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Welcome to the main discussion thread for the Marvel Cinematic Universe! This pinned post is here to establish some basic guidelines. All of the Media Forum rules still apply.

  • This thread is for talking about the live-action films, TV shows, animated works, and related content that use the Marvel brand, currently owned by Disney.
  • While mild digressions are okay, discussion of the comic books should go in this thread. Extended digressions may be thumped as off-topic.
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If you're posting tagged spoilers, make sure that the film or series is clearly identified outside the spoiler tagging. People need to know what will be spoiled before they choose to read the post.

    Original post 
Since Thor and now Captain America came out this year, I wanted to get what Tropers thought of the concept and execution of the Marvel Cinematic Universe in general. Personally I love the idea and wonder why this idea hasn't been seriously tried before. It sorta seems to me like the DCAU in movie form (And well, ummm, with Marvel), and really 'gets' the comic book feel of a shared universe while not being completely alienating.

Edited by Mrph1 on Jul 29th 2024 at 3:09:00 PM

AlleyOop Since: Oct, 2010
#55976: Apr 25th 2016 at 11:11:10 PM

While I do have a preference towards Marvel's heroes in general (how's them video games and toys) despite enjoying the DC animated shows and having read more of their comics in the 00's, most of my current preference for Marvel Studios has less to do with brand loyalty and more because of my problems with the approaches the other companies take towards their heroes.

Even the "average" Marvel movies to still be pretty entertaining while incorporating a lot of great Mythology Gags, whereas Fox is very hit-or-miss and even the good films tends to severely underuse most of the great X-Men in their stable, and DC's overall strategy reeks of copying Marvel in all the wrong ways, compounded by its Feige analogue Snyder's seeming inability to understand the source material. Not to mention Marvel's upcoming slate is a lot more robust and diverse than DC's which primarily consists of throwing all the big names out there regardless of their movies being too similar or not.

edited 25th Apr '16 11:22:44 PM by AlleyOop

Bocaj Funny but not helpful from Here or thereabouts (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: Pining for the fjords
Funny but not helpful
#55977: Apr 25th 2016 at 11:13:20 PM

I think the competition argument is fallacious.

If anything, competition would increase the executive pressure to include certain things because they're popular and we'll end up with more things like Spider-Man 3 where Venom got shoved in because the higher ups said.

Its probably the lack of competitive pressure that lets Marvel go for more obscure stuff like Guardians of the Galaxy or Ant-Man

edited 25th Apr '16 11:14:45 PM by Bocaj

Forever liveblogging the Avengers
wehrmacht belongs to the hurricane from the garden of everything Since: Dec, 2010 Relationship Status: YOU'RE TEARING ME APART LISA
belongs to the hurricane
#55978: Apr 25th 2016 at 11:19:01 PM

I like monster movies but still thought TIH was average at best. I think First Avenger isn't GREAT but I would lump it with Guardians of the Galaxy in terms of being above-average/good, it's certainly much better than Thor or TIH.

Of course it's perfectly understandable for people to disagree with me since it's not like I'm the ultimate arbiter of quality or anything, I just personally am hesitant to praise Marvel too much when I don't think most of their movies have been that good. I don't think them being "entertaining" is enough.

If Winter Soldier hadn't impressed me the way it did I wouldn't even be posting in this thread because all of their movies after Iron Man 1 consistently failed to wow me (I thought TFA was alright when I first saw it, I only enjoy it more now in retrospect). Of course, I am a person who tends to prefer more serious/dramatic works so stuff like Winter Soldier is going to be more appealing to me than something like Thor (I appreciate good comedy when I see it but Marvel's usually isn't gut-bustingly hilarious or anything), which is why I want more of those kinds of movies to be made.

[up] Not really sure that I buy that argument either. It's certainly possible, but I think it just depends on the executives. I don't think Sony had that much competition either and that still ended up happening to Spider-Man 3. Bad executives are gonna make bad calls either way.

