Could you have imagined the idea of Avengers: Infinity War back in 1989? (A history of superhero adaptations)

We are about to witness a historic moment in superhero adaptations. Sure we’ve had an Avengers movie or three.

Sure that airport scene in Civil War felt like something out of big summer Annual story.

Sure a movie teaming up Thor, Hulk, Valkyrie, and featuring Dr Strange, felt eventful.

But Infinity War feels like something new and different…

Infinity War is like the cinematic version of those once in a lifetime comic crossovers where EVERYONE showed up and everything was at risk. And that’s a big deal when it comes to $200m budgets. I still can’t believe it even after 19 other MCU films have built to this moment.

But can you even imagine the possibility of this movie as you waited in line to see Tim Burton’s Batman?

Prior to the 1989 megahit movie, superheroes had been hit or miss efforts or, worse, lowbrow diversions. Though I wax nostalgic about the Adam West Batman series, the corniness of that 60’s era broadcast hit still casts a pall over Batman a HOLY HALF CENTURY later.

Wonder Woman and Superman had TV series as well but they were not remembered for their brilliant storytelling. I’ve seen probably every episode in syndication and I probably couldn’t recall any details other than Lynda Carter looks amazing in a bikini and George Reeves’ Superman guest starred on I Love Lucy.

It was another Reeve (no “s”) that took the genre’s first step toward massive mainstream appeal. Christopher Reeve embodied the Man of Steel and rocketed to box office success, but after well regarded original and second installments the series slid to schlock. Sure… part three was a funny Richard Pryor movie, but it didn’t advance the superhero genre, and the less said about the 4th movie the better. I’m not even sure I’ve seen it all the way through in one sitting…

Ironically, Marvel fared even more poorly over the decades. Their only prominent live action adaptations were the enduring Incredible Hulk series and a short-lived Spider-Man TV show. Between the two series, there weren’t even 100 episodes. There seemed to be a Marvel curse, that would become even more pronounced as the years wore on.

Most comic adaptations were animated cartoons targeting kids. Virtually all major Marvel and DC characters appeared in cartoon form over the years. DC was successful with the Superfriends and later the Dini animated universe. Marvel succeeded with Spider-Man (accompanied by some well-reviewed friends) and the Hulk. The shows were generally cheap, juvenile, and only hold up because I watched them in my underoos on Saturday morning.

Then we got Burton’s Batman movie and it seemed like the start of something new. That move was such an event that even the poster caused a fervor in the pre-internet era. The movie opened to record box office (back when $50m was a record) and took comic films to the same adult stature that Moore and Miller had recently taken the printed medium. Our foot was in the door! Then Schumacher directed Batman and Robin and we went back to the days of Adam West.

The 1990s failed to capitalize on the Burton momentum and it looked like we’d never have our moment. Every filmmaker alive, including a famous effort by James Cameron, tried to make a Spider-Man movie but couldn’t get over the obstacles of Marvel’s financial woes, budget constraints, and special effect limitations. Weak, half efforts at the Fantastic Four, Punisher, and Captain America produced straight to DVD (or bootleg VHS in the case of the FF) turns and no hits emerged.

Only Wesley Snipes’ Blade had any cache but it was marketed and received as a horror/action franchise instead of superheroie goodness. The 90s showed great improvement in the availability of animated fare ( solid X-Men series from Marvel was quite successful) but no superhero films other than Batman lit up the box office.

Then came the moment where the Marvel curse ended with a bang. While it hurts to say that as a DC fan, it is true. The 2000 release of the X-Men showed that comics could marry smart storytelling and advances in special effects to deliver a high quality product.

Spider-Man finally made his big screen debut two years later and blew away Batman’s opening weekend. The sequels to those franchises were joined by the Fantastic Four, Daredevil, Ghost Rider, and the Hulk.

The quality of the other franchises was not consistent with Sony’s Spidey or Fox’s X-films, so Marvel decided to get in the game themselves. In 2008, Marvel produced and released one of the few characters Marvel had NOT licensed; Iron Man starring Robert Downey, Jr.

While this would go on to become the most lucrative series of all time, it was not a slam dunk when it was announced. Iron Man was then a B-List Avenger played by a recovering drug addict who had spent time in jail for his addictions. But, lightning struck and the series was connected brilliantly by Marvel Studios maestro, Kevin Feige.

And the MCU was born.

It definitely took Feige’s genius to build worlds, because a successful movie…hell, several successful movies… does not an Avengers: Infinity War make.

Just ask DC…

In the same time frame as the growth of Marvel’s films, Warner Brothers delivered a successful Dark Knight trilogy, a couple of good Superman movies, Batsoup, Suicide Squad, and the utterly brilliant Wonder Woman hit. Yet, Justice League was fairly well rejected by audiences.

By starting slowly, sprinkling connections, and building the universe gradually (something DC failed to do), Feige created an organic universe where everyone coming together to a common foe feels natural instead of like a corporate ad campaign.

And because of that, it will be one of the most successful corporate ad campaigns in media history.

I don’t know why this is just now hitting me as a watershed moment. I think it is something my pal Ryan said about this being historically unique.

We’ve seen superhero films released annually since X-Men, culminating in an epic field last year when we got Logan, Wonder Woman, Spider-Man: Homecoming, Guardians of the Galaxy 2, Thor 3, and the, better than the reviews, Justice League.

But this IS different.

This is a victory lap for the genre itself. This is a once in a lifetime tentpole event in an era of tentpole events.

So let’s all take a second to appreciate how we got to this moment and think of the mediocre content we had to endure in our love of superheroes along the way.

Now I just hope Infinity War doesn’t suck…