Discussion Will we get Star Wars fatigue?

Through observation of other movie franchises and fandoms, will Star Wars become over saturated? Sure, Star Wars has always had an element of over saturation though toys, games, cereal boxes, costumes, books, etc. Star War has always been an easily parodied cash grab. But right now i'm talking about the movies. Does anybody really get excited for super hero movies anymore? I don't. That bubble popped for me long ago. Superhero movies have become forgettable, repeating the same over the top formula over and over again.
I am thrilled about TFA, but i'm a little worried about what might follow. I'm sure the films are going to be a lot of fun, but will we start feeling SW fatigue? We're pretty much going to get a new film every year for a while now. And that's great. Anticipation in my opinion is the best part of being a SW fan. Waiting. Holding out. Some people just want more SW and that's okay, we all love SW. But thinking about the formula of Marvel and in the not to distant future I can see SW being designed with that same Marvel blueprint.
This is not an automatic negative. I'm 100% sure Disney is aware of the responsibility they have acquired. So if all the future SW films are fresh and fun, dont fall into the same patterns, are individually unique, offer different viewing experiences, with clever and innovative ideas, and clever story lines, then having an abundance of future SW films will be great because the quantity will equal the quality. But if these films seem formulaic like the Marvel movies have become, static in their presentations, predictable in they're approach, then I think the fatigue will hit us pretty quickly. I'm looking for the future of the franchise to become incredibly innovative. For it to be accepted in the long run and stay fresh, it needs that innovation. The OT had that innovation. They were individually unique, each film had a different "feel". ANH was smaller in scale than the other two, set the stage and introduced our heroes. ESB was a perfect middle. Everything felt hopeless. ROTJ was a celebration of coming together to defeat the Imperial plague. The OT were individually unique.
I'm certain Disney and everyone in charge of the production of the new episodes and anthology films understand this. I'm very optimistic. It is indeed a very exciting time to be a fan, i just think about these things because I love SW.

 

I'm worried about this as well.

 

I haven't really been into comic movies, and barely have an interest in seeing Avengers sequel even out of curiosity, so I'm not sure what people think about them. I get a sense that the sequel wasn't the big crowdpleaser many expected and they might have gotten burned out on that bunch.
A lot of people might not know what it was like in the late '80s and early '90s when there was nothing Star Wars anywhere (except the Star Tours gift shop as I discovered to my surprise in 1990). No toys, bedsheets, fruit snacks, cereal, Halloween costumes, or anything. The movies would pop up on TV, and rarely, not every holiday. I kind of miss that. I watched the (three) movies more then. Star Wars references in pop culture were even rare. It even seemed kind of forgotten; I remember USA Today had a pie chart about successful sequels with an asterisk next to Return of the Jedi, to denote at the bottom that it was the "second Star Wars sequel."
Speaking of innovation, one thing the other movies had going for them was that they were the state-of-the-art movies. Barely anything else was as carefully planned and created. That's something the new films can't have, maybe. They will probably improve on what was in Avatar and Tron: Legacy and Terminator: Genisys, unless there is something unknown. Everything has exceptional photorealistic visual effects, and fantasy action adventure movies are so common. Back then movies were well-crafted but they were done so in their own way. Legend, The Never-Ending Story, The Last Starfighter all had their unique looks even if they weren't the same kinds of visual effects as those in Return of the Jedi. Even the low-budget Ex Machina blows my mind with how Ava is transparent, doing the kind of stuff that ILM did in A.I. but more subdued.

 

Actually I have been wondering about this myself. The idea of milking something for all it's worth rings truer today even more than ever. I just read about how they have plans to release several Transformers movies thru now up to 2025. YES-that's TEN years!! Of Transformer movies...And another TRILOGY of TMNT movies...

