I hope anyone actually sees this thread hidden here in the farthest corner of the forum.
I am a huge fan of some classic pulp series and especially the "neo-pulps" of the recent decades, like Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Hellboy, and Metal Gear Solid. While it's mostly cheap entertainment, the better works are often quite outstanding as the most exciting and imaginative stories and movies I've ever come across. Perhaps most writers are indeed hacks who slap together some stereotypes by a simple formula, but even those were hugely popular. And it's not random, there is something about them they are doing very right.
Does anyone know if there are any works of literary criticism about the pulp genre? It seems like something you could fill whole tomes with, analyzing typical structures and elements and the various effects they have. I'd love to read something like that.