By Dustin Rowles | TV | October 11, 2023 |
By Dustin Rowles | TV | October 11, 2023 |
Joanna Robinson has a book on the MCU out this Tuesday — it’s the definitive account of the rise and sudden uncertainty of its reign. The television side, where they have aired 9 series so far but only one with a second season (Loki), is very much a part of that uncertainty. It is shaky after the dreadful Secret Invasion following the underwhelming reception of Ms. Marvel, Moon Knight and She Hulk.
The problem with the television side of the MCU, according to a piece in The Hollywood Reporter, is that they’ve rushed many of their series out and that they have been controlled less by showrunners and more by executives. In fact, in several cases, the showrunners are let go once the directors come on board, although it doesn’t help when writers have either quit or have been replaced midway through the process (as in the case of Secret Invasion and Moon Knight).
The latest production stumble is Daredevil, which had shot “fewer than half of the series’ 18 episodes.” Kevin Feige, however, was not impressed with the footage and fired the showrunners, Chris Ord and Matt Corman, late last month while also releasing the directors. Marvel is now looking for new writers and directors with plans to completely overhaul the series with new serialized elements. Ord and Corman’s version was apparently closer to a legal procedural, and Daredevil himself, Matt Murdock, didn’t suit up until the fourth episode.
I’d rather watch the Ord and Corman series, but the legal elements of She-Hulk were also my favorite part of that series (beyond the simple delights of Tatiana Maslany).
The move is part of a bigger transition away from limited series and toward series with multiple seasons, which is good news, assuming that it’s not too late for Marvel to reclaim some of the shine on its quickly dulling franchise. It’s not just superhero fatigue. It’s also lousy projects, as well as the interconnectedness of the MCU. Viewers who bail on one mediocre series or film may be less inclined to continue, and there have been plenty of mediocre series and movies to bail on.
Source: THR