The decline of Marvel Comics is well documented and there are many reasons for it, saying all of them would take too long and might be controversial given the political element of it, but one very uncontroversial element is Marvel's ridiculous event fetish. One event after another. Overlapping events. Changed status quos when the status quo wasn't even established properly. No time to breathe. No organic crossovers. Nothing.
It's a major reason why I can read the older comics all day, but I can no longer stand the new Marvel that greenlit Snowflake and Safespace. That's an abomination that shouldn't exist, and they thought it was a good idea. Just asinine.
So when Marvel gets back together and COVID is over, they'll have to restructure how they do business. It's not working, and it tanked comic books. COVID alone didn't kill the direct market for comics. The bad business model, creative decisions and PR did more of that, and COVID was like the finishing tap. But events are useful, and are cool when done right. But it takes moderation and proper execution to do that.
So, in regards to events, here's what I propose:
- First do a DC Rebirth style soft reboot. This is a large branding that doesn't reboot the universe, but brings back everything you love about Marvel Comics in a big new initiative to emphasize stories and quality content of quantities of unsellable crap and pointless events. Call it Marvel Returns (after the accalimed Heroes Return story).
- No events for at least a year, though I'd go for eighteen months. Instead, stories are told individually and crossovers are done organically. Think like '80s Marvel. That said, there would be recurring arc, like an element that pops up in multiple stories and becomes more prominent as they get closer, that hints at something leading to their first event. No events for a year means that they can actually build up to the event they eventually make. How's that for business?
- When they do get to the event, it'll be after enough time has passed, and a status quo is properly established, that fans won't groan when they hear it. As such, it can be hyped as a big blockbuster story for comics, the equivalent of the Avengers movies in the MCU, that interrupts the lives of everyone involved for this. Note, that they would need to make the continuity actually coherent for this to work. Remember how it was so tight in '80s Marvel, and errors were rare? Well, they simply don't give a shit about that and nothing makes sense. How is Cap running around in multiple titles, but in his own book he's an outlaw that isn't even Captain America anymore? That is BEYOND unacceptable. I guess they have no time for continuity when they're planning like ten events a year, so... yeah.
- When they do get to the event, use the Secret Wars model: Make it a 12-part maxiseries told in a self contained story. Everyone gets interrupted in their books, but then goes back with new status quo changes, encouraging you to read the event to learn what happened. Secret Wars is regarded as a true classic, and there's a reason for that. On top of being a good story, they actually used a good model for telling it... and then ignored that model at everyone's detriment.
- Finally, return to status quo for another year. That way, the big event actually has a lasting impact, and you can build to the next one over time and do it all again. Quality, not quantity.
The big problem is that Marvel saw short-term profits with events, and not the bigger picture. They thought event spam was helping them, but it really hurt them. Less events means more time to grow, build good relations, introduce new fans, and then tell an epic story that has actually ramifications across the line. Don't make ten bad events in a short span of time, and instead make one big GOOD event in a longer span that serves an actual purpose. That's a major reason why '80s Marvel was so good. I wasn't even born in the '80s, but those comics are timeless. It's actually addicting to read '80s Marvel because there's so much good stuff in it, and they knew how to run a business while telling good stories. Recapture that glory! Just because that's the old method doesn't make it outdated, it just means the new stuff is a downgrade.
That's my thoughts. They need to do a lot to change how Marvel Comics runs. What they've done since like 2012 just hasn't been working. Changes need to be made, and they need to look at what worked in the past versus what's not working now.
What do you think? Let me know if you have any suggestions of your own.