Make mine Marvel indeed.
With the announcement of the writers for the Daredevil (Whedon alum and Cabin in the Woods’ Drew Goddard) and Jessica Jones (Dexter and Twilight’s Melissa Rosenberg) shows, Marvel’s Netflix plans are coming into scope. What is impressive about these two writers is not only have they been successful developing properties outside of the CBM universe, but that these people have built-in affinities towards the characters whose shows they are now in charge of.
Goddard is a self-professed lifetime Daredevil fan, and Rosenberg has been developing a Jessica Jones show for a long while now, much like Edgar Wright was with Ant Man. For a film this might lead to too much fan service, too much preciousness with the characters, and too limiting of a format for the stories these people undoubtedly want to tell. For a TV show, even one whose seasons are rolled out all at once, this personal factor is critical to why I think these shows will not only succeed, but might even eclipse what Marvel has accomplished with The Avengers film series and the Phase films of the MCU.
These four shows, all centered around the same area in New York, feature TV friendly genres: legal, detective, martial arts action, and mid-level superhero. These particular heroes and their villains are low on the need for special effects, and all have been in print for decades with dozens of storylines that connect to each other in pretty naturalistic yet significant ways.
We knew this already when the Netflx announcement came down. What we didn’t know then, but do now, is how well versed the writers for these series are in the mythologies that surround this area and its inhabitants. Because the runtimes on theses shows are significantly longer than any of the films in the MCU, the budget / runtime ratio is significantly lower, and the special abilities of these characters are decidedly less spectacular than their film brethren, a large part on whether or not these shows are successful will depend on how well the characters are developed, and how strong the world building and interconnectedness of these shows are handled.
By utilizing the writers they have to run these shows (and one could only assume similar hirings for Cage and Iron Fist), Marvel has assured one factor that will help give these shows texture and depth – they hired fans.
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