I have also found myself wearing thin of excitement of late for the Marvel cinematic universe. Maybe it's cos it's been at least 2 movies a year for the last 8 years, maybe it's cos of my excitement for the coming films of the new DC cinematic universe (which frankly I like better). I agree wholeheartedly with what Spielberg said about the superhero genre interest being finite. Like all those, I fear SW will ultimately go down the same path. Now it may take another 10 years before that starts happening, but with SW constantly being shoved in our face everywhere-new toys, comics, games, books, TV shows, foods, and films all being released on top of eachother, I feel that EVEN SW, just like all other franchises being milked dry, will eventually lose their flavor-like a two hour old peice of fruit stripe gum. "SACRELIGE! But it's SW! We'll NEVER get sick of SW!" People might say...but...

I disagree. "ALL good things must come to an end," as Q so eloquently put it...

I am super excited for the Star Wars movies to come, don't get me wrong...But I still long for the day when we finally experience something new-truly original and innovative. NOT a book, NOT a sequel, NOT an 80's tv show or toy line, and for the love of God NOT another reboot. I wait patiently for the world to be introduced to what will become the next "Star Wars" or "Indiana Jones," and the cultural impact that it will have beyond the box office...

 

I have faith in Disney when it comes to this. I was never huge into comics, and even then, I was never an Avengers fan. But if the MCU is the level of quality we can expect from future Star Wars movies going forward, I don't see a burnout. Just read book 15 in the Dresden Files, loved it, and can't wait for the next one. Sure, burnout is a real thing, but it only really happens when companies don't appreciate what they have (think Call of Duty or Madden sequels.) When a company values its products, we can have quality AND quantity. Judging by how excited I am for more Rebels in a couple weeks, I'd say we're in for a long and wonderful ride.

 

...nah, probably not. Spiderman seems to have done after going through a recent reboot. Lord of the Rings is still strong after their series of films, Harry Potter is still a household name, dinos still roam Jurassic Park, the Terminator still terminates and folks are lining up for the finale of the Hunger Games. So, I think Star Wars has some way to go before fatigue sets in.

 

If the server won't stop giving you food, you don't have to keep eating if you're stuffed.

That strange analogy aside, Star Wars indeed feels like one big story you want to appreciate as a whole. All the movies flow together in our minds as a single work of art (minus whatever exceptions you make as a fan). The more crowded with sub-par/tired content it becomes, the less easy it is to admire. But lets not forget how easily "prequel-cynics" disregard THOSE movies entirely.

 

A lot of people are weary because they didn't like the prequels or it has just become fashionable to bash them, so they are already prepared to feel uninterested.

 

These spinoffs have me worried, I'll admit that.

 

I am quite curious what direction the franchise will go in 2020 after all six of the new films are released.

I think over the next 20-30 years Star Wars will go the way of Star Trek in that it will alternate between movies and television series, each one focusing on different time periods and characters in relation to the central story line. I think the canon universe will be tremendously expanded, and different mediums will carry a variety of Star Wars stories over the years. Even a complete reboot/reimagining of the original films could happen, in the same manner Star Trek has done recently, but decades from now, not any time soon, and only after enough Star Wars material has been released to make it seem justified.

I think the over saturation will be in the retail market more than anything. As it is now you can't even walk through a grocery store anymore without seeing one of our beloved characters on a can of soup. Stuff like that will make people tire of Star Wars more than anything released on the media market.

 

None of those are good examples of over-saturation. Lord of the Rings was a finite series of three films, with The Hobbit being another finite series of three films that only occurred almost a decade after the first Lord of the Rings film came out. That isn't a franchise that is putting out a new movie every year. Harry Potter was another finite series that had a clear end. Jurassic Park 3 was release a decade or more ago. Terminator has had five films over a 3 decade period. Hunger Games is another finite series. There is a difference between a finite series that has a clear end point, or a series that takes 4 or 5 years off between film releases. I doubt James Bond would still be a thing today if they released a new one every year since 1962.

At 2 films a year, people will eventually get tired of Marvel. One thing Marvel has going for it though is variety. It isn't just Ironman vs Ultron every movie or Captain America vs Hydra. There is variety to all of the villains and heroes. If they can insert that kind of variety into Star Wars it will help. Right now though we aren't seeing anything to suggest it will be anything more than Jedi/Rebels vs Sith/Empire. After 6 years of just that though where are people going to be? We still might be super excited for Star Wars, but the average person will probably be bored.