I still don't think it is healthy for Marvel to basically remain unchallenged and we need more and different kinds of superhero offerings.

edited 25th Apr '16 11:34:22 PM by wehrmacht

Bocaj Funny but not helpful from Here or thereabouts (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: Pining for the fjords
Funny but not helpful
#55979: Apr 25th 2016 at 11:25:12 PM

They're unchallenged in comic book movies but challenged with every other action thing in the box office

Forever liveblogging the Avengers
wehrmacht belongs to the hurricane from the garden of everything Since: Dec, 2010 Relationship Status: YOU'RE TEARING ME APART LISA
belongs to the hurricane
#55980: Apr 25th 2016 at 11:26:54 PM

I was talking about comic book/superhero movies though.

edited 25th Apr '16 11:33:25 PM by wehrmacht

Swanpride Since: Jun, 2013
#55981: Apr 25th 2016 at 11:48:37 PM

See, for me, Comic book movies has tended to be a disappointment for years. Neither the Spider-man Trilogy, nor the X-men movies nor the Batman movies really worked for me. They were okay, but I always felt that the studios could do much better. And then Marvel came around and actually did better by taking their characters seriously. Because, even though I didn't realize it in the beginning, that was my main problem with all those movies. It was always about the visuals and the big action set-piece (the Nolan trilogy is the exception since it tried to be about "bigger themes" in a typical Nolan fashion, which is one of the reasons why I don't argue with people who think that they are the best since sliced bread), but it was never really about embracing the characters. And when it comes to the visuals, well, unpopular opinion, but I think the Dick Tracy movie is more interesting to look at than any of those movies (not that I think that the movie is good, but I enjoy at least the visuals in it).

What makes the MCU different for me is that they, unlike all the other studios, decided to do a character driven approach. That's why I like TIH the least, because I think the characters in it don't work at all.

When it comes to "challenging" Marvel: I don't think that it works that way when it comes to movies. This is not a sports game. People who want to watch the Marvel movies will watch the Marvel movies, they won't suddenly stop doing so because someone else is in town who does just as well. It is always about the quality of the movies itself and not about what someone else does.

edited 25th Apr '16 11:51:04 PM by Swanpride

wehrmacht belongs to the hurricane from the garden of everything Since: Dec, 2010 Relationship Status: YOU'RE TEARING ME APART LISA
belongs to the hurricane
#55982: Apr 25th 2016 at 11:55:24 PM

I like character-driven movies too but the problem is I think the only main characters they have that I really like are Tony, Steve and Natasha (and I suppose I could count the Got G if I was being generous, I enjoyed the movie more for its quirkiness although the characters were certainly likable), I was not impressed with TIH's characters or Thor (barring Loki), and that was the big reason why I didn't care for Avengers, because all I saw was a premise that hinged on me being excited for a teamup which was over 50% composed of characters I had no real reason to be invested in.

And well, your character-driven movie still has to be good. Tony is a charismatic main character but that didn't stop IM 2 and 3 from being a weak movie and a mixed movie (I know some people like IM 3, I don't and I feel we've exhausted arguments about it as it stands).

There's a lot you can criticize about previous superhero franchises, and I feel the same way about the MCU, I would be really hesitant to say they were overall better than other movies that have come before them as a whole. Ultimately it's about what you personally prioritize and how you view the strengths and weaknesses of each franchise relative to what's most important for you. I'm not trying to be overly negative about it and I apologize if I'm coming off that way, since I understand why people like the movies I am harsher on, but I'm not gonna refrain from being critical either.

edited 26th Apr '16 12:02:13 AM by wehrmacht

wehrmacht belongs to the hurricane from the garden of everything Since: Dec, 2010 Relationship Status: YOU'RE TEARING ME APART LISA
belongs to the hurricane
#55984: Apr 26th 2016 at 12:03:36 AM

On a more positive note, that tv spot makes for a good impression of their version of Spider-Man. Peter fanboying about Bucky's arm is totally something a nerdy teenager would do.

AlleyOop Since: Oct, 2010
#55985: Apr 26th 2016 at 12:03:49 AM

Was that scene of him kicking through the glass CG? Also I love how excited he sounds.

Tuckerscreator (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: Drift compatible
#55986: Apr 26th 2016 at 12:23:36 AM

I pleased the Captain America robot.

