Inspired by a conversation I had with a colleague, we were talking about the next wave of popularity. Looking back you can see the clear transitions between vampires, witches, ghosts, zombies, werewolves, monsters and back again. Certainly super heroes are in the mix. But with everything finding prime time in cycles, we were wondering what was up next.
Clearly super heroes have taken the spotlight over the past five to ten years, now almost reaching a fever pitch of movie releases and media spotlights. With the dawning of the Avengers and Iron Man sequels and the later spawning of obscure titles like Ant Man and Guardians of the Galaxy, it leads me to wonder, how much punch the Super Hero Genre really has. Already fans are crying foul with the rehashed rehash that is the common super hero plot, sorry Avengers, your production level was extremely high, but no matter what new big bad you throw at us, it’s still going to be the same beginning, middle and end.
Deadpool and Logan have really came running out of the gate by putting a different spin on the super hero genre, potentially due to their “R” ratings, but perhaps they gave the reigns to other writers beyond the core teams that are the traditionalists. These people have the ability to expand the genres and keep them fresh for viewers, like myself, that have basically seen every major super hero movie release within the past ten years.
So what’s next for the super hero genre or what is the next evolution in the pop culture focus? Witches/super natural seem to have been downplayed in recent years. With the birth of the Wytches franchise by Scott Snyder over at image, you’d think that perhaps that will get the next green light. Salem, the TV series released to mix acclaim, could have been the cauldron to start the brew boiling, it also could have kicked over the bubbling broth before the genre could regain their foothold.
Truly, zombies have been trampling everything in mass media these days. The Walking Dead Fans are especially eager to continue their rampage. Yet, even some of the hardcore TWD fans have begun to teeter out, claiming the same-old same-old. And this would be nothing new. History DOES have a way of repeating itself.
So what will it take for mass media or the decision makers to begin to embrace some genre expanding ideas? If they become popular enough, they could take hold. Here’s hoping for a SAGA TV series or perhaps even an Atomic Blonde movie…oh wait, that’s kinda already happening…