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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.
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    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

Sigilbreaker26 Serial Procrastinator Since: Nov, 2017
Serial Procrastinator
#83751: Mar 30th 2018 at 9:41:29 AM

Like, I agree RDJ is a good actor, but I struggle to see how that would put IM 2 above The First Avenger. IM 2 just has no structure and beyond the first act just completely runs out of juice, as well as suffering possibly the worst from the MCU's shitty villain syndrome.

"And when the last law was down and the Devil turned round on you, where would you hide, the laws all being flat?"
wisewillow She/her Since: May, 2011
She/her
#83752: Mar 30th 2018 at 9:46:45 AM

Robert Downey Jr does a fantastic job as both Tony Stark and Iron Man, and the supporting actors (particularly Jeff Bridges in Iron Man and Don Cheadle in Iron Man 2) were also excellent. Captain America was good, but Chris Evans doesn't quite reach that level.

How ~dare~ you. Yeah, RDJ is great, but Chris Evans f*cking NAILED it as Cap. It’s such a hard character to sell, and in CA: TFA, he gets it down perfectly. (I’ll give you Avengers being not as great; I blame Whedon not being great at writing Cap, whereas the Russos have done a fantastic job).

edited 30th Mar '18 9:47:24 AM by wisewillow

NativeJovian Jupiterian Local from Orlando, FL Since: Mar, 2014 Relationship Status: Maxing my social links
Jupiterian Local
#83753: Mar 30th 2018 at 9:48:57 AM

[up][up]Mostly because I found Sam Rockwell and Mickey Rourke fun to watch, even if they weren't used particularly well narratively. Meanwhile, Chris Evans and the Howling Commandos were good but not great, and the rest of the cast was largely meh.

[up]Eh, Evans may have nailed Cap, but Steve Rogers can't singlehandedly carry a movie like Tony Stark can.

edited 30th Mar '18 9:50:36 AM by NativeJovian

Really from Jupiter, but not an alien.
DeathsApprentice The Ultimate Lifeform from The Ark Since: Aug, 2011 Relationship Status: Is that a kind of food?
The Ultimate Lifeform
#83754: Mar 30th 2018 at 9:54:08 AM

Did you skip Thor in your Phase One watch, or did you just forget to rank it?

When we're done, there won't be anything left.
Tuckerscreator (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: Drift compatible
#83755: Mar 30th 2018 at 9:54:17 AM

That rest of the cast includes Her Majesty Agent Peggy Carter, the best science dad Dr. Erskine, and driest snark desert Colonel Tommy Lee Jones.

edited 30th Mar '18 9:55:00 AM by Tuckerscreator

Gaon Smoking Snake from Grim Up North Since: Jun, 2012 Relationship Status: Above such petty unnecessities
#83756: Mar 30th 2018 at 9:55:54 AM

I view Phase 1 as a sort of "superhero year one" type of story where we slowly see a more mundane world drift more into weirdness. The MCU's equivalent of Batman: The Long Halloween, maybe. That's why it starts with Iron Man, during which the only specific fantastic element is something created by Tony Stark and how it changes the world and the movie lasers on how invention cannot be reproduced or matched and how it changes the status quo.

Then there's the Hulk resurfacing after a long period dormant in Brazil plus things like the Abomination and we see all the weirdness hiding under the surface of our world coming more to the forefront. Iron Man 2 shifts focus (before promptly squandering said focus) on how the world is changing and reacting to Stark's new technology and there's a subplot of how Iron Man itself is changing the world.

With Thor we have mankind's first contact with gods in centuries and as Nick Fury points out in The Avengers, also a "first blood" type of situation with the climax of that film being technically an act of war by a interdimensional sovereign (Thor just solves the situation before it can get out of hand). Then, finally, First Avenger following the old pattern of TLA by showing us the world was kind of always weird, we're just seeing said weirdness explode to the surface now.

Thus what begins with a guy creating an amazing invention ends with a alien invasion and elder entities from space declaring earth is something to watch out for. the Battle of New York is the weirdness of this universe finally bursting to an extreme, leveling a major american city in a intergalactic battle between aliens working for a norse god (who subsequently works for a elder alien overlord who seeks fragments of the metaphysical force of creation) and a team composed of superhumans and gods. It's the culmination of weirdness, it's the "point of no return" of the MCU. From that point on, the MCU world is irreparably weird.

