Age of the Geek

Movie Madness

     Are we at the saturation point yet?

     Last week Marvel Studios put on a big show to announce their line up for Phase Three of their cinematic universe. Nine new movies to run through 2018. Shortly before that, at a Time Warner investors meeting of all places, Warner Bros. announced their movie plans for D.C. adaptations through 2020.

     Between the two of them, there are more than twenty upcoming films that will hit theaters through the rest of the decade. So next time somebody asks you what your "five year plan" is, you can tell them it looks something like this.

     2015 wraps up Marvel's Phase Two with "The Avengers: Age of Ultron" and the awkwardly placed "Ant-Man."

     In 2016, things start out big with "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice." All of Warner Bros.' chips are on this one, as it will set-up virtually everything in the rest of their line-up. A success will put Warner Bros. on track to finally set up a cinematic universe of their own. A failure could cause the rest of their plans to crumble like a house of cards.

     Meanwhile, Marvel Studios has decided to copy Warner Bros. for a change. Much like how Batman was inserted into what was supposed to be a sequel to "Man of Steel," Robert Downy Jr.'s Iron Man will co-star as a semi-antagonist in "Captain America: Civil War."

     The rest of the year will be a little more obscure. Warner Bros. has made the unusual choice of following their Batman vs. Superman movie with "Suicide Squad," a movie about a team of c-list super-villains forced into doing the government's dirty work. (Coincidently enough, Sony's "Sinister Six," a movie about a team of Spider-Man foes, will come out later that year.) Marvel, on the other hand, will introduce "Doctor Strange" to the movie universe, possibly played by Benedict Cumberbatch.

     In 2017 Marvel Studios will start upping their game to three movies per year, starting with a sequel to the insanely successful "Guardians of the Galaxy." Originally scheduled for July of that year, the movie has been bumped up to May 5. "Thor: Ragnarok" has instead taken that July 28 spot.

     In June, Warner Bros. will finally put "Wonder Woman" in theaters, giving us the first comic book movie with a female lead since 2005's "Elektra."

     Later in November, Marvel will answer with "Black Panther," giving us the first comic book movie with a black lead since 2004's "Blade: Trinity."

     But the biggest movie of the year will undoubtedly be "Justice League, Part 1" on November 17.

     2018 starts fast with "The Flash," which will sadly not be a movie adaptation of the new CW show.

     More importantly, May will bring us "The Avengers: Infinity War, Part 1." Foreshadowing the Infinity Gauntlet has been the thread tying the Marvel Studios movies together since we first saw Thanos back in "The Avengers." In the comic book, Thanos literally kills half the universe before the combined forces of Earth's heroes manage to put things right. I expect the movie adaptation to set up equally high stakes.

     But there's a full year between Part 1 and Part 2. In between, Marvel Studios will finally release their first female led movie. Not the much requested solo Black Widow film, but the almost equally requested "Captain Marvel." Unfortunately for me, this movie about a human getting alien superpowers probably means that my own wish for a Nova movie will be put on the back burner.

     Later in the year, Marvel Studios will release "Inhumans," who will be the stand-in for the X-Men since they can't use those characters in the movies. Meanwhile, Warner Bros. will put "Aquaman" into theaters, testing former "Game of Thrones" actor Jason Momoa's ability to make people afraid of a guy who talks to fish.

     2019 starts with D.C.'s own Captain Marvel, who for legal reasons is now called "Shazam." The summer of 2019 will be huge though as movie goers will not only get the conclusion to "The Avengers: Infinity War," but also the second part of the "Justice League" movie.

     Finally, while Marvel hasn't announced anything for Phase Four, Warner Bros. already has "Cyborg" and "Green Lantern" on the slate for 2020.

     And all of this doesn't even take into account the X-Men and Spider-Man related films that Fox and Sony have planned for the future. All together, there are at least thirty movies in development to enjoy, or pan, for the next five years.

     We sure have come a long way since I was a kid, when one good movie a year was considered an achievement. Still, I have to wonder if we're starting to approach critical mass. I personally have no issue with heading to the theater once every couple months, but something has to give eventually, right?

     Oh well, either way it'll be a fun ride while it lasts.

     Travis Fischer is a news writer for Mid-America Publishing and is kinda bummed that Phase Three doesn't involve a "Banner and Stark: Science Bros" movie.