I’m not a Deadpool guy.
Not that I hate the character. I guess he’s fun enough when he’s used in moderation or when someone like Joe Kelley or Rick Remender manages to use him in a new and interesting way.
But as far as the PEW PEW PEW I KILL YOU version of the character a large segment of fandom seems to drool over, yeah, not so much. I don’t think the character is all together that interesting and I certainly don’t think the endless cosplay seen at conventions where folks dress as Deadpool dressed-as-[insert random thing like steampunk or beach bum] is altogether that clever.
Still, people like what they like and I do actually get why some fans like him. Mentally deranged psychopath has rarely been more than Deadpool. But, as relatively indifferent to the character as I am, when it was announced a few weeks back that his solo film would get an “R” rating, I actually found myself caring about Deadpool.
Fans of Deadpool are stoked because they’re going to get to see their favorite character FINALLY get to cut loose on the big screen. They’re going to get to see him rack up a high (and inevitably bloody) body count, they’re likely going to see some nudity and, based on the teaser, they’re assuredly going to get to see Deadpool say “fuck” and probably more than a few times.
Personally, I think that’s a terrible, terrible idea.
Not because I’m a prude. I love, love, LOVE “R” rated movies, gratuitous violence and a healthy use of the word “fuck.” I dig adult themes and adult situations and I’m a huge fan of full frontal nudity.
But why go that route with a Deadpool movie? Most people I talk say it’s because an “R” rating is the ONLY way to do the character justice. That without that rating, we’ll get a watered down version of Marvel’s Merc with a Mouth.
Yet, if that’s the case, why then, has the character only ever starred in one, very short-lived Marvel MAX (18+) series?
For the duration of his publication history, Deadpool has appeared almost exclusively in comics either approved by the Comics Code Authority or in comics rated by Marvel as being rated T (appropriate for most readers but with an advisory to parents), and T+ (appropriate for teens 13 and older). Even less frequently he’ll show up in comics with a Parental Advisory rating (appropriate for older teens).
Deadpool has been around since 1991 and he’s consistently been marketed to kids in their very early teens. So why are we rooting for a movie with a rating that bars them from even getting into the theater?
Because adult fans are kinda selfish, that’s why. Like me, Deadpool’s original batch of fans are in their mid-to-late 30s (maybe even early 40s). They have dreamt for decades now of getting to see Deadpool on the big screen in all his uber-violent glory.
They’ve made a version of the movie in their heads and by God they want to see that movie realized. They want a movie version of the Deadpool they grew up on.
Except, like I said, they never grew up on that Deadpool. They grew up on a Deadpool who’s violence was more Looney Tunes than Lethal Weapon.
Deadpool’s sweet spot is, and always has been, kids in their early teens. Let’s at least get a flick they can actually get into the theater to see.
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