same as living in hell.
All of this wild and "magical" stuff is going on that is totally out of control compared to what we deal with in reality.
That's why a "dark tone" is good for comics because the situations are horrible, not lightheaded. However, Hollywood has a weird habit of trying to make the stories comical and that makes the characters seem silly.
If you avoid humor and make the stories high stakes you can put of lot of crazy stuff in and make it work.
For instance, when Star Wars came out there was a lot of fantasy stuff in it but it worked due to the drama. Chewbacca looks like a giant dog and is obviously a guy in a costume, but Chewbacca was portrayed as a creature who is always angry and will rip you apart. So, a guy in a giant dog suit was ignored and instead, people were like "OH SHIT! There's Chewbacca!" and that's how you handle the potentially silly aspect of superheroes.
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ace2 (607)
2 months ago
More than tone to me the most important thing is that whatever rules you establish for the character's power, they should be consistently followed. Also everyone else should act logically and respond realistically to the laws of nature.
When aliens or magic is involved I guess anything is possible, but if you have wings made of feathers it irks me that you can fly without flapping them as shown in many versions of Hawkman.
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TheCatman (373)
2 months ago
That's a good point.
For someone like Hawkman, showing realistic wing behavior would add to the dramatic effect.
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