Since 2011, Marvel has released official short films, dubbed Marvel One-Shots, as special features on the Blu-Ray releases of their movies. They do this in an effort to not only boost home video sales, but to flesh out the corners of their Cinematic Universe and introduce new characters and stories that didn’t quite fit within the feature films. However, new Blu-Ray details for Captain America: The Winter Soldier arrived today and noticeably lacked any information about a new One-Shot.
That’s because, for the first time in three years, there won’t be a new One-Shot. While this isn’t damning news or a reason for alarm, it is a bit strange, especially considering that Marvel Co-President Louis D’Esposito has claimed that they plan to keep pumping out the short films and have ideas for “half a dozen more.”
Also, the One-Shots have been extremely successful so far. Originally, they helped the character of Agent Coulson gain a bit of importance in the MCU which would eventually lead him to star as the head of the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. TV show. Likewise, the Agent Carter short included on the Iron Man 3 Blu-Ray received enough buzz for ABC to give the character her own series, which premieres later this year.
So, if the One-Shots are successful at boosting home video sales, and help the MCU as a whole by generating buzz for new characters, why not include one with The Winter Soldier? It’s likely that they just didn’t have enough time to film one, or didn’t want to take any attention away from Guardians of the Galaxy and next year’s Avengers: Age of Ultron. Or, perhaps they’re saving it to be released alongside Guardians, as a short film to play before the movie (like Pixar’s short films?) That’s a bit of a stretch, but still a possibility.
Or, it could just boil down to Marvel not having a short that fit within the current MCU framework, which is in a bit of an exciting flux after the events of The Winter Soldier.
You can view the full details for the Captain America: The Winter Soldier Blu-Ray release (which is available for pre-order today and will arrive on various formats on September 9, 2014), on the next page. Check them out and let us know if you’ll be pre-ordering.