The Marvel Cinematic Universe has taken some rough turns in the last couple of years, but it’s still plowing ahead into the new year. The next entry in the Marvel Studios franchise is Wonder Man, a new Disney Plus series that promises to introduce MCU fans to one of Marvel Comics' most underrated superheroes. It also puts a unique spin on the usual Marvel formula.
As we already knew, Wonder Man will premiere on Disney Plus Tuesday, January 27, with all eight episodes arriving at the same time, meaning that audiences will be able to binge the show like they would with a Netflix Original series. However, the release time has now been officially confirmed, with Marvel revealing that it will debut at 6:00 p.m. PT / 9:00 p.m. ET. Yep, the show will remain in primetime like previous, recent live-action MCU offerings.
The binge drop is unique, as usually, Marvel/Disney prefers a week-by-week release schedule for their MCU shows. That’s a smart way to build up audience interest and increase the buzz on each tale. It also separates Disney from streamers like Netflix or Prime Video, who will drop all episodes of a season at once. However, releasing all eight episodes at once in primetime is going to make for quite the interesting experience for international audiences, who will likely be staying up to the wee hours of the morning to watch.
Marvel has opted for the late-night binge-watch format with Echo but it only had five episodes. Meanwhile, animated offerings such as Eyes of Wakanda and Marvel Zombies all went for the binge drop format in Disney Plus' other time slot, premiering at midnight PT (or 3 am ET) instead. Wonder Man certainly has a more unique approach, yet it may fit with the fun storyline and how it can even mock the MCU itself.
Is Wonder Man better or worse as a binge drop?
Wonder Man is a different take on an MCU project, as rather than the typical superheroics, it’s more of a thoughtful and dramatic piece. Simon Williams (Yaya Abdul-Mateen II of Aquaman and Watchmen) is an actor trying to land a “prestige project,” but instead is cast in a remake of a long-forgotten 1980s superhero film called Wonder Man.
Through unknown means, Simon ends up developing real superpowers but he still prefers to be an actor. He gains an unlikely mentor in eccentric actor Trevor Slattery (played once more by Sir Ben Kingsley) and they’re on a unique quest for fame.
The early buzz on the show is that it doesn’t connect as much to the mainstream MCU, more a Hollywood sendup than a comic book series. That means a binge watch can work for it, as casual viewers won’t feel the need to do “homework” on other Marvel projects and just enjoy this on its own. So dropping all the episodes at once makes it a brisk watch.
However, there is the worry of the show suffering the fate of so many great streaming shows in that having all its episodes released at once risks being lost among the huge array of shows out there. Too many fine series never gain the audience they deserve because of binge-drop releases, whereas weekly installments usually serve MCU shows better. It would be a shame if a series that helps Marvel's continued quest to restore its credibility fails to make an impact because of this approach.
It’s up in the air as we await the series debut, but at least fans know when Wonder Man will begin his adventures and how there’s no wait for more of this new MCU entry.
Wonder Man debuts Tuesday January 27 at 9/8c on Disney+.