MCU Love Declines in Phase Four
Within the world of movies, superheroes have dominated it all. From their basic origin stories to their incredible victories, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, also known as the MCU, has been one of the main companies known for these movies.
With a total number of 29 films and eight series, the MCU and its fans have gone on a true rollercoaster of quality. The first of these genius superhero films to come out was Iron Man which released in 2008. While the newest is Thor: Love and Thunder, released just last month.
Along with the company’s large amount of movies, they have also created shows. These shows begin with WandaVision in January of last year, and the most recent is She-Hulk: Attorney At Law, which aired its first episode on Disney+ on August 18th. The production of these shows add a new aspect for many viewers because the episodes are released once every week rather than all at once. Having to wait from episode to episode adds a tension, but the quality of these shows are not loved by the majority of fans.
Considering these cinematic hits have been airing for over a decade now, they have clearly had to make some changes every now and then to keep up with the new generations. But the issue arises of how to keep an audience with such a hungry appetite happy without having the movies continue to be the same as before. Sometimes, they simply cannot. The movies and shows that have been part of Phase 4 have either not met the expectations of those watching or, to put it plainly, failed to reach the quality of previous Marvel films.
Many fans have expressed their disappointment in the newer movies or shows that have come out, the main three from Phase 4 being Loki, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and Thor: Love and Thunder. The show Loki had many issues for fans because of the love twist at the end, setting himself up with… well, himself. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness was not well perceived by fans due to its “plot twist” of villain, which happened within the first 15 minutes of the movie. Thor: Love and Thunder did not go well with fans because it was just so outrageous compared to everything else Marvel has made so far. One student who especially did not like these things was sophomore Zoran Zejavac. Zejavac is a fan of the MCU’s original three phases, also known as the “Infinity Saga,” but has been very open about his dislike of Phase 4.
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“The old movies didn’t try to push so hard for humor, the new ones try so hard to be funny that it doesn’t even make sense to the plot line,” said Zejavac.
Even with the majority of their audience not enjoying their newer productions, there remain some fans that maintain their loyalty to the journey Marvel is taking them on. Sophomore Rylie Bradley has always been a fan of the MCU and is satisfied with the content that is being released as of current.
“Most of my favorite characters have been highlighted and gotten background stories, which doesn’t mean I don’t love the first three phases, I just think that we need to be able to continue moving forward,” said Bradley.
With all the backlash Marvel has been getting, they are not showing any change in the content they are creating. At the San Diego Comic-Con on July 23rd of this year, Marvel revealed when they are releasing new things and what to expect of their next two phases. As of now, fans can expect there to be 12 movies and shows within the fifth phase and at least three movies within the sixth phase. Not only can fans find the names of each of these new productions, but they can find their release dates or the generic time of when they are supposed to be released.
In my personal opinion, I think that the new movies have not been as bad as most people are making them out to be. I thought that each of these new movies and shows brought their own aspects to the MCU. Each one added new information that will be needed for their upcoming projects. I also enjoyed most of these new projects, for both their plot in the MCU and just as entertainment in general.
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Kyrsten White is a sophomore, and this is her first year on the Macohi as a staff reporter. She is on the Lady Canes Softball team and enjoys reading and...
