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- Stan Lee on the 1997 Marvel-DC deal.


The market for comics was not a good one by 1997. The speculator bubble bursting was still having many knock-on effects, and sales were still down to a fraction of the pre-bubble levels. Though some corners of the market were beginning a recovery, many smaller comics companies had folded among the ever-shrinking market.


While DC was making an overall loss, this was not to say that all of their comics were unprofitable. In fact, most of DC’s losses came from their main imprint, featuring superheroes such as Batman, Superman, and Green Lantern. Fans had moved away from those lines, which many felt were emphasising quantity over quality. On the other hand, imprints like Milestone Media and Vertigo were highly successful, with many of the comics in those lines selling better than before.

To Warner Bros, the main imprint was beginning to look more like a burden than a boon. Clearly, the other imprints were proof that comics were still a profitable industry in the modern market. The main imprint’s one major benefit was that the characters within it were still among the most recognisable in the entire comics industry. Merchandising was still somewhat profitable, as were films based on the characters.

However, the most recent film in their franchise, Batman Continues, was something of a disappointment. Though making a profit on paper, once advertising was taken into account, Warner Bros had actually lost money. Merchandise from the film had recouped much of that cost, but it was clear that their money could have been used far better. By mid-1997, it was clear to the company that something drastic was needed.

Though many in the company pointed to the success of the animated shows as proof that the characters were still worth keeping, the more adult-oriented themes of the shows limited the viewership, and though the WB was doing well, it was far from the “fifth network” that they had hoped. Put simply, as nice as it was, critical acclaim alone did not keep the lights on in the offices.


And so, in August 1997, DC decided to sell the rights to their main imprint, the DC Universe. A similar situation had come just over a decade prior, with Marvel turning them down, seeing the characters as the reason the comics were failing, not the writing. But many things had changed for Marvel in the interim. They had a serious opportunity to absorb their biggest competition, and dominate the comics market. It was, to Marvel at least, clear that DC’s failures were the fault of the writers rather than the characters having lost their appeal. [1]


Marvel’s purchase of the DC Universe was, to many, a complete surprise, and there were many questions. Firstly, the fact that the main imprint shared a name with the company caused some confusion in the press as to whether DC Comics themselves had been bought by Marvel. Secondly, the status of the unfinished Superman Lives and Green Lantern films were thrown up in the air.

One of the provisions in the sale was that the films would continue to be made, though Marvel would foot much of the costs. Warner Bros would still distribute the films, but the profits would be split between the two. This left Marvel in a perplexing situation, where they were somewhat competing with themselves. However, the two new films, one of which was already shooting, did well to replace the now cancelled Spider-Man film.

Marvel would also take over the animated television shows, though it would soon be clear to the writers thereof that Marvel had little intention of continuing the shows beyond their next seasons.

For the comics themselves, many of the current runs would end suddenly, though Marvel stressed that the DC Universe would remain separate for the immediate future, at least until there was a clear way to join the two comic imprints into one continuity. [2]


DC Comics would be rebranded as Warner Comics, so as to avoid any confusion. With the largely unprofitable DC Universe now gone, Warner would spend their time focussing on their remianing imprints.

The two main imprints left, Vertigo and Matrix, were both rather successful. Matrix had been launched the year prior, and was primarily a sci-fi imprint, but was already a large success. Sci-fi was “having a moment”, and Matrix was a way to profit from that. Shortly after the DC sale, Warner would acquire the rights to produce magazines based on the Doctor Who TV series. The magazines, which featured all ten Doctors, would prove instantly popular.

Another Matrix acquisition would be the Combat Evolved comics, written by former game developer Jason Jones. Jones had worked on the successful Marathon series of games, but the release of Marathon Infinity only on Apple computers had hurt sales significantly, as Apple’s own sales faltered significantly. With Bungie now defunct, Jones was looking for new work, and had a concept that he wanted to work on. Apple itself would declare bankruptcy later that year.

