Author: Charles Murphy

SCOOP: ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ Will See a Different Steve Rogers

Note: This article was originally published by Charles Murphy on MCU Exchange on July 17, 2017.

The Avengers: Infinity War trailer shown at D23 was full of a lot jaw dropping moments but one of the ones that seems to have really caught the interest of fans was the appearance of a bearded Steve Rogers. While the secrets of Infinity War have been well-kept, we do have a little info about that bearded Rogers and what you can expect from him when Avengers: Infinity War hits theaters next May!

When we last saw Steve Rogers in Captain America: Civil War, he had put down the shield after his battle with Tony Stark, broken his buddies out of the Raft and took up residence inside the nation of Wakanda. Having turned his back on his past, Rogers is now a man without a country (even a war criminal?) and, as a result, will be taking on a new alias in Infinity War. The Russo brothers have proven themselves as knowledgeable fans of the comics, finding incredibly deep cuts that only the truest of believers would pick up. We’re told that they’ve done it again and that we should expect Captain America no more as the Steve Rogers we see in Infinity War will be a Nomad!

Comic readers will remember an incredibly short-lived run (Captain America #180-184) where Rogers, disillusioned by the revelation of the Secret Empire running America, took off his Captain America costume and donned a caped blue and yellow uniform. While we won’t be seeing an exact duplicate of that costume in Infinity War, Rogers’ costume will pay homage to his time as Nomad. It’s also worth noting that the bearded look, which is Chris Evans‘ preferred look anyway, does resemble Rogers’ time in Dimension Z from Rick Remender’s recent run.

The move towards Nomad is more than a nice nod to the comics. Rogers, as he did in the comics, has become disillusioned with what he has had to sacrifice to do the things he knows he must. The Russos sowed the seeds of this move early in Civil War and Rogers has had a tremendous personal arc over the course of the films in which he has appeared. His decision to become Nomad is representative of him no longer looking to follow orders or even give them, but to simply do what he believes is right.

Given what we’ve heard about the scale of destruction in Infinity War, there’s no telling if Rogers will ever pick up the shield again or if it’s time for someone else (looking at you Sam Wilson) to take on the mantle of Captain America. What do you guys think of this nod to a classic story line? Are you headed out to find a copy of Captain America #180?

July 17, 2017
EXCLUSIVE: Details on Hannah John-Kamen’s Role & Luis’ New Love Interest in ‘Ant-Man and The Wasp’ Revealed

Notes: This article was originally published by Charles Murphy at MCU Exchange on June 28, 2017.

The cast of Ant-Man and The Wasp will be heading to Atlanta to begin filming soon, but very little is known about who will be joining the returning stars from the first film. One addition is actress Hannah John-Kamen, who joined the cast earlier this month in an unspecified role. Thanks to a source with knowledge of the production of the film, we were able to get a little more info on the role!

Kamen will be portraying a character named Dawn. Though the exact nature of Dawn’s role was not revealed, she is described as charismatic, eccentric, unpredictable and damaged. It’s not clear if Dawn is a new character created for the film or if she is adapted from the comics; while there are several characters named Dawn from which to draw in the comics, none of them seem to have a rich history as a supporting character in any Ant-Man stories. A character named Dawn Starr does catch the attention of fans of the comics who recognize the last name as the same one as Hank Pym’s nemesis Egghead, or Elihas Starr. However, Dawn and Elihas were not related in the comics, though Marvel Studios could certainly find a way to make that change if they wanted, so we can’t exactly settle on her.

Kamen’s Dawn is one of 3 female roles added to the sequel, joining the yet to be cast Janet van Dyne and one more surprise role. While the role may well be cast at this point, we can tell you that the studio was searching for a Latino actress for the role of Victoria, who will join the cast as the love interest for Michael Pena’s Luis. Described as a bit of a “loose cannon”, Victoria will be a part of the film’s comic relief but is also described as tough and smart with a “dangerous edge.”

With production beginning soon, possibly as soon as this Friday, we can expect some confirmation on these roles soon along with some other additions to the cast. Ant-Man and The Wasp will hit theaters July 6, 2018.

What do you think of these new casting details for Ant-Man and the Wasp? Excited that a new character is being added to the Three Wombats? Let us know in the comments below!

June 28, 2017
EXCLUSIVE: Details About Thanos’ Black Order In ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ Revealed

Note: This article was originally published by Charles Murphy at MCU Exchange on June 12, 2017.

“You are a disappointment sister; out of all our siblings, I hated you least.”

Brutal beatings at each other’s hands. Each loss made a permanent memory by Thanos as he rebuilt them to make them better. It’s safe to say that James Gunn has created a relationship between sisters Nebula and Gamora that went a little beyond the usual sibling rivalry, but the two daughters of Thanos seem to have come to an understanding and have chosen very different paths from the one their adoptive-father intended. However, as Nebula indicated, there are other siblings, other children of Thanos, whom we haven’t yet met and if Nebula and Gamora are any indication, they could be pretty nasty.

We can tell you that when Avengers: Infinity War rolls around, we will meet the other children of Thanos and, in fact, we’ve already seen them on set!

Earlier in the year, actor Terry Notary revealed that he was working alongside Josh Brolin and 3 other actors in Avengers: Infinity War and that his character, the “right-hand man” of Thanos, was “truly evil.” Set photos from Scotland seemed to indicate that we might be seeing some of Thanos’ generals, known in the comics as the Black Order, when Avengers: Infinity War hits theaters.

Our source indicated to us that this iteration of the characters, first seen in Jonathan Hickman’s New Avengers #8, won’t be referred to as the Black Order, but instead will be the siblings mentioned by Nebula! When Thanos goes looking for the Infinity Stones, he’s going to send his children and they’ll be bringing bad intentions with them.

While we can’t confirm which of the characters are being used and which is being left out, we feel confident with our previous prediction that Corvus Glaive and Proxima Midnight will be among them. We also feel pretty confident that if Nebula and Gamora are the well-adjusted children of the Mad Titan, that the Avengers are in for some serious trouble.

With the inspiration drawn from Hickman’s work and the recent set photos indicating Wakanda will play a role in the film, we are hoping to see something along the line of the Black Dwarf’s Wakandan invasion. In the comics, while Thanos’ other generals had defeated the Avengers around the globe, Wakanda, led by T’Challa and his sister, Shuri, turned back the army of the Black Dwarf, helping stem the tide of the invasion and give hope to Earth.

It’s interesting to see which Infinity-related events the Russo brothers have been using for inspiration and it’s becoming very clear that we are not going to be getting a straight adaptation of any one Infinity story. It’s exciting to see the Russos pull what was a solid concept from Hickman’s recent work and fit it into an opening already established by Gunn. While we don’t know if we’ll get much background on how the Mad Titan collected his children, they will undoubtedly provide an incredible threat to the Avengers and we expect that they may even prove to be too much in some instances!

