You’ve become part of a bigger universe.
When Marvel’s “WandaVision” premiered on Disney+ one month ago, I realized how much I’ve missed getting new Marvel content on a regular basis. Seeing the opening Marvel Studios logo with its bombastic fanfare was comforting to me, and seeing it precede a brand new Marvel project gave me a thrill that I haven’t had the pleasure of experiencing in about a year and a half.
Like many people, as a child I had the vague interest in the classic comic book characters. And oddly, when you think about it, I feel like we have more of an initial attachment to some of the DC characters — when you think superheroes, I think some of the first ones that come to mind are the DC big three: Superman, Wonder Woman, and Batman. Of course, Marvel has some big ones like Spider-Man and Captain America, but until the birth of the MCU, it feels like many of the other characters like Iron Man or Thor were considered sort of “second-tier”, even though they are true classics.
But as I got a little older, the Marvel universe became a little more familiar to me, thanks in no small part to the 1990s X-Men animated series, which had a pretty big impact on a lot of people my age at that time. It expanded on my interest in Marvel, and before I knew it, I wanted to consume every bit of Marvel lore that I could. And back in those days, we had a local comic book store right in town, a mere walk away. Unfortunately, that store didn’t last too long and without convenient access to that world, I eventually dropped off of the comic book world.
That didn’t completely diminish my interest, though. Sure, it’s hard to keep up with the storylines, but these characters always fascinated me and certainly didn’t lose their allure. So when an Iron Man movie was announced, I was intrigued. I knew the character when I was a kid. He wasn’t my favorite or anything, but I remember he was an interesting character, and I thought it could make for a fun movie. Nothing could have prepared me, however, for the casting announcement of Robert Downey, Jr as Tony Stark. As a kid, I had always liked Downey, and even as he went through his troubles, I hoped to see him bounce back. Before his casting, I fell in love with Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, which is a brilliant movie (and one I haven’t watched in way too long, so I need to get on that).
So fast forward to May of 2008, and Iron Man is released. Aside from the release of a James Bond movie, I don’t think I was that excited for a movie release in some time. And the movie absolutely delivered. Downey delivered and truly made the character his own, to the degree that many portrayals of the character seem to be borrowing from his take. And the most thrilling thing to see was the arrival of Samuel L Jackson in the post-credits scene as Nick Fury, setting up the possibility of The Avengers. It all just seemed so…impossible.
And movie by movie, Marvel Studios added to their universe. They slowly built up their stable of characters, and cast them brilliantly. When we finally got The Avengers in 2012, even though we had some minor crossovers already, it was mindblowing to see all of these iconic characters, in the flesh, on the screen together (combined with Alan Silvestri’s epic theme, no less).
Where do they go from there, we all asked? How do you top the untop-able? Phase Two begins with the mixed bag of Iron Man 3 (as much as I feel it is a very, very flawed movie, I can’t help but enjoy myself immensely as I watch it) and the utter dullness of Thor: The Dark World. Not a great start. The next year brings us Captain America: The Winter Soldier, which despite my appreciation for the character and Chris Evans in the role, was my least anticipated movie of Phase Two. For some reason, the idea just felt so…dull. And with the Russo brothers directing, the men who gave us You, Me, and Dupree, I couldn’t help but be concerned. But man, I love being wrong sometimes. Not only did Winter Soldier exceed my expectations, but it remains one of my favorite MCU movies, and I think, arguably the best they’ve made. And of course, a few months later, Guardians of the Galaxy becomes a huge smash hit, the property that probably nobody saw coming, but everyone loves now. Then Phase Two wraps up with the rather underwhelming Avengers: Age of Ultron and (one of my favorites) Ant-man, again, another character that nobody really asked for, but was just a damn fun movie.
Where do they go from there? How can they possibly get bigger? Oh, we’ll tell you, replies Marvel. You liked The Avengers? Well, we’re going to give you all of the Avengers, plus more new characters in Captain America: Civil War. You’ll get Ant-man, you’ll get Black Panther, and here’s the best Spider-Man put to the screen so far. Awesome. But we’re also going to expand on the scope of the universe with Doctor Strange (which I also love, but let’s face it, they played it safe — it could have been weirder and more out there). They give us another Guardians, which seems to be a mixed bag for people (I personally love it, and like it more than the first one, to be honest). The new Spider-Man gets his own movie, and Tom Holland continues to prove how much he owns the role. Taika Waititi doubles down on the wackiness with Thor Ragnarok (like Iron Man 3, I disagree with some of the choices made here, but whenever I watch it, I can’t help but enjoy it). Then Marvel makes history further with Black Panther’s solo movie, a smash hit of epic proportions (and in my opinion, the best villain the MCU has seen — no, not Killmonger, but with the woefully underutilized Klaue, played so wonderfully over the top by Andy Serkis).
But Marvel doesn’t let up, and just when you think they can’t possibly top themselves, they give us Avengers: Infinity War, which gives us every. Character. Ever. Okay, not exactly EVERY, but damn close. And most importantly, they do it WELL, while also setting the table for an even bigger undertaking a year later with Avengers: Endgame. Before we go there, though, we take a pit stop with Ant-man and the Wasp (another of my top MCU movies, honestly — I love this movie, it’s a blast, and Evangeline Lily as Hope van Dyne/The Wasp is my favorite female MCU character) and Captain Marvel (which felt very rushed in order to work her into Endgame, it could have been something special, but felt pretty average with some strong highlights here and there).
In May 2019, it all comes to a head with Endgame, the culmination of 10 years of world building. The sheer amount of characters in this movie is astounding, and how the Russos managed to balance them all, and what’s more, for a 3-hour movie to mostly focus on dialogue and character moments goes a long way to show how well they’ve handled and developed these characters. Sure, the end battle has some outstanding moments, but the strengths in this movie lie with the small lines and the throwbacks and nods to what’s come before. The finale brings to a close over twenty films’ worth of stories, tying everything up nicely and putting several characters to bed while opening the door for a bright, boundless future.
Originally, two Marvel movies were supposed to have been released last year, but have been postponed indefinitely due to the COVID pandemic. I, for one, am fine with waiting until I can see a Marvel movie safely in a theater — I feel like it’s not the kind of movie I want to experience for the first time on my TV at home. But all things considered, I think it worked out for the best — WandaVision ended up being a great way for Marvel to kick off Phase Four. It continues where the last few films left off, while also giving is a fresh new take on the world of the MCU with its bizarre sitcom approach. I’m afraid that the next Disney+ series, Falcon and the Winter Soldier, looks more formulaic and generic, but I would love to be wrong.
Regardless, it has been exciting to see how WandaVision builds on the world even further, and again, helps set up the future of the MCU. The return of both Jimmy Woo (from Ant-man and the Wasp) and Darcy (from Thor) has been wonderful, and they make a terrific duo (like many, I’m hoping we see an X-Files style spin-off featuring them investigating the weird happenings of the MCU), and Monica Rambeau has already made a strong impression (even though I feel like they rushed into giving her her powers). But with two episodes left to go, we’re finally getting to the nitty gritty, and I can’t wait to see where things go from here!