Combat Evolved, though a sleeper at first, would prove to be an incredible successful franchise in the coming years, helped by its many famous fans, including director Peter Jackson. [3]



Marvel had, at long last, conquered their oldest enemy. Now, the question was what to do with their newly purchased characters. The success of the Reborn Universe spurred them on to re-launch the DC Universe, with the New Year’s Revolution arc which began in January 1998. The “Revolution” would reboot many of the characters, and attempted to smooth over any issues with continuity. Though unpopular at first, the Revolution would bring in many new fans, as the lack of “required reading” was no longer a daunting task for anyone wishing to start reading the comics.


Marvel also now had a stake in the success of Superman Lives and Green Lantern. Superman Lives had begun filming, though it had been suspended in the immediate aftermath of the Marvel deal, as it was unclear as to whether the film would be cancelled. It was in this time that star Christopher Reeve would announce his retirement from acting to run for Congress in his home state of New York. The Democratic Party had reached out to him a few years prior about running, but he had turned them down at the time. In the meantime, Reeve had very few major roles, and had spent more time in activism. By running for Congress, he had an opportunity to make a real difference on a national level. [4]

Superman Lives would see Reeve reunited with Margot Kidder, though Gene Hackman would not return. Instead, rather than facing off against Lex Luthor, Superman would face Brainiac, who would be portrayed by Christopher Walken. [5]


Green Lantern was far earlier in development, with casting still ongoing. With a late 1999 release planned, very little had been done so far beyond arranging a script and director. Brett Ratner was attached to direct, with Ted Tally writing the script. Warner had insisted on using Kyle Rayner, to keep with the current comics continuity, and Keanu Reeves was in talks to take up the role. The story would be a loose adaptation of the “Emerald Twilight” storyline, with Parallax being the main villain, though the Green Lantern Corps would still be intact. [6]


X-Men: Days of Future Past was shaping up to be a different type of film. Pay disputes had arisen with some of the more major names in the cast, mainly Tom Cruise and Sharon Stone. Pay would be increased for the entire cast, with Cruise being given a percentage of the profits. Filming began in early 1997. The story would be an adaptation of the comic story of the same name, though Rogue would replace Kitty Pryde.

The size of the cast had been the source of some criticism for the previous films, and as such, while nobody was outright fired, many were given smaller roles. Robert Downey Jr., who played Bobby Drake/Iceman, was given a much smaller role. This smaller role enabled him to star as Jonathan Harker in Kenneth Branagh’s 1998 film Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Once more, Bob Hoskins and Ann Yen would take a reduced role, with more screen time given to Cruise and Bassett. [7]

By the end of 1997, the film would be in post-production, where the loss of Cameron was felt strongest. James Cameron’s influence had resulted in a great deal of groundbreaking special effects, however costly. With him no longer involved, the innovations stopped, though the effects used were still impressive for the time.



So, as 1997 came to a close, comic fans were facing a completely different landscape. The industry had changed almost completely, and only time would tell if it would be for the better. [8]


Next Time: “What NeXT?”, The Computer Industry Changes Forever.

[1] Alright, I'm not 100% certain that the offer was actually made in the 1980s, but I haven't found anything concrete disproving it. This is the "missed opportunity" I mentioned so long ago. And yeah, this is probably going to be an unpopular move, but it gives me a lot to work with. DC were in a better place then than they are now ITTL, so I think them selling the imprint is more than possible. They're actually keeping most of the more profitable stuff.
[2] No crisis event just yet. And probably not for a while.
[3] This is what happens to Halo ITTL. With what's about to happen to Apple, it's unlikely Bungie would survive past '97.
[4] Reeve was actually offered a change to run in '94, which is what was mentioned here. With his injury nowhere not as serious, it's given him some time to re-evaluate.
[5] Elements of Kevin Smith's Superman Lives project will be present in the film.
[6] For the casting, I really have @Pyro to thank. I'm not too familiar with the Green Lantern Corps, but he's given me some good pointers to work with.
[7] Dracula will be expanded on in another update, which will tackle RDJ's addiction problems as well.
[8] Another probably controversial update here. Next one may be too, though probably not to the same level. DC won't be "Marvelised", they'll keep their own feel, but it will definitely change.