Plenty has been written about this already, but the Marvel Cinematic Universe has nearly completely diverged from the rest of the moviegoing landscape. It's become its own ecosystem, self-sustaining and capable of generating billions of dollars in revenue and capturing the attention of the masses at will. I'm certainly counting myself among the franchise of franchises' legion of fans, though I'll admit at times it's not such a great group to be a part of around awards season.
After a pandemic-ravaged release schedule saw 2020 become the first year since the early 2010s without an official Marvel release, the studio announced its return to the forefront of the pop culture conversation with genre-bending projects featuring award-winning talent. A lot of was really good, but was all of it up to the lofty standard Kevin Feige and Co. have created for themselves?
NOTE: Any of the projects listed below may feature descriptions that contain spoilers. You've been warned.
8. Black Widow Of course, it was great to see Scarlett Johansson, whose portrayal of Natasha Romanoff served as the moral backbone for the first iteration of the Avengers, get her shot at leading a solo film. It's just that, it could have been so much earlier, and probably better. Yes, we got the great addition of Florence Pugh as Yelena, who seems poised to remain a fan-favorite however her character weaves into the grand scheme of (at least) Phase Four, but this was meant to be the sendoff ScarJo deserved, and ended up being a showcase--or a tryout--for a few different pieces that the MCU wanted to add to the chessboard as it moves forward. Throw in a big-screen version of Taskmaster that doesn't quite evoke the excitement its comic book counterpart did, and you've got a rare movie from Marvel that leaves more to be desired.
7. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier While I was happy to see this series take the first big swing at social commentary and how its characters interact with racial inequity in the Universe, there's some wacky stuff that went on here. From Don Cheadle's pair of scenes in the first episodes, earning him one of the easiest paychecks of his life, to the anticlimactic ending to the Flag Smashers (particularly the imposing Erin Kellyman, who deserved more of an opportunity), The Falcon and the Winter Soldier clearly wanted to focus on the development of the relationship between its titular characters, but leaves so little time for everyone else (save for John Walker, who gets an MVP-level performance out of Wyatt Russell) that things start to run together after a while. I also wasn't a huge fan of the turn Sharon Carter's character took, but given the post-credit scene she's involved in, we may get more of a look into her shift soon.
6. What If...?
Sure, it's the least-essential material the MCU has ever released, but I'll be damned if it isn't fun. While I didn't end up feeling that this was appointment viewing like some of the other series, it became clear by the end of the season, which I hope is the first of many, that they were taking some fun risks and turns with this one. I was especially impressed with the inclusion of the Ultron episode, which suddenly made each and every episode more relevant for the epic season finale. One of the series I'm definitely rooting for a second season of, especially to keep Jeffrey Wright's Watcher around.
Eternals Kudos to Marvel for giving the reins to an award-winning director and riding with them, no matter the consequences. Sure, Eternals is one of the worst-reviewed movies of the series, but it explores a new, unseen part of the MCU that doesn't need to connect to any other hero in this universe (although it inevitably will). Yes, it's long, and it's drawn out at times, but with the amount of mythology it establishes, and the care put into giving each piece of the ensemble their time to shine, it's difficult to fault Chloe Zhao for turning in a movie that rivals Infinity War's runtime. More often than not, it pays off.
5. Loki Easily the most pleasantly surprising series for me. I know people loved Tom Hiddleston as Loki, but I just couldn't find the energy to get pumped up for this series. That all went away once Sophia Di Martino's Sylvie showed up, and sent the MCU into a bold, exciting new direction. The super-surprising inclusion of Jonathan Majors in the season finale, followed immediately by the announcement that there would be a second season, shows that Marvel knew what it had on its hands immediately, thanks to inspired work by Owen Wilson, and more Lokis than anyone would ever want to encounter. The MCU is clearly headed to very weird territory, and having the God of Mischief being the one to take us there first was a great call.
