Random Rambling: Too Much
It is a great time to be a nerd. Many things we nerds love have become an enormous part of mainstream culture. That is becoming a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it is great that we can watch more of these characters, but on the other hand, in the studio's rush to capitalize on an IP (intellectual property), the quality has suffered.
I have been feeling this way for a while, but it came to a head this summer with Disney+'s "Secret Invasion." The comic revolves around discovering that a race of shape-shifting aliens known as the Skrulls have been posing as superheroes. It is a very compelling arc in the comics. The show is nothing close to that. A rebel faction of the Skrulls have infiltrated key government and media posts and wants to take over Earth.
The show was a slog, and the finale was a huge disappointment. After this massive waste of time, I decided I needed to stop watching something just because it scratches that nerdy itch. There is a lot to watch, so why waste my time with a bad show or movie?
"Ahsoka" just started its run on Disney+, and I have not watched any of it yet. Ashoka Tano quickly became my favorite character when watching the animated "The Clone Wars" during lockdown. I love Rosario Dawson, who plays Ahsoka in the new series. Yet I am not watching the new series yet. After the debacle that was "Secret Invasion," there are not many of these Disney+ shows I am going to jump right into. I hate to say I agree with a studio head during the WGA and SAG strikes, but when Bob Iger said that the Marvel and Star Wars brands have become diluted because of the Disney+ TV shows, he was right. Marvel, in particular, is putting out more movies than before, and all the TV shows make the movie less of an event.
Look at it this way. Even if it was just the movies, new viewers have to do a lot of homework, and the shows make it worse. Take the upcoming "The Marvels" movie. To experience that movie to its fullest, you must see the movies "Captain Marvel" and "Avengers: Endgame." And then the Disney+ shows "Wandavison," "Ms. Marvel," and possibly the aforementioned "Secret Invasion." If I were just coming into this, I wouldn't see "The Marvels." There is just too much.
