ComicMix Six: Super-Heroes on Television
There have been some sad attempts at live-action super-hero shows over the years. On the other hand, Smallville has done pretty well for itself, going strong for eight seasons now. Heroes on NBC has made many TV fans question what may have been a dismissive attitude towards super-hero stories. And shows such as Buffy, Angel and The Dead Zone have shown that many folks out there enjoy stories about people who have unique abilities and fight evil.
So we at ComicMix pondered “what other super-heroes could work if brought to life on the small screen?” Personally, I think there are tons that could be great. But because none of us have that kind of time, we stuck by our habit of keeping the list down to six.
X-FACTOR INVESTIGATIONS
There have been shows before about mutants, people born with special abilities. But what about a show featuring people who have such powers and choose to become private investigators instead of super-heroes?
In the newest X-Factor series, that’s exactly what happens to several. Led by Jamie Madrox (formerly the hero known as “Multiple Man” for his ability to create duplicates of himself), X-Factor Investigations is a team of mutant investigators who are there to help people (particularly, fellow mutants) who aren’t being helped by the police. Likewise, they investigate strange happenings that affect the mutant community, things that the government may be trying to cover up. The members of X-Factor Investigations believe in what they’re doing and they’re good at their job. If only they could stop arguing with each other and get past all their relationship drama.
A show like this would break a lot of expectations, putting a detective spin on stories rather than falling on traditional costumes and secret identities. There would be murder, intrigue, conspiracies, romance, and lots of sarcastic banter to keep you interested.
MANHUNTER
Audiences love shows about crusading lawyers. So here’s Kate Spencer, a prosecutor who gets fed up with how many criminals and super-villains are released back into society. Deciding she’d had enough, Kate steals several recovered super-hero weapons from police evidence lock-up. Calling herself the Manhunter, she hunts criminals who beat the legal system.
Along with the action scenes, this show would entertain folks with how layered the character is. Not only does she have to occasionally look at herself and wonder if she’s being the biggest hypocrite in the world (lawyer AND vigilante), but she’s also trying to balance her career and super-hero activities with her responsibilities as a single, divorced mom. That’s some good drama right there, people!
RUNAWAYS
You think the rich teens of 90210 have it hard? These kids got ’em beat. Imagine, your parents have an annual social gathering with their friends. So each year, you’re forced to hang out with a bunch of other kids with whom you have nothing in common other than the fact that your parents all somehow know each other. We’ve all been there and it’s lame. But then one night, you and the other kids discover a horrible secret. Your parents aren’t just friends … they’re a secret cabal of super-villains who want to take over the world. And you’ve inherited their powers.
Being a teenager is bad enough when you’re trying to deal with having a crush on your friend or you’re figuring out how you fit in with a group you really don’t know. Now add to that the fact that you’ve got super-powers you can’t control and are on the run not just from your parents but from child protective services and the cops. With a healthy mix of teenage comedy, angsty drama and special effects, you’ve got yourself a hit.
SANDMAN MYSTERY THEATRE
Mad Men has shown us that period pieces can work if you get them right. So imagine, if you will, a noir series taking place in the late 1930s, starring a man who is driven to hunt down serial killers and terrorists by nightmares that show him crimes before they happen. A man who whispers eerily through his gas mask as he later hunts down these same criminals in the dead of night, armed with martial arts skills and a gas-gun of his own creation.
People are drawn to stories with elements of the unexplained and the occult. Look at The Dead Zone, Ghost Whisperer and Supernatural. So why not give audiences a super-hero more steeped in mysticism than science fiction? With his horrible nightmares and creepy disguise, Wesley Dodds AKA The Sandman mixes genres of suspense, crime drama and horror genres.
WELCOME TO TRANQUILITY
Sometimes you just want a show to be fun. This recent Wildstorm series has been a huge hit for its originailty and silliness, taking place in a California town called Tranquility where super-villains and super-heroes go to live out their golden years. And talk about a cast of enjoyable characters. You’ve got the hot-tempered Sheriff Lindo who tries to keep peace in a town where at any moment a retired super-villain might see their old arch-rival sitting across from them at a diner. You’ve got Mayor Fury, an elected official who strangely still sees the need to wear a mask. You’ve got Col. Cragg who seems to embody the anti-thesis of modern day political correctness, speaking very biased opinions without any clue of how ludicrous or ignorant they might seem. And you’ve got the occasional young whipper-snappers and newbie super-villains who want to make a name for themselves by stirring up trouble with the old timers.
