With NBC's Heroes one of the most talked-about shows on TV, an enthusiasm for super-powered heroes no longer carries the social stigma it once did.

2008 promises yet more comic book characters migrating from the page to the cinema , with big budget debuts for the long awaited Watchmen, Iron Man, The Flash, and half a dozen lesser characters already in production.

We thought it might be timely to review the biggest players in the superhero movie franchise business and assess their future prospects. We've scored them according to a range of substantially arbitrary criteria, focusing on their longevity both in comics and on film, and concocted a box-office score based on an average performance of all movie appearances by the character to date.

Having an iconic costume is a key part of establishing a major superhero brand, so we've added a rather subjective costume category too. This is focused as much on the potential of the outfit to transfer from the printed page to the silver screen as much as it does on sheer elan. Click on the movie titles for trailers, fan films, and more.

1: Spider-Man

After a risible attempt at a big-screen transfer in the 1970s, Spider-Man finally made a successful leap onto celluloid in 2002, with Evil Dead director Sam Raimi establishing a kinetic, computer-driven style that connected with comic-book geeks and regular cinemagoers alike. The first movie made over $100 million in its first three days on release and it remains in the top 20 highest-grossing films to this day. There’s no doubt that the studio money men will push for a fourth film in the series (there's talk of up to three more films) even if the director and star of the hit films do, as has been predicted, depart now that the record-breaking trilogy is complete. Tobey Maguire is currently planning to at least take a break from playing the misunderstood wall-crawling teenager and has reputedly signed to star in, and produce, the live action version of a vintage Japanese Transformers-style giant robot cartoon saga called 'Robotech'. (Read the Times review of Spider-Man 3 here)

Costume: 10 Coolness: 9 Longevity 3 Box office: $2,495,718,076

2: The Incredibles

Essentially the film that Fantastic 4 should have been, The Incredibles is an excellently crafted story about superheroes that combines knowing nods to the geek fraternity (“Metaman, express elevator! Dynaguy, snagged on takeoff! Splashdown, sucked into a vortex! No capes!”) while still delivering a believable family dynamic and a plot that draws in the casual viewer. And all this with entirely computer-created actors. To his undying credit Brad Bird, the director (and voice of Edna Mode) resisted pressure to create a sequel because, in his own words, he couldn’t think of a story that was good enough. If only all filmmakers had such integrity. (Read the Times review of The Incredibles here)

Costumes: 10 Coolness: 10 Longevity 1Box office: $631,442,092

3: 300

Not comic book characters in the classic mould, but certainly rooted more strongly in Frank Miller’s graphic novel than in any history book, the improbably-toned and barely dressed hoplites were presented in a virtual world which although not entirely novel (Sin City, another Frank Miller adaptation, used broadly similar techniques) showed the way forward for directors seeking to translate the extravagant vistas of the comic book into cinematic reality. Unsurprisingly director Zack Snyder has now been commissioned to make sense of the highly influential, but long considered unfilmable, Alan Moore masterpiece Watchmen. (Read the Times review of 300 here)

Costume: 2 Coolness: 10 Longevity: 1 Box office: 454,592,590

4: X-Men

Marvel’s ever-changing lineup of mutant heroes have probably the most self-consistent explanation for their super powers of any comic book characters. Indeed, it’s worked so well that Marvel have expanded their ‘homo superior’ backstory to embrace virtually all of their characters. Less successful were some of the costumes, with both Wolverine’s brown and yellow coveralls and Storm's revealing negligee being transliterated into speedway riders’ leathers for their cinematic outings. Although roundly castigated by the fans on release, the third X-Men movie has been the best performer at the box office and there is no reason to believe, especially given the rotating cast of characters, that the movie franchise cannot endure almost indefinitely. Halle Berry has publicly expressed her desire to revisit Storm in a fourth X-Men film but she may be disppointed: Rumours have surfaced recently of an X-Men prequel movie and spin-off vehicles for favourite characters Wolverine and Magneto are already in pre-production. (Read the Times review of X-Men 3 here)

Costume: 4 Coolness: 10 Longevity 3 Box office: $1,163,063,674

5: The Fantastic 4

One of those films that irritated the fanboys and critics alike, but still did pretty creditable business. The first Fantastic 4 film is by no means as bad as some people might have you believe, being a fairly faithful rendering of the extended family of heroes as they were depicted in their Silver Age heyday. The Fantastic Four movies are one of the few examples of a comic books property being successfully true to the original form, rather than being adulterated with notions of 'dark' or 'adult' themes. One significant obstacle to their future success is the fancifully cosmic nature of their rogues’ gallery, typified by gigantic humanoid Galactus the planet eater who was, to widespread disappointmeny, reduced to an amorphous special effect in the recent Rise of the Silver Surfer sequel.

