Miracleman and Underdog protest art

Two Underdogs Agree... Capitalism Is Cold, originally uploaded by The Voice of Eye.

Undermining capitalism through domesticated cartoons:

England and The United States of America. Because money is the driving decision making and "creative" force in these two countries, both of these legendary characters have been short-changed and/or sold-out.

Just when films based upon graphic novels and comic books are beginning to show some promise (ie. V for Vendetta... along with Batman Begins, X-Men, and Spiderman to some extent), Miracleman, arguably the finest revisionist comic book hero and one of the greatest unknown stories of the 20th Century (written by the brilliant Alan Moore and then later continued by the equally qualified Neil Gaiman), has been "trapped in a complex and expensive legal battle with several people claiming at least partial ownership of the character" since the early nineties.

Meanwhile, one of the most beloved canines of my generation has become laughable, or rather pitiable, as the AOL/Warner/Disney money making machine bought out then tried to revisit a character that will only truly work as one who is animated and anthropomorphic. The Rotten Tomatoes Freshness Rating gave "Underdog: The Movie" a very low 13% and mentions, "Underdog is a mostly forgettable adaptation that relies far too heavily on recycled material and sloppy production." Ken Fox of TV Guide said: "If you set your expectations just low enough, or are an easily satisfied 8-year-old, you might have a bit of fun."

When it comes to making lots of money, one can always rely on dumbing down the creative, thoughtful, and provokative in exchange for appealing to the Lowest Common Denomonator.