June 12, 2017
A ‘Blue Marvel’ Film Could Be The MCU’s Platform for High-Concept Sci-Fi

Note: This post was originally published by Charles Murphy on MCU Exchange on May 18, 2017.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is just a few weeks into its global run but it’s clear that it will be another feather in Marvel’s cap. A massive financial success and another critical success, it also, based on my conversations, seems to be trending as a Top 5 film with many MCU fans. With the success of the two Guardians films, it’s easy to forget that this was far from a sure thing when Kevin Feige gave it the green light in 2012, but James Gunn has done an incredible job of bringing his vision to the screen and given us a couple of science-fiction gems. With a highly-anticipated third film on the way in 2020, which Gunn says will conclude the story of this version of the Guardians, Gunn has a chance to direct one of the first great sci-fi trilogies of the 21st century. While there will always be room for more Guardians films, Marvel Studios would also like to expand their universe and to do so, it might be time to take another chance on a lesser known property, but one that could, like Guardians, attract a visionary director to a high-concept sci-fi film. The story of Adam Brashear, Blue Marvel, could connect the science of the MCU to the extra-dimensional adventures of Ant-Man, Doctor Strange and Thor and could be the next underdog powerhouse franchise for Marvel Studios.

Dr. Adam Brashear, the Blue Marvel, was introduced in 2008 in a 5-issue mini-series, Adam: Legend of the Blue Marvel, written by Kevin Grevioux. You might recognize Grevioux from his work as Raze in the Underworld films, which were originally conceived by him and the first of which he also co-wrote with director Len Wiseman, but Grevioux has appeared in dozens of shows and films in addition to working on other comic book projects including New Warriors. Grevioux is also a distinguished man of science, holding a degree in Microbiology and having dabbled in chemistry, psychology and genetic engineering. Grevioux’s scientific interests clearly influenced his writing and were especially clear in his work on Adam, when he fully developed the character of the Blue Marvel which he had created during his teens.

Grevioux’s Blue Marvel origins as a hero are rooted in classic Marvel archetypes and though written in 2008, took place in the 1960s alongside so many other Marvel characters. A former Marine and brilliant scientist, Brashear’s work on harnessing the energy of antimatter from a parallel universe went sideways, exposing him, and his best friend and colleague, Conner Sims, to an unimaginable amount of radiation when the machine keeping the spacetime boundary between the two universes stable exploded. Brashear’s exposure left him a living antimatter reactor capable of producing massive amounts of energy, flight and just about any superpower imaginable; Sims, however, was transformed into pure energy and soon found himself incapable of sustaining a human form for long. His inability to maintain a stable physical manifestation of himself contributed to a break in his psyche and he became the villain known as Anti-Man. For a time, Brashear served as the masked hero the Blue Marvel, retiring at the request of President Kennedy after a rip in his mask during a battle with Sims revealed him as an African-American hero, something the culture of the time wasn’t ready to accept. The battle, which apparently destroyed Sims, was the end of the Blue Marvel, and Brashear went back to work as a scientist.

Brashear married, had children and became a physics professor. Despite being retired, Brashear saved the Earth on many occasions, defeating aliens and keeping a multiversal being known as the Infinaut from creating a massive breaching reality and manifesting at such a size as would cause the complete destruction of our planet. Following the death of his wife and along side his oldest son Kevin in their undersea labs at the Marianas Trench, he continued work on antimatter and other dimensions, ultimately discovering the space between realities called the Neutral Zone. Here, matter and anti-matter co-existed leaving endless possibilities for energy. Adam and Kevin’s exploration of the vast space when on until a villain, Doctor Evald Skorpion, attempted to use the Neutral Zone to destroy reality. Skorpion sabotaged the Brashear’s portal, causing it to expand and allowing extra-dimensional energies to begin destroying everything. To save all reality, Adam had to destroy the portal with his son Kevin still in the Neutral Zone, trapping him there forever. Brashear attempted several times to bring his son home, failing at every turn. Angry at his father for sacrificing his brother, Adam’s youngest son Max began his own research, funded by terrorists, into the Neutral zone under the name Doctor Positron.

The Blue Marvel has recently been a part of Luke Cage’s Mighty Avengers and currently serves as a member of the Ulitmates, solving multiversal (and potentially even bigger) problems. His work has brought him into contact with Galactus, reunited him with his friend Conner Sims and seen him go head-to-head with other Cosmic entities and forces. He has reconciled with and worked alongside his son Max and recently entered into a relationship with fellow Ultimate member Monica Rambeau, aka Spectrum.

As Marvel Stuidos shifts its sights to the future of the MCU post-Infinity War, we hope that the story of Adam Brashear is one that they are ready to tell. A powerful and intelligent hero, Brashear will mesh nicely with the existing science-based heroes and help further explore the concepts of extra-dimensions and what really goes on in space. With the rights to the Fantastic Four seemingly set to remain at Fox, Brashear is the perfect character to take on the role as the explorer of the unknown. His origin story reads like so many of Marvel Studios’ best films and plays to the trope of the villain’s powers being tied to the heroes. His family ties will help create interest and tension to add some drama and his interracial relationship with Marlene Frazier, the woman who ultimately becomes his wife, would allow Marvel Studios to tackle some very real issues we’ve yet to see in one of their films. Adding Blue Marvel to the docket also allows Marvel Studios to continue to address the lack of diversity in their films, something Feige has said they intend to do well beyond Black Panther and Captain Marvel.

Depending on how Marvel chooses to play it, a Blue Marvel film could either continue to add some depth to the history of the MCU or take place in the current day. If Marvel Studios chose to make Brashear and older, more experienced hero similar to his comic book self, they could place the origin story in the 1980s, making Brashear a contemporary of Hank Pym. In this instance, reaching out to gauge the interest of Denzel Washington would seem a no-brainer. Should Marvel choose to have the origins occur in real time and grow the story of Brashear over time, maybe we see Disney employ some more inter-company synergy and give John Boyega one of the meatiest roles in their new universe.

Regardless of the timeline, having Brashear and Sims investigating the types of extra-dimensional energies used to create portals in Doctor Strange. Even though we’ve only recently seen them in the timeline, the existence of magic and the Ancient One in the MCU predates the film. Brashear and Sims could crack the science behind the magic and open up a portal, unprepared for the events unfolding on the other side. To some extent, you can imagine the film following some key beats from other sci-fi horror films like The Fly or Event Horizon and becoming a little introspective on the dangers of exploring the unknown. With that theme in mind, the dream director is Alfonso Cuaron, though I know that Marvel Studios often tends to look for up and comers. Perhaps someone like Jordan Peele (Get Out) or Colm McCarthy (The Girl With All the Gifts) could put something together that would catch Feige’s attention.