Costume: 6 Coolness: 6 Longevity: 2 Box office: $607,290,873

6: Batman

The most-filmed superhero property, not least because his main powers are a good deal of determination and a huge amount of disposable wealth, both of which are comparatively easy to fake on film. The treatments range from the deliberately campy 1966 Adam West effort to Christian Bale’s gritty American Psycho model which returns the Dark Knight to his gothic roots. The future of the franchise looks safe with another duel with The Joker in ‘The Dark Knight’ already in production and the constantly bubbling rumours of a ‘Worlds Finest’ team up with Superman or even, probably a dream too far, a Justice League of America movie featuring all of DC’s major heroes together. (Read the Times review of Batman Begins here)

Costume: 9 Coolness: 11 Longevity: 7 Box office: $1,570,772,639

7: Unbreakable

The film that took the fashionable ‘what if superheroes were real’ notions to its extreme, M Night Shyamlan’s dark fantasy is a clear antecedent of NBC’s current TV hit ‘Heroes’. Bruce Willis’ unwitting superman is pitted against an adversary who lives and breathes comic books and knows how the story is supposed to develop. Rumours of a sequel abound on the internet, but they seem based more on wishful thinking than insider knowledge.

Costume: 0 Coolness: 7 Longevity: 1 Box office: $248,118,121

8: The Hulk

It’s difficult to say how it all went wrong for The Hulk – although ‘wrong’ is a relative term when the film is still in IMDb’s all-time Top 100 blockbusters. Certainly the trailer, with the jolly green giant playing swingball with tanks, looked like the stuff of movie legend and the world-class director and cast seemed set to deliver a roaring success. Something about the excessive tinkering with The Hulk’s origins, with the addition of a superfluous ‘genetic engineering’ element, weakened the character in a way that the minor modification of his stable-mate Spider-man’s powers did not. A sequel/reboot is currently in the works and it may well be that Marvel can yet add The Hulk to their long list of successful page-to-screen transfers.

Costume: 0 Coolness: 5 Longevity: 1 Box office: $245,360,480

9: Constantine

Bearing only the loosest relationship to its source material, a comic called Hellblazer from DC’s adult-oriented Vertigo imprint, Constantine is part of a long and noble Hollywood tradition of filleting all of the subversive quirkiness out of an Alan Moore property and turning it into something palatable for popcorn-throwing US preview audiences. Of all of the comics characters most suited to star Keanu Reeves’ likeable brand of dim laconic cool, this isn’t the one. (Read the Times review of Constantine here)

Costume: 2 Coolness: 7 Longevity: 1 Box office: $230,884,728

10: Ghost Rider

On paper, this looked like being a disaster. A comparatively minor comic book character portrayed by one of the most renowned hams in Hollywood. Where did it all go right? Ghost Rider benefited from a well-timed release, and excellent promotional campaign, and an endearingly silly story that anyone could understand. As a bonus, it featured a blazing skeleton in a leather jacket who rode an enormous motorbike, What’s not to love? (Read the Times review of Ghost Rider here)

Costume: 10 Coolness: 6 Longevity: 1 Box office: $228,738,393

11: Daredevil

Considered by fans to be rare dud for Marvel, who have really set the standard for comic-to-movie adaptations: It’s hard to see where they lost the public’s attention. The character’s costume was tinkered with admittedly, but no more than those of Batman or The X-Men. Perhaps, when it comes down to it, if the story isn’t up to scratch then no amount of special powers or martial arts skill will win the punters over. Despite a better response to the extended retail DVD, there seems little chance that Ben Affleck will be required to wedge his legendary chin into hornhead’s cowl for a second attempt.

Costume: 7 Coolness: 5 Longevity: 1 Box office: $179,179,718

12: Superman

Christopher Reeve’s ability to switch between bumbling everyman Clark Kent and saintly Übermensch Kal-El is what made the first two episodes of 1980s Superman franchise the best-loved superhero movies of all time. The character was undone though by his own omnipotence, with expensive affects and a paucity of credible opposition driving the Reeve incarnation into a creative cul-de-sac. The recent Brandon Routh reboot has taken a reverent approach to Reeve’s iconic characterisation but the addition of a Super-baby bodes ill for the integration of The Blue Boy Scout into the new pantheon of ‘serious’ comic book movie stars. (Read the Times review of Superman Returns here)

Costume: 8 Coolness: 10 Longevity: 5 Box office: $875,116,559

13: V for Vendetta

Along with League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, this rather clumsy adaptation of an Alan Moore graphic novel was instrumental in making the Northampton-born comic genius turn his back on the film world. The multilayered plot of a drably totalitarian Britain was simplified to something a little closer to a standard superhero tale. We can only hope that the eagerly-anticipated (and long-delayed) Watchmen movie can redeem Moore’s faith in the Hollywoood machine. Certainly, at this point, there seems little chance of the irascible Northamptonshire polymath endorsing film versions of any of his newer material, like the masterly Forty Niners. (Read the Times review of V for Vendetta here)

