Getting back on track with the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Back in the olden times, the main superheroes on the big screen were Superman and Batman from the DC Universe. Comparatively, Marvel was a small fish in the industry, and nobody could have predicted how hugemongous it would become in the coming years.

They definitely took a gamble launching the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) with Iron Man in May 2008. In the world of comics, he was a mid-tier hero at best and never truly achieved cult hero status.

But that’s all in the distant past, because the MCU movies have collectively made around US$30 billion in the global box office. Including our contribution of several hundred dollars over the past 15 years.

Yes, I know it’s only around 0.00000001% of their total revenue. But hey, every drop counts, right? And ever since Iron Man, we’ve been faithful followers of each and every MCU movie that has come out.

Part of the fun was eagerly anticipating the next installment and guessing which new character would be introduced.

A steady procession of heroes was added to the line up, including the Hulk, Thor, Captain America, Black Widow and Hawkeye. Until they were all assembled and The Avengers hit the screens.

By then, Marvel knew that they were on to a good thing. Actually, it would be more accurate to say Disney, since the Walt Disney Company gobbled up Marvel Studios in Dec 2009 for US$4 billion.

They continued churning out hit after hit, in double quick time. While the six movies in Phase One were released over four years, the same number in Phase Two only took half the time.

Most of them were sequels of tried-and-tested protagonists, but a breath of fresh air came in the form of Guardians of the Galaxy.

The show was wild, wacky and a whole lot of fun. Especially the improbable duo of the infinitely grumpy Rocket and his sidekick Groot, who had three times the vocabulary of a Pokémon.

Production kicked into hyper gear in Phase Three, with a whopping 11 movies over a short span of three years. The one year period from May 2017 to Apr 2018 was exceptionally prolific, with five movies launched in quick succession.

I think it’s fair to consider Phase Three as the golden age of the MCU. It had a tight story arc revolving around the Infinity Stones, and leading up to the ultimate showdown with Thanos.

Along the way, iconic new characters were added to the roster, including Doctor Strange and the Black Panther (rest in peace, Chadwick Boseman).

However, our unbroken streak ended in April 2019, after we finished watching Avengers: Endgame.

I can still remember everyone in the cinema glued to their seats. Staying until the all the credits rolled by, and waiting for an end scene that did not materialise.

On hindsight, it was fitting that there wasn’t. The movie felt like a natural conclusion to a very long and interesting story. One that started with the birth of Iron Man, and ended with the death of Tony Stark.

For the next four years, even as numerous MCU movies came out, we never watched another one. Actually, come to think of it, I don’t think we’ve even physically set foot in a cinema since then.

Maybe it was due to the pandemic and government-mandated lockdowns “circuit breakers”. Or maybe it was the rise and rise of streaming services. Either way, we stopped following the superhero saga.

That is, until we found ourselves stuck in a flying tin can at 10,000 metres above sea level for more than six hours. Black Widow and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever were available on the inflight entertainment system, reuniting us with the MCU.

Both movies were more or less standalone stories, but they did whet our appetite. We didn’t make any year-end overseas travel plans, and decided to finally subscribe to Disney+. Enabling us to binge watch all the MCU movies since Avengers: Endgame.

After signing up and going through the movie catalogue, I noticed that Spider-Man: No Way Home was not available. A quick internet search revealed that Sony Pictures, not Disney, owned the rights to that particular show.

It was a bit of a bummer, but not a big issue. We’ll pause after watching the Eternals, and I’ll probably just read the Spider-Man synopsis online and use the spoilers to bridge any gaps in the Phase Four story arc.

Phase Five is halfway through, with The Marvels out in the big screen last month. It wont’ be available on Disney+ until early next year, so we have nine movies to watch before getting back on track with the MCU.

Starting with Spider-Man: Far From Home, and finishing with Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. But before that, we’ll be re-watching Avengers: Endgame to refresh our memories.

Unsurprisingly, Marvel/Disney will continue milking its cash cow for as long as it can. They have already announced the movies in Phase Six, as well as release dates for unnamed movies in Phase Seven.

Looks like the Marvel Cinematic Universe is going to be a part of our lives for the foreseeable future.

Note: Featured image created using movie posters and logo from Disney+