Thor and Green Lantern Movies: Where’s the Buzz?
Is it just me, or is there a real shortage of buzz for the upcoming Thor (May 11, 2011) and Green Lantern (June 17, 2011) movies? I seem to recall that the movies of the Big Three–Spider-Man, Batman, and Superman–were promo-ed out the wazoo months and months prior to their releases.
Granted, there are certainly differences. Batman and Superman had already had successful outings as big-time box office movies–Superman starting in 1978 and Batman starting in 1989.
And, of course, Spider-Man is known around the world through the many iterations of cartoon series in which he’s been featured (the best of which, to me, was the original 1967 classic). Rumors of a Spider-Man movie were heard throughout the 1990s, with James Cameron being the most prominent name associated with it.
And then when Spider-Man came out in 2002, it hit like a bomb, setting box office records for earnings, and drawing in comic book geeks and movie fans alike. Gone were the days of Morgan Freeman’s Easy Reader teaming up with Spidey to help kids fight bad grammar! Now he’d hit the big time!
After Spider-Man’s amazing showing, comic book-inspired movies seemed to be coming out every three months. Moviegoers were treated (well, some were treats–some were tricks) to big screen interpretations of the higher profile names, such as the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, Batman (in Batman Begins and The Dark Knight), and the Hulk, in two cinema takes.
Then other such movies, known to comic book aficianadoes, but not necessarily to mainstream audiences, started to appear. These included Sin City, Iron Man, V for Vendetta, Watchmen, Daredevil, The Punisher, Elektra, and Catwoman, just to name a few.
And while all that was going on, it was natural to wonder: Where were secondary DC characters? It didn’t take a genius to figure out that the Marvel movie universe was getting bigger, but the DC universe was pretty much unchanging. Where were characters like the Flash? Or Green Lantern? Or Wonder Woman? Or even Robin?
After all, they had made a Catwoman movie, so Batman-related properties were not out of bounds. They had made a Wolverine movie, so individual characters from a team (X-Men) were not out of bounds. I guess sidekicks that were always somewhat dubiously received didn’t have any traction, so no Robin. Plus, I think most people would rather forget Batman and Robin even exists.
Then Marvel and DC both made some relatively quiet noise that these two second-tier characters would now be “going to the show”–the implication here being that, as indicated in Bull Durham with this phrase, that these characters were going to the Big Leagues. The Major Leagues. The Silver Screen.
I’m sure a lot of people remember the extra scene in Iron Man 2 that showed a hammer out in the middle of a desert? By the Bristling Beard of Odin! Saddle up–a Thor movie is coming! And it will be directed by none other than Gilderoy Lockheart! I’ve heard about, but not seen myself, previews of the Green Lantern movie, about certain costuming elements and the fact that Ryan Reynolds would be playing the Ringed Wonder.
Herein lies the problem, if you ask me… and I realize you didn’t. But you’ve read this drivel thus far, why not keep going to the bitter end? I promise, there’s a point to all this. Well, at least, I hope so…
The problem is that other than that hammer in Iron Man 2 and a couple of now-removed stills, I’ve not heard hide nor hair of Odin’s fabled son. The God of Thunder’s advertising campaign has been more like a soft spring rain. And Green Lantern? Other than quiet and infrequent updates, I’ve heard nothing and not even seen stills.
I’m not the kind of guy that will go out of my way to seek out news about superhero movies. Other folks do that, and then write Yahoo or similar type of articles about it. Then I read it, and get intrigued. I’ve not seen anything on Yahoo about either movie. I’ve seen some Yahoo love for Captain America (July 22, 2011), but even that has been muted.
But let’s be honest–like Spider-Man, Batman, and Superman–Captain America is more well known than Thor or Green Lantern. It’s pretty safe to assume that even if there was no push for Captain America, there are enough patriotic folks out there who would go to see the Captain.
So why the radio silence on Thor and Green Lantern? It’s not like these two characters are household names. I’d have thought that they’d get a stronger push because they are not as well known as the Big Three. But this, perhaps, is one of the many reasons why I am not handling promotions for a movie studio.
