The dilemma of achieving originality in the superhero genre is a particularly tricky one; on the one hand, superheroes seem to dominate media on most every front, be it streaming, or cinema; on the other hand, its infinite flexibility in the realm of possibility, coupled with its ability to gel with many different other genres, should position it firmly as a bottomless pit of originality.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe may tread familiar ground a bit more than it would like (despite some brilliant deviations, à la WandaVision and intriguing future project Werewolf by Night), but as far as originality difficulties go in the MCU, one would think that Ms. Marvel is far from deserving mention in that conversation. After all, the titular heroine found herself with a brand new set of powers unique to the MCU; if anything, it could be considered one of the most original series we’ve seen from the franchise thus far.
But in the context of the MCU, compared to other worlds or franchises, a skewed potential for originality makes much more sense; in an interview with ComicBook.com, Kevin Yuille, who served as the visual effects supervisor on Ms. Marvel, commented on how being original is a daunting task.
“It’s funny [because] on other shows I’ve been on, you get really excited about a character or whatever that’s got this unique power and you’re dev-ing it, you’re looking at it and then someone on the screen are like, ‘Oh, that looks just like this other movie,’ and it’s like, ‘Oh, really?’ And then you look at it, you’re like, ‘Ugh.’”
He would go on to suggest that the MCU, given its many fantastical nuances, offers up an additional challenge, but also one that the studio was always ready to assist with.
“It’s so hard to be original, even though you think in the process you are being original, and then you find out no. But again, Marvel is very aware of the powers that they have in their universe and to the best that they can want to define different color palettes, looks. So they’re very aware of it and they remind us, ‘Oh, don’t make it look like this. Push it more towards this.’”
The latest MCU property to take a swing at uncharted waters is She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, which is currently streaming on Disney Plus, with new episodes releasing every Thursday.