My Pet Peeve About Superhero Films

[PA Ram]

Okay--this always bugs me when I watch the Marvel films.

Why do they insist that the superheros battle without their masks on?

I got into this with my son just a little while ago and he defended the decisions with things like the Captain America character not wearing a mask at one point when he became nomad or some such thing? I don't follow any of that. I'm a child of the 60s and 70s and if my superheros had a mask they wore a mask.

I am hardly a comics expert. I will admit that I bought very few superhero comics growing up.

I DID buy a lot of Archie's and Sad Sacks and Dennis the Menace and Richie Rich and Tales From The Crypt and those guys ALWAYS kept their masks on.

Anyway--maybe it's an age thing and maybe I'm just being cynical but I have a theory and I'm just gonna throw it out there. Shoot it down if you must but it's my theory and I'm sticking to it:

Actor insecurity.

Look, some superheros aren't burdened by masks: Thor, Doctor Strange, The Black Widow, Hawkeye, The Scarlet Witch and probably others.

But what about the actors who have to wear masks?

Captain America? He didn't wear one at all in Avengers Infinity war.

Iron Man? They have cleverly rigged it so Robert Downey Jr. can have himself filmed while inside the mask.

Hulk? My God they would not even let him become the Hulk in this one(other than the beginning). Instead they put Mark Ruffalo in a Hulk like Iron Man suit where his face could be seen.

Spiderman? His mask is off at every opportunity. Sam Rami seemed to have it off for half of his films.

War Machine? I can't recall if his was ever on. I recall seeing Don Cheadle walk around with the suit on.

Black Panther pretty much did--I'll give them that one.

But hey--call me old fashioned. I want to see these heroes battling in masks without having to see the actors faces.

Winter Soldier had his face completely exposed as well now that I think of it.

The kid in me found an awful lot of fun in the masks. The films aren't as interested in that.

I blame the actors.

 

[Selassie I]

I watched that Infinity War movie just yesterday. I'll tell you what bugged me...

It was 2.5 hours long... only to "end" with no ending.

 

[Mister Sin]

I watched that Infinity War movie just yesterday. I'll tell you what bugged me...

It was 2.5 hours long... only to "end" with no ending.

Ahhhh suspense for the next one so you will HAVE to watch it! Lol

I can’t say I paid attention to the mask thing tho. I don’t really care either way, I mean, it’s not like the Ninja turtles where we need those colors to tell who’s who. Lol

 

[Angry Ram]

Oh boy...you've done riled up my nerd rage. Prepare for my keyboard onslaught!

Why do they insist that the superheros battle without their masks on?

They don't. Watch the other Avengers movies, especially the final battles.

Actor insecurity

Nah.

Look, some superheros aren't burdened by masks: Thor, Doctor Strange, The Black Widow, Hawkeye, The Scarlet Witch and probably others.

Thor has a helmet all the time in the comics, and fights without one in all battles in the movies. Except for the Contest of Champions against Hulk in Ragnarok. The only other time we see his helmet in the movies is his coronation scene in Thor 1. Scarlett Witch has a helmet too, shes never worn it in the movies. Hawkeye has a purple mask with a big ass H in the comics, and doesn't wear knee in the movies. Because he's SHIELD agent like Widow.

Captain America? He didn't wear one at all in Avengers Infinity war.

At this point in the MCU Cap is a wanted fugitive by the Secretary of State Thunderbolt Ross due to the events in Civil War. He ditched his shield, mask, and ripped off all the bright white and red from his uniform. To further disguise himself he grew his hair and beard out

Iron Man? They have cleverly rigged it so Robert Downey Jr. can have himself filmed while inside the mask

For one thing that allows to see the HUD in his suits. And it's a fine balance between his outside and inside shots.

Hulk? My God they would not even let him become the Hulk in this one(other than the beginning). Instead they put Mark Ruffalo in a Hulk like Iron Man suit where his face could be seen.

That is part of the story in IW. You clearly didn't watch Thor: Ragnarok or Avengers: Age of Ultron where he Hulks out. In Ragnarok he's Hulk most of the time. Besides, the Bruce Banner and Hulk relationship is a Marvel staple. You have to have Bruce.

War Machine? I can't recall if his was ever on. I recall seeing Don Cheadle walk around with the suit on.

He was in the battle. At this point you're sounding cranky.

Black Panther pretty much did--I'll give them that one.

Black Panther only wears his full mask in battles and fights. He's maskless otherwise. Which makes your other arguments so ironic, as King T'Challa is not fully geared the majority of the time in IW and his solo movie.

Finally these movies are about characters and showing their emotions...i.e...Cap vs morals, Bruce Banner trying to live with Hulk, etc. Can't convey their full characters behind a mask all the time.

Besides, superheroes are maskless a lot in the comics.

 

[1maGoh]

Oh boy...you've done riled up my nerd rage. Prepare for my keyboard onslaught!



They don't. Watch the other Avengers movies, especially the final battles.



Nah.



Thor has a helmet all the time in the comics, and fights without one in all battles in the movies. Except for the Contest of Champions against Hulk in Ragnarok. The only other time we see his helmet in the movies is his coronation scene in Thor 1. Scarlett Witch has a helmet too, shes never worn it in the movies. Hawkeye has a purple mask with a big ass H in the comics, and doesn't wear knee in the movies. Because he's SHIELD agent like Widow.



At this point in the MCU Cap is a wanted fugitive by the Secretary of State Thunderbolt Ross due to the events in Civil War. He ditched his shield, mask, and ripped off all the bright white and red from his uniform. To further disguise himself he grew his hair and beard out



For one thing that allows to see the HUD in his suits. And it's a fine balance between his outside and inside shots.



That is part of the story in IW. You clearly didn't watch Thor: Ragnarok or Avengers: Age of Ultron where he Hulks out. In Ragnarok he's Hulk most of the time. Besides, the Bruce Banner and Hulk relationship is a Marvel staple. You have to have Bruce.



He was in the battle. At this point you're sounding cranky.



Black Panther only wears his full mask in battles and fights. He's maskless otherwise. Which makes your other arguments so ironic, as King T'Challa is not fully geared the majority of the time in IW and his solo movie.

Finally these movies are about characters and showing their emotions...i.e...Cap vs morals, Bruce Banner trying to live with Hulk, etc. Can't convey their full characters behind a mask all the time.

Besides, superheroes are maskless a lot in the comics.

Aaaawww. You didn't even touch on the best one. The Winter Soldier's "mask" is one of those dinky little eye socket covers, so it's essentially pointless. Thusly, the movie character didn't wear it because it would have been stupid and even less believable.

 

[Dieter the Brock]

The pet peeve I have is that nobody in America realizes they are watching movies made for a Chinese audience.

It literally makes me sick

What is worse is that grown men are posting about their Marvel pet peeves without the understanding that Hollywood doesn't give a shit about you.

Whatever your Marvel Pet Peeve is it comes from your inability to think like a Chinese movie goer.

Hollywood sucks the balls of China
Get used to this fact
Stop watching this crap

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.marketwatch.com/amp/story/guid/6F9FD6C8-5D05-11E8-9A01-3AAC1E962476

This tranformation has been underway for a decade:
More from 2016

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.inverse.com/amp/article/13967-what-chinese-movie-audiences-want-to-see

 

[fearsomefour]

They are all the same basically.
At first they were fun and the newer special effects made them a cool experience.
Now, they all sort just of blend in together to me.
Super heroes are either going to tend to be so powerful there isn't a real chance of them losing/dying. This makes them sort of uninteresting.
This is why I'm never understood people liking superman. Batman I understand. He is a flawed person. A much interesting character.
But, hey, they are popular and there is room for every kind of movie.

 

[PA Ram]

Oh boy...you've done riled up my nerd rage. Prepare for my keyboard onslaught!



They don't. Watch the other Avengers movies, especially the final battles.



Nah.



Thor has a helmet all the time in the comics, and fights without one in all battles in the movies. Except for the Contest of Champions against Hulk in Ragnarok. The only other time we see his helmet in the movies is his coronation scene in Thor 1. Scarlett Witch has a helmet too, shes never worn it in the movies. Hawkeye has a purple mask with a big ass H in the comics, and doesn't wear knee in the movies. Because he's SHIELD agent like Widow.



