Mythic Messenger #25 - Something "very different" from the MCU
WandaVision finale proves Disney+ as major piece of Marvel's future
After a much-hyped season of Disney+ sitcom hijinks, the WandaVision finale pushed the Marvel Cinematic Universe back into the spotlight - just in time for The Falcon and the Winter Soldier to debut on the service tomorrow.
For the last two years, Marvel Studios has been faced with the only challenge bigger than establishing a global pop-culture juggernaut: following one up. Their recovery from the Avengers: Endgame hangover has only been complicated by the global pandemic, which threw most of the MCU’s carefully-plotted release schedule into disarray.
But with Kevin Feige’s steady hand on the tiller, the creative masterminds have begun their comeback through episodic TV instead, with the just-concluded, Scarlet Witch-focused sitcom pastiche at the vanguard.
With its emotional and complex final episode in the books, it’s now clear WandaVision - and future series like Loki and She-Hulk - will be a fully-integrated part of the ongoing MCU canon, seeding key plot hooks for future films and establishing new characters - like The Fantastic Four, or as WandaVision teased, the X-Men - who will later have massive theatrical debuts.
Jac Schaeffer led a hand-picked, eclectic writers room to produce the inventive Disney+ series
Showrunner Jac Schaeffer gushed about the potential of the format in post-finale interviews: “What I feel is special about the MCU foray into television is they’re not approaching it with any distinction [between film and TV],” she explained. “They’re applying the same amount of energy and dedication and budget to do the series as to the features.”
“It’s an opportunity to tell an expanded story,” Schaeffer said. “For me, that translated into telling an emotionally expanded story, to dig in more with Wanda and with Vision, and also to see the mundane moments and relaxed moments, and not have everything be such a frenzy. That was very different.”
Now it’s up to The Falcon and the Winter Soldier creator William Spellman and stars Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan to follow up on an impressive previous act.
eBay to build services for collectibles investors after 2020 growth
One of the silver linings of an exhausting 2020 was the spark it provided to what feels like an explosion of interest in high-end collectibles. As the trading floor for almost every conceivable niche within that vast umbrella, eBay would know the extent of that growth better than most.
In a recent industry Q&A, their GM of Collectibles & Trading Cards Nicole Colombo admitted the numbers were so good, her team are now looking at how they can tailor eBay's services specifically around this new wave of investor-level trading.
Speaking with collector community site the Toy Box, Colombo insisted “the passion of collectors hasn’t waned”, despite coronavirus forcing most people “to push the reset button on their purchasing behaviors”. Her figures confirmed the current spotlight on collectible assets isn’t just talk; trading card sales jumped to 4 million above eBay’s estimates after lockdown hit last year, with baseball cards spiking by 82% from March to April alone.
The pandemic was also big for action figures and other limited edition toys, which “saw significant growth”. Colombo attributed this in part to the arrival of the Disney+ behemoth; both Star Wars and Marvel did upwards of 4 million toy sales on eBay after the streaming service launched fresh content for those franchises.
Given the huge buzz in the room about collectible assets, Colombo is more than ready to pivot eBay to align with these growing needs: “We’re always looking for new ways to enhance the eBay experience for buyers and sellers, especially within categories like toy collectibles and trading cards. In 2021, we will continue to explore opportunities where we can build more features that resonate with the different communities that use eBay to purchase and sell their favorite toys, collectibles, and trading cards.”
With plenty of smaller but more specialized collector communities forming to compete with the eBay colossus, it will be exciting to see what new partnerships and services Colombo’s team will be dishing up.
Fast fandom
As always, there is a ton going on in the interconnected world of pop culture and fan media. Here are a few of the stories that caught our eye:
DC attempts to ward off NFT vultures, but comes off hollow
The NFT explosion this month has caught most of the world off guard, so it’s hard to blame companies like DC Comics for scrambling a bit as they figure out this volatile new market. But the publisher may just have drawn attention to how powerless the situation for IP holders currently is.
In a letter to their many freelance creatives, VP of Legal Affairs Jay Kogan insisted “the offering for sale of any digital images featuring DC's intellectual property with or without NFTs, whether rendered for DC's publications or rendered outside the scope of one's contractual engagement with DC, is not permitted.” But what can Kogan or DC really do about it? Rather than any concrete consequences, the letter suggests artists who want to get aboard the NFT train can get in touch with DC’s legal team to negotiate.
But ex-DC artist Jose Delgo isn’t waiting around for that - he has already made $1.8 million in cryptocurrency selling NFTs of his Wonder Woman artwork. I’d love to listen in on his and Kogan’s next Zoom call.
Novice investor's Beta booster rollercoaster ends in Black Lotus
This week PC Gamer ran a great story on a New York lawyer who got more than he bargained for with his first foray into collectibles. The man was recently inspired to try investing in Magic: The Gathering trading cards when he saw that Reserved List cards were outperforming his stock portfolio.
His first pick was a sealed Beta booster pack, with a market value around $10,000. However, that estimation leans heavily on the upper-end of possible cards inside. 90% of the time the contents are worth far less if the pack is ever opened.
Our investor got itchy, and tried some old tricks to see through the packaging, hoping to get a better idea of what he’d bought. But perhaps due to similar rough treatment from 25 years of owners, the booster split slightly at the seam, ruining its value as a sealed product.
Aghast, he inspected his accidental haul - only to wake the house when he realized he’d pulled a mint Beta Black Lotus! Current sales put the card at around $42,000 of market value, and hands down the best start to his collectible portfolio he could have hoped for - except for an Alpha Lotus, that is.