1. Redundant Storylines
Is it just me, or do superhero movies all have the same plot?
The story always unfolds like this: a normal human gains superpowers from radioactive material, a spider, an alien object, or by building high-tech machinery, and then struggles to get accustomed to their power.
This goes on for about a quarter of the movie. A villain soon gets introduced, and this newfound hero has the job of saving the planet from mass destruction.
You can’t deny that all superhero movies follow this plot, because they do. I’m not hating on Stan Lee and other comic-book masters—they did an awesome job constructing superheroes, but it’s the movies that ruined it.
When I watched the firstX-Menin 2000, I loved it. At the time, there wasn’t a huge amount of superhero movies, and the concept of superpowers was still pretty fresh.
Thanks to the surplus ofWolverinespin-offs,X-Menbecame a stale movie series that I didn’t even bother to keep up with. It just became way too redundant.
Unfortunately, it’s gotten to the point where superhero movies have identical plots—the characters, setting, and costumes are the only things that differ.
2. CGI Makes Up for Weak Plots
Yes, I’m a fan of special effects and CGI. I just think that superhero movies have used them as an excuse to ignore the actual plot of the film.
Movie producers spend so much time making superpowers look real, that the plot ends up falling short of expectations.
We’ve made tremendous advancements with CGI, and producers have taken advantage of that. Creating special effects used to be a time-consuming process, and now CGI-filled superhero movies are popping up in a shorter period of time than ever.
While CGI explosions and superpowers can make the movie more entertaining, adding too many special effects is overkill and does nothing for the plot.
Superhero movies have turned into shallow visual adventures. There’s no deep, underlying meaning—they’ve just become hollow shells with no substance.
3. There Are Too Many Produced at One Time
I thought that the threeSpider-Manfilms with Tobey Maguire were satisfying enough. Instead, movie producers wanted to milk the series as much as possible, and that’s where they went wrong.
TheAmazing Spider-Manand its sequel got released in 2012 and 2014. To put the icing on the cake,Spider-Man: Homecomingwas released in 2017, along withSpider-Man: Into the Spider-Versein 2018. This doesn’t include the twoAvengersmovies that Spider-Man also stars in.
As if movie producers couldn’t stretch theSpider-Manseries more, the sequel toSpider-Man: Homecomingis set for release in July of 2019. The amount ofSpider-Manmovies that have been released in the past decade killed the entire series, and other superhero movies are guilty of the same crime.
When so many superhero movies get released at once, it’s hard to get excited about them. Are there any original and creative movie ideas left at all?
4. Overlapping Characters
The concept of overlapping characters also ties in with the redundant plots. Superheroes all have one thing in common, and that’s a superpower. Some heroes even get their powers in the same way.
Don’t believe me? Here are some examples:
Radioactivity, wealth, bites, and alien substances are almost always involved when a superhero gains their powers. When so many superhero movies have the same type of beginnings, every movie becomes predictable.
I know that Marvel has some lesser-known superheroes that are worthy of having their own film, and even incorporating them would spice things up a little.
5. Movie Companies Prey on Fans
Remember the time when superheroes actually had a pretty niche fanbase? Nowadays, everyone likes superheroes, and movie companies take full advantage of that.
Movie companies want to rope you into their latest and greatest film, which is actually just a superhero concept that’s been recycled dozens of times.
You’ll pay the price for an expensive movie ticket, and feed off of the Easter eggs throughout the movie and the hidden scene that takes place after the credits.
Not only do movie companies have their strong grip on you inside the theater, but they make sure to take it outside as well. You can’t go into pop-culture store without seeing tons of Marvel and DC-themed apparel, trinkets, toys, posters, and more.
All of it has no purpose other than to keep you coming back to the theater to watch a movie with the same plot and actors.
The Superhero Trend Is Burning Out
I’m honestly surprised that this superhero trend hasn’t ended yet. It’s been going strong for about two decades and shows no signs of stopping. I just wonder what trend will come along to replace the superhero concept.
