Over the course of recent film history, hundreds and hundred of superhero movies have been mad-- from the lows of Spawn and Green Lantern to highlights like Christopher Nolan's batman trilogy. However, in a genre that has seen so much inconsistent for more than a decade, one studio has been the gold standard.
Starting in 2008 with “Iron Man, '' Marvel Studios has been the heaviest hitter in the movie world for a long time. Out of the 50 movies to reach 1 billion dollars at the box office, 1⁄5 have been Marvel Projects. This doesn't even include the dozens more that have grossed many hundreds of millions of dollars. Even the lowest grossing film in the franchise, 2008s: “The Incredible Hulk '' generated a whopping 264.7 million at the box office. But since then, 10/29 of Marvel's Projects have eclipsed the big B. Marvel grew accustomed to praise and fortune, even beyond their hundred of million in earnings, Marvel projects secured an average of 81.88% score on rotten tomatoes. Marvel's grip on the industry seemed so ironclad that famous directors like Martin Scorcese were declaring that it had killed cinema.
But following 2019’s milestone of Avengers Endgame, which saw the culmination of 11 years of work, characters, and stories come to an epic and satisfying conclusion, Marvel's machine has slowed down in pace. 3 of Marvel's last 6 movies have been among the lowest earning movies in Marvels history, only surpassed in poverty by the previously mentioned “Incredible Hulk” and 2011’s “Captain America: The First Avenger.” While it is important to note that those films were released during the pandemic in 2021, other films released the same year grossed far more including Marvels own “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” Which generated 1.89 Billion. While some might point to No Way Homes' success as suggesting a Marvel on the rise, it is undeniable that having a pre-established character with already existing in universe films benefited its earnings. Which is part of Marvel's problem. Following Endgame, Marvel needed to create new characters to fill the void of those whose arcs had already ended. Of Marvel's three stinkers, only “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the 10 rings” cracked the top 10 earnings sheet for the worldwide box office in 2021. While of course all these movies made hundreds of millions and it is non-sensical to describe them as failures, it is a drastic shift from the money marvel was raining in not even 3 years ago.
That being said, box office dips are not the only problem affecting Marvel at the moment. As previously mentioned, Marvel grew accustomed to cushy rotten tomato scores. With an Average rotten tomato score of almost 82%. But as of late that standard has fallen off. 4 of their last 5 films have received a lower than 80% score. Including 2 below 70%. The average of 75% on marvels last 6 movies is nearly 7% lower than the average Marvel has grown used to. This low score is even despite the shining stars of Shang-Chi and Spider-Man both of whom stand with scores of 92% and 93% specifically. More recently, “Thor: Love and Thunder” and “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.” Boasted high box office success (both eclipsing 700 million.) That being said both were given middling reviews, lower than 75% for each. With the noted exception of No Way Home, Marvel seems almost trapped into picking its poison between lower critical reception, or higher low earnings.
Then there's the issue of Marvel's TV show properties. All 4 of Marvel Studios TV shows: Wandavision, Moonknight, Ms. Marvel, and Loki have scores hovering around 90%. With no properties sinking beneath 86%. More than raw scores, the shows have yielded awards consideration, including multiple Emmy nominations. Marvel's most recent property “She-Hulk'' has similar critical reception but a measly 50% fan reception. With the exception of She-Hulk. The problem in these properties is not quality but ease of access. With the barrier of Disney Plus being a hard one to overcome. In a world overcrowded with streaming services, Disney Plus has less to offer than their direct competitors. The properties of Disney are far less diverse than many would like. While of course rankings are subjective, many publications have ranked Disney plus towards the bottom of the list when it comes to quality of service.
These two ailments are not unrelated. Overall many fans feel put out by the endless stream of content. There is only so many times a movie can conclude with a CGI fight where the good guy beats the bad guy. Marvel's recent endeavors feel like a bland mush of content. Indistinguishable from one show to the next. Even despite the praise certain projects have received critically, many fans did not enjoy these projects as much as their ratings would suggest. Having to watch movie after movie to keep up with a franchise is exhausting. The Ponzi-scheme-esque dependency of needing to expand off the last film or project is overall exhausting. The need to see every film to understand the next is perhaps too big of an ask for the fans. Undoubtedly, Marvel will keep making money. But its era of dominance has seemingly stalled out, at least momentarily. For now, the general masses seem to be somewhat put out of the gratuitousness of Marvel's content. In a sense, too much of one thing. The recipe has gone stale. While its engine has not failed yet it is moving slower. What once seemed like lightning in a bottle to many fans has fizzled out into something closer to a flask of room temp water.
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