Perhaps the answer lies in projected revenue versus anticipated cost of a large advertising campaign. Since the revenue is an unknown, and these characters are, after all, second-tier characters…
Maybe the thought process used by global powerhouses such as Budweiser, Coca-Cola, and McDonald’s–spend mega millions on advertising–comes into play here. I suspect that if Bud, Coke, and Mickey D’s did half of the advertising they do now, it’s pretty safe to say that they’d still rake in oodles of dough. But–there are always new customers to be had, and these companies did not get as huge as they are by failing to shove their brand down our throats. Clearly, the formula is working, or they wouldn’t be doing that much advertising.
That philosophy explains how Spider-Man, Batman, and Superman would be handled. But it would stand to reason that the studios would want to have some sort of campaign to promote smaller films like Green Lantern and Thor, wouldn’t it? After all, you get the names out there, and then hit folks with a great movie, and you have a virtual license to print money.
Clearly, this is not the case. I guess I’ll just have to wait and see how things go leading up the Thor‘s May release. I suspect that the studios will start to release promo material in the spring. It just seems like an opportunity is being missed. It’s been a while since there was a superhero film out there to draw in that built-in audience.
Maybe that’s why. The studios know that the dedicated fans will go and see the movie no matter what. They’re probably right to not expect that to change. They’ve always been able to count on this in the past.
Bias and Spite: Mike F’s football picks
Yes – you’re right. There are a million sportswriters/sports personalities out there giving their weekly picks. So why on Earth should I pay any attention to this one – especially when it’s starting in week six? Quite frankly, I can’t think of a good reason. I’m quite used to writing blog entries that nobody reads, so a few more times won’t kill me.
What makes my perspective different? Probably nothing. I can tell you though, that I will not hesitate to show my bias toward my favorite team – and I will not hesitate to use unrealistic and unsubstantiated personal vendetta-type language to underscore my picks. I also may decide not to talk about a particular game or games, simply because I can’t be bothered to muster up the interest.
I’m guessing it won’t take long to figure out what team I favor. Here’s a hint – I hate the following teams: Cleveland, Cincinnati, Baltimore, Jacksonville, Tennessee. Still not sure? I also hate Dallas, San Francisco, Oakland, Denver and New England. I’m pretty much indifferent to the rest of the NFL.
It’s probably best to refrain from trying to figure out the logic behind most of these likes/dislikes. There are some twisted reasons in some cases, and some totally illogical thought behind others. At any rate, I think you might find it entertaining to see what nutty thing I have to say about a given team/game.
Wendy, shall we begin? And yes – I will probably be using lots of obscure quotes and references (like the one at the beginning of this paragraph) in each and every article. Extra points to you if you can figure out the source.
Seattle at Chicago
Ho hum. This one should be pretty boring – I have no real opinion about either team. I do think that Seattle is overrated (and I think this every year), and that Chicago will eventually wind up faltering at the end of the season no matter how they start. I’d expect a relatively low scoring affair, maybe 20-17 or something like that. Unless Jay Cutler decides to throw four touchdown passes or four interceptions. Either way, I’ll be happy to spend my time Sunday afternoon watching/doing something else.
What? You want to know who I think will win? Let’s assume Chicago, unless Seattle has another team play the game for them.
Miami at Green Bay
So Green Bay is 3-2, eh? So much for ESPN and their opinion that GB was going to be a force this year. More often than not, you can count on any team/player that ESPN gets heavily behind to not live up to expectations. Even if those inflated expectations are the property of ESPN only. Without the wildcat, Miami is about as exciting as … reading this article?
What? You want to know who I think will win? Let’s assume Miami. GB has issues (and I can’t be bothered to look them up. They have issues – leave it at that).
Kansas City at Houston
Not much to say here except that I am stunned that KC is anywhere near being the best team (according to record) in the NFL. This is a sad state of affairs. Rest of NFL, you should be embarrased. Houston is tough to root against, considering they’ve pretty much sucked since their inception. I suppose I’d root for Houston in this game, but, honestly, neither team will matter come December.
What? You want to know who I think will win? Let’s assume Houston, as I think KC is a total fraud.
Cleveland at Pittsburgh
Now we’re talking. The Mistake By The Lake against the greatest team in the history of the NFL. Should be a no-brainer, right? Ben Roethlisberger is back, and ESPN would have you believe that everybody is amazed that the Steelers went 3-1 without him. Clearly, they didn’t check with any Steelers fans, because all the Steelers fans I talked to felt the Steelers would go 4-0 and can’t believe they lost to pissant pretenders like Baltimore. The Browns look like they’re all set to fall behind early and watch as the Steelers rack up 101 unanswered points. This is a divisional game and the Steelers tend to play down to the level of their opponent. Don’t be surprised if the game is close, or if the Steelers lose. They shouldn’t lose – they should kick the snot out of the Browns, but that never happens.