Truth be told, none of us have any idea in what direction Feige intends to take the MCU. However, outside of some longtime favorites like Richard Rider, Monica Rambeau and the Squadron Supreme, I can’t think of a character I would like to see more. What are your thoughts about the possible inclusion of Dr. Adam Brashear to the MCU?

May 18, 2017
Connecting Imaginary Dots: Sterling K. Brown Was Just Cast as Erik Killmonger’s Dad

This article was originally published by Charles Murphy at MCU Exchange on January 6, 2017.

Yesterday the already stellar cast of Black Panther grew by one with the addition of rising star Sterling K. Brown. The official press release from Marvel revealed that Brown would play N’Jobu, a character from T’Challa’s past. The character of N’Jobu wouldn’t turn up in any Google searches of the Marvel Universe, but that wouldn’t stop us from digging a little deeper and connecting some imaginary dots. After some thinking, I believe that Brown’s N’Jobu is the father of the film’s presumed primary antagonist: Michael B. Jordan’s Erik Killmonger.

In the comics, Killmonger’s hatred for T’Challa comes from a long-held grudge against the Wakandan Royal Family. During an attack on Wakanda by Ulysses Klaw, Killmonger’s father (a native of Wakanda) was forcibly enlisted into Klaw’s invading army and forced to fight against his own country. In the conflict, Killmonger’s father was killed and when Klaw’s army was defeated, Killmonger’s remaining family was exiled from their home country. Taking up residence in America, Killmonger began his path of vengeance against the Wakandan Royals, setting his sights on T’Challa, the new king.

In a tremendous case of me really stretching some already thin fabric, I believe the beginnings of this conflict have already been seen in the MCU and that the Black Panther film will fill in the blanks with some flashbacks. How do we get there from here?

Erik Killmonger is a native Wakandan, so, as you may have guessed, he probably wasn’t born Erik Killmonger. In fact, his birth name was N’Jadaka. I’m no expert on Wakandan naming traditions (the only experts on the subject were busy at the time of publishing and had not returned our calls), but it seems an easy thing to draw a parallel to other Wakandans and their names. T’Challa, son of T’Chaka. So, could it be N’Jadaka, son of N’Jobu? In my mind, he will be.

I’m guessing we will see a flashback to Andy Serkis‘ Klaue’s time in Wakanda (referenced in Avengers: Age of Ultron), see the death of Brown’s N’Jobu and the subsequent exile of his son, giving us the necessary exposition for the main conflict of the film which should pit Killmonger against T’Challa. Framed in this way, you can really see Jordan in the role. In some ways, he’ll be able to channel some of the same things that made his performance in Creed so memorable and will become more than another one-note villain. Jordan’s Killmonger will be the equal of T’Challa in every way and may just make for one of the MCU’s best villains to date.

What do you think about this entirely ridiculous speculation? Let us know in the comments and be sure to share this with your friends!

January 6, 2017
Things We’d Like to See in a ‘Doctor Strange’ Sequel

This article was originally published by Charles Murphy at MCU Exchange on November 9, 2016.

The huge $85+ million dollar opening weekend domestic box office has made what was already a near certainty an inevitability: we will get a Doctor Strange sequel. Taking into account the global box office, the film has already recouped its production cost and the critics and fans alike have responded very well to the mind-bending action and Benedict Cumberbatch as the lead character. While it wouldn’t be surprising to see Marvel Studios announce a place-holder date for a sequel before the end of the year, we got a bit of jump start on our wishlist for future installments. Given the many years of comic back story and the richness of the character, there’s no way one sequel is enough for all this, so here’s to hoping Derrickson and company get the chance to put several more adventures together.

Nightmare

Fortunately for us, this one may be the most likely on this list as director Scott Derrickson has said he would like to use Nightmare as the villain for his sequel. Nightmare was Doctor Strange’s first challenge and Derrickson seems to love the idea of exploring the Nightmare Realm, in fact, it was revealed that Nightmare was the original villain in the film before giving way to Dormammu. Given Derrickson’s filmography, which features several horror films, and his detail-oriented approach, exploring the impact of nightmares on the human psyche could give Marvel the type of genre-bending film they seem to try to produce and seems like something that Derrickson would love. Such a film could also allow Marvel Studios to further expand their universe by potentially also exploring the Mindscape and introducing the Sleepwalkers, characters who act as defenders of the Mindscape. My God…this movie, Doctor Strange: The Final Curtain, sounds amazing.

More Mordo

Marvel’s DOCTOR STRANGE..Mordo (Chiwetel Ejiofor)..Photo Credit: Film Frame ..©2016 Marvel. All Rights Reserved.

The tag at the end of the film indicates that not only will we see more of Karl Mordo, but that it’s almost impossible for comic book fans to predict much of what he’ll do. This Mordo is a dangerous, damaged man who has now become disillusioned with the way of life that he thought had saved him. The revelation that the Ancient One had been using the very powers against which Mordo had been defending the world sent the Master on a different, darker path. Unlike the comic book Mordo who became jealous of Strange’s accelerated ascension, this Mordo feels he’s been duped to live a life in which only those who make the rules can bend them. When last we see him, he’s seemingly ripping the magic away from Ben Bratt’s Pangborn in an effort to begin reducing the number of sorcerers on Earth, seemingly taking on some of the characteristics of Strange’s comic book foe Silver Dagger. This obviously puts him on a collision course with Strange, but just when they’ll meet again seems uncertain. I love Ejiofor’s characterization of Mordo and I want to see it continue to develop over time. This Mordo seems like the solution to Marvel’s much talked about villain problem but only if Derrickson and crew take their time and develop him alongside Strange, perhaps saving their showdown for the end of a trilogy in Doctor Strange: Sorcerer Supreme (my title, not theirs).

Shuma Gorath

A massive, million-year-old demon, Shuma Gorath is one of Doctor Strange’s most iconic and unique looking foes. The immortal Lord of Chaos ruled over Earth in pre-historic times, Shuma Gorath has conquered hundreds of dimensions and routinely set his one, big, gross eye on Earth. Given that he is indefatigable and immortal, defeating him always proves quite a challenge, so his presence could invite many of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes to the party. Alternately, Shuma Gorath could, as he has done in the comics, use an agent on Earth to do the damage. It’s not unthinkable that a movie involving Nightmare could ultimately reveal Shuma Gorath at work behind the scenes. It’s also possible that Shuma Gorath and others like him could show up in the Cosmic corner of the MCU down the line as well. However, if Derrickson and crew are looking to make their monster movie, Shuma Gorath might be the answer in Doctor Strange: A Separate Reality(my title, not theirs).