All in all, this could be a feel-good show that makes you both ponder and laugh. I mean, don’t you think that Picket Fences would’ve been far more interesting if Tom Skerritt had occasionally let loose with heat-vision? I think my point is clear.
THE FLASH
Yes, I know it was done before. But that was nearly twenty years ago and I think we could give it a better shot now. Barry Allen AKA the Flash (the second hero to use that name) is a forensic scientist and a super-hero. So imagine CSI if Grissom had possessed super-powers. How cool is that?!
Since the Flash is part of a legacy of super-heroes, you could really take your time to adapt the comic book history and turn it into a nicely paced TV saga. In the first season, Barry gets his powers and is inspired to become a super-hero, inspired by stories about a heroic speedster who operated during World War II and was called the Flash. By the end of the first season, Barry’s just gotten used to his powers when super-villains suddenly start appearing.
In the second season, Barry’s new villains team-up and form the group The Rogues, making life more difficult. But then Jay Garrick, the original Flash from WW II, comes out of retirement to help Barry and teach him things he never realized about his powers.
The third season could show Barry thinking he now is experienced enough to handle any super-villain, when suddenly he meets his deadliest enemy Eobard Thawne, the psychotic “Reverse-Flash” who has all his powers and knows all his secrets. But to balance out this darkness, the third season also has Barry finally asking his girlfriend Iris to marry him and then meeting her family, including her hot-headed nephew Wally West. In the season finale, Wally would suffer an accident that gives him powers identical to Barry’s.
Finally, the fourth season would have Barry training Wally in his new powers, making him his sidekick “Kid Flash.” Together, Wally and Barry could begin investigating just what is the mysterious connection and secret behind so many people being blessed with superhuman speed.
See that? I just came up with four seasons worth of stories already! And if the actors started deciding it was time to leave, you could just have Barry die and let Wally replace him as the new Flash, just like what happened in the comics. It wouldn’t be a TV series about a single super-hero so much as the saga of the legacy of lightning. It would be ground breaking! Someone call up Warner Bros. already!
Anyway, I think it’s time we wrapped this up. We hope you enjoyed this list. Other honorable mentions were Fallen Angel, Birds of Prey (if they did it right), Planetary, Avengers Initiative, GL Corps and the Legion of Super-Heroes (yeah, we know they’re sort of coming to Smallville this season).
And if you have ideas of your own, feel free to leave us a comment with what you’re thinking!
For more ComicMix Six lists, be sure to visit our ComicMix Six Archive!
Alan Kistler actually wrote a Flash movie script when he was in college. That’s how much of a geek he is. He has been recognized by mainstream media outlets as a comic book historian and can be seen in the “Special Features” sections of the Adventures of Aquaman and Justice League: New Frontier DVDs. His personal website can be found at: http://KistlerUniverse.com. One of these days he’d love to write for DC, Marvel or Doctor Who.
I agree that they should bring more to the small screen.(Wonderwoman worked well back in the day, didn't it?)I personally would really like to see Sandman as there are not enough really well done period pieces on TV (especially not ones with Super heroes)~Jacque
Actually, Witchblade was quite successful, it just didn't last all that long because the star went into rehab….And The Flash was an excellent show that was, unfortunately, a few years too early, as it predated the post-TNG SF TV boom, and also had the misfortune to be put on the air opposite The Cosby Show at the height of its popularity.
Having re-watched the Flash episodes last year, I found most of them to be hokey and weirdly indecisive about whether or not they wanted to be dark or tongue-in-cheek.Witchblade's success I was basing on the fact that when it was on I knew no one beside myself who watched it and when it came out on DVD none of my friends who worked at comic and video stores knew what it was. If you're less memorable than Birds of Prey, that doesn't speak very highly to me.
Uhm, okay. Call me crazy, but I think ratings figures and DVD sales figures are a better barometer for popularity than what you and a few friends do. That's the flip-side of the lamest of the lame-ass Internet arguments that flood the aether these days: "Me and my friends like it, so it must be popular."
When the Flash was on, I thought it was one the best shows on TV (I was 28). It was fun but had its darker moments as well – a show doesn't have to be one or the other. My frustration was trying to find the show on CBS's darn schedule! They moved the time slot every week of two. The program received good critical reviews, but the ratings continued to go down because no one could find the show in order to watch it.When it came out on DVD, I bought it right away. I enjoyed watching it again – finally seeing the 3 episodes I'd missed the first time around.Based on what I've heard of the DVD sales, this show could have been a big hit given the proper support from the network.Regarding Smallville, I think it's a great premise for a show but I lost interest during the third season due to the slow-moving storyline and the endlessly recycling romantic mess. I've heard their were some welcome heroic additions (Green Arrow, Aquaman, JLA, etc.) in later seasons, but I'm not interested in wading through more of the weak episodes in order to get to the few good ones.
