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We know that “Avengers: Endgame” is currently dominating at the box office. But we’re already thinking about what might be the next comic books-turned-movies.
A while back, we talked with one of our favorite comic book gurus — Joe Field, owner of Concord’s Flying Colors Comics store — about that very topic. Field is also the founder of Free Comic Book Day, which takes place May 4 at comic book stores around the Bay Area.
You’ll find more details on that at www.freecomicbookday.com, but in a nutshell…
What’s Free Comic Book Day? It’s exactly what it says it is — a day when you can get a free comic book at local stores. Here’s an explanation from the master:
Mr @flycojoe explains @Freecomicbook to me. pic.twitter.com/ghjP8jxT1S
— Jim Harrington (@jimthecritic) May 1, 2018
Now that we’ve got that squared away, here are Field’s top 5 picks for comic books that would make great movies:
One of my two comic book gurus @flycojoe tells us about 5 Comic Books That Should Be Made Into Movies. (P.S. My other comic guru is @waterfrontcomic.) pic.twitter.com/DZOmgAtGI6
— Jim Harrington (@jimthecritic) April 26, 2018
Mister Miracle
(Debuted 1971, DC Comics)
He’s one of the key characters in Jack Kirby’s Fourth World saga, an amazing series of interconnected comic titles that the legendary artist did for DC in the early ’70s.
“(Mister Miracle is) the story of Scott Free, who is a super escape artist,” Field says. “Great concept. Great character. Definitely ripe for a movie.”
Plus, you can’t go wrong with Kirby, right? He’s the artist who helped create such legendary characters as X-Men, Hulk and Fantastic Four, all of which have been made into movie franchises.
“If you think about it, the mega success of the comic book movies is built on Kirby’s back,” Field says.
Black Hammer
(Debuted 2016, Dark Horse Comics)
This ongoing comic was created by Jeff Lemire, one of the top writers in the comic book business.
“What Jeff does with this is he goes through all the tropes of Silver Age and Golden Age superheroes,” Field says. “So, you are going to kind of vaguely recognize some characters. But they are his own characters. Definitely worth checking out.”
Velvet
(Debuted 2014, Image Comics)
This could be the next great spy-movie franchise.
“This is, succinctly, James Bond — but if Moneypenny was the lead, instead of James Bond,” Field says. “Hard-bitten, female super spy. Great stuff.”
Sub-Mariner
(Debuted 1939 Funnies/Timely/Marvel)
Hulk? X-Men? Even Captain America? All newcomers compared to Namor the Sub-Mariner.
“Marvel’s first character was actually the Sub-Mariner, who appeared before Marvel Comics No. 1 in 1939,” Field explains. “The Sub-Mariner is the king of an undersea kingdom — Atlantis — that is sometimes at war with the surface world for environmental reasons. It would make for a great movie these days.”
Inferior Five
(Debuted 1966, DC)
You know the Avengers, right? Think of the Inferior Five as the exact opposite.
“This is, basically, the worst group of superheroes ever,” Field says. “What happens when none of the other super heroes are available? You call in the Inferior Five. They are hapless. They are not very good at what they do. But they come at it with a lot of heart.”