The Defenders…no, not those ones, the other ones

The original comic book Defenders were a group of traditionally solo heroes that came together to battle foes of a more supernatural nature. The roster, like many Marvel teams, changed over the years but the original team consisted of Doctor Strange, the Hulk, Valkyrie and Namor, the Sub-Mariner. With Valkyrie being introduced to the MCU in Thor: Ragnarok, that leaves Namor as the only Defender left off the board. It seems that Marvel has the option to put Namor in a film, but that much like the case with the Hulk, if it is a solo film they may have to let Universal distribute it, costing them some cash. If that’s the case, throwing Namor into team-ups, as they are doing with Hulk, seems to address the issue. Certainly, the minds at work behind the scenes at Marvel Studios can devise a situation big enough to draw Namor to the surface to meet up with the other Defenders. Cue the Nameless One and the Undying Ones. If you’re going to team-up with the Hulk, it’s because you need him to do some serious smashing and having him smash an extra-dimensional demonic race sounds rad. Of course, if you have the Undying Ones running around, that means their leader, a conqueror known as the Nameless One is close behind.

An Entirely Extra-Dimensional Setting co-starring the Hulk

If I can’t get the entire team of Defenders, then at least give me this team-up. Please, please let me have the Hulk going somewhere with Doctor Strange and just smash the hell out of some extra-dimensional creatures. Nothing would make fans happier than giving the Hulk an opponent he could destroy just about everything while saving the Earth. The options seem myriad and fun. I could go for Hulk smashing some Mindless Ones. I could go for a rift about the time Strange banished Hulk to the Crossroads and seeing the two of them stuck there together, Strange using his magic to fight while Hulk uses his fists. If Marvel Studios is intent on keeping the Hulk front and center, they’ll either have to pay the piper and lose some cast to Universal on production OR they can keep teaming him up with other characters like they are with Thor. I’d love to see that next team-up be with the Doctor and see what they can do.

Brother Voodoo

When Daniel Drumm died defending the Sanctum Sanctorum, his story may not have ended. Comic book fans will know that Daniel’s death pushes his brother, Jericho, further into the realm of magic where he becomes known as Brother Voodoo. Derrickson has already said there’s a good chance we’d see Jericho down the line and given the character’s rise to prominence in the comics over the years, fans will be waiting. Jericho provides the opportunity for an alternate story of magic to be told, given his Voodoo practices and dealings with the spirit of his dead brother. Though he and Strange have often worked together, the two practitioners of the mystic arts don’t always see eye to eye. Certainly, Voodoo’s dealings in possession could open interesting doors to other avenues of the supernatural and it’s always important to have an extra Sorcerer Supreme on your roster in case one dies suddenly. While introducing Jericho through a Doctor Strange sequel makes sense, we’d hope that he’s not relegated to superhero sidekick duty because his ample comic history says this mystic could even step out on his own.

Clea

We saw Dormammu and found out a little bit about the Dark Dimension. Fans of the comics know that there is likely no way that we’ve seen the last of The Dread One and theories are already out there that range from him taking the place of Galactus in the MCU to him being the boss battle of Phase 4. If we are to see more of Dormammu and his realm, it’s likely that at some point we might see one of the few well-known Doctor Strange supporting characters that was not introduced in the origin film: Clea.

Clea, a humanoid extra-dimensional being, is the princess of the Dark Dimension and the niece of Dormammu. She has a long history with Strange as his apprentice in the mystic arts and as his lover. Fueled by the energies of the Dark Dimension, Clea is a powerful sorceress and more than just a window-dressing female to add into the script. While her origins might certainly need some touching up, her inclusion into an MCU ever looking to add to its powerhouse lineup of female heroes seems to make her a good possibility. Not only will she give Strange an extra-dimensional ally, but a powerful partner on Earth to help with what’s sure to be an increase in the number of mystically powered foes. While fans may want her to join the MCU ASAP, it seems like Strange may have a little more of a journey to make before he encounters Dormammu again.

Wanda Maximoff

When last we saw Wanda in Captain America: Civil War, she had an existential conversation with Vision about their shared power source. While I don’t know that we’ve ever gotten a great explanation of how Wanda’s powers work, I think it’s safe to say she, like Strange, is channeling some sort of energy. If we are ever going to get an explanation and see Wanda continue to master her powers and/or become more unstable and dangerous, a Doctor Strange team-up might be the key to that lock.

If they were to run the comic route, an explanation into Wanda’s powers could include a trippy flashback and a story about Chthon, one of the Elder Gods of the Marvel Universe and add help to flesh out the origins of the MCU’s entire cosmos. It seems certain that Wanda and Stephen will cross each others’ paths at some point; it’s just a matter of how their interactions serve the larger narrative that will dictate the story.

November 16, 2016
FEATURE: Team-Ups We’d Love To See In Phase Four Of The Marvel Cinematic Universe

This article was originally published by Charles Murphy at MCU Exchange on November 16, 2016.

From the early 1970s until the mid-1980s, Marvel comics published a one-shot series called Marvel Team-Ups in which characters from across their universe came together for one issue. The vast majority of these team-ups (especially the first volume) featured Spider-Man pairing up with someone, but also allowed other, non-A-list heroes to work alongside some heavy hitters.

As a kid, this was one of my favorite titles, allowing me to see pairs like Spider-Woman and Hulk or Spider-Man and Valkyrie work together. As an adult, the Marvel Cinematic Universe is allowing me to experience the same sort of joy, seeing Ant-Man meet Captain America and soon seeing the Hulk and Thor go on a Cosmic road trip. According to Kevin Feige, people like me who love seeing these characters interact might really enjoy Phase 4 where he says we may see more “unexpected combinations of characters.” While Feige is fired up to see facial hair bros Tony Stark and Stephen Strange pair up, we had a few team-ups of our own that got us feeling excited:

Doctor Strange and Hulk

The Defenders are coming to Netflix in 2017, but to longtime readers of Marvel Comics such as myself, the title of Defenders belongs to a group otherwise typically self-serving heroes who occasionally teamed up to save the world from attacks more supernatural in nature. I’ve already talked about my hopes for the original comic book Defenders to assemble in a Doctor Strange sequel, but I’m not convinced we will get that. It’s easier to convince me that rather than the whole team, we get to see Doctor Strange team-up with Hulk, however. Given Marvel Studios is keen to team characters up into odd pairs and the fact that their best bet to continue making the most out of Mark Ruffalo‘s Banner/Hulk is to put him in other characters’ solo films, this really seems like a near no-brainer. Strange and Banner/Hulk have a long comic book history that should not be ignored.

Spider-Man and Doctor Strange

This happened several times in the comics and while I’m not sure we’ll see Spidey or Strange taking on a full co-starring role in either one’s solo film, I think that paying homage to some of the classic team-up books is a great idea. Also, given Spidey’s youth and Tom Holland‘s genuine innocence, I can imagine them sharing a few scenes could produce some absolutely incredible moments. Given Holland’s contract still has quite a few films left on it, it seems reasonable to believe that these two will team-up at some point.

