It’s no surprise that in such a depressed economy consumers would want to escape the to the big screen or other flights of fantasy. Such a move has been a boom for comic book and entertainment company, Marvel Entertainment (MVL).

One of the few bright spots in the stock market this year, MVL is reaping the rewards of strategic moves to leverage its comic book properties into big- screen heroes.

The formula is simple: Build a following with a comic brand and develop a film with large star presence. MVL has doing this over and over with Hulk-like results. Look no further than this weekend’s Hell Boy II box office results (on the upside of $35 million) and Iron Man, which grossed more than $200 million in its opening weekend.

Marvel’s on Fire

MVL owns rights to approximately 5,000 well-known comic book characters including Iron Man, the Incredible Hulk, X-Men and Captain America. Even lesser known names like Ghost Rider, Silver Surfer and Thor are showing huge revenue potential for the company.

Investors have taken notice, sending shares of MVL up more than $5 this year. Now, that may not seem like much, but in a down year for stocks and a base level price of $25, this move higher is Hulk-like. Shares currently trade for 17 times trailing earnings and 15 times forward earnings. I expect MVL to continue enjoying stellar results from its rich library of characters.

Shares trade for a multiple of earnings that is less than expected future growth. That should bode well for investors, no matter what happens with the rest of the economy. MVL and its diversions can be expected to thrive just as comic books did back in the days of the Great Depression.

Marvel was a Rational Investor model portfolio stock. I liked the company before it could prove its business model successful. And I’m not the only one. Louis Navellier, wrote about Marvel’s super-human strength back in May after the release of Iron Man. (See, “Marvel: A Highflying Stock.“)

Now that MVL has flexed its superhero muscles, I expect accelerated growth in earnings. Imagine what Marvel would be doing if the stock market were more constructive instead of destructive!

Jamie Dlugosch is Editor of InvestorPlace.com, part of InvestorPlace Media LLC