Another Marvel series is forgoing weekly episodes, opting for a historical binge release on Disney+.
Recent months have shown the streamer experimenting with how to release MCU shows. For instance, What If...? Season 2 embraced a daily release pattern while Echo enjoyed a dual debut on Hulu and Disney+ where it dropped all five episodes simultaneously.
Now, Marvel's next new show is upping the ante by premiering its entire 14-episode second season on a single day.
Marvel's Biggest Binge Release for Disney+
According to a now-deleted TikTok from the Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur crew, shared via Reddit, all 14 episodes of Season 2 will be released on Disney+ on Saturday, February 3.
To date, this is the largest number of new episodes from a Marvel show to debut on the streamer in one day.
But why are 14 episodes dropping at once? Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur's supervising director and co-producer, Ben Juwono, shared on X that Disney wants audiences "to binge it:"
"They want you to binge it. That’s the default mode. They want to see big big number performance on the big drops. It’s very important to watch them all when they come out and not wait. They’re not looking for weekly performance anymore because it’s streaming and not cable."
Binge releases are a new, but not unprecedented, strategy in Marvel's playbook, having just dropped Echo all at once. Could more upcoming series take this approach, such as other future animated shows like X-Men '97 when it releases?
According to Juwono, Disney's metrics seem to prefer a binge-release approach. He went on to explain on X that the weekly model results in "a drop in viewership because people don't need to watch it when it airs:"
"When something drops weekly on streaming by default every week there’s a drop in viewership because people don’t need to watch it when it airs. It sits there and you can watch it whenever. Unlike cable, if you miss the 8pm premiere you can’t watch it until rerun."
The producer admitted that the binge model is not so great for creators who have to see "years of hard work being dropped in one go," but studios want audiences to "binge hard and binge early:"
"So they drop everything at once with the hope 'hours of episodes = more hours of viewership!' It’s not great to see years of hard work being dropped in one go, but it is what it is. This is where we’re at with streaming. Binge hard and binge early."
For reference, Marvel's Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur is a Disney Channel animated television series that follows Lunella Lafayette, a 13-year-old genius turned superhero, and her red T-Rex companion, Devil Dinosaur.
Familiar faces from the MCU have also been known to make an appearance.
The Emmy award-winning series made its Disney Channel debut on February 10, 2023, followed by the release of its first six episodes on Disney+ on February 15.
[ Moon Girl Star Diamond White Talks MCU Appearance Prospects ]
Will Marvel Shows Continue to Binge Drop Disney+ Shows?
There is no doubt the Multiversal Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur's whopping 14-episode release is a first for a Marvel show.
However, having such a hit series opt for a condensed, simultaneous release on the heels of What If...? Season 2 and Echo supports Ben Juwono's insight.
Perhaps a binge model is not indicative of a lack of confidence or a poor product but a smarter streaming strategy.
It will be interesting to see if this decision pays off once Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur's second season debuts, and if other Marvel shows will continue to break with the brand's once-traditional weekly release pattern.
Season 2 of Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur arrives Saturday, February 3 on Disney+.
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