Superhero Media: How much longer?

[lowkey13]

*Deleted by user*

 

[Morrus]

Yeah, another decade. All things end, including trends. Maybe in a decade period drama is big again, hats are back in fashion, mobile phones have gone the way of cigarettes, and Mouseguard is the biggest RPG in the world.

 

[Nebulous]

Another decade. Then again, Star Wars has endured for 40 years and doesn't look it will EVER die, so I guess anything is possible.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

There will be peaks and valleys, but it will never actually end as long as our society and nature remain largely as they are.

 

[Morrus]

Another decade. Then again, Star Wars has endured for 40 years and doesn't look it will EVER die, so I guess anything is possible.

Yeah, but it was out of fashion for a LONG time!

 

[Ryujin]

I would have thought that they'd have been played out long ago. Genres tend to go in roughly 10 year cycles and the Marvel stuff has hit that but is still going strong, with plans for maybe another 10 years.

 

[tommybahama]

The current movies are based on story lines from past comics that sold very well and gets old fans excited. Judging by comic book sales, the publishers aren't releasing new stories that people want to buy. So when the old story lines run out, the new movies won't have anything to sell.

 

[Umbran]

Is superhero media a genre that is sweeping through and dominating the culture right now for various reasons, but will eventually recede. Similar to how westerns were- a genre that once was completely dominant, but eventually faded?

Or are superheros more akin to Greek myth, something that speaks to our core? Are these properties timeless, and will just continue to get re-contextualized ... will the Joker be a continuing example (in other words, superheroes moving on to other genres and other conventions and usurping them)?

So, what do you think? Will superheroes go back to being one among many genres, or will they continue their current dominance for the foreseeable future?

I vote... between those options.

Superheroes are our shared mythology. They do speak to our core. That's not really in question.

However, the current domination of media is mostly an artifact of our realizing that we can tell these stories well on screen now. There is an element of over-indulging in a new genre at the start.

So, superheroes will recede somewhat, but not as far back as westerns. Now that we can do them justice, they'll be a more prominent, but not totally dominant, form of story for the foreseeable future.

 

[Umbran]

Judging by comic book sales, the publishers aren't releasing new stories that people want to buy.

Um... dude? People are spending about $200 million more per year on comics in 2018 than they were in 2003. So says Diamond Comics Distributors - the people who distribute all the direct comic book shop sales for Marvel, DC, IDW, Dark Horse, and Image. Adding electronic distribution raises that number by another $100 million or so.

 

[Morrus]

On other option for the next trend is digitally reimagined actors. The Irishman, writ large. Welcome back old and deceased actors to the screen!

Or, maybe movies will largely die out in favour of long-form high-budget storytelling on streaming services.