An MCU Retrospective

After the death of my grandmother, I decided to take a "me" day and watch a few Marvel movies again in order to gain new perspective.  This post is updated each time a new MCU movie comes out.

UPDATE:  We decided to do a complete rewatch before "Spider-Man: No Way Home".  The rankings are updated below and while we will rewatch all the Disney+ shows as part of this experience, I will still exclude them in this ranking.


MCU
Obviously this list will not include the television shows that are technically part of the MCU.  I have watched them all and I have watched them in an order intended within this list, but for our purposes, we are focusing on the films only.

Excluded shows include:


  1. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
  2. Agent Carter
  3. Luke Cage
  4. Daredevil
  5. Jessica Jones
  6. Iron Fist
  7. The Defenders
  8. The Runaways
  9. Cloak and Dagger
  10. The Punisher
  11. Inhumans
  12. WandaVision
  13. Falcon and the Winter Soldier
  14. Loki
  15. What If...?
  16. Hawkeye
Let's move on to the films...


RELEASE ORDER, for your reference:

  1. Iron Man (2008)
  2. The Incredible Hulk (2008)
  3. Iron Man 2 (2010)
  4. Thor (2011)
  5. Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
  6. Marvel's The Avengers (2012)
  7. Iron Man 3 (2013)
  8. Thor: The Dark World (2013)
  9. Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
  10. Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
  11. Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
  12. Ant-Man (2015)
  13. Captain America: Civil War (2016)
  14. Doctor Strange (2016)
  15. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)
  16. Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
  17. Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
  18. Black Panther (2018)
  19. Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
  20. Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)
  21. Captain Marvel (2019)
  22. Avengers: Endgame (2019)
  23. Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)
  24. Black Widow (2021)
  25. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)
  26. Eternals (2021)
  27. Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
Needless to say, SPOILERS FOLLOW.

Without further ado, Here are my UPDATED rankings of the MCU.  Please remember that these are rankings only as the films on this list compare to the other films on this list.

SERIOUSLY, THERE ARE SPOILERS...

  1. Black Widow (2021)  Conceivably this should fall much lower as she's my favorite character played by my favorite actress in a film we waited far too long to see that was further postponed by a pandemic.  Needless to say, my expectations were through the roof.  They. Were. Met.  This movie has, arguably, the most humor in the MCU.  Past that, the action sequences are on point, the set pieces are stunning, and the story holds up.  There's a good villain and some satisfying closure to several arcs introduced in the previous 23 films.  It has a few issues, namely under utilizing TaskMaster, but I have hopes that we will see characters like Mason, Red Guardian, Yelena, and TaskMaster again in future films.  This one is going to get several rewatches but serves nicely as a beginning for the character, a middle chapter, and, sadly, a finale.
  2. Avengers: Endgame (2019) A near perfect film, Endgame provided a satisfying conclusion to 11 years of film making.  In the weeks prior to its release, I predicted Tony making the ultimate sacrifice, Captain America living out life with Peggy, Professor Hulk, and the death of Black Widow.  I still went in exited and believe me, even knowing those things, it was still 3 hours on the edge of my seat.  I have 2 minor complaints.  1. Ratatouille being the one that brings back Ant-Man is a little convenient.  2.  Based on the rules of time travel set forth within the film itself, when Captain America goes back and stays with Peggy, he should have branched off into a new reality.  How did he get back to the Prime reality as an old man?  That's all I want to know.  I did indeed cry at several points in the film.  Black Widow and Hawkeye fighting. Black Widow's death. Hulk finding out about it. "On your left". Peter reuniting with Tony.  Dr. Strange holding up one finger. Tony's death.  Obviously I have to rewatch repeatedly.
  3. Avengers: Infinity War (2018) The Russo Brothers have done a fine job of tying the entire MCU together in this film.  I don't imagine there are too many directors that would have been able to take the different tones from the last 10 years and create such a harmonious story.  Obviously, having read the comics this film is based on, I knew about the snap but it doesn't make Spider-Man's final lines any less hurtful.  All in all, this movie lived up to my expectations as a fan of both the source material and the MCU as a whole.  The real question now is, will Disney have the balls to keep some of those lost dead for good?  I sure hope so.  A franchise this large without stakes is bound to wear thin eventually.  My other major issue with this film actually lay in the MCU as a whole.  When you have a franchise this big and a marketing machine this powerful, the deaths of characters that already have sequels in production are already kind of meaningless.
  4. Captain America: Civil War (2016) This film came out 10 years after the comic book story which it was based on.  It certainly doesn't follow the comic to the letter but this is a damn fine film.  I do wish Cross Bones had a bigger role, Zemo was more than a grieving husband and father,  and I had high hopes for a Steve Rogers death, but all in all, this film delivers on all counts.  The imagery in the Iron Man/Captain America/Winter Soldier fight is nothing short of iconic.  Seeing the chaos within Scarlet Witch is scary. The introduction of perfectly cast Spider-Man and Black Panther enchanted an already great film. It's the best of the Captain America Trilogy and high ranking as an Avengers film.
  5. Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) An all around great movie, easily in my top 5 MCU films but regularly falls down and then comes back up with a rewatch.  It is not without fault though. Largely the end of SHIELD this early was a mistake and not using Hawkeye was also terrible. That said, this is a spy thriller that hits all the right notes.
  6. Thor: Ragnarok (2017) This movie is every fanboys dream.  Planet Hulk and Ragnarok in one film?!  Hell yes!  This is the right amount of comedy and action and story.  This raised the already high MCU bar to levels the earlier films just can't live up to.
  7. Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) Spider-Man is in the MCU.  Spider-Man is in the MCU!!!!  This is the Spider-Man film we all deserved and I am going to put it out there: Michael Keaton as The Vulture is the best villain in the MCU.  What "Villain Problem"?  This movie is quality all the way around. And, this film had the best post credits scene of the entire MCU.
  8. Captain Marvel (2019) This one came in and worked her way up into the top 10!  It's a well written piece of nostalgia with a woman at the forefront.  For those pissing and moaning about the tesseract timeline, you're wrong.  You clearly don't remember the films before this one.  For those complaining about a female led movie, you're wrong.  You are everything wrong in the world.  This movie stands on it's own in every way and gives us the origin story of 3 important MCU characters.
  9. Black Panther (2018) Upon repeat viewings, I realized this film belongs higher on the list. It was actually a much better film than I initially gave it credit for. I still think that while Klaue features for a bit, he is wholly wasted and Ross has a minor role, but both of those could have existed outside of their previous film outings. I do still think this film is subject to the Frozen effect. