Oversaturating the fans with shows and movies
This is one you’ll hear the most. Many people felt Avengers: Endgame was a perfect conclusion to the saga that had been told, yet they remained interested in the MCU. Marvel Comics has a history of this pattern. When they hit big with the audience and have a strong group of creators producing stories that resonate, Marvel tended to try squeezing more out of the moment than they should. They flood the shelves with more titles and miniseries, and suddenly every character has their own comic.
When I bought the Civil War event, I decided to purchase every single tie-in title. By the end, it added up to 100 issues—and realistically, only the Captain America issues mattered to the main story. Even recently, with the Blood Hunt event, there were a ton of extra miniseries that felt completely unnecessary once you read the main comic. These moments made me want to read Marvel less because it felt like the company didn’t care as much and was just exploiting my love for the Marvel Universe.
After Avengers: Endgame briefly became the highest-grossing film of all time, not even a global pandemic could stop Marvel Studios from flooring the gas pedal. In 2021, they significantly ramped up output: four Disney+ shows and four theatrical films in a single year. Every quarter, there were two concurrent Marvel projects demanding attention. Villains and lesser-known Avengers got shows and films, while brand-new characters were introduced to replicate the Guardians of the Galaxy surprise. But aside from Spider-Man—who’s a cheat code, honestly—and Doctor Strange, most of those new additions didn’t stick. They ended up confusing and exhausting audiences. Feige and his Parliament seemed to ignore Marvel’s publishing history in their “research.” They repeated a mistake the company knows all too well: burnout.
Their slowdown in 2024, with fewer projects, feels like a step in the right direction. Still, they could’ve done a better job connecting more grounded films like Captain America: Brave New World and Thunderbolts to shows like Daredevil: Born Again and Ironheart. Only time will tell if a leaner Marvel output leads to the higher-quality releases fans deserve.
