Lately, one of the main complaints levelled at Marvel Studios is that the continuity has gotten too complex to follow. For example, the average moviegoer cannot enjoy “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” without having to catch up on superhero coursework. Marvel Studios is highlighting several “banners” to demonstrate that not everything is connected and viewers are not need to follow every project in an effort to allay such fears.
Marvel Studios executive Brad Winderbaum, who oversees TV, streaming, and animation at Marvel, discussed the company’s use of many banners to allay worries that the continuity has gotten too complex in an interview with Comicbook.com. In general, you may be certain that a project is one you can likely dive into without much background knowledge if you’ve seen Marvel Television, Marvel Animation, or Marvel Spotlight before it. That is the plan, anyway.
Winderbaum stated, “We want to make sure that Marvel remains a place where people can come in and explore.” Following “Endgame,” there seemed to be a slight sense of having to see everything in order to watch anything at all. As comic book fans, you are aware that they are meant to be able to simply dive in, find something you enjoy, and utilise it to immerse yourself in the universe, from which you can then freely explore and manoeuvre according to your own tastes.
“Consequently, I believe we’re trying to tell the audience, ‘You can jump in anywhere,’ as part of the rebranding of Marvel Studios, Marvel Television, Marvel Animation, and even Marvel Spotlight,” he went on. Although they are connected, they are not. To enjoy B, you don’t need to watch A. You are free to pursue your happiness. You are free to pursue your own tastes and look through Marvel’s tapestry to find what you’re looking for.
Regarding how comics function, he is not incorrect. You would literally need to read more than 1,000 comic books if you wanted to do your Spider-Man history homework before reading the most recent issue of “The Amazing Spider-Man.” Over the years, fans have been swiftly catching up. But you have to teach movie and television viewers to follow suit. Marvel Studios, for instance, did an excellent job at catching you up with the first episode of “Echo” if you’d like to see it. (even if it was a touch ham handed). However, there’s nothing keeping you from viewing “Hawkeye” and “Daredevil” if you really wanted to take a deep dive. It’s simply not required.
It’s a different conversation entirely if you believe Marvel Studios is doing a good job with this. We’ll have to wait and watch whether other movies use a similar tactic. Some are better at it than others, such as the relatively new “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” (“The Marvels”).
In any case, based on Winderbaum’s remarks, you shouldn’t have too much trouble watching a Marvel TV series.