S.H.I.E.L.D is kind of the face of that arc of weird. By IM 1 they're a passive agent lurking in the shadows, with TIH they make their first move (sending Stark to talk with Ross and such), IM 2 has Fury and Coulson playing a supporting role in the weirdness, by Thor SHIELD is directly involved in the bizarre events unfolding and when we get to The Avengers they're answering to a council of world governments as they're trying to save humanity.

edited 30th Mar '18 9:59:15 AM by Gaon

"All you Fascists bound to lose."
Anomalocaris20 from Sagittarius A* Since: Sep, 2010 Relationship Status: Love blinded me (with science!)
#83757: Mar 30th 2018 at 10:26:09 AM

Phase 2's running theme is People Losing Arms, yes?

You cannot firmly grasp the true form of Squidward's technique!
PushoverMediaCritic I'm sorry Tien, but I must go all out. from the Italy of America Since: Jul, 2015 Relationship Status: watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ
I'm sorry Tien, but I must go all out.
#83758: Mar 30th 2018 at 10:49:26 AM

I think Phase 2's theme is supposed to be something like "the heroes reaffirm their identities" or "the heroes face threats greater than they ever have" or something like that. Phase 1 is definitely focused on beginnings. Actually, I'm not sure what Phase 3 is supposed to be about. Maybe the whole Phase thing is just supposed to represent what happens in-between the Avengers films, not actually something with an underlying narrative structure and theme.

comicwriter Since: Sep, 2011
#83759: Mar 30th 2018 at 10:49:33 AM

Captain Marvel set photos.

edited 30th Mar '18 10:50:45 AM by comicwriter

PushoverMediaCritic I'm sorry Tien, but I must go all out. from the Italy of America Since: Jul, 2015 Relationship Status: watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ
I'm sorry Tien, but I must go all out.
#83760: Mar 30th 2018 at 10:52:30 AM

Oh wow, it just hit me that I'm actually extremely hyped for Captain Marvel. Like, I don't know why it hit me in a wave, but it did. I want to see Marvel's Superman done well on the big screen (because heaven knows DC's Superman isn't).

Punisher286 Since: Jan, 2016
#83761: Mar 30th 2018 at 10:54:55 AM

They are going REALLY 90's with this. I mean Carol literally looks like a female Kurt Cobain in that one shot, and then the Guns N. Roses shirt.

I'd love it if this entire soundtrack is basically grunge music and other 90's rock. Do for 90's music what GOTG did for 70's and 80's music.

Anomalocaris20 from Sagittarius A* Since: Sep, 2010 Relationship Status: Love blinded me (with science!)
#83762: Mar 30th 2018 at 10:57:01 AM

[up][up][up][up]Phase 3's theme is parents and their children. Specifically, imperfections in the parents, and a sense of passing the torch.

Civil War concerned Bucky's relation to Tony Stark's parents as well as T'challa inheriting his father's position, Doctor Strange had some "mother who raised but deceived her children" vibes with the Ancient One, Guardians of the Galaxy 2 has Ego and Yondu to emphasize that blood doesn't automatically make or break you as a parent, as well as Gamora and Nebula's daddy issues driving a wedge between them, Homecoming has Toomes betraying his family by turning to crime even though he did it FOR them, plus Tony Stark kinda awkwardly being a father figure for Peter, Ragnarok deals with some sins-of-the-father stuff regarding Odin's past coming to haunt his son, and Black Panther's obviously got some father-son themes for both T'challa himself and Killmonger.

And now we have Infinity War, which besides obviously exploring the paternal nature of Thanos's relation to Gamora and Nebula some more, is almost certainly going to have some character deaths and subsequent torch-passing, likely involving Captain America and/or Iron Man.

edited 30th Mar '18 10:58:26 AM by Anomalocaris20

You cannot firmly grasp the true form of Squidward's technique!
PushoverMediaCritic I'm sorry Tien, but I must go all out. from the Italy of America Since: Jul, 2015 Relationship Status: watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ
I'm sorry Tien, but I must go all out.
#83763: Mar 30th 2018 at 11:00:16 AM

[up]That's a really good point. Fair enough, that is a really strong and present theme.

