Marvel Cinematic Universe

Say what you want about Secret Invasion (and the morality of its intro), but this theme slaps:

If embed doesn't work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7coCV7MQyf8

I've said it before and I'll say it again: Secret Invasion had potential. There's a lot that could've been done if they were given more time and stuck with the creative people they initially hired. I still think that first episode was really fucking cool, Maria Hill death notwithstanding.

But the fact that that potential was wasted upsets me.

Maria Hill should've been a Skrull. Spark public paranoia early. The twist would have been that Fury knew she was a Skrull. She wasn't secretly infiltrating or anything. But suddenly a US government agent dies in a foreign conflict and turns into an alien on film. Would've been a 100% better lead-in.

Testing to see, if embedding works for me:

*Edit* Seems to work.

Edited by jouXIII on Apr 1st 2024 at 1:35:45 PM

Thanks.

Many speculate the skrull stuff could have been used for a phase of films. Do you guys think that could work?

It could have been better as a longer term phase within the MCU opposed to a one off mini-series.

But I don't think it would have been a good idea, the MCU has the characters age along with the actors and either retire or die off permanently. Since there's a finite amount of time the characters will be around (opposed to the comics), revealing that the character was replaced for a chunk of that time might not go over well.

Adapting Secret Invasion from where the MCU had the Skrulls was a mistake or at least a very uphill climb

And the Secret Invasion miniseries tripped over its feet and fell into a ravine and then exploded and then exploded again

Though as Zeromaeus suggested, there was the potential to reveal that certain characters had always been Skrulls. That, if they replaced a real human being at some point, it happened years and years ago, before the MCU began. That the version of the character we know has been a Skrull this whole time.

It basically has the effect of making everything we knew about a character for god knows how many years a lie, which might not be well received, really.

I think Skrull replacing works better when it's only done in the span of a single installment. Like when Talos and Soren impersonated Nick Fury and Maria Hill to help Spider-Man.

The problem with the single installment replacement is it can come off as an unnecessary twist or as an excuse for odd character beats. Didn't they say the Skrull twist in FFH was to justify how Fury got tricked by Beck?

Or, if they did Secret Invasion as a full TV Show (with about 20 episodes and a possibility for future seasons), then they could have a few returning MCU characters (they could even be the same they ended up using, Fury, Maria, Martin Freeman character and Rhodey) and introduce a decently-sized group of new ones. Any of the returning MCU characters or the new ones could be Skrulls, and 20 episodes would allow the new characters to be introduced, develop and therefore increase the tension from anyone being Skrulls. And, using only a few from the MCU, means that less character development from across the MCU will feel hollow, whilst still allowing the stakes of whether established characters are who they say they are.

Edited by king15 on Apr 1st 2024 at 4:06:34 PM

It would have been far better to take some risks, and have some brilliant successes and terrible failures, than to always aim at focus-grouped mediocrity.

It's a fundamental problem with Disney: the more closely any of its creators fall under its corporate influence, the less interesting their creations become.

The DCEU was a conga line of taking risks and having some succeses (Wonder Woman, Man of Steel) and a lot of failures (Batman v Superman, Flash, Aquaman 2, Shazam 2, Black Adam) and WB pulled the plug on that.

Disney's pushed out Raya, Wish, Inside Out, Soul, Onward, Elemental and probably more. I feel like they're fine unless all of those films lacked corporate influence.

I feel like the Marvel branch and the live-action remakes are the only things Disney isn't winning hearts and minds with.

Edited by FOFD on Apr 1st 2024 at 8:00:08 AM

Aquaman 2 actually made a small profit and was the only DC film since Shazam to do so.

Raya and Wish weren't well-received and Elemental suffered from misleading marketing. Inside Out 2 seems to have people excited, though. I don't know enough about Soul or Onward's reception.

Edited by lalalei2001 on Apr 1st 2024 at 10:12:48 AM

I remember Raya being very well received upon release.

Edited by Bullman on Apr 1st 2024 at 9:47:10 AM

Raya has a 93 on RT and an A Cinemascore. Thats the Schaffilas talking. Most contributing factor for it bombing was Disney releasing in the pandemic. But then again Ralph Breaks the Internet has a relatively high score…

I am praying that after seeing Xmen 97 that the next Xmen movie doesnt have Wolverine be a focus and actually bring depth the rest of the team. They did Cyclops so dirty twice. And live action Morpph

Edited by M1gamiTensei on Apr 1st 2024 at 8:01:40 AM

In terms of story arcs I honestly think at this point the whole phase-style storytelling is just conceptually flawed when applied to movie-making. Because it's asking for a style of long-form storytelling that the casual movie-going audience (one that is actively shrinking, mind) is only so willing to commit to, and in film we exacerbate the typical issues by having to deal with time and human beings and real-world complications and junk. And even if you do it all right you only get so far before the audience is done and ready to hit the Reset Button so they can move on to something fresh. Zack Snyder might've honestly had the right idea just wanting to do like 4-5 DC movies ending in Justice League beating Darkseid and then calling it quits.

So yeah when we're talking adaptations we really should be talking like what can fit in a single movie, or maybe two or three if you can avoid the "Part 1" numbering. You know, like the good MCU movies did. Adaptation Distillation all the way.

The best thing an MCU X-Men thing can do is put focus on the whole team with Cyclops as the glue holding the whole thing together (more so than even Xavier). And honestly they may well just do that if only because it's not something that's been really done before in Fox's other stuff.

Edited by Watchtower on Apr 1st 2024 at 11:32:46 AM

I'm hoping we get some obscure mutants on the team, not just the mainstream guys.

Personally I'm a huge fan of Fantomex and would love to see Charlie Cluster-7 in something.

Looks like Sam Raimi is interested in directing a potential Secret Wars movie if he's asked.

I'm personally on the fence about this idea, because unless things change up again, we'd be getting another Raimi-Waldron collaboration, which we've already seen before.

Pizza Poppa is a Kang variant, confirmed

I didn't think Waldron was still writing got Marvel? Or am I confused with the Quantumania guy.

Yeah, I'd love something in the line of the Ultimate X-Men line with new never adapted characters. (Though having rewatched The Marvels I'm assuming we've getting Beast and Binary)

Raimi picked up MOM fairly late into production, right?

He might have picked up your mom, but he certainly did no such thing to my mom.

Edited by king15 on Apr 2nd 2024 at 7:28:23 PM

Loveness is the Quantumania writer, and he's no longer working with Marvel. Waldron however, is tapped in to pen Secret Wars.