There's something I've observed about the last couple of comic-book based movies that I've watched that I've actually found somewhat refreshing; they appear to have done away with origin stories. James Gunn's Superman threw us right in the thick of the action right after a few lines of text told us about how Superman came to Earth, and Matt Shakman's Fantastic Four: First Steps introduced Marvel's first family through a quick, Ed-Sullivan-show like montage depicting their beginnings in less than five minutes before diving straight into the story.
Having seen nearly every movie based on a Marvel Comics character in theaters and having seen most movies featuring Superman and Batman in one medium or another I have to say it is refreshing to not have to sit through origin stories again. I don't know who said it first but like that person, I do not have to see Thomas and Martha Wayne get shot by a mugger to that Bruce Wayne gets inspired to fight crime as a giant bat, nor do I have to see Uncle Ben die again so that Peter Parker learns about great power and greater responsibility. I don't have to see Jor-El sent Superman hurtling off a dying planet again, and I don't need to see Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Ben Grimm and Johnny Storm take a radiation bath again in order to get incredible powers.
Dispensing with the origin means getting to explore the characters in different ways, and avoiding the slow burn that usually comes with the main characters going from ordinary to extraordinary. It also challenges the writers to find ways to make life miserable for the main characters even though their hero's journey has already been established.
Marvel kind of did this first when Spider-Man showed up in Captain America: Civil War with super powers and a pre-offed Uncle Ben. Eventually, the MCU trilogy provided him an origin story of sorts when it killed off Aunt May but I feel that the main reason Uncle Ben never showed up was that Marvel had shrewdly decided not to waste time telling that story again, and it's a lesson that James Gunn took with him to DC, and which Matt Shakman learned well enough to incorporate it into his hit movie.
Neither Marvel nor DC will get away with this when launching new characters, of course, but given that they will undoubtedly be dipping into the well of their marquee superheroes for many years to come, complete with the occasional reboot, it's gratifying to know that they no longer consider origin stories a non-negotiable in storytelling.
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