Illumination Writes

Originally Published September 26, 2022

I have noticed a trend in media as a whole. Before sitting down to write this piece, I articulated it as not allowing good stories to end. However, now I think it is something more than just that, it’s about allowing good stories to remain.

We live in an era where Hollywood is remaking, rebooting, and creating sequels for so many franchises. The silent truth that I think some of us agree on is that it’s getting old.

I’m BORED. I’m tired of rewatching the same kinds of movies over and over again. I really don’t give two craps if each Disney princess gets their own “live-action” remake. Why do we need to redo what has been done? Why do we need sequels and spin-offs for every franchise?

Furthermore, ideas and values that were not talked about at the time of the original story’s creation, are now being woven into the story. Some examples I can think of from recent news would be changing the race or gender of an established character. Disney and Marvel have done this, and that is no surprise to us, but one of my favorite shows, Doctor Who, has also done this.

These changes begin to ruin what the fans originally enjoyed about the franchise. In my opinion, it is also disrespectful to the writers and creators who worked on the source material for these movies and shows, i.e. comic books and novels.

I notice this happening across the board with many different franchises. I first noticed it with Doctor Who a few years ago but wasn’t able to articulate what was wrong. Now I should mention, Doctor Who has always been on the edge of being progressive/woke, but it has never been as bad as it is today.

Things started going downhill when Peter Capaldi took over the role of the 12th Doctor. I actually really enjoyed him playing the role, but things in the series took a turn when they made the Master into “Missy”, establishing that timelords could switch genders upon regeneration. This choice also changed the way the Doctor and the Master interacted with each other as a whole, and it just felt off.

Along with this change, the next iteration of the Doctor was then made into a woman, played by Jodie Whitaker. A lot of people dropped the series when she was announced, and I don’t blame them. I gave her first season a shot because I always give the new actor grace to find themselves in a role that has been shared between many actors over a period of nearly 60 years now. I think Jodie Whitaker did the best she could in the role, however, it just wasn’t good.

It wasn’t good because a woman was playing a traditionally male role. Women don’t make good men, and men do not make good women. It’s not designed to work that way. I really think the Doctor’s character traits are best expressed in a masculine way, not feminine. They call him “the oncoming storm” for a reason.

Marvel (by extension Disney), has been altering the origin stories of certain characters to meet an agenda. They are succumbing to the woke mob, and in doing so, are also disrespecting the original creators of the comic book characters that these films are based on. Changing the origin stories of Captain Marvel and She-Hulk to accommodate the agendas of the day does not allow for a proper portrayal of those established characters to exist. If you want to change the origin story to fit a certain message, why not just make a new character?

As a long-time reader, I was upset at any film adaptation of a book that didn’t get the character descriptions exactly right visually on the screen that was described in the book. I know that many other readers know exactly what I’m talking about and you have some qualms with a film adaptation of your favorite book, even if you love the film as a whole. When a franchise completely rewrites the source material to fit a modern narrative, I feel the same way. I won’t enjoy that piece of media, because they have not respected its source.

So not only are we dealing with boring remakes and sequels that cash in on big-name characters (I’m looking at you, Toy Story 4 and all those Disney remakes), but we are also having to deal with an inaccurate portrayal of the source material on the big screen. Sure, there should be creative freedom to interpret a character and do something new with them, but not to the degree of rewriting their origins. In my opinion, if you change the origin story, race, or gender, you have in a sense lost a part of what makes that character, that specific character.

All of these observations boil down to a few main points. Good stories aren’t allowed to just exist or remain sacred anymore. They are being melted down to fit into today’s mold to be retold to audiences, and it doesn’t work well. They aren’t allowed to keep their ‘good ending’ or the impact they had on us when we first encountered these stories and characters.

My favorite Doctor Who character arc is the story of Donna Noble. I just recently rewatches season four of Doctor Who, and when Donna left the show, I bawled like a baby. I realized that part of why she was my favorite, other than the fact that I relate to her on a personal level, is that her character has a relatively short run as compared to other characters in the series. Her story is short, yet impactful. The reason why it is so impactful is that the writers allowed her story to end in a meaningful way. Of course, we get to see her again in one or two later episodes, but she isn’t the same Donna that we knew before. And that is okay.

I think that for something to be good, and I mean really good, it has to have a meaningful ending. The type of ending that makes you feel hopeful, moved to compassion, or want to fight evil with a lightsaber when you leave the movie theater.

We as audiences, also need to accept the fact that not getting more of a certain character or franchise is okay as well. Sometimes, it’s better for stories to have a short but meaningful run. In the end, that is what makes them so important to us.

It is about the impact of the story, and changing things about what makes that story unique or remaking it to appeal to modern agendas just doesn’t work and will inevitably leave the story devoid of anything meaningful for the audience. Good things need to be allowed to end and retain their original qualities to have value to audiences going forward.

I hope that soon, this trend in the media dies off. I would love to see new characters and new stories that have good values and meaning to people. I want stories full of adventure, hope, and characters that everyone can see themselves in, regardless of whatever race or gender that character is on the screen. I want to be part of making those stories for people in the future.