Smallville has surprisingly gotten pretty cool in the past couple of seasons. There are still a few weak episodes, but the main draw to me is that Clark is now acting like young CLark Kent and not like Peter Parker. There was a great scene in the beginning of season 6 where someone tells him he concerns himself too much with individual lives and he shouts "My parents taught me to care about people and I'm not going to apologize for that."It's just a shame it took us this long to get to this point. I mean, I honestly think you can skip at least three of the seasons for the most part.
Green Arrow would be perfect for the small screen, much more than that SuperMax idea of GA escaping from a maximum security prison.
Totally true. Hell, Justin Hartley's been a fantastic Green Arrow on Smallville. Lose the sunglasses and I'd be down for watching him week after week.
Captain America would make a terrific series – especially if based on Ed Brubaker's vision of the characters in this ensemble cast. Political intrigue, action, personal relationships, legacy, great villains and more would combine to make this a series with something for most 14+ viewers and would be as socially relevant as the modern Battlestar Galactica.
There's a thought.
I would definitely TiVo "CSI: Central City."And imagine if Barry Allen had Ray Palmer on his investigations team. All those CSI bullet would close-up shots would have Atom in them moving things around, checking things out. Fun stuff.
Dude, you just blew my mind grapes!And imagine futher, Barry finds a mysterious murder which looks like it could have only been done by alien technology and then runs across a mysterious P.I. who is investigating the same mystery, a P.I. named John Jones.GENIUS! Hey, Hollywood! Is anyone listening?!?
CSI: JLA. I'm ready for it.
I think, with shows like ALIAS and THE UNIT working as they have, a NICK FURY: AGENT OF S.H.I.E.L.D. would be a good program.As with shows like SUPERNATURAL, a good occult-based show could work. Marvel could give us all sorts of programs from that genre. Dark Horse could give us BPRD: THE SERIES (in either live-action or animated formats). DC could give us JACK KIRBY'S THE DEMON.In addition to THE SANDMAN, DC could also give us THE QUESTION…perhaps even an anthology series featuring the Charlton characters in a rotating slot format (like the mystery movies that featured COLUMBO, MCCLOUD, MCMILLAN & WIFE, etc.)My ideas for new animated shows: – Doom Patrol – Strange Tales (anthology series featuring the animated adventures of Doctor Strange AND Nick Fury…just like the comic title of the same name did) – MARVEL TEAM-UP (a natural to compete with the proposed BATMAN: THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD)Just my two cents.
Nick Fury and The Question nearly made it onto this list. I kept juggling between the Question and Sandman and finally decided to go with Dodds since he had the supernatural edge. I didn't have both up because I figured they might be too similar in basic premise, atmosphere (creepy guy acting as detective) that it would seem repetitive.Great suggestions about the Doom Patrol, Strange Tales and The Demon.Marvel Team-Up I'd hold off on just because I'm liking the current Spider-Man cartoon so much I don't want any of the sub-plots to go away. But hey, what about Marvel TWO-IN-ONE? The Thing meets a different hero every week. THAT would be great right now!
MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE would be cool. Especially if Dan Slott did some writing for it. I LOVED his run on THE THING.I think that there are literally UNIVERSES of characters to use and utilize for both animated and live-action television that have gone mostly untapped.Even people who don't read comics could get into a CHALLENGERS OF THE UNKOWN series, ADAM STRANGE, JONAH HEX (or POW WOW SMITH) or an adaptation of THE WALKING DEAD.Think about the western fans who might watch a TV series based on the adventures of the Marvel western characters. (And, if I had my way it would culminate into John Ostrander's BLAZE OF GLORY, should the series need to end.).I am a comics fan AND a TV fan. I really don't see why these thing can't combine to give us what they do when separate(and when done properly)…which is entertain us and give us good stories.On a humorous side/movie-related note, I hope that Marvel does all the Midnight Sons characters…AND puts Donal Logue in them! He's already in TWO of them now (GHOST RIDER and BLADE).Then again, I am pretty weird.
I could see Donal Logue riding alongside the Two=Gun Kid and the Phantom Rider.