Black Widow, Hawkeye, Winter Soldier, Sharon Carter, Maria Hill and Nick Fury

When Marvel Studios was first founded, it had plans of making a solo Nick Fury film. Later, rumors about an S.H.I.E.L.D-centric film made the rounds. While neither of those films ever got the green light, Feige’s comments about making smaller, more intimate films might give it life again. Samuel L. Jackson isn’t going to live forever, so putting together a feature role for him in a Mission: Impossible-esque, espionage-heavy film starring a few of Marvel’s finest spies would be a trip. Such a film could certainly have some space to fill in some more of the past of the MCU while giving Marvel Studios the type of genre jumping they seem to have been happy to do. If such a film were to be made, I’d hope Marvel would knock on the door of Christopher McQuarrie to write (maybe with his Mission: Impossible-Rogue Nation collaborator Drew Pearce) and direct.

Guardians of the Galaxy and Captain Marvel

When Carol Danvers joined the cosmic heroes for a brief spell in the comics, it seemed like the team found something they’d always been missing but didn’t know it. Many potential characters are missing from the Guardians in the MCU and it’s possible we may never get to meet many of them (Adam Warlock, Phyla-Vell, Moondragon, Starhawk, Vance Astro…the list goes on). However, there is one recent member of the team that is about to enter the MCU in Captain Marvel, making it possible that she teams up with the ragtag band to help…guard the galaxy. Certainly casting Brie Larson as Carol shows that Marvel Studios has big plans for the character in its post-Infinity War plans. With Robert Downey Jr. aging, we could start to see actors like Larson and Benedict Cumberbatch take on a bigger role in the MCU, meaning seeing more of them more often as we did with Tony Stark. And when it comes to the possibility of more Danvers, I don’t think anyone will complain if they get to watch Larson and Chris Pratt interact over the course of 2-hour space adventure.

Doctor Strange and Scarlet Witch

This one has to happen at some point, right? The two primary magic users on Earth have to meet. When we last saw Wanda in Captain America: Civil War, she and Vision were pondering some existential questions and Wanda was just beginning to accept who she was now. A team-up with Doctor Strange could go a long way towards helping Wanda grow more comfortable and could help with some much-needed exposition about the way her powers work. Kevin Feige referred to her spell-casting as chaotic, which really couldn’t have been coincidence, right? So could Strange and Wong come to learn as much from her as she from them? Could their investigation into her powers lead to a confrontation with Chthon, the Elder God of Chaos? That sounds like it could get fun and potentially send Wanda off on the path many of us are expecting her to follow.

Spider-Man and Hulk

It worked well in the comics. It worked well in cartoons. Do you have any reason to doubt that putting these two together as a pair won’t work in live-action? The thought of Holland’s Spider-Man cracking wise with the Hulk sounds like a fun of an idea as Marvel could put into action. The question then becomes why would Hulk and Spidey team-up? What would bring them together? Someone worth smashing, I’d hope. Well it probably isn’t true, it seems like Spidey and Hulk were the most frequent pairing in the old Marvel Team-Up books, maybe Marvel Studios could mine those for some good quality ideas, maybe something that could finally bring Rick Jones into the MCU?

November 16, 2016
One-Shot: Captain Britain And An Expanding Marvel Cinematic Universe

This article was originally published by Charles Murphy at MCU Exchange on March 28, 2016.

Last week, rumors of a Captain Britain show began swirling when artist Ciara McAvoy showed off some artwork she’d done in preparation for the show. Over the next few days, other information came to light and, as it turns out, the show is not, at present, in development. Through a series of tweets, it became clear that the project is something that producer Chris Lark is putting together, presumably on his own, to take to Marvel in hopes of them moving forward with the project. I reached out to inquire if Marvel had actively been searching for pitches, but was unable to receive clarification. So at this point it seems increasingly unlikely we’ll be seeing Brian Braddock in the MCU anytime soon, but the possibility of him joining the crew certainly got us talking and thinking and, as we do here at the MCU Exchange, we are going to share some of those behind the scenes thoughts with you guys and see if we can’t continue the conversation.

Great Britain has a long and wonderful mythology which Stan Lee decided to adapt into Atlas Comics in 1955 with the original Black Knight. The story of the Black Knight, steeped in the folklore of Camelot and King Arthur, introduced the fantastical elements of the UK and helped grow the Marvel comics universe. Over the years, the number of characters with connections to the mysticism of the British Isles grew, including the creation of Britain’s defender in 1976 when the legendary Chris Claremont penned Captain Britain #1. While Captain Britain isn’t the only British superhero, he might be the one that would fit in the best with the existing characters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

While the bulk of the powered folks in the MCU are on U.S. soil, Captain America: Civil War is going to introduce the Black Panther, the leader of Wakanda, a fictional African nation, revealing to the rest of the world that heroes aren’t just an American thing and expanding the reach of the MCU. Speaking of expansion, while the bulk of Marvel’s heroes are either science or tech based, Marvel has also begun dabbling with mysticism through The Hand in Daredevil and will be adding the Sorcerer Supreme to the lineup of MCU heroes this fall. With this type of expansion in mind, Captain Britain actually becomes a perfect fit for the MCU. Brian Braddock is a practicing physicist who gains his powers through the mystical Amulet of Right. While Doctor Strange will be opening the door for extra-dimensional adventures, Captain Britain could potentially go beyond that, expanding Marvel’s reach into the multiverse.

Adding Captain Britain to the MCU would also allow Marvel to make some interesting connections to several other characters from the British Isles. One day, Shang-Chi could make an appearance in Iron Fist and his ties to MI-6 as a British spy could help grow the MCU and even intersect with some of Captain Britain’s allies. If they follow the comics and make Shang-Chi a British spy, it cements the involvement of the British government in superhero affairs. From there, it really doesn’t become much of a stretch to introduce MI-13, a covert government group that deals with all the strange and supernatural happenings in the UK. While MI-13 first appeared in an X-Men spin-off (Excalibur), it’s entirely possible that it’s a property to which Marvel holds the live-action rights or, at the very least, could adapt in ways to make it work. For a long time now, I’ve been hoping for an MI-13 show in the mold of the X-Files that opens the doors to many of the supernatural elements currently absent from the MCU.

Most notable among those supernatural elements that could be introduced via an MI-13 series is a property that has been rumored to be in some stage of development at Marvel for some time now: Blade, the Daywalker! While Wesley Snipes‘ Blade films were among the first Marvel properties developed into films, they are not canonically connected to the MCU. However, the popularity of the films could help relaunch the property as a part of Marvel’s Netflix partnership. While Snipes’ Blade was an American, creator Marv Wolfman‘s Eric Brooks was born in London and weaved his way throughout the Marvel universe. Blade has been a part of MI-13 at times and could easily be a part of that series or his own, but Blade means vampires and vampires means werewolves and zombies and the devil…and maybe his son? Maybe Blade means Hannibal King can get a second chance, erasing whatever version of him Ryan Reynolds was supposed to be and if Blade and Hannibal King can be around, maybe we can see the Midnight Sons… And trust me, this just scratches the surface of the type of connectivity that can be dug up here.

