Flashback to January 2021, if you can — or want to, even. After a long hiatus from our favorite superpowered protagonists, Marvel Studios was set to release its new project: “WandaVison” (2021). The word “new” is important here, as this project gave Marvel some firsts. It was the first series centering Marvel Cinematic Universe actors reprising their blockbuster roles on the small screen of Disney+. And it was, arguably, Marvel’s first attempt at playing with genre within its superhero-flick formula. And it was the first of many — perhaps too many — MCU shows coming to Disney+.
Skeptics believed that such a project wouldn’t work. Some clocked that the premiere show’s strange title alone was foreshadowing a botched attempt at something new and original. Risks abounded. With an estimated budget of up to $25 million an episode, the financial gambles associated with “WandaVision” needed to pay off.
But despite initial hesitations, “WandaVision” became a hit. The weekly release schedule had fans wrapped up in the story, as they waited week after week to see what might happen next. It became a show you could talk about with coworkers. (Well, since it premiered during the pandemic, you could talk about it with coworkers in a private Zoom chat.) Fan theories and Easter egg explanation videos flooded YouTube. The show’s songs, such as “Agatha All Along,” became popular TikTok audios, further cementing the show’s cultural relevance. Viewers, whether they had seen MCU movies before or not, sat down and watched these superpowered sitcoms to join in on the conversation. “WandaVision,” the first of its kind, seemed to find its foothold on Disney+.
The other triumph of “WandaVision” — other than shining nominations and accolades — was a real-world application. Just as Wanda processed her grief and trauma, her viewers processed their own grief and trauma due to the ongoing pandemic. The show’s release intentionally coincided with this timeline, as its showrunner noted the timeliness and poignancy of the show’s themes. The show created a striking portrayal of human emotion from its superhuman protagonists with the hopes that the show’s message would impact its audience’s real-world problems.
So, Marvel succeeded in making a hit Disney+ television series. In the two years since “WandaVision” entered the cultural milieu, seven more MCU shows have dropped on Disney+. Each new iteration of Marvel’s television ventures has come with a new set of challenges and successes, but some common pitfalls are becoming more and more apparent. Hours and hours of streaming and meticulous planning later, several problems have arisen with the way Marvel has resorted to cranking out content.
Last year, Marvel stirred up several bouts of controversy about its computer-generated imagery. On Disney+ projects like “She-Hulk: Attorney at Law” (2022) and “Moon Knight”(2022), fans took to social media to voice their opinions on lackluster CGI. People began pointing fingers, with Reddit being a podium for complaints about the way Marvel treated its visual effects artists who create the illusions of superhumans on screen.
Dhruv Govil, a visual effects artist who previously worked with Marvel, tweeted that “Working on #Marvel shows is what pushed me to leave the VFX industry. They're a horrible client, and I’ve seen way too many colleagues break down after being overworked, while Marvel tightens the purse strings.” Govil later replied to himself, tweeting, “The issue is #Marvel is too big, and can demand whatever they want. It’s a toxic relationship.”
A common complaint surrounding Marvel’s content on Disney+ and in theaters is that there is simply too much out there. It is an understandable fear to say that you can feel disconnected from the MCU if you miss one show, post-credits scene, comic book reference, allusion, movie, mid-credits scene, Easter egg, cameo or controversy. With so many hours of stories in the vast MCU vault, it is growing more and more unreasonable to keep up. There are, of course, exceptional individuals who catch every last detail (and pride themselves on it), but the days of watching a standalone MCU project and appreciating it in its entirety are quickly dwindling.
Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige recently sat down with Entertainment Weekly and acknowledged some of these concerns. While saying some fans like to “do the homework” of detailed analysis of MCU films, he also understood how it can feel overwhelming to watch an MCU project on its own, and that it has always been a goal to provide an enjoyable experience for the novice Marvel viewer on any given viewing experience.
Interestingly, in the same conversation, Feige also hinted at pumping the brakes on Marvel’s Disney+ content machine. He reasoned that “it is harder to hit the zeitgeist when there's so much product out there — and so much ‘content,’ as they say, which is a word that I hate. But we want Marvel Studios and the MCU projects to really stand out and stand above. So, people will see that as we get further into Phase 5 and 6. The pace at which we’re putting out the Disney+ shows will change so they can each get a chance to shine.”
Is this a sign that Marvel bit off more than it could chew? Maybe. To Feige’s point, however, “WandaVision” serves as perhaps the best example of Marvel doing everything right and giving the project “a chance to shine.” No MCU project on Disney+ has been as far-reaching, risk-taking and well-produced since. It was not rushed (partly due to the pandemic, which gave ample time to visual effects artists), and it got to comment genuinely on the era in which it found itself. The show found success because people could sit down and enjoy something together again, free of a mechanical release schedule that pumps out original series after original series until we can’t keep up anymore.
So Marvel, if you’re listening, be true to Feige’s word and favor quality over quantity. These stories deserve better, and so do we.