What? You want to know who I think will win? Let’s assume the Steelers, of course! It will probably be close, but come on!
San Diego at St. Louis, Detroit at N.Y. Giants
Why even bother? Does anyone really care?
What? You want to know who I think will win? Let’s assume St. Louis and The Giants.
Baltimore at New England
Baltimore should never have beaten the Steelers. I will be rooting for New England to come out and rip the Ravens a couple new ones. This is just the kind of thing that Bill Belichick loves. A cocky team that believes the hype. Expect Baltimore’s suddenly dynamic offense to become pedestrian and expect Tom Brady to prove that he’s more than capable of winning without Randy Moss.
What? You want to know who I think will win? Let’s assume that New England will win, and that we’ll be able to hear Belichick bore us at game’s end telling us that the offense and defense did some good things, they learned a lot about their team and that there’s still plenty of areas in which the Patriots can improve.
Atlanta at Philadelphia
I keep hearing how great Atlanta is, but they struggled against the Roethlisberger-less Steelers. They’re 4-1, but, honestly – it’s a pretty weak four wins. Also suspect Arizona, winless San Francisco and hapless Cleveland? Even their ‘legit’ win came against a reeling New Orleans team. Eagles – hear me now, believe me later. You should win this game going away, and you should simply accept that – long term – Kevin Kolb should be your quarterback. Mike Vick is not the answer. Trade him now and get what you can for him.
What? You want to know who I think will win? Let’s assume the Eagles will ‘doggedly’ prove they are the better team.
Okay, that’s enough for now – seriously, I have other things that I should be doing. Really! The only other game worth mentioning at this point is the Dallas at Minnesota game. Both teams are a snoozy 1-3 (nyahh nyahh), both teams are looking for that elusive winning formula to push them in the right direction. No matter which team wins, not much will change. They will both still stink.
What? You want to know who I think will win? Let’s assume Minnesota will win, unless Randy Moss retires before game time.
All right, that wraps it up. Thanks for not reading this article. It’s been great fun sharing my vast football expertise with nobody. Tune in next week for another edition (maybe – we’ll see).
This weekend, I’ll also be rooting for the Phillies to win and for the Yankees to lose. Nothing personal – I just hate the Yankees with a passion.
Andy Blank
Mike Frangione
Depends on What the Meaning of the Word 'Blog' is 
Where’d You Go? Why Aren’t You Reading the Blog Anymore?
Hey! It’s been a while since I saw a comment on the blog. What’s up with that?
Oh – right. Nothing’s been posted for more than two months? Yes, I can see how this might curtail interest in the blog. I’ll have to do something to change that.
Just how hard is it to maintain a blog, anyway? Anybody could do it. You just find an interesting thing to write about, and off you go. That certainly seemed to me to be the case – at first. But it’s harder than it seems.
John Lennon wrote, “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans” – and clearly, this blog fell victim to this frequently apt quote. For my part, it’s equal parts laziness and equal parts life taking up time. Hmmm – perhaps if I’m honest, it’s probably more a 75-25 split, with laziness reigning supreme.
So what happens now? Is the blog dead? No – it’s not dead, it’s just… on hiatus? It’s definitely not in the category used in Fletch: “The coroner had certified Stanwyck dead, or extremely sleepy.”
In fact, I have thought many times about firing up a blog entry on any number of topics. For the subject of film alone, there are all sorts of cool movies – Captain America, Thor, Spider-Man, Green Lantern, Red – either on the horizon or already out into which I could have injected my unique and twisted perspective.
As was written in the early postings of this blog, any number of things can fall under the spotlight of the blog. We left it pretty wide open on purpose. It’s now just a matter of actually writing something.
Rather than make promises on that front, I’ll just say that it is my intention to actually add some content to this blog. I enjoy writing, and I like talking about pop cultural items/happenings. So it’s a perfect match.
I hope you’ll agree and read and comment on the postings. Of course, I understand that the blog requires content before that can happen.
It shouldn’t be all that hard, right? After all, how hard is it to maintain a blog?