People’s main argument for liking Marvel more than DC is that Marvel is more lighthearted and easier to watch, but I disagree. I’m here to stand up for the golden age comic company, the original comic company and the best comic company. I understand wanting to laugh or look at a movie screen without feeling like the director tried to choose the gloomiest film-day possible, but sometimes the dark side is the best side.

First of all, what’s lighthearted about killing people?

“Marvel is just so funny!”

Yeah. I laugh a ton when Iron Man kills someone with rays shooting out of his metal death machine. Heroes may have twisted backstories, like Batman, for example. Yet because of his troubling past, he developed strong morals. The same goes with the rest of the Justice League. Their vendetta against evil allows them to take the highroad and avoid stooping to the level of their opposing counterparts. Despite being vigilantes and heroes outside of the law, they tend to let the justice system do its job after the criminals are behind bars.

The morals of DC characters are also what make them so well-developed. It seems to me that Marvel characters are senseless and never have a motive. Of course, Spider-Man works to avenge Uncle Ben, but how is he and anyone he works with better than the burglar that killed his uncle? They aren’t. The extreme sense of morality presented in DC gives a depth to the characters that Marvel can’t.

Using Batman again, the Joker constantly taunts Batman to kill him. The infamous villain has taken irreplaceable things from him: Bruce’s adoptive son’s life, Batgirl’s ability to walk and his sanity. However, if Batman killed all of the Joker’s henchmen and eventually the Joker himself, the Joker would get exactly what he wants: Batman’s loss of humanity. Not killing is the cornerstone of the Justice League’s rule book. The struggle against temptation and the desire to avoid it is what gives the heroes such compelling stories.

There’s also the fact that DC is the original superhero comic producer, and I can’t believe it to be a coincidence that Marvel always has strikingly similar characters introduced 10 to 20 years later than DC’s. For example, Slade Wilson, also known as Deathstroke, was introduced as the villain of the Teen Titans in 1980, and Wade Wilson, commonly referred to as Deadpool, was introduced in 1991.

Considering the name and costume similarities, this rip-off is obvious, and there are countless other DC characters who have fallen victim to Marvel’s mimicry:

–Green Arrow, who predates Marvel’s Hawkeye by more than 20 years.

–Catwoman, who was followed by Marvel’s Black Cat almost four decades later.

–Solomon Grundy, who debuted in 1944, was the subject of everyone’s favorite Incredible Hulk, created in 1962.

To add onto everything else, DC simply has more interesting villains. Think of every classic villain you can. Names like the Joker, Catwoman, Lex Luthor and maybe even Sinestro come to mind. Now think about how many of those names in your brain are DC and how many are Marvel. There’s a reason DC villains are more well-known, and it’s the same reason people dislike the franchise. They’re dark and extreme and crazy, but they’ve been around forever and they’re not going anywhere soon.

In light of the upcoming Justice League movie and Marvel’s soon to be released “Avengers: Infinity War,” the divide is more prevalent than ever. Sure, DC has some major franchise plans to sort out, but we should have faith in the darker side of comic entertainment.

Everyone has preferences, and comic franchises are one of them. DC was my childhood and is now my present. This iconic franchise may be scary and glum, but it’s the happiest part of every die-hard fan’s life.