Agatha All Along And The Penguin Are Making Marvel/DC History - Does Anyone Care?

It's not quite on par with the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers both reaching the World Series for the first time in over 40 years, but everything has lined up just right for a similar knock-down, drag-out fight worthy of the biggest superhero rivalry around ... and, yet, this one hasn't seemed to move the needle much at all. A penguin and a witch from two opposing franchises both made their streaming debuts within a day of each other, becoming some of the most well-received entries in years. Whether or not anyone else beyond the most hardcore fans have taken notice, there's something to be said for the unique Marvel/DC history made by "Agatha All Along" and "The Penguin" in recent weeks. For the first time ever, two spin-off shows from the two biggest comic book properties around hit the streaming space at the exact same time and set up a WWE-worthy rumble for the ages among the fanbases.

A gritty, grounded crime drama starring one of Batman's fiercest foes going head to head with a magic-infused, genre-bending adventure following a coven of villainous witches? The last time the nerd-o-sphere felt primed and ready for an all-out fandom war was 2022, when "House of the Dragon" and "The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power" went up against each other in a fight for prestige fantasy dominance. That particular brawl lived up to the hype and then some, both shows feeding into each other and ratcheting up the online conversation to a fever pitch.

This time around, though, the utter lack of buzz generated by "Agatha All Along" and "The Penguin" feels nothing short of shocking. Rarely before have Marvel and DC thrown some of their biggest heavy-hitting franchises at one another in such a short amount of time. In a post-Barbenheimer world, have audiences just turned numb to pop culture events that can't fully measure up? Is the slow death of the superhero bubble to blame? Or maybe something else is going on here.

No prayer circles necessary here — by all accounts, "The Penguin" and "Agatha All Along" are considered hits for their respective studios. Disney was all too eager to announce that its coven had brewed upwards of nine million views for the premiere episode in its first week of streaming, while HBO boasted an even more robust 10.4 million viewers for the premiere of "The Penguin" after 11 total days. Of course, this isn't a case where the fates of either series are hanging in the balance, anyway. "Agatha All Along" was always planned and marketed as a limited series without any real possibility for a second season, while the reality of production schedules and logistics dictates that "The Penguin" could only ever lay the groundwork for director Matt Reeves' impending sequel to "The Batman." Even record-breaking audience ratings wouldn't have shifted the dial one way or the other.

Still, the numbers they have pulled in don't tell the whole story, either. Disney+ has perfected the art of obfuscating whatever viewership numbers it's really dealing with, opting for arbitrary and vague-sounding labels like "minutes watched" and conveniently choosing not to define what actually constitutes a "view" for its public releases. Still, the simple fact that Disney hasn't crowned "Agatha All Along" as its biggest streaming series ever speaks volumes. Elsewhere, as an HBO series, "The Penguin" is at least beholden to more conventional metrics for any cable series. That means we can directly compare it to major titles like "House of the Dragon" or (for a more apt title) DC's "Peacemaker" ... both of which garnered generally higher ratings across the board.

Whatever narratives one might be tempted to level at these shows, the superhero bubble remains intact and audiences do seem to be tuning in ... just not at the same levels as they have for prior shows from Marvel and DC.

Are viewership numbers alone enough to explain why neither series appears to be dominating the discourse these days? I propose another theory that might loom even larger than any other factor, and it has to do with the supposed "importance" of each series. Anecdotally, casual fans I've talked to — even ones who've kept up with a surprising amount of Marvel installments over the years since "Avengers: Endgame" wrapped things up — simply didn't think "Agatha All Along" was all that "necessary" in the big picture. It's tough to imagine Elizabeth Olsen's Wanda Maximoff popping by for a surprise cameo, for instance, or that some game-changing reveal regarding Aubrey Plaza's character will somehow affect the events of "Avengers: Doomsday." (If anything, viewers have even more homework on the horizon when another spin-off tentatively titled "Vision Quest" launches sometime next year.) As for "The Penguin," a Batman spin-off without any actual Batman in it was always going to be a tougher sell. Colin Farrell's performance as the mobster Oz Cobb was credited by and large as the scene-stealing highlight from "The Batman," but was that enough to get general audiences on board with what is essentially "The Sopranos" in Gotham City?

Maybe it was never about viewership after all. Could it be as simple as the idea that neither story, self-contained and small-scale as they are, lent themselves to a "Game of Thrones"-sized phenomenon in the first place? There have been plenty of plot twists and surprise reveals along the way, all of which have redefined how "The Penguin" and "Agatha All Along" have unfolded throughout their respective seasons thus far. But compared to the likes of "WandaVision" setting up Wanda's descent into villainy in "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness" or "The Batman" redefining the most popular superhero ever, perhaps the deck was always stacked against these spin-off shows.

After all that, readers would be forgiven for thinking that this op-ed has been building to some scathing critique of how Marvel and DC have been operating with their two biggest shows currently airing. After all, isn't it a massive failure that you could conceivably bump into somebody on the street who hasn't bothered watching a second of either series? What I'm proposing instead, however, is the exact opposite. Against all odds, the model set down by "The Penguin" and "Agatha All Along" could be the path forward to a better superhero ecosystem — one where not every piece of media needs to be some groundbreaking, event-sized phenomenon, and one where those who take the time to invest in them are rewarded by writing that's actually worth their time.

Would it be too controversial to claim that those following along with "The Penguin" and "Agatha All Along" have been treated to some of each franchise's best and most entertaining stories in years? Somehow, turning the fearsome Penguin into a mama's boy desperate for love and acceptance has made him into one of the property's most fascinating and well-rounded figures. And by actually giving a charismatic actor like Kathryn Hahn the time and space to explore her own boundaries and tell her own story — without being derailed by Mephisto red herrings or other unnecessary distractions, mind you — Agatha Harkness has transformed from a walking meme into an actual character. While I wouldn't go so far as to call either series on par with the best "Star Wars" offering in years, let's call this the "Andor" Effect, where simply allowing writers to tell stories they're interested in within the confines of a major franchise becomes a win-win for everyone.

In fact, there's a case to be made that Marvel and DC ought to continue prioritizing strong scripts and standalone narratives above shared-universe extravaganzas. Neither series is perfect, and we still have weeks to go before they stick the landing (or not). But if you ask me, "Agatha All Along" and "The Penguin" are pointing the way forward — lack of buzz or not. Sometimes, maybe less really can be more.