Much has been written on why the the Marvel “Cinematic Universe" supposedly has a “villain problem;” with George RR Martin now deciding to weigh in on the debate. The basic argument is that none of Marvel’s villains are well developed or have nuanced motivations. And they almost always get killed off in their first movie*.
But frankly, in my view, this is all crap.
Marvel movies are about heroes. It’s the hero’s story that matters and villains are just there to provide the antagonist for that time. Marvel is making a choice that villain stories aren’t the focus. And it’s proving to work; both for audiences and for this medium.
Comic books are different. A comic book- which may have hundreds of issues in a single run- can’t afford the creative expense of having to create hundreds of foes. In that long-running format, the time spent to develop villains as characters is paid-off largely as they can be used over and over again. But for movies, where a single hero’s run may last 3 main movies and a couple of team-ups, choosing to fully develop a villain likely means that fans won’t get to see more than one of a hero’s most notorious rivals on screen. Marvel knows fans want to see these comics realized on-screen and to deliver, they have to go for quantity over quality.
It’s a choice. And I’m good with it. If you’re not, then that’s your side to take. Choices always come with opinions and that’s fine.
But stop calling it a “problem” and stop acting like Marvel couldn’t fully develop a villain if they wanted to. They could. They’re choosing not to. And for me and many other fans it’s working out just fine.
But that’s just my opinion...
(*only Loki and Thanos- who hasn’t even seen action yet- have multiple films to their credit. I guess technically The Winter Soldier and the upcoming Crossbones appearance will change that. And Hydra has kept going. Feel free to continue the corrections in the comments).
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