Super Visions: Marvel v. DC (Eternity War, Part I)

• Courtesy Adweek

Arguably this column’s surface concern is a burgeoning tug-of-war between the home of Kal-El and the self-dubbed House of Ideas, a contest that adds a dizzying array of new players on a seemingly weekly basis. Other comics companies (Archie Comics Group for one, as well as, uh …) and their characters’ ventures into movies and television have made only infrequent appearances. A good reason for this emphasis is the tussle over eyes happening on screens large and small. Marvel, with its massive and interlocking cinematic universe, has been commanding the bulk of my attention and anticipation, and I have a soft spot for “Agents of SHIELD” and its (thus far superior based upon seeing nothing beyond the pilot) spinoff, “Agent Carter.” But I always went both ways when it came to reading superhero comics, so DC and its onscreen efforts also loom large for me — now, perhaps, more than ever. Here are some reasons.

I was vaguely aware that someone was planning a TV adaptation of Chris Roberson and Michael Allred’s iZombie (DC’s Vertigo imprint). But I was unaware of involvement by “Veronica Mars” producers Diane Ruggiero and Rob Thomas in the “iZombie” show, their defunct Kristen Bell vehicle being among my favorite things ever to pour from the Tube. And I was unaware that the CW — home to producer Greg Berlanti’s “The Flash” and “Arrow” — would broadcast this upcoming and darkly comedic police procedural/brain smorgasbord.

TV journalist Sam Thielman distills a lot of this detail in his smart Adweek cover story on DC’s small-screen doings. Furthermore, he notes that one of Berlanti’s projects is a Supergirl series for CBS, co-owner with Time Warner of the CW network. Thielman, who seems to be a geek from the same vat as me, spends a good portion of his essay wondering about potential crossovers like ones we’ve seen between the two Berlanti shows already airing. As Marvel has so ably demonstrated at the movies, narrative interconnectivity seems to be the thing right now. Elsewhere, I’ve read musings on whether the Supergirl character will visit Barry Allen on “The Flash” or Oliver Queen on “Arrow.”

I am struck by an even more momentous proposition that I read about elsewhere: Vixen, a black shero perhaps most recognizable as the sometime sig-O of John Stewart/Green Lantern on the animated “Justice League Unlimited,” is headed toward her own Berlanti-produced animated web series that will share its setting, among other things, with the producer’s live-action CW shows!

Well. Talk about a game changer.

Why? Trust me for now. All will be explained in Part II.

Same bat time. Same bat channel.