Going through the Twitter page, and there's actually a surprising amount of unique responses. Some of them even mention the posters by name. Surprising. Is this live? Pretty fast for a live response.

edited 26th Apr '16 12:24:59 AM by Tuckerscreator

Swanpride Since: Jun, 2013
#55987: Apr 26th 2016 at 1:20:22 AM

May I mention how crazy it is that Marvel has dropped 30 TV spots and still managed to show only snippets of the movie? Though I admit, I am getting sick of the shot of Tony blocking Bucky...

Well, just one day to go....

ultimatepheer Since: Mar, 2011
#55988: Apr 26th 2016 at 6:49:30 AM

It's actually kinda funny, I wasn't a fan of comics or their spinoffs in general until the MCU. Always felt they were too dark.

Turns out I'm a fan of mountains of snark. Who could've guessed?

comicwriter Since: Sep, 2011
#55989: Apr 26th 2016 at 7:05:03 AM

Bucky's face is priceless. He's been getting his ass beat by Black Panther and now he's getting manhandled by a kid.

Bocaj Funny but not helpful from Here or thereabouts (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: Pining for the fjords
Funny but not helpful
#55991: Apr 26th 2016 at 9:28:25 AM

I'd suggest a Kate Bishop show because Kate Bishop with Renner as supporting cast/extended cameo but Marvel probably doesn't want to do anything even superficially like Arrow

Forever liveblogging the Avengers
AlleyOop Since: Oct, 2010
#55992: Apr 26th 2016 at 10:39:33 AM

Maybe they're afraid of shooting too early with Kate and making her too old by the time Young Avengers rolls around. Though they could always give her an adaptational age lift compared to her peers.

comicwriter Since: Sep, 2011
#55993: Apr 26th 2016 at 11:03:53 AM

Kate is already one of the oldest I thought (like in her 20's). But with how fast the MCU moves you'd have to be careful.

dantecito Since: Dec, 2014
#55994: Apr 26th 2016 at 11:14:11 AM

Winter Soldier is now the Worf of Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Which is ironic because:

"Everyone who goes against him who isn't named Steve is easily dealt with, in order to show how dangerous he himself is. Even Natasha, who put up the best fight after Steve, is quickly overwhelmed by the Winter Soldier's combat ability, while the Falcon, in his wing suit, suffered a very brief Curb-Stomp Battle. "

And now is a victim of this trope.

edited 26th Apr '16 11:27:21 AM by dantecito

Cross (Don’t ask)
#55995: Apr 26th 2016 at 12:04:48 PM

From what has been shown everyone who has held their own against him for a extended period of time have been enhanced human (at least I think Black Panther is), so it is kinda justified.

edited 26th Apr '16 12:06:00 PM by Cross

dantecito Since: Dec, 2014
#55996: Apr 26th 2016 at 12:30:57 PM

Spider Man kicked to Falcon, is a psychopath.

Given the difference in strength, could have killed him.

comicwriter Since: Sep, 2011
#55997: Apr 26th 2016 at 12:31:08 PM

Looking like a big international opening for Civil War.

[up][up]And we've already seen him demolish Black Widow, Tony, and Sharon.

[up]Not really. Spider-Man punches and kicks normal humans all the time. I'm sure at this point he knows how to pull his punches.

edited 26th Apr '16 12:31:49 PM by comicwriter

Tuckerscreator (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: Drift compatible
#55998: Apr 26th 2016 at 12:36:47 PM

Captain America punched a bunch of normal humans in the SHIELD elevator and they were just bruised afterward.

edited 26th Apr '16 12:37:02 PM by Tuckerscreator

comicwriter Since: Sep, 2011
#55999: Apr 26th 2016 at 12:42:13 PM

And of course he beats the crap out of Batroc and Batroc is still healthy enough to get up and escape.

I'm pretty sure most superpowered people in the MCU intentionally hold themselves back so they aren't constantly killing people.

edited 26th Apr '16 12:42:22 PM by comicwriter

Whowho Since: May, 2012
#56000: Apr 26th 2016 at 12:44:19 PM

I do love in Thor 2 the Odinson putting the hammer down so that he doesn't kill the guards he's about to fight.


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