Marvel Cinematic Universe, Phase 4 & Beyond (and a chance to change your vote)

'I could have just avoided the thread altogether but because clicking through to spray the room down with needless haterade is an addiction akin to the most raging of junk habits, allow me to just state for the 457,017,381st time that the MCU is the nadir of Western culture.'

There, I saved some of you some time if you know how to copy + paste.

Crazy to think we're now 15 months and counting with no new MCU (unless you count the final season of Agents of SHIELD, which even I don't anymore).

the Helstrom TV show started on Hulu this week

which apparently sort of counts

Oh. Well, that was a stealth-ass debut.

it looks, and by all accounts is, absolutely terrible

I could have avoided the thread but it's fun to talk shit about garbage every once in a while

anyway, dud

Simon, I left you a present upthread. Please use it in good health.

you forgot "fascist"

Sorry, I very quickly fell asleep, what was that you were saying?

ANNNNNNYway.

I could have avoided the thread but it's fun to talk shit about garbage every once in a while

new board descrip pls

Glad this thread is here to get you to stop social distancing, bg! Adopt herd immunity!

work on yr nerd immunity imo

ok ok I'm actually done for now enjoy folks

Gentlemen you can’t needlessly rehash something for the 457,017,381st time in here, this is the marvel cinematic universe phase 4 and beyond thread

Looool

Did u know that if your eyes roll with enough force that they can actually detach from their stalks and fly out u face? I wish I hadn't had to discover that first-hand just this very moment. Dang.

is this the thread where we can talk about andrew garfield and tobey maguire maybe appearing as spider-men in the third tom holland spider-man movie? because i can't be fucked looking to see if it's been mentioned elsewhere

Hadn't read that. I did read that Jamie Foxx will be playing Electro again, which certainly suggests some multiversal fuckery.

I liked the look of Jamie Foxx's Electro, while hating the electric eel origin / Max Dillon as social misfit portrayal. Andrew and Tobey were good, before we knew Marvel could do better. I've compartmentalized Sony's properties from the MCU, so the last two Spider-Man have far exceeded expectations.

Phase 4, most looking forward to Shang-Chi, and hoping they nail the Paul Gulacy visual tone. Expecting to be most surprised by Eternals. If/as the movies go cosmic/magical/horror, looking forward to how they ground them.

Beyond - FF and X-Men. About damn time.

Are we allowing MCU television in these threads as well? Cuz it looks like the Maslany She-Hulk was just a rumor that she debunked in a recent interview, sadly.

most looking forward to Shang-Chi, and hoping they nail the Paul Gulacy visual tone.

Yeah the credits are going to say "based on the character created by Steve Englehart and Jim Starlin" and I'm going to be sad because it's not "based on the character in that holy-shit awesome run by Doug Moench and Paul Gulacy, DUUUUUDE."

Pretty sure I first "heard" "Rhiannon" thanks to Master of Kung Fu.

So much character fleshing-out that was lovable but verged on dumb...Black Jack Tarr becoming a big Frank Frazetta fan, lol. (This might have been in the Mike Zeck or Gene Day days, can't remember.)

okay lol @ "nerd immunity"

it looks like the Maslany She-Hulk was just a rumor that she debunked in a recent interview, sadly.

I don't know, I smell a rat. Kind of like when Taika denied he was making a Star Wars movie and then was all, psych, I'm making a Star Wars movie.

I assume she's still negotiating her contract, and Ruffalo's tweet improved her payday/terms.

Oh I hope it's a feint, makes sense since she called it a "press release that got out of hand", which doesn't come across as quite the strong denial the article I read implied. I'm still hopeful she shows up in it.

maybe she plays jennifer and somebody else plays she hulk? and she plays "the voice in her head"? it's a weird bit of pr thus far.

https://www.vulture.com/2020/10/oscar-isaac-moon-knight-marvel-series.html

Just negotiating phase/tactics. Though I'd love to see his take on the character.

it's a meaty fuckin' role!

lol oscar isaac hated working for disney so much during Star Wars, wonder what kind of sweetheart deal they’re offering him for this

