Would Marvel exist if DC didn't exist and if they still did...

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RoyHarperBLOW

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#1  Edited By RoyHarperBLOW

If Marvel still existed but DC never existed what would be different about the Marvel company?

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jeanroygrant

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#2  Edited By jeanroygrant

Yes. But no Thanos, Sentry, Glladiator, King Hyperion, Hyperion, Blue Marvel, ect.

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RoyHarperBLOW

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#3  Edited By RoyHarperBLOW

@jeanroygrant: Also, Moon Knight, and Namor, and basically any rip off character.

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SmashBrawler

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#4  Edited By SmashBrawler

@RoyHarperBLOW said:

@jeanroygrant: Also, Moon Knight, and Namor, and basically any rip off character.

Namor was first.

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jeanroygrant

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#5  Edited By jeanroygrant

@SmashBrawler said:

@RoyHarperBLOW said:

@jeanroygrant: Also, Moon Knight, and Namor, and basically any rip off character.

Namor was first.

Aqua Man was before Namor

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CrimsonCake

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#6  Edited By CrimsonCake

I wonder if they'd still try to make their characters relatable.

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Joewell911

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#7  Edited By Joewell911

@jeanroygrant said:

Yes. But no Thanos, Sentry, Glladiator, King Hyperion, Hyperion, Blue Marvel, ect.

or Deadpool

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SmashBrawler

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#8  Edited By SmashBrawler

@jeanroygrant said:

@SmashBrawler said:

@RoyHarperBLOW said:

@jeanroygrant: Also, Moon Knight, and Namor, and basically any rip off character.

Namor was first.

Aqua Man was before Namor

No, he wasn't. Namor was created in 1939, Aquaman was created in 1941.

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Jonny_Anonymous

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#9  Edited By Jonny_Anonymous

@jeanroygrant said:

@SmashBrawler said:

@RoyHarperBLOW said:

@jeanroygrant: Also, Moon Knight, and Namor, and basically any rip off character.

Namor was first.

Aqua Man was before Namor

Nope, Namor first appeared in 1939 and Aquaman was in 1941

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RoyHarperBLOW

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#10  Edited By RoyHarperBLOW

@Jonny_Anonymous: @SmashBrawler: Was he the same as the comicbook namor we know right now?

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Jonny_Anonymous

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#11  Edited By Jonny_Anonymous

@SmashBrawler: damn you beat me to it

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Matchstick

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#12  Edited By Matchstick

Marvel would still be around, they'd just be filled with knock offs of whatever comic company filled DC's market space. Probably Fawcett Comics or something.

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DocFatalis

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#13  Edited By DocFatalis

What is the point you are trying to make?

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jeanroygrant

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#14  Edited By jeanroygrant

@Jonny_Anonymous said:

@jeanroygrant said:

@SmashBrawler said:

@RoyHarperBLOW said:

@jeanroygrant: Also, Moon Knight, and Namor, and basically any rip off character.

Namor was first.

Aqua Man was before Namor

Nope, Namor first appeared in 1939 and Aquaman was in 1941

Never knew :O

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Jonny_Anonymous

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#15  Edited By Jonny_Anonymous

@RoyHarperBLOW said:

@Jonny_Anonymous: @SmashBrawler: Was he the same as the comicbook namor we know right now?

Yes

No Caption Provided

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RoyHarperBLOW

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#16  Edited By RoyHarperBLOW

@Jonny_Anonymous: Bettet question: Was he apart of Marvel?

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Jonny_Anonymous

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#17  Edited By Jonny_Anonymous

@RoyHarperBLOW said:

@Jonny_Anonymous: Bettet question: Was he apart of Marvel?

Marvel didn't exist then (neither did DC), Namor was Marvels first superhero and was published by Timely Comics in Marvel Comics #1 in 1939

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jeanroygrant

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#18  Edited By jeanroygrant

@joewell said:

@jeanroygrant said:

Yes. But no Thanos, Sentry, Glladiator, King Hyperion, Hyperion, Blue Marvel, ect.

or Deadpool

Yeah him too

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haydenclaireheroes

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I think the comic book company in general would have never strived for achievement as much as they do now. Marvel would have no competition. So, there would be no company that they had to try and be better than.

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Malonius

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#20  Edited By Malonius

Marvel Comics had Golden Age superheroes, too, mostly associated with WWII. Namor, Captain America, Bucky, the original Human Torch. Stan Lee's FF, X-Men, Avengers, Hulk, and Spider-man were rooted as much in the sci-fi/fantasy pulps, references to mythology, and Victorian horror stories as to the Golden Age superheroes. I would say that since Stan Lee didn't put out the DC knockoff characters previously cited, Marvel would still be pretty well the same, in my opinion.

A good question would be, "Without Superman existing and becoming so popular would superhero comic books have existed at all?" Once again, I would say 'yes' since many multi-genre comics were coming out. Several conventions, like underwear on the outside of tight costumes, might not have existed, but super-powered sci-fi/fantasy vigilantes and super-soldiers were emerging along different tracks at the same time in the late 1930s.

