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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.
  • Spoilers for new releases should not be discussed without spoiler tagging for at least two weeks. Rather, each title should have a dedicated thread where that sort of conversation is held. We can mention new releases in a general sense, but please be courteous to people who don't want to be spoiled.

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

Watchtower Since: Jul, 2010
#131276: Aug 4th 2021 at 9:38:07 PM

The way the situation with Netflix works, it kind of does.

They can make new stuff with the characters, but the versions we saw in the Netflix shows belong to Netflix, not Marvel Studios. This means that we can get Luke Cage or Daredevil or Jessica Jones in upcoming projects, but they can never ever directly reference the events of any of the Netflix shows, so they're effectively Exiled from Continuity and it's more cost effective for Marvel Studios to just reintroduce them with retold backstories instead.

I never really thought about it but it actually does make sense that they'd effectively be forced to go Broad Strokes. After all even though the character rights have lapsed Netflix still has the actual shows themselves...and of course they would, they produced the damn things.

[up] It's a bit awkwardly worded but it's actually kinda telling that Marvel has What Ifs while DC has Elseworlds. The Marvel multiverse has a few distinct alternate realities (Earth-S, Ultimate Marvel, etc.) but for the most part is really Butterfly Effect scenarios branching from the main universe, while the DC multiverse has for the longest time always been some relatively-finite number of distinct Alternate Universes.

Here's a real Mind Screw for ya: people have compared the MCU's time travel to DBZ's but the Tournament of Power clearly establishes that DBZ also has a DC-style multiverse. wink

slimcoder The Head of the Hydra Since: May, 2013
The Head of the Hydra
#131277: Aug 4th 2021 at 9:39:39 PM

Didn’t the Contest of Champions function as a multiversity tournament of some kind?

"I am Alpharius. This is a lie."
Chrononaut70 Since: Dec, 2020
#131278: Aug 4th 2021 at 9:48:29 PM

According to Vulture, one of the reasons behind Scarlett Johansson's lawsuit against Disney is that there are no more Black Widow appearances planned for Phase 4. Depending on how the lawsuit plays out, this means that Black Widow won't reappear again, not even in the Multiverse. Kevin Feige really wanted to work with her again and this lawsuit could scuttle these plans for good.

Edited by Chrononaut70 on Aug 4th 2021 at 9:49:17 AM

Watchtower Since: Jul, 2010
#131279: Aug 4th 2021 at 10:02:32 PM

[up][up] From what I can tell only the most recent one and even then that's because it explicitly cribs off Secret Wars. It's only really been in the last decade that Marvel's actually gone in on multiversal collisions between that, Spider-Verse, and several video games.

[up] Yeah I'll be honest I'm surprised at how ugly this whole lawsuit is turning out to be. I presumed this was just usual Hollywood millionaire hoopla but it really seems like the new Disney management under Chapek has no problems with bridges burning if it means saving money. Not that I expect this to completely derail the MCU train but Feige has clearly run an overall better ship once he was given autonomy and this better not screw it up.

Chrononaut70 Since: Dec, 2020
#131280: Aug 4th 2021 at 10:28:14 PM

Feige is going to try to mend bridges with Johansson, which may or may not be successful (possibly the latter). He has a reputation of getting into shouting matches or feuds with others id things don't go his way according to some reports.

Edited by Chrononaut70 on Aug 4th 2021 at 10:29:09 AM

MatthewWayne The Tapestry Weaver from Camp Echo One Since: Oct, 2014 Relationship Status: 700 wives and 300 concubines
The Tapestry Weaver
#131281: Aug 4th 2021 at 10:39:50 PM

[up][up] Yeah, Chapek's popularity is sinking incredibly fast, with this lawsuit only making it worse. I've read reports that it's gotten so bad that even Bob Iger thinks that Chapek is doing a horrendous job as CEO.

"I'm Mr. Blue, woah-woah-ooh..."
Chrononaut70 Since: Dec, 2020
#131282: Aug 4th 2021 at 11:40:55 PM

Johansson once said that she had no plans to return as Black Widow in the post-Infinity Saga MCU though she really wanted to work with Feige on multiple projects, including bringing numeroys unadapted stories to the big screen. As mentioned before, the other reasons why she filed the lawsuit is that there were no more Black Widow appearances planned for Phase 4, so she might have had different thoughts.

Edited by Chrononaut70 on Aug 4th 2021 at 11:46:53 AM

KnownUnknown Since: Jan, 2001
#131283: Aug 5th 2021 at 1:26:17 AM

The one really big "what if" I remember Marvel doing is that time they punted everyone back a few hundred years into the Baroque period.

Usually it's more still like "what if the world was mostly the same, but X hero they joined this team or fought this bad guy or were born in this fantasy locale instead of where we're used to." Slightly altered histories, basically, or characters in places you wouldn't expect. Even Marvel Zombies was explicitly a "the main timeline, but everything goes horribly wrong."

