In a preview of WonderCon, which kicks off today, the San Francisco Chronicle‘s Peter Hartlaub makes the not-so-startling conclusion that times have changed since he stopped reading comics in the mid-’80s. Or, rather, that Hollywood’s opinion of comics has changed:
Although it’s a much worse time to leave your door unlocked at night, invest in airline stock or try to become a homeowner in the Bay Area, it’s a fabulous time to admit you like Wolverine.
With Heroes as the breakout hit of the TV season, and Spider-Man 3 looking like the best summer film option, we’re in a good place to reflect on how far comic book culture has come. Last year, in addition to summoning enough ticket buyers to bring the fire marshal to the Moscone Center in San Francisco, WonderCon also lured several major movie studios to the proceedings — with more coming this weekend.
Go back 20 years, and mainstream Hollywood seemed to be deliberately avoiding comic book properties — or in some cases trying to sabotage them outright. The only summer superhero movie in 1987 was the craptacular Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, a piece of cinema so bad that it reportedly borrowed special-effects shots from the first three Superman movies to save money.
Check back here today and throughout the weekend for news from WonderCon. Blog@ contributors will be filing reports from the convention, and we’ll also round up coverage from other sites.
Related: SFist sounds the “nerd alert”
The Contra Costa Times also previews the convention
