New Brevoort Formspring

Because the news media would be so averse to publicizing gimmicks, if only they recognized them as such? Making a big deal out of non-stories is the news media’s bread and butter!

I don’t agree at all that the finite nature of any of these developments makes them less of a story - They’re happening now and that’s what’s important. Comic fans can just be so impressed with their cynicism and attention to the industry behind the scenes that they start to feel unique in that respect and lose sight of the big picture. Like, if everyone was so impressed with their own cynicism we’d have seen NBC Headlines like “America Elects First Black President for Maximum of 8 Years, Next President Likely to Be White.” Yeah, everyone knows that - like, everyone. “Godfather II Keeps Franchise in Good Shape, For Now.” I don’t know.

Try looking at it from another perspective - think about how many of the best remembered, most classic stories involved some dramatic deviation from the status quo. Beta Ray Bill, Dark Phoenix Saga, Kraven’s Last Hunt.. no one thought Spider-Man was dead and Kraven took his place forever, but it was a great story. Original Avengers replaced by villains! Original X-Men replaced by multinational lineup! Spider-Man gets with the times, sporting sleek new black costume!

Now, imagine if the mainstream news had been covering any of that, treating these great stories like the big deal we now remember them as. Imagine if that got just 100 more kids to try Simonson’s Thor at the beginning and read it as it was happening. Mainstream news covering a neglected medium we all care about is COOL.

Have the stories gotten more gimmicky, and inversely not as good? I don’t know about that, the Death of Cap and Superior Spider-Man are some of the best parts of some modern-classic runs by creators who really care, and I see no reason to doubt Aaron and Remender.

Basically just saying Superhero stories have always always been a series of bold deviations from a slowly evolving status quo, that’s just the nature of long term serialized fiction, it’s awesome that some of these cool story beats are getting attention, and if your main takeaway from all of these stories is that they won’t last forever.. well, “good job?” Not trying to pick on anyone, and it’s cool if that’s how you get enjoyment from comics, just seems like enjoyment from that POV could have diminishing returns.