4. Hawkeye I don't know if there was a more perfect casting in MCU history, besides Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man, than Hailee Steinfeld being chosen to play Kate Bishop. She's the perfect buddy cop for the totally over-it Jeremy Renner playing Clint Barton: a spunky up-and-comer who's got loads of potential and plenty to learn. What I loved so much about this series was how it used New York as one of the central characters of the series and the MCU as a whole. In addition to the introduction of Kate Bishop, we also get a first look at Echo, the anticpated return of Yelena to close a loop left by Black Widow, and the unexpected-yet-welcomed return of Vincent D'onofrio as Kingpin. Seriously, if you think he only came back for that, you're fooling yourself. With all of that going on, though, we still get a great look at Clint Barton as he passes on the mantle of Hawkeye to Bishop, who looks like she's going to be a great scene waiting to happen anytime Steinfeld and Florence Pugh are paired together.
3. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings One of the best pieces of praise I can give to Shang-Chi is that it's evident everyone involved in it wanted to make this movie the best it could be. From Simu Liu's submission to Hollywood's A-List to Tony Leung's phenomenal villain turn as Wenwu, the acting performances are pitch-perfect across the board. The movie's roots in mythology allow us to see a new corner of this ever-expanding universe, and there are even a few questions left unanswered that will set up nicely for the next step in Shang-Chi's ascension into the Avengers. Marvel didn't need this to be a hit, but I'm sure they're overjoyed with what they got out of it.
2. WandaVision I have to imagine that WandaVision was the first ace out of the bullpen of Marvel's series by design. From the rapid speculation, constant misdirects, and superb work by Elizabeth Olsen tying it all together, this series showed off the potential these types of projects will have going forward. The once-a-week release model was perfect for the reveals of Evan Peters' casting and the reveal of Kathryn Hahn as Agatha Harkness to simmer and set YouTube reviewers' feeds ablaze with theories, and even if things didn't work out the way many were hoping (I still think I saw Mephisto in there somewhere), we still saw the exact goal of the first round of series on Disney+: to showcase those characters we've seen in the MCU, but maybe haven't learned enough about yet. This could not have been a better first venture into "TV" for the MCU.
1. Spider-Man: No Way Home Shut it the fuck down. How is any Marvel project without the word Avengers in front of it possibly going to top what Tom Holland, Zendaya, and Jon Watts brought out in No Way Home? From the mind-bending Mirror Dimension fight scene to the absurd interaction between villains across the Spider-Verse, and the carefully-constructed formation of the Spider-Trio (you've had three weeks to see the movie now, I'm sorry), there are so many places this whole thing could have fallen apart under the weight of its ambition. However, centering everything around Tom Holland's Peter Parker gives every scene a purpose and an explanation as to why it was needed. Was there an abundance of fan service? Yes, of course there was. But it didn't come at the sake of telling another chapter of the MCU's Peter Parker's story, and it's the finest one to date.
Overall, it was another banner year for the MCU. Their foray into limited series shows that they'll be able to use that medium to their advantage into the future, and their stranglehold on box office was on full display, as evidenced by No Way Home cracking the Top 10 highest grossing movies of all time before it'd been in theaters for a month. We've got three movies due out before 2023 rolls around, and so far we've only seen footage from Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which looks like it's going to live up to its name. We'll also be getting more series, including what looks to be a legal drama in She-Hulk and an unhinged Oscar Isaac as Moon Knight. Thor: Love and Thunder will establish Thor as the first MCU hero to get a fourth solo movie, although it looks like Chris Hemsworth will at least be sharing the mantle of the God of Thunder in that one. Come November, all eyes will be on Wakanda as Ryan Coogler and Letitia Wright offer up the next installment of Black Panther, the first we'll see of the hero since Chadwick Boseman's tragic passing. There's a lot to look forward to, and as I mentioned before: things appear to be getting weirder and weirder, and I'm all for it. See you in the theaters!
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