 

After reading SW books and comics since the mid to late 90's I have had one burnout point. 2010ish. Went away pretty fast though. Just things things nice and varied. Years and years of OT Big 3 stories and galactic war after galactic war gets tiring after a while.

 

If the only thing I watch are the films and Rebels, I think I'll be fine.

 

A pace of one film a year should be okay, as long as they maintain a high standard of quality. That's enough of a space in between for people to get excited about a new one again. I definitely don't want to see them putting out three films a year like Marvel is doing.

 

I like this thread and what everyone is saying here.
There is a risk of fatigue and over exposure, however, if they write great stories and have good actors tell them, I think the demand will remain high.
I'm a comics fan, but Marvel has oversaturated the market imo. Too many and too similar. I prefer DC anyway, although I like both.
This thread has gotten me slightly concerned that SW could be heading down an oversaturated path like the MU. I hope not. I hadn't considered this 'problem' before today since I'm just so pumped for TFA.
DARTH_BELO I totally agree with your point regarding the need for new and truly innovative ideas. We need that now, more than ever, in film and music without question.

 

I wish Marvel would put out more. Movies are so awful these days that Marvel offerings are pretty much the only ones I can get excited for. I have seen a grand total of FOUR movies that I liked this year - Kingsmen, Jurrasic World, Avengers, and Ant Man. (I'll go see the Martian, but I've already read the book so I'm not in any rush.) Everything else was so forgettable that I literally can't even remember another movie. Do I wish we'd get more unique films that aren't based on a franchise? Absolutely. Kingsmen is the only one to fit that bill, and I wouldn't be surprised if it gets a sequel. On the other hand, when Marvel continues to pump out quality (and I assume Star Wars will do the same,) it's hard not to get excited. It's guaranteed fun. When it costs me close to a C-note to take my wife to a movie (after sitter and concessions and the like,) I don't want to gamble with mediocrity in the hopes of another Interstellar gem. So no, I don't think we're in any danger of burnout. If anything, Star Wars and Marvel look to be the only times I go to the movies at all anymore.

 

This is my feeling exactly. I've predicted myself that that is what we will see with Star Wars, come the next several decades. But agreed – I think it's mostly the marketing and merchandising that will be the most obvious overload in the immediate future…

 

I think people have over blown the idea of the "Superhero fatigue". One of the factors is that each of the Marvel movies have a unique trait. (Ant Man= Heist film, Winter Soldier= Political thriller, Guardians of the Galaxy= irreverent comedy/ action sci-fi, etc) Only a few retain the purely "Four Color Comics" tone (Age of Ultron, for example). And so I can see it working that way for Star Wars. If every film was "Jedi vs Sith: Once More With Feeling" it might get old, but there are plenty of facets and time frames that they can turn their focus on. If each film has a different aspect to it, there's no reason to assume it'll become old hat in the foreseeable future.

 

The running theme I still see is "doomsday device being created --> witty hero has to stop it". And since Marvel wants to keep these properties around as long as possible, the heroes are virtually invincible in every film. With so many "almost-deaths", the stakes in every movie have been dropping for me. And I really like Marvel movies. I do wish they were more of a surprise like when Iron Man 1 came out.

 

Not to drop any Marvel spoilers in case you're avoiding them, but near deaths are about to start becoming the "stay dead" variety. A lot. With major characters. Just sayin'.

 

I think the worst thing that could happens is if SW becomes like the sonic the hedgehog series. What I mean by that is that if this new film series fails to please the audience people will start to associate star wars with ''bad'' instead of good since we will have two trilogies now that fails to please the general public and in the end star wars will be seen as that series that only hard core fans follow and also has cluster of annoying nostalgiatards who scream about how it's not the like the classic thing.

 

As long as "the saga" ends, I'm not really worried.

 

I'm optimistic about the movie and open to it. I'm eager for it. What bothers me will be the reactions, misunderstandings, arguments and just knowing that I'm going to obsessively read and post about it like I did when the prequels started.

How many movies make up "everything else"?

 

Have you seen Mad Max: Fury Road? If you haven't, you should definitely check it out. If you're into horror, It Follows. Animation, Inside Out.