The Marvel Television brand is a lot stronger than fans might believe, according to data provided exclusively to Screen Rant by Parrot Analytics, a data science company that measures world-wide audience demand for TV content.
There's a tendency among Marvel fans to dismiss the TV shows as being essentially 'second-tier.' That's because the Marvel Cinematic Universe doesn't really live up to its promise that everything is connected; in reality, the movies and various TV series often seem fairly distanced from one another. That in itself is a result of the often-fraught relationship between Marvel Studios and Marvel Television. In 2015, behind-the-scenes drama between key figures at Marvel forced Disney to restructure Marvel Entertainment, pulling the film studio out as a separate Disney subsidiary. Ever since then, the connections between the films and TV shows have been loose at best - a fact that's been somewhat frustrating for fans who want to see more cross-pollination.
Related: Marvel TV Is Even Less Important To The MCU Now
The Marvel movies have proved to be a tremendous success, with this year's Avengers: Infinity War pushing the MCU past $15 billion in the global box office. But just how successful is the Marvel Television brand? Until now, it's been difficult to measure.
- This Page: Agents of SHIELD is Still Marvel TV's Flagship Show
- Page 2: Marvel Netflix, Runaways and Cloak & Dagger
The Marvel Television Brand Is Very Strong
Screen Rant has been liaising with Parrot Analytics, a data science company who measure demand for different TV series and even work with the Guinness Book of Records to identify the most "in demand" shows. They measure how viewers interact with a brand online, assessing everything from global file-sharing and peer-to-peer traffic to social media activity. As such, Parrot believe they are able to provide the most accurate measure of audience demand in this digital age.
The above graph shows where the main Marvel shows - Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the various Netflix series - sit in relation to the average TV show in the United States market. Notice that a large number of these shows sit within the top 0.03 percent of TV series. Even the weakest, The Defenders, is still in the top 0.1 percent. Parrot Analytics is clearly identifying a tremendously strong demand for all these shows online, indicating the sheer strength of the Marvel Television brand.
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is the Flagship Marvel Show
Parrot's data illustrates the dominance of ABC's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., which has the strongest individual brand of them all. Marvel figures have consistently described S.H.I.E.L.D. as their "flagship" show, but until now it's been assumed that simply meant this series came first - it launched in 2013, and was the first Marvel Television show to be set in the MCU. Parrot Analytics' data suggests that demand for S.H.I.E.L.D. is high - in fact, according to Parrot demand for Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is over 21 times that of the average title. To give a sense of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s popularity, in the US shows with similar demand include Better Call Saul, Criminal Minds, and Vikings; demand for S.H.I.E.L.D. is higher than the likes of The Originals, Supergirl, Arrow, and Fear The Walking Dead.
Related: Daredevil Season 3 Brings Agents of SHIELD Into Marvel Netflix Continuity
This is a tremendous accomplishment, and it fits well with reports that, while viewing figures for Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. have never been through the roof, the series has a committed fanbase and performs well on DVR. It's all the more impressive given that ABC moved season 5 to a Friday night timeslot, which was viewed as something of a "kiss of death" for the show. Instead, it seems S.H.I.E.L.D.'s brand has remained strong. It's no wonder ABC has renewed it for an (abbreviated) sixth season, expected to air in summer 2019 after the release of Avengers 4.
Even more remarkably, Parrot measure similar levels of interest worldwide; according to their data, the S.H.I.E.L.D. brand is particularly strong in Canada and across Europe.
Page 2 of 2: Marvel Netflix, Runaways and Cloak & Dagger
Marvel Netflix Has Been A Success (Despite Viewership Drops)
The Marvel Netflix shows have been a subject of recent controversy, in light of the streaming giant's unexpected decision to pull the plug on Iron Fist and Luke Cage. Netflix is a data-driven company, and they tend not to provide the statistics that would explain their business decisions; however, third-party analytics have suggested that viewership has been dropping across the entire range.
For all that's the case, though, Parrot Analytic's data suggests that these brands are still very strong indeed. It's worth focusing in on The Defenders, which is particularly interesting given the series was released in August 2017, outside the date-range shown previously. In spite of that, it's still among the top 0.1 percent shows in the US in terms of demand over the last 12 months. That definitely suggests a sustained level of interest in the series. Interestingly, according to Parrot the three shows that have not been renewed by Netflix - The Defenders, Iron Fist, and Luke Cage - are the ones with the weakest brand. In the case of Iron Fist, it seems likely viewership just wasn't sufficient to meet the costs of production, believed to be around $40 million per season. In contrast, there have been reports Netflix attempted to save Luke Cage by negotiating for a shorter 10-episode season 3 rather than the 13-episode season they'd originally agreed to. That would make sense; this was presumably an attempt to cut costs and make the show more financially viable.
Related: Why Luke Cage Was Canceled By Netflix
Notice the strength of Daredevil, The Punisher, and Jessica Jones, which are clearly the strongest Marvel Netflix brands. This correlates strongly with previous reports that Daredevil and The Punisher were outliers in terms of the overall Marvel Netflix viewing figures; Daredevil is a popular character who's even been star of a movie before, and his series has a level of brand recognition beyond any of the other shows. Meanwhile, the Punisher's brand is among the most ubiquitous in comic characters worldwide. As comic book writer Nathan Edmonson told ComicVine while discussing his run, "Soldiers wear him on their uniforms who haven’t read a comic in their lives; sex toys are nicknamed for him, racecars and wrestlers take on the skull or namesake, despite having little awareness of the actual comic."
It will be fascinating to see what the future has in store for the various Marvel Netflix series. It's generally believed that the relationship between Marvel Television and Netflix is growing fractious, in large part because Disney plan to launch the rival Disney Plus streaming site in late 2019. If that is the case, reports of contentious disagreement between the partners over the future of Luke Cage won't have helped. Still, given all these brands are as strong as Parrot Analytics report, it wouldn't be a surprise to see Marvel shop them elsewhere; perhaps they'll go to Hulu, which will reportedly be picking up Disney's mature and R-rated content once the Fox acquisition is completed.
Marvel Television's Niche Series Are Also Successes
Meanwhile, over the last 12 months Marvel Television has expanded with the production of two major young-adult superhero shows, Runaways and Cloak & Dagger, one airing on Freeform and the other on Hulu. According to Parrot Analytics, it's no surprise both shows were renewed; both sit within the top 0.03 percent of demand in the US market, a category Parrot classify as "Amazing." At Screen Rant's request, Parrot Analytics provided data revealing the strength of these two brands when compared to selected competitors such as Riverdale, Orphan Black, and Heroes.
It's important to note that the Runaways and Cloak & Dagger brands aren't as strong when assessed on a global scale. But there's a simple reason for that; they're not distributed as widely as Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Marvel Netflix shows. Cloak & Dagger airs on ABC Spark in Canada, while Amazon Prime airs the series in the U.K. and to selected European countries. Runaways, meanwhile, airs on Showcase in Canada and on Syfy in the U.K.. That's it in terms of that series' international distribution; hopefully that will change, as it contains many thematic elements that, according to Parrot's data, make Luke Cage a hit in countries like France and Germany.
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All this proves that the strength of Marvel Television's brand should not be underestimated. According to Parrot Analytics, a data science company even trusted by the Guinness Book of Records, Marvel TV shows are among the most in-demand content out there. It's time for Marvel fans to stop treating these shows as though they're the movies' "little brother," and instead embrace them as powerful brands in their own right.
More: Daredevil Is The Unluckiest Marvel Hero In The MCU
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