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SmashBrawler

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#21  Edited By SmashBrawler

Would Marvel exist? Yes, of course. Would they exist nowadays? No, and here's why.

First of all, the most popular superheroes of the era were Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman. Some may argue that they overshadowed Timely's (and others') characters, but I never saw other character be even close as popular. The only popular comic book character I could see would be Captain America, but with a lack of unique characters like Wonder Woman, the first major superheroine ever, I don't think they would be as successful. Plus, Cap doesn't have the duality issues that made characters like Superman and Batman so appealing to kids back then. You could believe that if you took off your glasses and opened you shirt you could become Superman, but you can't "transform" into Captain America (at least not without the necessary conditions, and even then the change is pretty much permanent).

Then comes Fredric Wertham and the Seduction of the Innocent. Some people may think that comics would be safer without National's characters around, since the most memorable parts of Wertham's study were Superman's fascism or Batman and Robin's homoerotic undertones (another point to be made here: Bucky may not have existed). But comic books had a lot of other problems, such as violence and sexuality, among others. Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman were the only characters who survived this gigantic attack against comic books. Green Lantern, Flash, Captain America, the Sub-Mariner, Blue Beetle, Plastic Man, all gone. Even if Captain America survived, I don't see any other Timely characters surviving... maybe Namor and the Human Torch, but if they did Timely would fall into DC's Silver Age mediocrity by having the monopoly in comics.

Without any Justice League of America to inspire their Fantastic Four, Timely would have no renaissance. They may try something similar to DC's Silver Age revamp, but it would be as short-lived as DC's was. Another company may rise, implementing many of Marvel's new ideas, such as a bigger profundity when it comes to their characters' personalities, transforming Timely into the new DC, but without that "other company" Timely would most likely fall into more and more mediocrity and finally die out.

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Eternal19

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#22  Edited By Eternal19

Marvel wouldnt exist without DC, Most of there characters are directly inspired by Superman, without Supes,Comics would be radically different and i cant even imagine how they would be today

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the_stegman

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#23  Edited By the_stegman  Moderator

Superman and Batman are such important hero archtypes, I can't imagine comics if those two never existed. 

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tupiaz

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#24  Edited By tupiaz

@ haydenclaireheroes Their could be another company that took DC’s role. Let say DC never existed and Marvel was the only one, there would be a lot of room to make new characters. Image could also simply had become bigger than they are now. It is not that simply to say that if DC didn’t exist, then Marvel would never had compatition. However these kind of discussions is rather pointless. Counterfactual history rarely give new light on the pass.

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ReVamp

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#25  Edited By ReVamp

Its worth noting that Namor's character changed after Aquaman came around.

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RoyHarperBLOW

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#26  Edited By RoyHarperBLOW

@ReVamp: So Namor became more like the character he is today after Aquaman was created? Cool.

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ReVamp

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#27  Edited By ReVamp

@RoyHarperBLOW said:

@ReVamp: So Namor became more like the character he is today after Aquaman was created? Cool.

Yeah. IIRC he wasn't a monarch before it and such.

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RoyHarperBLOW

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#28  Edited By RoyHarperBLOW

@ReVamp: Was he even a mutant in his first appearance?

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tupiaz

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#29  Edited By tupiaz

@ RoyHarperBLOW Namor was a son of a princess from Atlantis and he was therefore more another race than human. As far as I remember he even had some disrespect/hate towards mankind (does he still has this?),

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#30  Edited By TrueMoonchilde

@tupiaz said:

@ RoyHarperBLOW Namor was a son of a princess from Atlantis and he was therefore more another race than human. As far as I remember he even had some disrespect/hate towards mankind (does he still has this?),

Yes he does. Namor hasn't really changed that much in his history. Him being a mutant is a ret-con, but I believe that's largely due to Marvel not actually having the concept of mutants (or at least what we think of as Marvel mutants) until X-Men showed up in 1963.

He was always a royal from Atlantis though, and he has always been somewhat of an anti-hero, antagonizing the surface world.

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tupiaz

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#31  Edited By tupiaz

Yeah that is why the mutant retcon does not make much sense to me. Yeah his dad was human but his powers as I see it has always been connected to him being from Atlantis not because he was a human that got mutant powers.

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#32  Edited By TheVoiceOfReason

@The Stegman said:

Superman and Batman are such important hero archtypes, I can't imagine comics if those two never existed.
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#33  Edited By colonyofcells

If Superman was not invented, Timely and other comics companies would've just copied Phantom during the golden age. If Justice League was not revived in the silver age, the genius of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby would have tried doing super heroes again sooner or later since they probably would have gotten tired of doing romance comics all the time.

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ssejllenrad

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#34  Edited By ssejllenrad

No DC means no Superman. No Superman does not necessarily mean no superheroes but it certainly would mean no superhero popularity explosion. Superhero genre might have died during the war. So even if Marvel existed, it would have been dead without the likes of Superman or Batman drawing all attention to comicbook heroes.