I like reading and writing stories; I always have and I always will, so the direction that storytelling has taken is very interesting to me. Now, to clarify that vague statement, I'm talking specifically about the abundance of comic-book movies, and how they're changing the way that stories are told. Objectively, it's an interesting phenomenon, and I personally think it allows for a greater connection to stories as a whole. It's not something new, as its existed in comic books (as well as other kinds of entertainment), but it's becoming a lot more mainstream in the US as comic book characters move from being part of a subculture to popular culture. But instead of using mysterious, unsatisfying pronouns, let me get to the meat of the issue and say what this 'it' is referring to.
This comic-style storytelling is one that values characters over plot. While characters are typically thought of acting within the confines of a story, in comics, storylines can be created to revolve around pre-existing characters. An example of this would be the 1996 DC vs. Marvel storyline, in which two god-like beings, representing the Marvel and DC comic universes, discover each other's existence and have their respective heroes face off in one-one-one battles. It was a storyline created to allow for the much-desired possibility of everyone's favorite heroes fighting each other, and fans even got to vote for which hero they wanted to win in each individual conflict. Since comic books have such iconic characters with their own mythos, stories such as this one are created to revolve around their existence. While they may first have been created to tell a story, stories are now created to show these characters to the world.
The popularity of movies like Captain America: Civil War capitalizes on this style of storytelling, creating a story that revolves around beloved characters. Now, I won't lie: at least 70% of the reason I liked that movie was because of Spider-Man, preformed wonderfully by Tom Holland. Did Spider-Man play a role in the story? Nope. Did his presence further the plot? Nope. He was there solely because a story was made in which his presence would be logical and acceptable, and fans ate it up; I ate it up like a full-course meal. The plot didn't matter to me when he was around; all that mattered was that I was seeing a Spider-Man in a Marvel movie for the first time in years. And he was FANTASTIC! But that's another story.
One could argue that this kind of storytelling is shallow, and that argument wouldn't be far off. Characters are like marketing tools, helping to sell a product. Putting iconic characters together in movies is a sure way to sell tickets. However, I honestly don't mind; at least, not all the time. As stories are becoming more widely produced and consumed than ever, people developing attachment to fictional characters has become more normal. While people might used to make fun of Spider-Man fans as geeks, nowadays you're more likely to be made fun of if you don't know who he is. The rise of comic book culture as not only socially acceptable but also widely profitable has led to characters becoming increasingly important. They are just as beloved by fans as the stories and worlds in which they exist.
The increasing interest in individual characters is what has led to the rise of fanfiction and all the sequels and spin-offs being made in the realm of games, movies, etc. People don't want these characters to be in a one-and-done storyline, never to be seen again. They want to learn more about them, to see them in different situations and see different aspects of their personality. It's not something that would be thought of as 'high art,' but I don't mind. Without characters, stories would have no meaning. Characters are the eyes through which we see stories; their views influence how we perceive fictional worlds, and the story progresses through events that happen to them. I believe that characters need to be more than just representations of ideas or issues; they are more than their stories. To some extent, they need to feel human, to leap out of the screen or off the page. If we don't care about them, their story loses its meaning. As someone who enjoys creating and consuming stories, that's what I think, at least.
