MCU, Damon Lindelof & Marvel Comics as Cautionary Tale: BCTVDD

Before we dive into today’s dose of the BCTV Daily Dispatch, we needed to jump to Damon Lindelof‘s defense. Not that the television genius behind LOST and The Leftovers needs us to defend him from Marvel fans. But when you’re the creative mind behind the team that produced HBO’s pseudo-sequel/spinoff/”remix” of writer Alan Moore, artist Dave Gibbons, and colorist John Higgins‘ Watchmen. Praised by viewers and critics alike, the multi-award-winning limited series not only blew away the myth of “The Unfilmmable Comic Book” but also made the original source material more relevant to today’s times. But from a purely selfish standpoint, I will always respect the way he let the series do the talking for him… and how “The League of Ordinary Alan Moore Fanfolks” quietly disappeared by the second episode once the word got out that we were seeing more television history being made (thankfully for them, they had DC Comics’ “Watchmen” sequel Doomsday Clock to beat up on).

Checking in with Vulture’s Into It podcast, Lindelof discussed why he prefers for stories to have endings because they help to make the stories feel like they matter, that the reason folks begin a journey is that there’s an end to it that’s expected at some point. Essentially, a reason for taking the journey in the first place. And it’s that lack of a “final destination” on Marvel Studios’ part when it comes to its never-ending calendar of MCU series & films that Lindelof feels contributes to the projects losing that sense of being “special” or event-worthy.

“It’s always going to be hard because once you’ve got someone’s attention, you want to keep it. And so the idea of letting it go and not knowing if you’re ever going to get it back again is sort of like, it’s antithetical to the way that we’re wired,”  Lindelof explained about the mindset involved with ending a film or show, especially when a passionate fanbase is in play. “From a slightly more cynical standpoint, this is a business. It’s an industry. And if you make a couple of great Marvel movies, the instinct is, ‘We need to make more Marvel movies, and we need to expand this,” Lindelof continued. “And I have this sort of interior feeling of like, ‘Wow, I wish they made less because it would make each one that came out a little bit more special.’ But I watch all of them. People don’t want things to end. I do.”

Just to be clear? Lindelof isn’t standing outside of his glass house, trying to decide on which home to target next, adding, “I don’t begrudge them the right to keep it going. I’ve made prequels and sequels and reboots, so I can’t be a hypocrite and say, ‘God, come up with an original idea.’ Meanwhile, I’m making two ‘Star Trek’ movies and ‘Prometheus.'” But as social media tends to do, they pretty much ignored that part, picked a few choice words or lines from the earlier quotes, and began labeling Lindelof as a “Marvel hater” and “DC stooge” (because of Watchmen, of course…?). But the only real problem with what Lindelof had to say was that it was too uncomfortably on-point for some folks to deal with.

Just look what happened to Marvel Comics.

I’ve covered the reasons for my ugly break-up with comics and how I fully baptized myself in the glory of that which is television a few times in the past (here and here), so I’ll cut to the chase. For me (aside from having to pay what felt like $20 for six pages of story & 14 pages of Snickers ads), what killed my want for Marvel Comics was the ever-growing 24/7 endless event cycle. “The Mega-Crossover Event That Will Change Everything This Spring!” gets undercut two issues into its run because folks have to know that in a few months, “The Mega-Crossover Event That Will Change Everything Happens in The Fall!” Does the “X-Men” universe need rebooting for the 1,283rd time? Cool. How long will that last? Until “Fall of the Empire of the Ultimate X-Pansion Manifesto II: The Revenge.”? And don’t think we don’t see you over there, DC… checking if you’ve run out of words to put before or after “Crisis.” After a while, you begin to get numb to it all… and, in my case, resentful to the point where you walk away and don’t look back.

That’s the kind of “warning signal” that Lindelof is trying to send. Here’s hoping folks are paying attention.

Now here’s a look at today’s rundown of the past 24 hours in BCTV television/streaming coverage- enjoy!

Daredevil Got Jokes? She-Hulk Writer on “Lighter Side” of Character

Big Sky: Deadly Trails – Rex Linn Joins Reba McEntire for Season 3

The Walking Dead S11 Teaser: One Last Chance to Make Things Right

Law and Order: OC Adds 2 More to Cast; Meloni, Hargitay Crossover Love

Star Trek: Kate Mulgrew Promises No “Temporal Anomalies” This October

AEW Rampage: Quake by the Lake – Full Lineup, How to Watch

Tales of the Walking Dead S01E01 Preview: Evie & Joe Have Trust Issues

She-Hulk: Mark Ruffalo Defends Marvel, Throws Star Wars Under The Bus

DC’s Stargirl S03E01/S03E02 Images/Overviews: A Look at “The Suspects”

Wednesday Star Jenna Ortega Wishes Everyone a “Good Mourning”

James Gunn Clarifies GotG Volume 3 & Holiday Special Detail

The Rookie: Feds Preview Finds Simone Clark Ready for a Second Act

For She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, It Was “Spider-Man: No Way Whatsoever”

Doctor Who Series 14 in 2024? Ncuti Gatwa Filming This Fall: Report

Titans: Joseph Morgan Shares Sebastian Diary Page; S04 Dick/Kory Look

The Boys: Vought Changes Policy; Soldier Boy Films Now Get Disclaimer

Ironheart: Zoe Terakes Joins Disney+, Marvel Studios Series Cast

Warrior: Martial Arts Western Was Made for Bruce Lee & Action Fans

The Orville: New Horizons: MacFarlane on Keeping S03 Cliffhanger-Free

Constantine, Doctor Who, Rick and Morty & AHS: BCTV Daily Dispatch

And today’s BCTV Daily Dispatch “Long-Distance Dedication” is Eminem ft. Rihanna with “The Monster”:

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