7 Redeeming Features Of The Marvel Netflix Series

The key benefit offered by a television series as opposed to a film adaptation is time. Whilst a film can only last around two hours, a season of television can last from six (the typical length of a British show) through to around 17 (the length of the once-standard 24-episode season favoured by American broadcasters).

A happy medium of around eight to ten has become the norm for critically successful dramas in the era of ‘peak TV’, giving showrunners ample space to explore subplots and supporting characters. This is opposed to a narrow focus on just two or three characters, typical in superhero films, where an origin story (for the hero and/or villain) and large scale action sequences can leave the supporting players massively under-developed or even on the cutting room floor.

The Netflix series ultimately made poor use of the runtime allotted to them, resorting to extensive filler in latter seasons. What they were able to do, however, was use some of it to truly flesh out a number of characters.

The likes of Foggy, Karen, Misty Knight and Malcolm Ducasse would’ve been one dimensional love interests or sidekicks on film, but were afforded meatier roles as a result of television, becoming far more memorable as a result.