FOXNews.com reports that Marvel has posted a first-quarter profit and seen its stock rise 11%. Licensing revenue has jumped fivefold due to the Spider-Man, X-Men and Daredevil franchises.

Is it any wonder that Marvel seems to have a fire under its collective bottom about getting good movies made for so many of its characters? This is the shot in the arm that the money-troubled company needed.

This may also explain why Warner Brothers puts so little effort into any of their DC movie franchises: AOLTimeWarner isn’t so reliant upon a good superhero movie for its continued existence.