At this point in the MCU Cap is a wanted fugitive by the Secretary of State Thunderbolt Ross due to the events in Civil War. He ditched his shield, mask, and ripped off all the bright white and red from his uniform. To further disguise himself he grew his hair and beard out



For one thing that allows to see the HUD in his suits. And it's a fine balance between his outside and inside shots.



That is part of the story in IW. You clearly didn't watch Thor: Ragnarok or Avengers: Age of Ultron where he Hulks out. In Ragnarok he's Hulk most of the time. Besides, the Bruce Banner and Hulk relationship is a Marvel staple. You have to have Bruce.



He was in the battle. At this point you're sounding cranky.



Black Panther only wears his full mask in battles and fights. He's maskless otherwise. Which makes your other arguments so ironic, as King T'Challa is not fully geared the majority of the time in IW and his solo movie.

Finally these movies are about characters and showing their emotions...i.e...Cap vs morals, Bruce Banner trying to live with Hulk, etc. Can't convey their full characters behind a mask all the time.

Besides, superheroes are maskless a lot in the comics.

Well, I thank you for taking the time to respond and point out my obvious ignorance when it comes to superhero movies but I reject all of those well thought out points in defense of the superhero films. You see, I grew up watching cartoon Spiderman and Hulk and Iron Man---and I don't mean any modern cartoons. These guys were about as two dimensional as you can get---the animation was somewhat limited. And hey--that was good enough in those days. But those guys ALWAYS wore their masks. Spiderman had a really catching song. Captain America's wasn't bad.
But Iron Man's? Eeeeeesh.

But anyway---those were MY heroes. I mean sure--life moves on, the comic universe moves on and things change over time. But I refuse to accept that. I don't believe that Captain America ever had to hide. Not the Captain America I know. No sir.

But I know I'm out of touch. I know they aren't films usually made for 56 year olds. I get that.

And obviously they are wildly popular. Marvel isn't asking for my advise, believe me. And old coot Stan Lee seems okay with it--although in all fairness he's collecting a nice paycheck.

But obviously I mention this in fun, as a "pet peeve" that isn't going to change the world or the universe--even if it's the Marvel one.

 

[PA Ram]

The pet peeve I have is that nobody in America realizes they are watching movies made for a Chinese audience.

It literally makes me sick

What is worse is that grown men are posting about their Marvel pet peeves without the understanding that Hollywood doesn't give a crap about you.

Whatever your Marvel Pet Peeve is it comes from your inability to think like a Chinese movie goer.

Hollywood sucks the balls of China
Get used to this fact
Stop watching this crap

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.marketwatch.com/amp/story/guid/6F9FD6C8-5D05-11E8-9A01-3AAC1E962476

This tranformation has been underway for a decade:
More from 2016

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.inverse.com/amp/article/13967-what-chinese-movie-audiences-want-to-see

Well, I tell you this Dieter the Brock, the day that Captain America and Hulk start arguing in Chinese I'm done--out.

The industry--like any industry, will chase profit--no matter where that is. They make few movies for my age group--particularly in the summer. That doesn't mean I can't enjoy these films but I'm not the biggest fan of them. I watch less films these days in a theater because there just isn't that much to attract me.

For the record, my favorite film this year was Sicario: Day of the Solado. Benncio Del Toro did not wear a mask.

 

[PA Ram]

They are all the same basically.
At first they were fun and the newer special effects made them a cool experience.
Now, they all sort just of blend in together to me.
Super heroes are either going to tend to be so powerful there isn't a real chance of them losing/dying. This makes them sort of uninteresting.
This is why I'm never understood people liking superman. Batman I understand. He is a flawed person. A much interesting character.
But, hey, they are popular and there is room for every kind of movie.

I agree with everything you just said.

 

[Dieter the Brock]

Well, I tell you this Dieter the Brock, the day that Captain America and Hulk start arguing in Chinese I'm done--out.

The industry--like any industry, will chase profit--no matter where that is. They make few movies for my age group--particularly in the summer. That doesn't mean I can't enjoy these films but I'm not the biggest fan of them. I watch less films these days in a theater because there just isn't that much to attract me.

For the record, my favorite film this year was Sicario: Day of the Solado. Benncio Del Toro did not wear a mask.