So, in typical One-Shot fashion, there’s a bunch of babble that sounds a lot like how you could draw a straight line from Captain Britain to Blade! Of course there are dozens of other incredible UK-based characters this One-Shot didn’t explore at all, such as the Black Knight, Union Jack and Spitfire to name a few, but this is the part where I stop and have you guys join the conversation. While we aren’t sure we’ll ever see a Captain Britain series, we can sure think of plenty of good reasons why we should. What about the rest of the MCU Exchange community?

March 28, 2016
A Fox/Marvel Deal Could Define The Future Of The MCU

Note: This article was originally published by Charles Murphy at MCU Exchange on August 31, 2015.

Before you go any further you need to know that this is 100% an “if my aunt had balls she’d be my uncle” kind of feature. I’m fully aware of Fox’s statements of support for the future of the Fantastic Four in the wake of the box office disaster of their latest effort. However, I’m also fully aware of Sony’s plans to push ahead with an entire Spider-verse… right up until they did not. If you had asked me 1 year ago if I thought Marvel Studios might have a chance to get back Spider-Man, I’d have said no and I’d have also sadly said there was a 0% chance of the Fantastic Four rights returning. Now, given the enormity of the financial failure of Josh Trank‘s 2/3 of a Fantastic Four movie, I have moved the % chance above 0. This is not meant to be a guarantee, but a fan’s vision of how a Fox/Marvel deal to return the Fantastic Four and some associated characters could define the MCU in Phase 4 and beyond. I also do not know all the intricacies involved in the film rights (if you know the person who does, send him my way) so I’m operating on the premise that Marvel Studios could reacquire the rights to these characters in some sort of exchange with Fox. In order of how I’d like to see the characters appear in the MCU, here’s how some great Marvel characters can impact the film slate.

Silver Surfer

While it’s hard to imagine the actual first family making their way into Phase 3 this late it in the game, it’s entirely possible that one of the great Jack Kirby characters to stem from their title could enter the lineup. While Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy was a huge hit, any attempt by the studio to expand the Cosmic side of the MCU will be tough given that a good chunk of the film rights to their best characters reside with Fox. We know that the Cosmic heroes will team up with Earth’s Mightiest at some point in Avengers: Infinity War and getting an assist here from the Surfer would really boost their chances. The Silver Surfer has a long comic book history with the Mad Titan Thanos, the antagonist of those upcoming films, and his appearance in the films could mirror the one in Jim Starlin‘s Infinity Gauntlet in which he alerts Earth’s heroes of Thanos’ Cosmic-scale genocide. While a lot of fans might like to see Galactus enter the fray here as well, I very much prefer holding off on the Devourer of Worlds until later as not to overdo it, allowing the Surfer’s appearance to tease what is to come and keep in line with his character.

The Skrulls

As Phase 3 wraps up following the two-part Avengers: Infinity War, the Cosmic side of the Marvel Cinematic Universe will only have just breached the surface. Marvel Studios seemingly hold the rights to very few of the major Cosmic characters and alien races and have been very liberal in the reinventions of the ones they do. In Guardians of the Galaxy, we learned that the Kree Empire has a longstanding feud with the Xandarians, home of the Nova Corps. In doing so, Marvel Studios understandably, modified one the great alien rivalries in the comics: the Kree-Skrull rivalry.

The film rights to the Skrulls seem to fall in the murky, grey waters between Fox and Marvel Studios. To the best of anyone’s knowledge, it seems Marvel Studios can use the Skrulls generically, but the rights to some more specific Skrulls, like Kl’rt the Super Skrull, reside with Fox. I’ve wondered for a while now if the Skrulls were in Marvel Studios plans at all or if some contractual limitations with Fox (especially those that pertain to merchandising) might keep the green shapeshifters on the sidelines. Well, if there’s ever a time for Marvel to get full control of the Skrulls, it might be before Phase 4.

One of the major recent story arcs that Marvel Studios have yet to explore in the MCU is 2008’s Secret Invasion. The arc spread out among most of Marvel’s major titles and saw Earth’s Mightiest Heroes replaced by Skrull shapeshifters, causing distrust among them and the public.

In the aftermath of the Avengers battling Thanos, it’s possible they may catch the attention of the rest of the Cosmos and maybe the Skrulls could come to Earth and slowly come into play over the course of Phase 4.

The Fantastic Four and Kang the Conqueror

Of all my ideas of how to incorporate the Fantastic Four family of characters into the MCU, I like this one the most and, therefore, expect it to be the least well-received!

In the event the Fantastic Four return to Marvel Studios, I doubt anyone wishes to see another origin story so, much like they are doing with Spider-Man, I’d like to see the story of the Fantastic Four picked up en media res. Given that the Fantastic Four were some of the world’s first super-powered people and explorers of the unknown, I’d like to see Marvel Studios capitalize on those aspects to bring an older, seasoned Fantastic Four to the MCU.

In my world, we don’t meet the Fantastic Four until the end of Phase 4 (possibly even at the end of that Phases’ capstone film) when the team emerges from the time stream warning of the threat of Kang. A Phase 5 Fantastic Four film could follow, flashing back to the 1990s and seeing Reed Richards take his team on a classified deep space exploration. The mission takes a turn when Richards decides to investigate a temporal anomaly, pushing the team through spacetime. Traveling through this rift, the team gains their powers and faces off with Kang the Conquerer in a neat twist on his time travel modus operandi.

This version of the Fantastic Four will be a tight-knit crew, hardened by their battles in the timestream, in control of their powers and with Sue as their center (a place where I think both versions Fox has made have failed). To top off the crazy, I’d like to see Jim Carrey take on the role of Reed Richards and Zac Efron as Johnny. I know that leaves a Sue and Ben, but I’m just not sure. Whomever they cast as Sue must become THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT character in the franchise. At any rate, my Fantastic Four will NEVER be mistaken for a Fox film.

Doctor Doom

Of all the characters Marvel Studios stands to gain in a deal with Fox, Victor Von Doom is the most valuable. You may be familiar with my thoughts about the lack of strong villains in the MCU; the addition of Doctor Doom solves that problem in perpetuity. While always the arch-enemy of the Fantastic Four, Doom is a Cosmic level threat and a character that hasn’t been represented with any sort of comic book veracity.

