Sequel-Baiting

 See you in a few years!

Ever since the days of the serial, we've had this practice in entertainment that we've come to call sequel-baiting. For those of you who don't know what sequel-baiting is, it's when a story ends in such a way that there's this open-ended hole that can only be filled in with a subsequent installation of the series, the story is incomplete, or there's something that happens at the end that raises all sorts of questions.

The operating theory is that the incomplete nature of the story will compel everyone to eventually see the sequel, which would mean that those watching the current story will want to see the sequel regardless of the quality of the original story, since they would, at the very least, want to see this story completed. "I've got to know what happens, right?"

Sequel-baiting is a bit of a gamble, and really depends on the quality of the main story and whether or not the interest in it warrants any further storytelling. It depends a great deal on the strength of the whole narrative that's being stretched over those few productions, and interest in the sequels that have been sequel-baited is almost completely dependent on having seen the previous installations, a problem that's common between any serial media that's incredibly dependent on continuity and on tugging at the audience's strings to get them to keep watching, if only to finally get resolution on a plot.

Now, theoretically, this does work. People go into something hoping for a complete story. They do not get one, but they are promised a completion. They're basically stuck, aren't they? If they want the full story, wait for the rest of it to come out. If you didn't like the installation of the story you watched, maybe you'll like the next one. And maybe the next one. And maybe the one after that.

Yeah, you can probably see a flaw in this mentality.

If the audience is given the opportunity to consider "If I didn't like the first one, why would I like the next one?" it's highly unlikely they'll go see the next installation of your series if they aren't interested. It would take a shining recommendation from someone they trusted to get them into it. There's also that chance that the sequel is never going to be made, or the original story was so widely derided that a sequel is no longer feasible– Green Lantern springs to the forefront as an example, though its really big loose end is that Sinestro isn't quite an evil bastard yet. One could argue that it's a kind of thing only fans would really know about, but just look at this guy.

Between the Dick Dastardly mustache, the pointed ears and the red (kind of) skin, it's a wonder that he wasn't the villain of the Green Lantern movies, to the casual moviegoer. This guy looks like the devil, only he's an alien with a superpower ring. A lot of people have given up on this being a franchise with any feasibility of having a follow-up, what with the first installation's dismal failure.


Of course, the first movie doesn't need to be bad for a sequel to be unnecessary, though. There are other good stories that ended with every loose end tied up that got bad sequels anyway. A lot of people would think of the direct-to-video Disney sequels, though what I'm thinking about immediately is the Highlander series. For a more comprehensive look at those movies, check out the reviews on the Spoony Experiment, but suffice it to say that these are sequels that were neither necessary, nor were they very good. They were unnecessary by virtue of the fact that Highlander ended with virtually no room for expansion and no real questions that needed answering, other than "How did that happily ever after work out?"

Now, disclaimer: stories like Lord of the Rings are justified in sequel-baiting, because they tell the story of a long, arduous journey that should be cut up into a few slices. Not all sequel-baiting is bad... But it can be poorly executed, like every other trope out there.

So how do you solve this? How do you resolve the issue of "either slam the sequel in their faces or leave no thread loose"? Really, all you need to focus on is to make sure that the story itself stands on its own. If you really, really want to make a sequel out of it, though, have no fear, for depending on the universe you established, there may be options– just consider the strength of your next story and make sure it can stand alone.

Since I'm on a Marvel kick, let's consider Thor and The Avengers. Loki falls off the Bifrost and disappears. He's presumed dead by everyone there.

But... But I'm too pretty to die!

Thor and the rest of Asgard mourn his "Death." Then we get to The Avengers, which has been hinted at for years, and WHAT'S THIS?!

 

Well, it's a comic book movie. We aren't actually shocked, but pretend to be surprised.

He's back, and meaner than ever?! But he was dead in the last movie... 

Wasn't he? 

The fact that he was rescued from the clutches of oblivion was a plot point in The Avengers, but the fact that he was snatched out of the soup wasn't necessary for the resolution of Thor. Hooray, harmony between loose ends and having a complete story that doesn't suck without supplementary material!

Just a quick side note– the teasers at the end of Marvel movies don't count for me. They're not essential to the story, and may as well just be previews or extras.

So, yeah. For those of you who will be future creators, or are even creators now, don't worry too much about setting up a sequel. Just worry about the story you're making now. Maybe leave a tiny loose end, but make sure it's not something people would think about or notice. When it comes up in the next story, the people who know about it will feel smart for remembering, and the people who don't will be surprised but intrigued to hear the explanation.

Timere Defectum, everybody. I might rant again soon about just something in general, or something more specific. Stay tuned!

Green Lantern is property of DC Comics and Warner Bros. Highlander is property of 20th Century Fox. Thanos, the Avengers, and all related characters are property of Marvel and Disney.