Edited by KnownUnknown on Aug 5th 2021 at 1:26:24 AM

AlleyOop Since: Oct, 2010
#131284: Aug 5th 2021 at 1:32:06 AM

They've had a few other Recycled In Space takes that were interesting. I remember Secret Wars (2015) had a bunch of limited-run parallel dimensions, including the 1872 subseries that was pretty similar to 1602 in concept, except this time it transplanted a bunch of characters into the Wild West period instead.

Edited by AlleyOop on Aug 5th 2021 at 5:07:11 AM

slimcoder The Head of the Hydra Since: May, 2013
The Head of the Hydra
#131285: Aug 5th 2021 at 1:52:44 AM

I remember the Secret Wars Planet Hulk was Steve Rogers on a barbarian adventure through a Hulk-wasteland with Devil Dinosaur as his stead.

That was fun.

"I am Alpharius. This is a lie."
Krory Since: Aug, 2012
#131286: Aug 5th 2021 at 5:05:11 AM

The best What-If... will always be the one where Tony Stark was Toni Stark and the entire Civil War event was avoided by her ability to bang Captain America.

Beatman1 Since: Feb, 2014 Relationship Status: Gone fishin'
#131287: Aug 5th 2021 at 5:07:36 AM

[up]I want that to be an episode.

Hodor2 Since: Jan, 2015
#131288: Aug 5th 2021 at 7:40:10 AM

I was actually thinking about that elseworld yesterday in light of the Captain Carter What If where Steve is (the equivalent of) Iron Man and Peggy is (sort of) Captain America, and they presumably will be in a relationship.

Edited by Hodor2 on Aug 5th 2021 at 9:41:29 AM

Bocaj Funny but not helpful from Here or thereabouts (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: Pining for the fjords
Funny but not helpful
#131290: Aug 5th 2021 at 7:44:59 AM

There was a sort of What If where Steve was Iron Man

It was called Bullet Points and it was What If Erskine was shot early and also a bunch of other stuff is different because the government instead asks Steve to become the pilot of Iron Man, a government built power armor thats too small for a beefy boy and also once you’re sealed in you’re in for the long haul

Also other stuff was different. Peter Parker was both Rick Jones and the Hulk

Forever liveblogging the Avengers
Hodor2 Since: Jan, 2015
#131291: Aug 5th 2021 at 7:45:28 AM

[up][up]There has to be some spoilery character beneath the Death Dealer mask, right?

Also, what's the over/under for Razorfist losing his other hand over the course of the movie?

Edited by Hodor2 on Aug 5th 2021 at 10:25:27 AM

EmeraldEmperor Lies and Violence! Since: Oct, 2020
Lies and Violence!
#131292: Aug 5th 2021 at 8:29:11 AM

[up][up][up] Don't forget the true star, random BMW from the ensemble poster! (Not mine)

Edited by EmeraldEmperor on Aug 5th 2021 at 8:33:14 AM

AlleyOop Since: Oct, 2010
#131294: Aug 5th 2021 at 8:44:04 AM

Oh, it's much funnier than that. Female Tony Stark was named Natasha Stark in that continuity.

Weirdguy149 Former King from Lumiose City Since: Jul, 2014 Relationship Status: I'd jump in front of a train for ya!
Former King
#131295: Aug 5th 2021 at 8:46:00 AM

Notably, based on how Awkwafina’s character is holding a sword, she’s most likely not going to be just a comic relief.

The legend has returned.
MatthewWayne The Tapestry Weaver from Camp Echo One Since: Oct, 2014 Relationship Status: 700 wives and 300 concubines
The Tapestry Weaver
#131296: Aug 5th 2021 at 8:48:32 AM

[up] My WMG is that she'll meet Shang-Chi's mother and she'll convince Katy (I think that's her character's name) to fight alongside her friend somehow, whether deliberately or accidentally.

"I'm Mr. Blue, woah-woah-ooh..."
MatthewWayne The Tapestry Weaver from Camp Echo One Since: Oct, 2014 Relationship Status: 700 wives and 300 concubines
The Tapestry Weaver
#131297: Aug 5th 2021 at 8:50:19 AM

Y'know, I gotta wonder if What If..? will give us some Early Bird Cameos from future MCU stars. Maybe one of the Eternals or the aforementioned Shang-Chi will show up and comment on something that'll foreshadow what will happen in the prime timeline.

Edited by MatthewWayne on Aug 5th 2021 at 8:50:46 AM

"I'm Mr. Blue, woah-woah-ooh..."
Ultimatum Disasturbator from the Amiga Forest (Old as dirt) Relationship Status: Who needs love when you have waffles?
Bocaj Funny but not helpful from Here or thereabouts (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: Pining for the fjords
Funny but not helpful
#131299: Aug 5th 2021 at 9:16:27 AM

Hah

Forever liveblogging the Avengers
slimcoder The Head of the Hydra Since: May, 2013
The Head of the Hydra
#131300: Aug 5th 2021 at 9:20:02 AM

What-If Bruce Wayne was shot in the alley?

Which we already know the result due to Flashpoint. Thomas Wayne becomes Batman and Martha becomes the Joker.

You can easily do a reverse, Martha becomes Batwoman and Thomas the Joker.

Edited by slimcoder on Aug 5th 2021 at 9:20:28 AM

"I am Alpharius. This is a lie."

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