The MCU Doctor Doom should be genius and a master of both science and magic, on the level of both Reed Richards and Stephen Strange. This Doom, who we will meet in flashbacks in the Fantastic Four film, will have spent the last 20+ years rising to power in his homeland of Latveria. This Doom will reveal himself at full power as an Avenger’s antagonist in Phase 5. What bone will this Doom have to pick with Earth’s Mightiest Heroes? His homeland of Latveria experienced some damage when its bordering country, Sokovia, was destroyed. This Doom will be the threat he deserves to be.

Annihilus

The great Annihilus, Lord of the Negative Zone, could make his introduction into the MCU much in the same way he found his way into the comics: as a result of yet another Fantastic Four exploration into new worlds. I like the idea of the family settling in back to Earth and Sue and Reed deciding to have children. Fans of the comics will recall that Sue’s morning sickness was a little worse than normal and that it led to the introduction of the Negative Zone. A Fantastic Four sequel would give us the an intro to Annihilus and the Negative Zone ahead of a Cosmic saga of Annihilation and Annihilation: Conquest, marking the return of Ultron!

Galactus

I know we are 20 years ahead at this point, but this is the film I want to see wrap up Phase 6. The Fantastic Four, fully reintegrated on Earth, fighting alongside the Avengers and every other hero to fight Galactus. This film would bring the Silver Surfer back to Earth (though it won’t be the first time we’ve seen him since his arrival in Avengers: Infinity War) and will be the equivalent of Avengers: Infinity War-Part 2. This Galactus will not be a fart cloud, but the Devourer of Worlds, a threat that we will likely have seen built up throughout some of Marvel Studios’ other films.

The Future Foundation

Where are we now? Phase 7? Phase 12? I’m not sure, but in order for Marvel Studios to keep continuity and to stay fresh, they have to keep going. I like to imagine that somewhere along the line we’ve met the Young Avengers along with the Runaways, Power Pack, Miles Morales, Fallon Grey, Sam Alexander and Kamala Khan. The Future Foundation, led by Dragon Man and some leftover Moloids could feature Valeria and Franklin (my choice for the future lead of the MCU). The FF could allow characters such as Reed, Sue, Johnny, Ben, Spider-Man and others to continue to exist while focusing on the next generation. Obviously I see the MCU continuing into the 2030s and beyond, but having Franklin Richards, the most powerful character yet, anchoring the future, nothing can seem too far beyond the imagination.

I can’t say whether or not Marvel Studios and Fox will ever come to an agreement on these characters. This is just a thought piece from a thinker about just how awesome adding this list of incredible characters would be for the MCU. Only time will tell just how far Marvel Studios is willing to go to explore their options with their First Family.

August 31, 2015
Marvel Studios Phase 2: Fun Films of No Consequence

This article was originally published by Charles Murphy at MCU Exchange on August 18, 2015.

A while back a few of us at the MCU Exchange were involved in a discussion about what retrospective pieces we could do on Marvel Studios’ Phase 2 films. You’ve started to see the fruits of those discussions and will continue to do so over the next few weeks. One of our tangents led to this collection of tweets by Film Crit Hulk (nicely put into Storify by Grant S.), one of the great people to follow if you’re on Twitter.

Those tweets really resonated with me and helped me scaffold some thoughts I’d been having for some time. Film Crit Hulk was right: Avengers: Age of Ultron was a film without any real consequences to the heroes (other than Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch). But Age of Ultron wasn’t the only film without lasting consequences…Phase 2 was almost entirely without them.

Going back to the very beginning of Phase 2, it’s almost like each film was an episode of Whose Line Is It Anyway? where the stakes are made up and consequences don’t matter. To me, Phase 2 was all about furthering the large scale narrative in preparation for what is going to go down as Marvel Studios caps off its great creation in Mays of 2018 and 2019.

I’m going to clarify this before I begin: I really enjoyed almost all of the Phase 2 films. I find Iron Man 3, Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Guardians of the Galaxy to be films I can re-watch and enjoy over and over. They are filled with good to great action, some great comic book moments and wonderful characters. I’m sure Avengers: Age of Ultron, Ant-Man and I will share that same relationship down the line. Unfortunately, I just can’t get into Thor: The Dark World as much as I’d like to, so I certainly look towards Thor: Ragnarok where I get more of a look at the person Thor was in Avengers: Age of Ultron and much more of the Nine Realms. Having said all that, the films had minor consequences, if any, existing as little more than a series of bridges from Phase 1 to Phase 3. For all it’s fun, Phase 2 seems to have existed only to set the stage for Captain America: Civil War and the 2-part Avengers: Infinity War.

Phase 1 had teeth that sunk in. It introduced the world to the idea of superheroes, monsters and gods and then brought them all together to defeat a horde of alien invaders led by a power-crazed god. The lasting consequences of this for the imaginary world of the MCU aren’t really debatable. That world was exposed to some incredible things, both good and bad, and would never be the same.

After assembling to defeat Loki and the Chitauri, the heroes would never be the same either. Much of that was explored in Phase 2: Steve Rogers had found his place, Tony Stark was a hero with PTSD, Bruce Banner could stop running and Thor was conflicted about his place in the universe. While Phase 2 seemed to be shaking those firm foundations for our heroes, in hindsight it’s hard to argue that it really did.

Tony Stark

Iron Man 3 gave us a much different Tony Stark than the one we had seen before. Things mattered to Tony now and he spent all of his time trying to protect those things. Ultimately, Tony found himself up against a monster of his own making in Aldrich Killian. Stark’s arrogance gave Killian enough of a reason to spend a long time seeking revenge, and when he began to take it, it hit Stark where it mattered most with Happy and Pepper falling victim. Of course, Tony saved the day and found out that he is the hero and not just the suit. He symbolically destroyed his suits, not because he was retiring but because he realized who he COULD be without them. At the end of Iron Man 3, it was reasonable to assume Tony Stark had learned his lessons and that, going forward, we would see a different hero.
I understand that part of Tony’s character is that he’s a futurist and always looking for the next way to change the world; however, much of what happened in Iron Man 3 was erased by Stark’s mistakes in Avengers: Age of Ultron, the same mistakes he had apparently already come to realize he had made. It was as if the events of Iron Man 3 never happened nor made any impact on the decisions of the hero.

By the end of Avengers: Age of Ultron, Tony has once again escaped intact from his failures. Even the glimpse of the horrible future that he saw courtesy of Wanda Maximoff seems to have been forgotten. Throughout the film there was just enough foreshadowing to show us why he and Steve Rogers will eventually come to blows, but it all ends on a high note for Tony Stark. His fellow Avengers had forgiven him and he seemed ready to move on to his happily-ever-after place with Pepper.

Thor

Despite being one of my least favorite Marvel Studios’ films, Thor: The Dark World did actually contribute something to the overall narrative of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. We were finally given some exposition on the Infinity Stones and introduced to one capable of rewriting the rules of Physics that govern reality. This film also put Thor in a rough place. By films’ end, he had lost his mother, his brother (as far as he knew) and abdicated his throne in order to become Midgard’s champion. The problem? None of that mattered for Phase 2. It was all about positioning Thor on the board for what appears to be a HUGE role in Phase 3.

