Disney's making 10 Star Wars and 10 Marvel TV shows

[Deset Gled]

Also the most controversial, as some don’t like the idea that the Rebels employed assassins.

Us pro-Imperials, OTOH, love it when those bloodthirsty religious zealot terrorists get called out for what they actually are.

 

[TwoSix]

You reckon Rangers will be about Cara? I'm thinking it might be about Trapper Wolf (Dave Filoni) and Carson Teva (Paul Sun-Hyung). "Ranger" implies roaming around, like they do, whereas Cara seems pretty well settled on Nevarro now.

I'm glad this is just one more example to confuse us as to what a "ranger" is.

 

[Umbran]

A lot of it is also about how the stories are intertwined.

But, I return to the fact that all of the MCU has roughly the content of a couple of seasons of TV. If it were TV, you'd expect it to be intertwined. So... how is intertwining on this much content a problem?

 

[Gradine]

I'm glad this is just one more example to confuse us as to what a "ranger" is.

That's it. They cast Viggo or I walk

 

[Zardnaar]

If all ten shows get around 4 seasons it's less material than say Stargate SG1 +Atlantis or two seasons of TNG/DS9 or/Voyager.

You can probably watch the whole lot in less than a year without trying to hard or binge watch in a few months.

 

[embee]

That's too much TV.

Seriously, this is guaranteed to burn me out on the franchises.

Maybe. But what's the alternative?

Movies?

Cinemark got emergency funding 3 weeks ago to stay out of Chapter 11. It's the number two exhibitor in the world. Mall companies are deep in the red and in danger of going under because (a) the lockdowns closed down enclosed shopping malls and (b) the anchor stores are all going bankrupt (Lord & Taylor, JC Penney, Sears, Macy's). You need malls for movie theaters, at least in America. On top of that, Star Wars killed movie theaters.

Here's how...

Studios and exhibitors split the box office. Studios always got a big chunk of the opening week or two, but it was usually 60/40, with it then shifting to the exhibitors as time went on. To protect the investment, there was a exclusivity window. Movies had to be in the theaters first. For several months. Then they could go to the home market. But when the prequels came out, George Lucas rang the death knell. He demanded a 70/30 split with that split favoring the studio longer, that the movie had to be on the biggest screens, that the equipment all get upgraded at the exhibitors' expense, and that the movies had to stay on the biggest screens for a longer amount of time. The exhibitors wanted the prequels. So they said yes.

Gradually, the split that was special because of Star Wars became more of the norm. And MCU and Harry Potter movies used this split. The exhibitors still had to pay the "house nut" - payroll, utilities, rent - and that kept going up. Their only option was to raise ticket prices so they could pay those expenses. And because they are the ones taking the cash from the public, they are the Bad Guy.

Meanwhile, the exhibition windows got shorter and home theater technology got better. So people started asking.... "Why am I going to pay all this money to see movies in the theater, when I can see it at home for nearly the same quality but at a much cheaper cost?"

Enter in the most dangerous technology of all. Not streaming... Torrents.

One of Lucas' sticking points was that theaters switch to digital projection. Theaters stopped getting film canisters and started getting files. And they would wind up on the internet. DVD encryption got cracked. Onto the internet with more content. The studios didn't take the hit. The theaters did.

And that went on for over a decade.

And here we are - with 4K TVs coming down in price and movie tickets, when theaters do open back up, having to go up in price. A family of 4 can expect a movie to cost $100. To see one movie.

Maybe a Star Wars tentpole movie is worth it. Maybe an MCU movie is worth it.

But there aren't 12 movies a year that are worth it and there certainly aren't 52 movies a year that are worth it. Rent is due every month. Payroll needs to get paid every week. How will theaters stay open? Malls are failing. Exhibitors are going to start failing. Coronavirus kicked the Retailpocalypse into high gear.

It's a lot of TV. But where is the return for Disney for theatrical releases?

 

[Deset Gled]

But, I return to the fact that all of the MCU has roughly the content of a couple of seasons of TV. If it were TV, you'd expect it to be intertwined. So... how is intertwining on this much content a problem?

There is really no part of this that I can agree with.

- Movies and TV shows are a very different experience, from pacing, to release schedules, accessibility, and methods to watching them. You can't just sum the run-times and claim it's a fungible experience.

- I just explained how intertwining can be a problem on something the scale of the MCU in my last post.

- We don't know yet how much "this much content" is. It sounds to me like it's much more than just a "couple seasons of TV".

- "If it were TV, you'd expect it to be intertwined." On so many levels, no. One of the reasons why some of the best and longest running TV series of all time are considered great is because you can pick up random episode and enjoy it with no backstory: Star Trek, Law and Order, 90% of the X-files, Gunsmoke, The Simpsons. Even in shows that have year long story arcs like 24 or Buffy, things are mostly isolated by season. And in the most extremely convoluted cases like Game of Thrones, they at least restrict themselves to continuity within the same show. Star Wars and the MCU are linking stories across multiple series, multiple media, and multiple continuities.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

You need malls for movie theaters, at least in America

Hardly. Of all the theaters in my town, one is in a shopping mall. The rest are in shopping centers of various kinds, sure, but nothing like a mall. Even the one at the local mall is it's own separate building with it's own parking lot, on the same city block but not actually attached to the mall. You could easily shut down the mall without shutting down the theater.

 

[Deset Gled]

Maybe. But what's the alternative?

Let's say that I would prefer a 5e release schedule to 2e one. Long term brand management rather than focussing on next quarter's finances.

 

[delericho]

I'm surprised they've announced so much, but there's an awful lot in there that sounds really good. Also, presumably at least some of these will be mini-series, and at least some will be fairly solidly standalone.

Besides, I'd rather have too much stuff than too little - there will no doubt be some things I just don't like, and the set of things I enjoy won't line up perfectly with the set you enjoy. If there's plenty, and a good range, there's a good chance we both win.