Theory: Feel like an under discussed reason to MCU’s spotty box office record was less due to supposed “woke” and (outside of Covid and some creative stagnance) more due to the sheer amount of Disney+ series
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I gave up trying to keep it all straight after the time travel, multi-dimensional thing really got going. I’ll watch the series and movies that interest me, but at a certain point they released so much it just started to feel like homework.
I feel like the issue isn't the amount (we had like 40 seasons of Marvel TV from 2013-2020), but rather that they're being treated like extended movies. If they stuck with them being lower budget and made by Marvel TV instead of Studios, it would be better
Not only were there more TV seasons back then, but they were longer per episode and had more episodes per season. Marvel seems to be changing how they make the shows, focusing more on street level stories, shows with multiple seasons, and annual season releases
Tv shows are a commitment where as watching a movie largely isn’t. People quit watching tv shows all the time for whatever reason (dislike, disinterest, lack of time, partner doesn’t care for it, etc) but most people will see a movie through regardless of quality
And given that so many Disney+ shows are relevant to the world building of the MCU, viewers quitting these show lost about certain characters from the tv shows now appearing in the movies and wondering who they are and why they should care
Anyways. This is a theory and speculation and should be taken with a grain of salt (if not several grains of salt) until someone does more research on it
This is just more the reason why some people i know (across political spectrum fyi) who were otherwise marvel fans aren’t as interested in the MCU right now
Every movie making $1B isn't sustainable, and it's not what they were doing prior to the first "AVENGERS" or what they did for every movie after that until Phase 3, which dovetailed with the 2010s when every big feature got a gigantic 3D/IMax/China WW multiplier. A drop-off was inevitable.
They also very clearly PLANNED for Phase 4-5 to be a "drop-off absorption" slate on the film side, to the point of NAKED cynicism: "This is where the 'risky' diverse casting and take-a-chance projects go, in the 'We know 25-30% of the audience is saying that-was-enough after Endgame' run."
I used to try to see every MCU movie on opening weekend. I haven't seen one in theaters since Shang Chi. I've only watched 4 of the ones released since then. It's just too much imo & it's all just too interconnected. Trying to remember which show to watch before which movie is tedious
I like that there are different "strands" to follow now. I can go all in on something like Agatha while giving the new Cap a miss in theaters without feeling like there's a disconnect.
Meanwhile the best Marvel content of recent years is actually Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur.
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Meanwhile the best Marvel content of recent years is actually Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur.