I think sales numbers is a really horrible argument for the health of a franchise honestly. It’s what the executives aim for, but I don’t actually think it’s the right thing to look at. Any piece of art that is constantly trying to get more people to like it is going to lose its soul. It just becomes generic slop. The foundation of the franchise is what created the inertia that allowed 3 and 4 to succeed, but was the quality of 3 and 4 better just because it sold more? I don’t think that’s necessarily true. 3 and 4 is what created a situation that led to the eventual decline.
I think sales numbers is a really horrible argument for the health of a franchise honestly. It’s what the executives aim for, but I don’t actually think it’s the right thing to look at. Any piece of art that is constantly trying to get more people to like it is going to lose its soul. It just becomes generic slop. The foundation of the franchise is what created the inertia that allowed 3 and 4 to succeed, but was the quality of 3 and 4 better just because it sold more? I don’t think that’s necessarily true. 3 and 4 is what created a situation that led to the eventual decline.