The true plot of the film was resolved without any lasting damage to Thor or Earth. I had at least hoped that Thor would actually lose his arm, having recently read the comic arc in which he had the arm of the Destroyer attached. Malekith and his army of Dark Elves, despite having access to the Reality Stone, seemed very inept. After having been endowed with the power to alter reality, I highly doubt I’d allow Jane, Darcy and Dr. Selving to be by downfall. Maybe I’d just send them to an alternate reality where they couldn’t interfere, or turn their hands into cucumbers…

And so, when Thor entered the fray in Avengers: Age of Ultron, he should have carried the burden of his lost mother and brother into battle as the protector of Midgard. Instead, outside of the mention of the Infinity Stones, the events of that film seemed to matter very little and despite being a great help in the battle against Ultron, Thor’s very existence in the film seemed to be all about setting up Avengers: Infinity War. His time apart from the team gave him clarity about what was to come, enabling him to use another Infinity Stone to empower Vision as the protector of Earth. The most important thing Avengers: Age of Ultron did with Thor was get him off Earth for Phase 3. He likely won’t play a part in Captain America: Civil War and Thor: Ragnarok is said the to be the film that really kicks off the Infinity War. Again, Phase 2 served to position Thor for Phase 3.

Steve Rogers

Steve Rogers entered Phase 2 with a bang. Captain America: The Winter Soldier is considered by many to be one of Marvel Studios’ best films. I don’t disagree. It is intense and thrilling, filled with plot twists and double-crosses that pay homage to some great espionage films. I’ve watched it 8 times or so and I really enjoy the action; however, it may have the lowest stakes of any of Marvel’s Phase 2 films. Despite having been labeled as a game-changer by Marvel Studios, it arguably changed very little about the MCU.

At this point, none of the events of the Captain America: The Winter Soldier have had any long-term impact on the MCU. Robert Redford’s Alexander Pierce was the film’s villain, a HYDRA operative in a place of power. The film also revealed to us that HYDRA has many other people in similar positions and that they’ve been trying to implement a new world order since World War II. The problem is that within the film, HYDRA wasn’t ever established as a real threat rendering their downfall mostly meaningless.

This film was about shaking the firm ground upon which Steve Rogers was beginning to stand. Just when he thought he knew who he was and what he fought for, he was confronted with a huge piece of his past while simultaneously realizing that all he thought he was fighting for was a facade. Steve Rogers had been doing to devil’s work. So, Steve led the charge to tear it all down. It seems like the events of that film should have reverberated throughout the MCU; instead, they seem to have given Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.‘s second season some direction and otherwise have almost faded away. In fact, the events of the film made me think more about what I had seen that what I would see.

When Avengers: Age of Ultron begins, Steve Rogers is doing just fine. He hasn’t lost anything with the loss of S.H.I.E.L.D. He is still on a mission, still searching for his friend. If anything, the fallout from Captain America: The Winter Soldier put Steve Rogers in a better place and the MCU seemed to be doing just fine without S.H.I.E.L.D.

By the end, Steve Rogers, who seemed to lose everything he had recently gained, walked away with his very own team of shiny New Avengers and having a renewed sense of purpose in finding Bucky. It’s easy to see that the events of Phase 2 were all about positioning Steve Rogers for the beginning of Phase 3. While he seems to have exited Phase 2 unscathed, I believe Phase 3 won’t treat him as well.

Peter Quill and the Guardians of the Galaxy

One of Marvel Studios’ highest rated and most entertaining films, Guardians of the Galaxy introduced new characters and a new corner of the universe to the MCU. It also served to give us even more exposition about the true power of the Infinity Stones ahead of Thanos’ attempt to unite them all.

I love the film. A group of dishonorable thugs bands together to save Xandar and possibly the rest of the galaxy of a overzealous madman. It gave us great moments and characters and is easily to most rewatchable of Marvel’s films. However, once the film ends and the thinking begins, it’s clear that a big part of it is about what’s to come. These are the Guardians that have to meet up with the Avengers to band together to defeat Thanos once he has collected all the Infinity Stones in the Gauntlet. So, we meet Thanos, we find out how powerful the stones can be and get left with a BUNCH of questions (not the least of which is who is Quill’s father) to be answered…in Phase 3.

I won’t say a single negative thing about the film; however, it’s another piece of a patchwork bridge leading us to Avengers: Infinity War. The Guardians were rewarded for all their thievery and win the day. Nice job, Xandarians: you set a band of thieves and murderers free so they could save the Cosmos.

Scott Lang, Hope van Dyne and Hank Pym

So almost always, there’s an exception to the rule. In this case, it was Ant-Man. This film was full of consequences that mattered. Scott Lang securing his very awkward position with his family and back in the world is a big deal. While some people will argue that the film’s climax carried little weight, almost any father of a daughter would disagree. For Scott, protecting his daughter from evil and then being welcomed back into her life was everything.

While Hank Pym’s character may not have played well to everyone, he was on the verge of losing everything. Not only his company and his life’s work, but his daughter, the one thing he had fought to protect. It was a touching moment when he finally revealed Janet’s fate to Hope, clarifying to her why he made the choices he had for her entire life. It was that moment in the film and not the climax, that saved the day for Hope and Hank. As a result, the team stayed together, allowing them to stop Darren Cross and move on to becoming heroes.

Ant-Man is a film that works well for a number of reasons, chief among them is the much discussed smaller scope of the film. The early promos for the film used Hank Pym’s line to clarify that this film wasn’t about saving the world, but about saving the worlds of the heroes daughters. It’s hard to argue for higher stakes than parent-child relationships. I think that’s why the film feels like it ends so satisfactory. It wasn’t because of the fate of the villain, but the salvation of the familial relationships of the protagonists. It’s also very clear though that all of the protagonists are just hitting their strides and have bigger days ahead.

Generally speaking, the Phase 2 films existed to continue the expansion of this wonderful interconnected cinematic universe, a grand experiment that seems to keep succeeding. The films’ heroes all live to fight another day, but in hindsight many of their conflicts are left unresolved, setting the stage for some serious business to go down in Phase 3. It seemed to become the thing to do to criticize Marvel Studios for following the so-called “Marvel formula” in Phase 2; in other words, Act 3 has a big battle in which the good guy wins. To be fair, through Marvel’s first 12 films that is exactly how it’s worked out. While we have no proof of this, one last thing that Phase 2 has been setting us up for is an end to that run. It’s my belief that Phase 3 films, beginning immediately with Captain America: Civil War will see the “Marvel formula” turned on its head and the heroes in some very uncomfortable spaces (possibly even some coffins). Phase 3 might be the first time our heroes are truly faced with the consequences of their actions.

August 18, 2015