Anytime i get to rant about the end of American Cinema
I'm taking it !!!!

 

[Ramlock]

Thor has a helmet all the time in the comics, and fights without one in all battles in the movies. Except for the Contest of Champions against Hulk in Ragnarok. The only other time we see his helmet in the movies is his coronation scene in Thor 1

This has pissed me off.

Marvel has not designed a good helmet for Thor in the films and I hear that Hemsworth doesn't want to wear one anyway.

Comic Thor always has his helmet on.

And don't get me started on the hammer, either. I'm really pissed about how Marvel has handled the hammer lately in comics and movies.

Screw Jane Foster.

Nerd rant over....

 

[1maGoh]

They are all the same basically.
At first they were fun and the newer special effects made them a cool experience.
Now, they all sort just of blend in together to me.
Super heroes are either going to tend to be so powerful there isn't a real chance of them losing/dying. This makes them sort of uninteresting.
This is why I'm never understood people liking superman. Batman I understand. He is a flawed person. A much interesting character.
But, hey, they are popular and there is room for every kind of movie.

You see, I hate Batman. I don't like Superman, but I hate Batman.

Why? Because doorman is so powerful that he really shouldn't be about to be defeated... But Batman can defeat him. The Flash thinks and perceives time at the attasecond level (the smallest measurement of time) and moves so fast that he shouldn't even get touched every by other really fast guys... But Batman can beat him. The list goes on and on. No matter the "person", no matter the powers, Batman can defeat them. It's soooo stupid and way beyond believability.

The movie trilogy Batman was great because he was a flawed person. He's great by himself with villains like the joker and penguin. Once you put him on the Justice League? Forget it. He could never hang with that group as a regular human. It's impossible. But somehow he still does because... Batman!

 

[Dodgersrf]

As long as they don't make Scarlett Johansson wear a mask, I'm just fine.

 

[Angry Ram]

Aaaawww. You didn't even touch on the best one. The Winter Soldier's "mask" is one of those dinky little eye socket covers, so it's essentially pointless. Thusly, the movie character didn't wear it because it would have been stupid and even less believable.

Yeah I was on my phone when I was furiously typing and forgot to add him. Winter Solider was a broken man and brainwashed beyond repair, and had the full goggles, half mask on. He looked bad ass to me. Then slowly over Cap 2 they slowy stripped away the goggles, the mask. He went from Winter Soldier to James Buchanan Barnes in Civil War to simply Bucky in Black Panther and IW.

They are all the same basically.
At first they were fun and the newer special effects made them a cool experience.
Now, they all sort just of blend in together to me.

They are not the same. Each character has a unique story that's been told over 10 years.

Super heroes are either going to tend to be so powerful there isn't a real chance of them losing/dying. This makes them sort of uninteresting.

They are superheros with super human strength, endurance, speed, fighting skills, etc. They don't need to lose or die to make the movies more interesting. It's their characters that make the movies interesting, along with the 10 year story. They may not die, but they watch others suffer and die, which often times is worse because a super powered being can't save the people they care about.

This is why I'm never understood people liking superman. Batman I understand. He is a flawed person. A much interesting character.

Superman is OP but has to control his powers on Earth, because he knows he can single handily take everyone out in an instant. But he'd leave wakes of destruction in his path and become public enemy no. 1 (as seen in the Man of Steel movie).

Well, I thank you for taking the time to respond and point out my obvious ignorance when it comes to superhero movies but I reject all of those well thought out points in defense of the superhero films. You see, I grew up watching cartoon Spiderman and Hulk and Iron Man---and I don't mean any modern cartoons. These guys were about as two dimensional as you can get---the animation was somewhat limited. And hey--that was good enough in those days. But those guys ALWAYS wore their masks. Spiderman had a really catching song. Captain America's wasn't bad.
But Iron Man's? Eeeeeesh.

Comparing cartoons from the 1960s when superheroes weren't as mainstream vs. live action mega-budget movies isn't a fair comparison. What I described are facts in the movies, whether someone likes the movie or not is irrelevant.

But anyway---those were MY heroes. I mean sure--life moves on, the comic universe moves on and things change over time. But I refuse to accept that. I don't believe that Captain America ever had to hide. Not the Captain America I know. No sir.