Costume: 6 Coolness: 6 Longevity: 1 Box office: $131,411,035

14: Blade

One of the advantages, for a screenwriter, of a less well-known comics character is the extent to which artistic liberties can be taken with their personality and capabilities. Certainly Wesley Snipes’ Blade is a good deal more taciturn, and more powerful, than the character as originally presented in Marvel Comics. The first film seemed to be released with comparatively low expectations but the lure of the trilogy was too strong for Marvel once the box office figures came in. A short-lived TV spinoff ran for one season in the US (and is currently airing in Finland) but it looks now as if Blade may, like many of his quarries, be destined for the grave.

Costume: 4 Coolness: 6 Longevity: 3 Box office: $338,605,468

15: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

One of the most effective comic book-movie-TV-toy synergies ever, the four tortoises named after Renaissance painters began life as a parody of several Marvel comics characters in a comic published by industry minnows Mirage Studios in 1984. Through a miraculous combination of savvy business dealings and sheer good fortune the characters’ creators, Peter Laird and Kevin Eastman, built a merchandising empire peaking with a trilogy of puppet/live-action movies in the early 1990s. A recent all-CGI sequel to the original trilogy looks to have revived the fortunes of the martial arts reptiles and brought their appeal to a new generation of action figure collectors.

Costume: 3 Coolness: 3 Longevity: 4 Box office: $416,381,410

16: Hellboy

Adapted from Mike Mignola’s blackly witty books for Dark Horse comics, Hellboy came from apparently nowhere (or, specifically, Hell) to be one of the major genre successes in 2004. Hellboy is a demon adopted by the US military at a young age and employed by them to combat an endless parade of Lovecraftian menaces. Like many of his fans, Hellboy enjoys sugary treats and mild profanity. A perfectly-cast Ron Perlman looks set to return in a second Hellboy movie next year, as summer 2008 shapes up to be dominated by a slew of comic book movie franchises new and old.

Costume: 4 (+6 for the horns) Coolness: 9 Longevity: 1 Box office: $99,318,987

17: The Punisher

The Punisher is probably the most plausible of all comics superheroes, being neither ‘super’ (his only assets being superior marksmanship and hand-to hand fighting skills) nor conventionally ‘heroic’ (his modus operandi is to summarily execute any criminals he regards as having escaped justice). He is the subject of two feature films – the first a rather generic actioner starring Dolph Lundgren that played like a stylised version of the ‘Death Wish’ franchise and the second, rather truer to the Marvel canon, where he is portrayed by Thomas Jane. Although neither did stellar box office business it was inevitable that such an easily-evoked character, with such a great costume, will be brought to the screen again and a third beginning to the series will be released in 2008

Costume: 10 Coolness: 10 Longevity: 2 Box office: $54,700,105

18: Mystery Men

Poorly-received on release, but gradually acquiring cult status on DVD, Mystery Men is a well-observed but wilfully silly comedy take on superhero archetypes. The team grows through the film from three heroes of marginal competence to a seven-strong squad of limited ability with a script that pokes affectionate fun at a broad range of comic book clichés.

Costume: 5 Coolness: 5 Longevity: 1 Box office: $33,461,000

19: The Phantom

Beacuse he was in many ways the original comic book superhero (pioneering the form-fitting costume that has since become the standard) and played on screen by one of Hollywood’s most handsome leading men, it’s something of a mystery why The Phantom was such a disappointment as a movie. Perhaps the period setting, which also weakened audience interest in similarly-themed efforts like Doc Savage, The Shadow, The Rocketeer and Sky Captain may be partly to blame: although it must be added that did no harm to the equally pulpy Indiana Jones franchise. There is, nevertheless, rumoured to be a franchise reboot in the works for The Phantom too, demonstrating the studios' inexhaustible enthusiasm for fit young men in tights.

Costume: 6 Coolness: 5 Longevity: 1 Box office: $17,300,000

20: Swamp Thing

Perhaps the only eco-hero (although of late both Thor and Aquaman have shown leanings in that direction) Swamp Thing is a tragic figure, a scientist forced into a swamp after a chemical explosion, and in some way merged with swamp vegetation to form a hybrid creature with human intelligence, superhuman strength, and really terrible personal grooming. Surely the great groundswell of support for all things green means that time is ripe for a Swamp Thing revival.

Costume: 1 Coolness: 6 Longevity: 2 Box office: $ $192,816

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