When Phase 4 of the MCU was announced by Marvel Studios, fans were excited about the concept of a Multiverse. The phase started with a bang, with WandaVision revealing glimpses of this concept. But, at several points in the past year, Phase 4 seemed directionless. Many of the projects seemed disjointed, while others felt like space fillers in the MCU timeline. With Feige announcing the end of Phase 4 with the release of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, is the studio finally headed in the right direction again?
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To recap, Phase 1 of the MCU began with 2008’s Iron Man. Even though the phase only consisted of six films, it culminated with the team-up that fans had been waiting for in 2012’s The Avengers. Phase 2 once again consisted of six films, but introduced a bunch of new characters, including the Guardians of the Galaxy, Ant-Man, Wanda, Vision, and the Winter Soldier. It added members to the Avengers’ team, resulting in 2015’s Avengers: Age of Ultron.
Phase 3, on the other hand, had a lot more to offer, and brought along Black Panther, Spider-Man, Captain Marvel, and even Doctor Strange to the team of the good guys. But, most importantly, it brought the timeline to the epic conclusion in 2019’s Avengers: Endgame. The first three phases were all interconnected, leading to the inevitable battle with Thanos. From post-credit scenes, to Easter eggs, everything hinted towards the epic confrontation, and the film was a huge success as it was the perfect pay-off for a decade-long journey.
To pick up the pieces after Thanos was finally killed would have been a difficult process for Marvel Studios. It had to create an entire phase with most of their original heroes missing in action. Tony Stark, Steve Rogers, and Natasha Romanoff were taken off the roster, and the three heroes, along with others, played a huge role in making the first decade of the MCU a success. Many of the characters who participated in films like Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame were now scattered, working on solo projects or spin-off series. Wanda, one of the most powerful Avengers, was transformed into a villain after fans finally got to learn of her backstory in WandaVision. Designing an entire phase of films and series without their staple characters must have been a challenge, and perhaps one of the reasons that Phase 4 felt subpar.
The latest phase of the MCU has been an interesting ride for fans and heroes alike. While Wanda discovered the Multiversal version of her children Billy and Tommy, Loki realized what messing with the sacred timeline does. Sam Wilson finally donned the Captain America suit, and fans got closure on Romanoff’s story. Several new characters were introduced, including the likes of Shang-Chi, Yelena Belova, Kamala Khan, and Kate Bishop. Some fantastic films and series have been released as part of the Phase 4 so far, but many of them did not contribute to the Multiverse Saga or helped further the MCU’s plot.
The Eternals arrived in the MCU amid much fanfare, but left fans feeling disappointed and rather confused, as it raised several questions about the MCU’s timeline. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and Thor: Love and Thunder received poor reviews from both fans and critics, and led to many fans talking about the MCU’s continuity issues once again. Black Widow offered some closure, but felt like an afterthought to many. The weekly format of the Disney Plus shows was appreciated by many, but some of the series suffered due to varying budgets, not enough runtime, and weak storylines.
However, all of it comes to an end soon. At the SDCC, Marvel Studios announced Phase 5 and 6 of the MCU, confirming several of the previously mentioned projects, and adding more exciting ones to the timeline. The Multiverse Saga is now real, and it is confirmed that it will culminate in two Avengers movies, Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars. This gives fans hope that the MCU still has a lot more to offer, and following the various films and series will all be worth it in the end. The announcements at SDCC seem to have saved the MCU from being dismissed by many fans, as it offered them something to look forward to after a rather inconsistent phase.
After the grand Infinity Saga, fans assumed that the studio had a direction in mind for the MCU. With television series introduced into the mix, the expectations for Phase 4 increased, and fans wanted more detailed backstories of their favorite heroes. However, to contend with one of the highest grossing films ever is not an easy task. Marvel Studios set a really high benchmark with Avengers: Endgame, and while Spider-Man: No Way Home came close to it, in both reviews and box office results, bringing the ultimate team-up to life is no joke. Kang the Conqueror, who is confirmed to be an Avengers-level threat now, was introduced in Loki, but hasn’t even been mentioned since. Perhaps the studio crumbled under the pressure of fan expectations. With every new project, fan reviews only seem to be getting worse, and it makes one wonder whether the studio is losing out on its loyal fan base. Will the next phase be able to stop the MCU’s decline?
Apart from the two Avengers films, Phase 5 and 6 of the MCU seem promising in many ways. They bring back the God of Mischief for another season of Loki, and judging by the popularity of Season 1, fans will likely be tuning into Disney Plus for more adventures. They will also meet Kang in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, after previously being introduced to one of his variants. Phase 5 also brings back the Guardians of the Galaxy, who were last seen in action in Avengers: Endgame, and were almost wasted in Thor: Love and Thunder. Fans will also get to see the cosmic team-up between Captain Marvel, Kamala, and Monica Rambeau, Sam Wilson continuing his journey as the new Captain America, and will be reuniting with Nick Fury. One project that many fans are also excited about is Daredevil: Born Again, which brings back Charlie Cox’s fan-favorite character to the small screen, this time as an official part of the MCU. The question, however, is whether this next phase will be able to live up to fan expectations. Time will tell.
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