Whether a student in school or a weekend warrior, summertime is a welcomed guest, bringing vacation time, beach outings, longer days, warm sunshine and Fourth of July fireworks. And for those in the film industry, there is even more promise for excitement, as summer is the blockbuster movie season.

Ready to jump off the silver screen and rescue us from high temperatures are a slew of movies based on comic book heroes.

“Speed Racer,” “The Incredible Hulk,” “Iron Man,” “The Dark Knight,” “Wanted” and “Hellboy” are seven recently released or upcoming movies that are attracting audiences this summer. All are based on comic books or graphic novels—the “book” version of a comic book. There is even a new superhero movie inspired by the comics, Will Smith’s “Hancock.”

Magic, Myth and Movies
Chris Tung is 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighs 120 pounds; he wears glasses with thick, black, square frames and he has short black hair and brown eyes—overall, he is a stark contrast to the superheroes with which he is enthralled. Tung began reading comic books as a child.

“My father and I would get up at around 7 or 7:30 and watch the ‘X-Men’ animated series over a bowl of cereal,” he said.

Tung attended his first comic book convention in 2004, his sophomore year in high school. A second year English major at UC Davis, he wants to become a writer and is currently working on his first comic book.

“The reason superheroes were created in the first place was to bring people hope during World War II. When all else fails, people wish that someone like ‘Captain America,’ or ‘Batman,’ or ‘Ironman’ will save the day,” Tung said. “I think society especially needs hope now with all that is going on in the world, and since not very many people read comic books anymore, movies bring these heroes to the mainstream.”

Andy Wood, who is living the dream of the avid comic book reader, owns the comic book store “Gamerscircle Comics” located on East Bidwell Street in Folsom.

“I am putting my money on ‘Iron Man’ as the biggest blockbuster of the season, although I have a biased opinion since ‘Iron Man’ has been one of my favorites for a while,” he said.

Wood explains that he believes comic book movies are so popular because of the quality of the storylines and the big name actors who portray the superheroes and villains. This is surely a draw; favorite actors such as Jessica Alba, Christian Bale, the recently deceased Heath Ledger, Morgan Freeman, Angelina Jolie and James McAvoy can all be seen as larger than life characters, battling against, or creating injustice on the big screen. California’s own governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, even played a part in the comic book-turned-movie craze, portraying super villain Mr. Freeze alongside George Clooney in the 1997 flick “Batman and Robin.”

Comic book movies open the door for those who wouldn’t normally be exposed to the thrilling world of superhumans. The clash of popular media with cult topics means an increase in popularity among all things comic book and an increase in business can be seen simultaneous to the release of a popular comic book movie, explained Wood.

The Golden Era Redux
Perhaps people are so captivated by these superhumans because they can save the world vicariously through them, perhaps they just enjoy the thrill of the battle or perhaps they just seek the relief of escaping the real world and exploring another. Whatever the reason, it looks like superhero movies are flying to new heights this summer, supported by the dollars of neophytes and the long held, fervent support of comic book fans.

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