Series that debuted on Phase 4, Phase 5, and Phase 6 belong here.
Series debuting in Phase 4
WandaVision
- Dottie only has limited screentime, but due to a combination of being played by fan-favorite actress Emma Caulfield, being so entertainingly mean and featuring in a scene that managed to be funny and eerie all at once, she was quickly beloved by the viewers. This is best demonstrated by her actress's name shooting up to the #5 most searched name on IMDB
after the first three episodes - the second highest out of all the cast while outranking the other lead actors with much more screentime and plot relevance than her like Paul Bettany, Teyonah Parris, and Kathryn Hahn. - While he was moderately liked as a side character in Ant-Man and the Wasp, Jimmy Woo's popularity shot up immensely with the release of "We Interrupt This Program", with many fans latching onto his dorky, yet still professional attitude in figuring out the weirdness of Westview. It also helps that he's much more competent at his job here (or at least as competent as one can be when dealing with a Reality Warper like Wanda), his goals are much more sympathetic than in the aforementioned film, and is capable of throwing down when necessary. The amount of attention Woo attracted was so great that it actually lead to discussions of a spinoff series for the character based on The X-Files, with actor/director Stephen Ford writing a pitch for it.
The Falcon And The Winter Soldier
- Joaquin Torres is first seen in a sidekick-like role for Sam, and he became an immediate fan-favorite due to his geeky, likable personality, with many considering him to be the "younger brother" to Sam as far as their dynamic goes. The fact he's also Sam's Legacy Character in the comics helps, as this brings the possibility of a Hispanic superhero to the MCU's future. Heck, the showrunner admitted he would've been given a "giant storyline" if the show was 10 episodes long.
- Dr. Raynor the therapist is turning out to be a favorite as well, being a former soldier who doesn't take crap from two Avengers while helping push the both of them into legitimately bettering themselves.
- Carl Lumbly's Isaiah Bradley has garnered just as spirited praise for his appearances in the second, fifth and sixth episodes for being a truly tragic character that doesn't shy away from the US' racial discrimination, with the actor doing an excellent job selling the sheer pain he has gone through. In addition, many fans love the idea of seeing a prequel series showing his past as the first black super-soldier in the MCU who fought the Winter Soldier and won.
- Despite her short screentime, John Walker's wife Olivia has quite a few fans for being a genuinely loving and supportive presence to John, even standing by and encouraging him after he's stripped of the mantle and becomes a pariah.
Loki
- Miss Minutes has two small scenes between the first two episodes, and is thus a very minor character. She is also quite popular with fans, due to her Dissonant Serenity in explaining the TVA's existence and objectives in her own animated sequence, while also being a Mascot with Attitude. The fact that she's voiced by Tara Strong herself is just icing on the cake. Then the season one finale reveals she's The Dragon to the true founder of the TVA and can be surprisingly sinister for an adorable cartoon clock.
- Alligator Loki features in only one of the six episodes of season 1, and he is extremely popular due to being an especially amusing instance of an Alternate Self that comes in the form of a cute animal. He's also a dangerous opponent who doesn't take kindly to insults, and bites the hand off President Loki when he deridingly points him out in the room.
- Classic Loki features in a stinger and one episode (the same one Alligator Loki made his own debut) before his death. However, he is thought of fondly for being played by Richard E. Grant, for his Narm Charm costume, and especially for his glorious Heroic Sacrifice, to the point that fans were praising the casting and Grant's dedication to playing the role while wishing that he had lasted a little longer.
- Casey the TVA secretary only appears in two episodes as minor comic relief, yet he enamored a lot of viewers due to his rather nonchalant behavior to what's going on around him. He gets a bigger role in Season 2, when it's revealed he uses his knowhow of the TVA manual.
Hawkeye
- Lucky the Pizza Dog has little importance to the plot after the first episode, but the audience doesn't care. He immediately got fans for being an adorable golden retriever. It's telling that many fans were terrified in the first episode when it looked like he was going to be run over by traffic.
- Grills is part of the LARP Cast Herd. While he did steal the Rōnin suit at first and wore it to a LARP event without realizing its significance, he quickly proved himself to be a genuinely funny Nice Guy that treats Clint with the respect that an Avenger deserves. The fact that he also looked after Lucky (even teaching him some tricks) during the events of the fourth and fifth episodes helped.
- Jack Duquesne counts as this trope once it's revealed he's not a villain of any kind, nor is he Swordsman in the MCU. He is just a dorky guy who likes swords and genuinely wants to be a good stepdad to Kate.
- Tomas and Ivan, the two members of the Tracksuit Mafia who get the most characterization aside from Maya and Kazi, are remarkably popular for characters who are basically mooks. Special mention goes to Tomas for opening up to Kate about his relationship troubles and taking advice from her - an odd type of interaction that you don't often see in media.
- The owl that Clint encounters in the Christmas tree in the final episode, referencing Rocky the Owl, has won fans since they found the tiny owl as cute and adorable, and many fans also loved that the owl flew and took the miniaturized truck with the Tracksuit Mafia members.
- Already a Breakout Character following the release of Black Widow (2021), Yelena Belova received praise for remaining a Badass Adorable with great action sequences and arguably tying into the themes of the series. Her growing as a Friendly Rival towards Kate Bishop (starting by her her casually breaking into Kate's appartment to chat) and their following interactions are especially entertaining.
Moon Knight
- Taweret, the Egyptian hippo goddess of mothers and children, became a massive hit with the fans the moment she said "Hi!" She's nothing but a Nice Girl who supports Marc and Steven, has a wonderfully plum British accent, and shows off an Adorkable side wen she has to use cheat sheets when substituting for Anubis.
- The third unnamed alter, who is considerably more brutal and efficient than Steven or Marc, combined with the fact that he usually seems to appear to protect the body when they're in great danger. In the mid-credits scene of the finale, it turns out this is indeed Jake Lockley, Marc's third alter from the comics, as many viewers expected.
She-Hulk: Attorney At Law
- Madisynn King became a fan-favourite character after only appearing in one episode, largely because she managed to survive being sent to a hellish dimension by making a deal with a goat demon, and subsequently struck up a friendship with Sorcerer Supreme Wong — an impressive feat for a Hard-Drinking Party Girl with a loveably ditzy personality.
- Pug, despite being essentially almost a background character at Jen's law firm, also became surprisingly popular for being the resident Nice Guy of the law firm, his Adorkable fanboying of the Avengers, and his endearing attempts at pretending to be a Troll in the finale. Being played by Josh Segarra, aka Adrian Chase, definitely helps too.
Secret Invasion
- While the show received a mixed reception, even detractors of the show agree that Sonya Falsworth stole the show thanks to being a Sugary Malice Anti-Hero who is actually one of the few competent characters in the show. Olivia Colman's enjoyable performance helps tremendously.
- Beto has a decent amount of popularity, mainly due to being one of few genuinely nice Skrulls on the show and for instigating a rebellion against Gravik once he realizes how far gone he is. Many fans were disappointed that he was killed at Gravik's hands.