Well, much like Finn his role got worse and worse as the series went on, so I don't blame him

Is this the right thread for this(?) Kate Bishop on-set images have surfaced: https://www.comicbookmovie.com/tv/marvel/hawkeye/hawkeye-set-video-gives-us-a-much-better-look-at-hailee-steinfeld-and-jeremy-renner-a180551#gs.mgnaf1

The casting announcements for Spider-Man 3 make it really look like they are just going to repeat the multiverse thing that worked so well in Into the Spider-Verse with a live action version. Even for the MCU this seems really lazy. Happy to be proven wrong, but I really liked watching the first two with my son and this makes me way less excited for a third one.

I mean, given the Dr. Strange sequel’s subtitle, the multiverse was already long planned, but this seems like a questionable move.

Even for the MCU this seems really lazy.

McKenna was nominated for both an Emmy and a Hugo, for writing a multiverse story, seven years before Spider-Verse came out tbfttl

A bunch more Kate Bishop set pics circulating today; Steinfeld looks like a great casting choice.

Just misread that as 'Seinfeld' and I'm still laughing from that mental image.

McKenna was nominated for both an Emmy and a Hugo, for writing a multiverse story, seven years before Spider-Verse came out tbfttl

Oh I don't have any issue with McKenna and, again, this is total speculation just based on the casting, it's more just surprise that they'd use the Spider-Man film to redo the Spider-verse think so soon again.

It may be wise to speculate with caution, as you may recall that a lot of the pre-release assumptions about the last Spidey flick were upended (ie the thing about Mysterio dropping in from a different earth).

they'll need to add more Spiders-Man and Girls if they're going to sorta hit the key diversity theme

Maybe this is Mysterio running the same scam again. Maybe every future Marvel movie will end by revealing that actually it was Mysterio.

iirc doesn't Mysterio make that multiverse claim himself in the movie, as part of his ruse? Between the timeline resolution of the Avengers, Spider-verse and Dr. Strange title, and possibly what they hinted at with the Vision/Witch show, they're definitely leaning in to this. Someone versed in the comics could maybe make a good guess as to the overarching plot or big bad. I have no idea. Does Captain Marvel 2 have a title or casting? They've hinted at introducing Adam Warlock a few times now, I think. Certainly a multiverse scenario could allow, say, the Fantastic Four to just pop in as a deus ex reboot at the end of a movie. Lots of ways Marvel can go, assuming they even want another giant overarching crossover scenario.

Yeah, I have no issue with the multiverse idea and that's clearly where we are heading, I was just saying that it seems kinda lazy to launch into it with a do-over of the multiple Spider-Men thing. Especially since the Spider-Man flick is slated before the Dr. Strange sequel, which will obviously lean heavily into the multiverse too.

I just have no idea why they'd want to maintain any association with the awful Andrew Garfield movies

there's (un)surprisingly a small, vocal fanbase online who grew up with and liked those movies

i can't lie though - i am excited to see all those jabronis in one big battle royale. even the characters who died! let's get Topher Grace in there while we're at it

hoping they insert Mulaney's Spider-Ham Who-Framed-Roger-Rabbit-style

It could be cool if they do it right.

It’s kind of funny that a generation will grow up thinking of multiple Spideys as a basic “Spider-Man” feature, when for most of Marvel’s history, there was only one Parker, he was a very singular hero... even while there were a few different Caps, Thors, Captain Marvels, etc. (I’m talking back in the ’80s, long before there were a zillion versions of every character.)

I mean, a generation already has grown up thinking multiple Spideys are a basic Spider-Man feature; Ben Reilly, although created in the 70s, came into his own circa 1994.

I loved this! Have not read the comics but was a devoted fan of the Saturday morning cartoon. in most ways this felt like a human version of the cartoon right down to the corniness & it totally worked for me. My only c

my only complaint is the score was doing way too much all the time, very murray gold dr who incessantness that i found annoying at times

otherwise: yay!

I just finished Ironheart

What a sack of shit

Not only did they completely undo all of Riri’s character growth in order to have that dumb as balls ending, but they already told this story in WandaVision. Find a new story, people!