Again, you need to watch the movies and see how Cap evolved. Cap 1 he was 100% to serving the country. Cap 2 he's struggling to rejoin at the drop of a hat, has trust issues with SHIELD (i.e., HYDRA) and the government, who has agendas. Those agendas came to light in Civil War when he refused to sign the Sokovia Accords because he doesn't believe it was right for guys in suits to tell the Avengers what to do and when, no matter who tried to force him to. Also in CW he knows Bucky is innocent, brainwashed, and got framed and did what was right, to save his friend while basically giving the finger to Ross. He busted Team Cap (Falcon, Hawkeye, Ant-Man, Scarlet Witch) out of jail. That's what made him a wanted man. He's not hiding, he's on the run. There's a difference.

Watch the movies. Try to understand the stories being told.

But I know I'm out of touch. I know they aren't films usually made for 56 year olds. I get that.

They are made a wide range of ages, from the people that grew up with them to kids today. I'm assuming your implying they are made for kids, which couldn't be further from the truth. No fuckin way some kid is going to understand the Thanos/Gamora relationship. Or Thor finally sitting down and recounting how many friends and family members he lost.

And obviously they are wildly popular. Marvel isn't asking for my advise, believe me. And old coot Stan Lee seems okay with it--although in all fairness he's collecting a nice paycheck.

Stan Lee has a hand in producing all of these. And he's a lot more "there" than most 96 year olds.

This has ticked me off.

Marvel has not designed a good helmet for Thor in the films and I hear that Hemsworth doesn't want to wear one anyway.

Comic Thor always has his helmet on.

And don't get me started on the hammer, either. I'm really ticked about how Marvel has handled the hammer lately in comics and movies.

Screw Jane Foster.

Nerd rant over....

The helmet in Thor 1 was clunky, kept falling off, and breaking. I'm fine with it, and it doesn't take away from the character.

As long as they don't make Scarlett Johansson wear a mask, I'm just fine.

Scarlett Johansson is getting annoying recently. I'm gravitating toward Team Elizabeth Olsen.

 

[IowaRam]

I always hated Brian Singers X-Men films ,

 

[1maGoh]

I always hated Brian Singers X-Men films ,

That's what happens when you try to make a movie too much like the comics.

 

[IowaRam]

Okay--this always bugs me when I watch the Marvel films.

Why do they insist that the superheros battle without their masks on?

I got into this with my son just a little while ago and he defended the decisions with things like the Captain America character not wearing a mask at one point when he became nomad or some such thing? I don't follow any of that. I'm a child of the 60s and 70s and if my superheros had a mask they wore a mask.

I am hardly a comics expert. I will admit that I bought very few superhero comics growing up.

I DID buy a lot of Archie's and Sad Sacks and Dennis the Menace and Richie Rich and Tales From The Crypt and those guys ALWAYS kept their masks on.

Anyway--maybe it's an age thing and maybe I'm just being cynical but I have a theory and I'm just gonna throw it out there. Shoot it down if you must but it's my theory and I'm sticking to it:

Actor insecurity.

Look, some superheros aren't burdened by masks: Thor, Doctor Strange, The Black Widow, Hawkeye, The Scarlet Witch and probably others.

But what about the actors who have to wear masks?

Captain America? He didn't wear one at all in Avengers Infinity war.

Iron Man? They have cleverly rigged it so Robert Downey Jr. can have himself filmed while inside the mask.

Hulk? My God they would not even let him become the Hulk in this one(other than the beginning). Instead they put Mark Ruffalo in a Hulk like Iron Man suit where his face could be seen.

Spiderman? His mask is off at every opportunity. Sam Rami seemed to have it off for half of his films.

War Machine? I can't recall if his was ever on. I recall seeing Don Cheadle walk around with the suit on.

Black Panther pretty much did--I'll give them that one.

But hey--call me old fashioned. I want to see these heroes battling in masks without having to see the actors faces.

Winter Soldier had his face completely exposed as well now that I think of it.

The kid in me found an awful lot of fun in the masks. The films aren't as interested in that.

I blame the actors.

Thats why they gave Spider-man movable eyes , to try and get a little more emotion out of a full face mask , same with Deadpool

but yea , drives me nuts when they take off the mask