Superhero Saturation.

Since 2008 there have been more than 30 major superhero films. Between Disney, Fox and Warner Bros, along with a number of smaller studios, this number will almost double by 2019. And I'm sick of it.

When superhero movies first became viable, back in the days of the original X-Men, Blade and Sam Rami's Spiderman, getting to see your favourite comic book character on the big screen was a treat, something to look forward to. Now, seeing those same characters is more of a chore as we need to keep up to date to know what's going on when they inevitably meet up for the first time.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe, or MCU, began in 2008 with the release of Iron Man, a well received and, at the time, original film, along with the all but forgotten Incredible Hulk. Split into phases, the MCU dominates the box office when it comes to superhero movies and the only franchise that surpasses it is the titan that is Star Wars.

Each new film adds a bit to the whole story, a teaser of what is to come and, generally speaking, it's these teasers, either within the film or during the credits, that people remember. Whether it's Nick Fury talking about the Avengers, someone name dropping Wakanda or some as of yet unseen character flashing up on a screen, these are the moments people talk about.

The MCU deviates from this formula in a few films, most notably Ant-Man, Guardians of the Galaxy and The Winter Soldier. Every other film they release is more focused on building a universe than it is with being its own thing. They're a one and done deal. Re-watching a Marvel film is a chore, unless it's one of the afore mentioned. The Avengers, a much celebrated film, is an hour of squabbling followed by an hour of pointless action with absolutely no character, heart or anything to bring you back. To watch The Avengers as its own film, not as one connected to 5 years of prior films, is to condemn it.

Then there's the DCEU and the X-Men films, the latter being the longest running superhero franchise. The DCEU has only just begun and it's been playing catch up ever since. They have one enjoyable film, the heavily divisive Man of Steel, and everything else is either stupid and confusing or downright bad. If you have hopes of the DCEU ever rivalling anything, you should severely lower them.

The X-Men films on the other hand, are generally good and, in my opinion, are the superior continuing franchise overall. They've been around longer, literally since the start of the trend and while they've certainly had their shortcomings, namely Wolverine Origins and the recent Apocalypse, they've also given us 2 of the best superhero films to date. But, unlike the others, it's a far slower franchise, releasing only 9 films in 16 years.

Then there's Sony, desperately trying to do something with what little they have. Having a strong start with the first two Spiderman films in the early 2000's one might expect them to be following in X-Men's footsteps. They didn't. 2 failed Spiderman franchises later, it looks like they've dropped out of the race, which is probably a good thing.

In 2017 we'll see the release of 3 Marvel films, 2 DC films and 1 X-Men film. Talk about congestion. Eventually the superhero film will die off, taking with it years of alright movies being praised as the best film since the last one. We get the idea, superheros make money, but is it really too much to ask for a superhero film that can stand on it's own, even one with the big name characters.

These films have been building up to other films which are just more buildup for other films and it needs to stop. Their worlds are interesting, the characters varied and stories riveting, at least those that exist outside of the movie sphere.

Ant-Man is probably the best superhero movie in recent years. Not for it's special effects or ability to bring all the big names together but because it's a small, self contained film. While it does have a number of references to other films in the series, they feel more like in jokes, something the fans will get a laugh out of, rather than blatant foreshadowing or callbacks to bigger movies. Guardians of the Galaxy is similar, a movie that can stand alone, a product of it literally being separated from the other movies by light years.

I for one, look forward to the day Marvel announces the cancellation of the MCU, preferably due to falling profits. To the day the DCEU and X-Men films sputter out like Spiderman and The Fantastic 4. And on that day I will rejoice, or perhaps simply curse the next mindless trend that has muscled it's way in.