I thought Fantastic Four was fine, but also strangely inert. I kept waiting for it to take off, but then it was over. Part of the problem was Pedro, whose charisma was largely held in check. In fact, of the Four only Kirby had any real spark, but even then she was largely reduced to protective mom mode. Curious how they integrate the team into future projects. There have been so many characters, big and small, introduced and abandoned over the course of the MCU; the roster has become more than a bit unwieldy, and there are still more to come that probably demand more than a cursory backstory or cameo (Doom, X-Men).

Funny how this and "Superman" were both primed to serve similar purposes - righting franchise ships - and in many ways went about it similarly. Both were bright and colorful, both were relatively wholesome and a little corny/goofy, both began more or less en medias rex, with no backstory, both were relatively self-contained, both featured incredibly efficient evacuations of Manhattan/Metropolis ...

I mostly enjoyed myself with First Steps, but this is the kind of movie that might be more valuable in retrospect.

Also: needed more Mole Man.

As a movie experience, Thunderbolts* was better

What I loved most was the premise of the world, the optimistic throwback/retro-future 1960s of everything.

I can't explain exactly why I disliked FF so much but it was probably the most bored I've been since the Shang Chi movie (although I didn't manage to finish The Marvels if I'm honest). I found the colour treatment very wearing - the scene when they went back into space I actually found myself noticing that everything was blue and white - and the sound was indeed MurrayGold-tastic. The characters all felt underdeveloped although maybe that's a factor of having spent time with them outside of the film; this felt like a snapshot of one tiny character trait blown up to an entire personality. And as for what happens to Sue, I just felt like quoting this TMWRNJ sketch:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcU9mXa-GCk

I not only enjoyed Thunderbolts* more, I enjoyed Eternals and maybe even Kraven The Hunter more.

FF had that kinda blank feeling I get from other stylized pieces like Speed Racer.

It had the feeling you get when the FF appear in someone else's comic book, just a smear of the lore and reminders of what their individual deals are. Which, to be honest, was kind of the way the book itself was written for stretches of issues. I'd rank it as fine, but it's a weakness of the team movie blockbuster where individual characters get short shrift in service of the plot being about the entire team.

FF was always going to be one of the hardest comics to adapt, because their whole deal is kind of ridiculous.

Agree that Thunderbolts was a better movie. It was the best of the three MCU films this year, and ultimately made the least money.

I liked Thunderbolts better than this, too, lol.

I thought Reed Richards was supposed to be a genius. Turns out he takes pregnant women into space and can’t even run a proper press conference.

Gotta say though I really loved the twist of Torch getting a crush on the Silver Surfer and that leading to him having the ridiculous commitment required to learn the Zenn-La language just to make her feel bad about her awful job

Favorite part: the faster than lightspace watery effect

Worst parts: Sue’s big boring speech, being too afraid/cheap to show Reed’s powers, CGI so sloppy that I actually noticed it

Really felt like marvel by the numbers which bummed me out because it was close to being a good movie.

Marvel Design Peeve: insisting on giving nonhuman characters human eyes. Vision, Silver Surfer. It's weird. I know they want the characters to have a certain level of relatable humanity or something, I guess? Also: the masks that constantly zip on and off just so we can see the superstar actor's faces.

most of the actors weren’t superstars until they were cast for an MCU movie? it’s just to see a face, any face. See also: bazillions of other films where the cast should be wearing masks/helmets/PPE but don’t because the audience doesn’t like it like that.

Didn’t feel like MCU by the numbers to me but whatever. It was fine.

Saw the (new?) trailer for "Wonder Man" and it (literally) looks good, which is surprising from Marvel, inc. At this point I've missed/skipped several of the shows, though: "Secret Invasion," "Echo," "Daredevil: Born Again," "Ironheart." Does anyone watch these TV shows? They seem to exist in a, well, different universe.

I learn from Wikipedia that Secret Invasion lasted for six episodes, which is perfectly normal from a British point of view - our longest-running television show, Coronation Street, only ever had eighteen episodes that have been repeated constantly since 1973 - but feels unusually small.

