Marvel has more than three months to right the ship, but the initial reception hardly marks an ideal start for a new franchise.

Fans took to social media to gripe about new ABC series "Inhumans" after getting a first look at the cast in full superhero attire, which many fans compared to Halloween costumes.

The Inhuman’s Black Bolt. Artist: Jim Cheung. Jim Cheung | Marvel Entertainment

'Double-edged sword'

"Inhumans" may have one more handicap ahead of its debut: Showrunner Scott Buck was also the creative force behind Marvel's "Iron Fist," a mystical martial arts series whose premiere on Netflix was dogged by controversy and negative feedback. Some fans have already taken to Twitter to lament the choice. @Jayelliott6ix: Petition to keep Scott Buck away from Marvel Television @Hello_Tailor: judging by Iron Fist + the early response to Inhumans, Scott Buck is carving out a niche role as "the one Marvel filmmaker nobody likes." Is a bit of the Marvel magic wearing off? To be sure, the studio is faring well in the online streaming space. With the exception of "Iron Fist," Marvel's gritty, violent Netflix series have largely drawn critical acclaim. So have its two ABC shows, "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." and "Agent Carter." Still, "Agent Carter" lasted for just two short seasons, totaling 18 episodes. "Agents" has seen ratings slip over the last four years. It premiered in 2013 with an 8 p.m. time slot and had crept back to 10 p.m. by last year, ostensibly to allow the show to take more risks, according to ABC President Channing Dungey. "Inhumans" gives Marvel an opportunity to breathe new life into its network television business. The plot revolves around a royal family that rules a secluded race of beings enhanced by alien genetic engineering. It's seen by some as a stand-in for Marvel Comics' more popular "X-Men" property, whose film rights are still held by Twentieth Century Fox. However, data from marketing technology firm Amobee suggests fan blogs that picked up on the Twitter drubbing weren't just cherry-picking tweets. Sentiment was far more negative than positive after Entertainment Weekly released the photo, according to an analysis performed for CNBC using Amobee data. The firm counted nearly 27,000 tweets that either mentioned or hashtagged "Inhumans" between May 4 and 9. More than a third were negative, while just over a quarter were positive.