Anomalocaris20 from Sagittarius A* Since: Sep, 2010 Relationship Status: Love blinded me (with science!)
#83764: Mar 30th 2018 at 11:03:02 AM

I mean, there's been elements of it before; Iron Man 2, when it manages to be focused, is pretty obviously focused on fathers and sons, the eponymous villain of Age of Ultron obviously has severe daddy issues, and then there's Ant-Man and its father-daughter themes with Scott, Cassie, Hank, and Hope (and Cross feeling neglected off to the side).

But I think Phase 3 is where it graduates from undercurrent to primary focus.

You cannot firmly grasp the true form of Squidward's technique!
PushoverMediaCritic I'm sorry Tien, but I must go all out. from the Italy of America Since: Jul, 2015 Relationship Status: watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ
I'm sorry Tien, but I must go all out.
#83765: Mar 30th 2018 at 11:05:41 AM

I'm curious if that theme is going to continue through Captain Marvel, Ant-Man and the Wasp, and Avengers 4. I mean, obviously Ant-Man and the Wasp, but what about Captain Marvel?

AlleyOop Since: Oct, 2010
#83766: Mar 30th 2018 at 11:11:34 AM

I'll have to second not being all that interested in Captain Marvel at first, but the revisiting of the 90s (which is starting to be the in-thing now; might as well cash in on it while it's still hot) and the universe building with the Kree and the Skrulls is actually kind of hooking me in more.

Bocaj Funny but not helpful from Here or thereabouts (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: Pining for the fjords
Funny but not helpful
#83767: Mar 30th 2018 at 11:36:29 AM

Overly ambitious phase ones is why so many other cinematic universes fall apart

Vaguely connected random events is clearly how you build audience interest

Forever liveblogging the Avengers
comicwriter Since: Sep, 2011
#83768: Mar 30th 2018 at 11:52:18 AM

That's the mistake a lot of the imitators have made. The audience is only gonna care about the shared universe aspect if you make successful movies to hook them in at the beginning.

Tuckerscreator (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: Drift compatible
#83769: Mar 30th 2018 at 12:09:56 PM

The only other Cinematic Universe attempt besides Marvel that actually appears to be gathering steam instead of losing it is the Legendary Godzilla-King Kong-Kaiju-verse.

Swanpride Since: Jun, 2013
#83770: Mar 30th 2018 at 12:25:21 PM

My favorite of phase one is actually the first avenger. I actually didn't like ironman that much the first time watching it I guess I was just tired of those manchild protagonists. Cap gave me the kind of hero I was missing so much

AlleyOop Since: Oct, 2010
#83771: Mar 30th 2018 at 2:51:22 PM

Captain America is the first phase film that leans the least heavily on quips and Deadpan Snarker humor, for what it's worth.

edited 30th Mar '18 2:52:12 PM by AlleyOop

comicwriter Since: Sep, 2011
AlleyOop Since: Oct, 2010
#83773: Mar 30th 2018 at 5:20:36 PM

I hope a lot of that merch features the female characters. Honestly who wouldn't want a Dora Milaje action figure if offered? Their costumes look rad as hell.

NativeJovian Jupiterian Local from Orlando, FL Since: Mar, 2014 Relationship Status: Maxing my social links
Jupiterian Local
#83774: Mar 30th 2018 at 5:29:59 PM

Did you skip Thor in your Phase One watch, or did you just forget to rank it?
I just forgot about it! Which sort of says it all. I'd put it above The Incredible Hulk, but that's about it. It was So Okay, It's Average incarnate. Nothing terribly offensive about it, but nothing terribly interesting either. We didn't really learn anything interesting about Asgard or any of the characters, Thor's character arc was virtually nonexistent (even though the entire plot of the movie theoretically revolved around the idea of Thor becoming worthy to wield Mjolnir), and none of the action was particularly exciting.

Really from Jupiter, but not an alien.
wisewillow She/her Since: May, 2011
She/her
#83775: Mar 30th 2018 at 5:31:04 PM

I’m mad that the only Okoye Funko is limited edition and like $100 ;_;


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