It has been nearly five years since the world collectively forgot the boy beneath the mask. When Spider-Man: No Way Home ended, Peter Parker was left entirely alone - stripped of his friends, his family, and his identity. Going into Spider-Man: Brand New Day, the most pressing question wasn't about which costumed supervillain our friendly neighbourhood web-slinger would have to punch next, but rather, what was actually left of the hero underneath the spandex?

When the new cinematic DC Universe officially launched its flagship hero back into the sky, the world looked up in awe. Superman was exactly what audiences and critics had been begging for over the last decade: a pitch-perfect execution of the classic superhero mythos. It deserved every single ounce of the hype it received. It was a triumph of modern blockbuster filmmaking that knew precisely what it was. But less than a year later, the skies have darkened over Metropolis.

There is a strange, specific kind of nostalgia gripping modern audiences: a collective ache for a cinematic era many of us barely lived through. Scroll through social media today and you will not find viral edits of the latest streaming romantic comedy. You will find a loop of Heath Ledger dancing across concrete bleachers, Alicia Silverstone spinning in a yellow plaid skirt, Jennifer Garner sobbing over a pink plastic dollhouse.