10 Ways Marvel Can Stop The MCU From DYING

"Exhausting" is a fitting word to describe the current state of the MCU - Phase Four not only solidified the franchise's three-movies-per-year release pattern, but also saw eight Disney+ TV shows launched, with Phase Five expected to near-equal this amount of content.

Though there was perhaps a time when fans welcomed as much MCU media as Marvel Studios could physically put out, it's tough to deny that quality has taken a massive hit overall, with the post-Endgame era counting arguably not a single truly great movie among its number.

The TV shows have also proven wildly inconsistent, and their interconnected nature with the movies creates an additional problem - making the whole enterprise feel like homework.

Take The Marvels, which requires audiences to be aware of the events of two separate Disney+ shows - a tall order for casual audiences with limited time on their hands and little desire to brush up on hours of streaming material in order to watch a new movie.

Though Kevin Feige and co. are beholden to the content treadmill of Disney and their dreaded algorithm, it's just not sustainable moving forward, as evidenced by both the major drop-off in quality and diminishing box office returns.

Slowing the franchise's roll, releasing two or three movies a year at most and just a few carefully selected TV shows per phase would make keeping up with everything the MCU has to offer feel less like a chore.

Plus, having less projects on the docket would theoretically put less pressure on the wildly overworked VFX vendors, who have consistently reported the MCU's unrealistic deadlines as responsible for the brand's often muddy, underwhelming effects.

It shouldn't need to be said, but someone at Disney clearly needs to hear it - less is often more.