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It seems like it might be, but then … why?
When did the term intellectual property go mainstream, and can we make it go away again?
Now, every studio-slash-company is trying to mine its catalogue and mold it into a robust streaming platform.
I can kind of understand the presence of Batman and other DC Comics characters because theyre arguably cartoon-adjacent.
Im trying to maintain a Pennywise-free zone, quite frankly!
Four-year-olds love the Droogs.
They know them fromSpace Jam!
I can even rationalize the soul-crushingMad Max: Fury Roadsequences along the same lines.
This continues to be true, with the caveat thatSpace Jam 2didnt even need to rent.
But the thing about throwing allegiances behind brands instead of creators is that it leads to worse work.
Which is impressive, and I do enjoy a lot of the Marvel stuff.
(In previous MCU films, Aaron Taylor-Johnson played the Pietro role.)
in a way that implied if you didnt get them, you were inferior.
Theres a whole psychological study that could be done on this, but we dont have time for that.
Not that that movie can be separated from our current exploitable IP insanity.
Remember the Dark Universe?
Credit should go to Marvel for that, I guess.
But thats in spite of the larger framework theyre part of, not because of it.
Shared universes are just bad for storytelling.
to get to move the character forward to her next scheduled appearance.
Thats the problem with relying on references, too.
The character showing up, the crossover, the Easter egg is allowed to be an end unto itself.
That sequence is just a promo for whats happening next.
The problem is that sometimes these blatant IP pushes can still be mildly entertaining.
I was never bored.
That said, mildly entertaining only goes so far in the long run.
There will always be attempts to build franchises and launch sequels and reboots.
Thats been the case for decades.
For a corporation like Disney, I cant imagine things changing.
