Marvel Studios’ approach to television over the last four years has been nothing short of a wild ride. It’s as if they were trying to create a new genre of entertainment entirely—one where television shows masquerade as slightly elongated movies, and audiences are left wondering why they’re still sitting on their couches waiting for something to happen. But now, after over 15 seasons of “television,” Marvel has finally cracked the code: Maybe, just maybe, people like it when a TV show behaves like a TV show.
You’d think it wouldn’t take a multi-billion-dollar studio four years to realize that the magic of television lies in its ability to tell stories over time, to keep audiences engaged with the promise of new episodes and new seasons arriving with the same regularity as your seasonal allergies. But hey, at least they got there. Eventually.
The Early Days of Marvel TV: Miniseries in Disguise
When WandaVision kicked off Marvel’s Disney+ era in 2021, it felt like a breath of fresh air. The show was weird, ambitious, and for once, it seemed like Marvel was doing something truly unique. The sitcom-inspired format had fans theorizing and obsessing over every detail. And then... it ended. Abruptly. Like someone tripping over the power cord of an old CRT TV. What could’ve been the start of a multi-season saga turned out to be a one-off experiment, leaving audiences to accept that Marvel’s TV shows weren’t actually TV shows—they were just “limited series events.”
This became a trend. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Hawkeye, Moon Knight—all shows that arrived, told a (mostly) self-contained story, and then shuffled off Disney+’s digital coil. These weren’t shows that built anticipation for their return because, well, they weren’t returning. You could almost hear Kevin Feige whispering, “Don’t get too attached.”
The Pivot: From “Please Clap” to “Please Stay”
Fast forward to 2023, and Marvel had a bit of an identity crisis. As the MCU’s box office dominance began to waver and audiences became more discerning with their streaming time, the “movie chopped into six parts” model began to feel stale. And then came Secret Invasion, a show with the unique distinction of not only underwhelming viewers but also unsettling them with an AI-generated title sequence that looked like it was yanked from the uncanny valley’s deepest, darkest crevice.
The reception was so bad that Marvel did something unprecedented: they hit the reset button on Daredevil: Born Again. It was like the studio collectively woke up from a fever dream, realized they had been doing television wrong, and decided to actually make TV shows... as TV shows. What a concept!
Marvel’s New Master Plan: Actually Making TV Shows
In a recent press tour, Marvel’s head of TV, Brad Winderbaum, revealed the new strategy: moving away from miniseries and focusing on shows with annual releases. This seismic shift is akin to a chef discovering that seasoning food makes it taste better. “We’re making shows as shows that can exist as annual releases, more like television,” Winderbaum said, managing to both state the obvious and admit past mistakes in one breath.
This new approach promises a more traditional television structure, with series like Daredevil: Born Again, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, and X-Men ’97 leading the charge. While the animated series might take longer to develop (because, shocker, animation isn’t as simple as clicking ‘render’), the intention is clear: get audiences invested and keep them coming back. Every year. Like clockwork.
Is Marvel’s New Strategy Too Little, Too Late?
As Marvel re-learns Television 101, the real question is whether audiences will still care. There’s no denying the fatigue that has set in, both from the never-ending deluge of Marvel content and the wider malaise of the streaming era. A lot of damage has already been done. For every Loki that captured imaginations, there’s been an Eternals or a Secret Invasion that made people consider finally getting around to those non-Marvel shows on their watchlist.
But Marvel’s pivot might just be what the franchise needs to regain its footing. By leaning into the episodic nature of television, Marvel can create a sense of community and speculation that has been sorely missed. Shows with annual releases allow for real cliffhangers, real character development, and real excitement. You know, the kind of stuff that made shows like Game of Thrones (before it self-immolated) appointment viewing.
Daredevil: Born Again will be the first real test of this new strategy. If it can deliver the goods and keep fans buzzing from season to season, Marvel might just pull off this Hail Mary. And if not? Well, there’s always the next multiverse to reboot.
