10/10/2026
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Lanterns Season 1 is now over, and itâs safe to say that the show is one of the biggest hits of the fall TV season. Beyond being a fresh, interesting take on a superhero origin story, Lanterns was a much-needed bounce-back for the DC Universe franchise after Supergirl became one of the summer's biggest box-office bombs. For diehards, the conversation has also turned to what the DCU is doing on television as a whole and how it compares to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Marvel is about to premiere its latest MCU series, VisionQuest, as Lanterns comes to an end, so this is the perfect time to look at how the MCU and DCU have handled streaming shows (respectively). More specifically, it's a good time to look at how the DCU is using TV in the exact way the MCU failed to (but still should).
The biggest difference between how the DCU and MCU handle television series is that the former isnât afraid to slow down to build characters and stories properly. Lanterns and Penguin are prime examples of how DC will invest heavily in character drama in a way that the Marvel shows simply donât. There are exceptions (WandaVision, Loki, and some of Moon Knight), but overall, MCU Disney+ series have felt like they belong on a Disney platform; the DCU is putting out series that own a Sunday-night HBO primetime slot. Thatâs a mainstream level of prestige TV few brands or studios ever reach. Penguin sealed the deal with an armful of Emmys, and Lanterns already feels poised to do the same.
Thereâs also a big difference in how each franchise approaches a television series' arc. The DCU will invest heavily in fleshing out one or two major characters with depth, complexity, and backstory; the MCU won't. Even one of Marvelâs best shows, WandaVision, led to a jarring character turn from Elizabeth Olsenâs Scarlet Witch in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Aside from the highly rated penultimate episode (a flashback through the traumas of Wandaâs life), WandaVision leaned more into mystery and red herrings than deep-dive character work.
To Marvelâs credit, VisionQuest looks like the kind of character study weâre talking about. Then again, it still follows the familiar MCU âhero vs. mirror villainâ formula, so maybe we should temper expectations.
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