And yet a lot of these shows are apparently "functional", in the sense that they exist to introduce a new plot point into an ongoing fictional universe, e.g. they aren't supposed to exist purely on their own merits, so what do I know.

Apparently the title sequence was made with generative AI:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqnBJHU7si4

My attitude is "don't hate the player, hate the game", but it's awful. It goes on forever. It has style, but it's bad style. All the shots appear to be the same length. It's a terrible advert for generative AI.

Secret Invasion was terrible, plus they really underspent on it and it showed.

our longest-running television show, Coronation Street, only ever had eighteen episodes that have been repeated constantly since 1973

you used AI for this

Looks like they've squeezed out four "Doomsday" trailers so far, each leaning on ringers (OG MCU cast members, high-profile newly absorbed additions). I assume there will be a big trailer coming out, perhaps synched to a Major Sports Event?

Didn't know there was four.. I knew about the Cap, Thor and X-Men ones though.

RICKY BOBBY WILL RETURN
IN AVENGERS: DOOMSDAY

The fourth one features nu-Black Panther/Shuri, Namor and The Thing

here it is:

December 18, 2026. #AvengersDoomsday pic.twitter.com/J4RATrIH7e

— Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) January 13, 2026

so hoping there's another blip

I've not read any comics since middle school in the '80s, not really, and did not see the X-Men cartoon from the '90s, but based on its reputation I somewhat spontaneously watched a few episodes of "X-Men '97" and ... it's pretty good. Campy and melodramatic a lot of the time, for sure, but nails the comics vibe, and often seems a lot more mature and higher stakes than most of the MCU stuff does.

Thought the revive would be for Wonder Man.

Two episodes in and looks like it could be one of the best Marvel TV shows in a long time. And barely a superpower in sight.

Loved the Joe Pantoliano cameo

My expectations were so low for this show that I very nearly skipped it altogether. But I saw a couple reviews saying it was actually pretty good, and I found myself at the gym needing a 30-minute show to watch so I turned it on.

I’m three episodes in and really enjoying it! But that is almost entirely because (so far?) there are barely any superpowers, no goofy outfits, and no menacing villains. But there are good actors doing a good job of making a show about trying to succeed in Hollywood.

I don’t know how long it will maintain this tone. they’ve begun to show his super strength although there’s still no real threat beyond a 2nd-generation SHEILD knock-off. Even WANDAVISION eventually just became a Marvel Thing so we’ll see where this goes. But I’m enjoying it so far.

Watched Ep1 tonight & I am already digging it! Love the tone.

This show is great

I know zero about the character but had a lot of fun watching this show

to be honest I knew nothing even about the Mandarin’s MCU past, that is how spotty my engagement with this whole franchise has been

Just watched GotG3, it's been on my waitlist forever and I kept putting it off because I'm bored of Marvel slop and it's SO LONG. But it turns out to be... really good? I thought it might have been one of the best Marvel movies, rewatchable even.

GotG is probably the only movie series they've done where i'd even consider rewatching. would've considered Antman had the last one not been so stupendously fucked up.

We started watching all of the MCU in order as a family three years ago. It was fun but the last wave of movies reinforced how rote it has all become. I was hoping Fantastic Four would pull it together but nope.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TZMtslA3UY

Holland is my fave of the Spider-Men. Will be sad when he leaves the role eventually. Good trailer for giving us Parker luck moments along with the teasing heroic glimpses.

Reportedly Jean Grae doing that mind jumpy stuff

Was Sadie Sink in that trailer?

Rumor is she's the one in the hoodie facing away at one point.

Reportedly Jean Grae doing that mind jumpy stuff

what? what?!

Spider Man - Attack of the Attacking Things

A nice surprise!

https://gizmodo.com/marvel-studios-is-bringing-wonder-man-back-for-season-2-2000737095

yaaay i love Wonder Man so much

I haven't caught up with that show yet, but I noticed a commercial or two for it during the Oscars, which indicated some degree of faith Disney has in the show.

everyone should watch it esp if you are tired of Marvel Shows

it is a lovely gift to us all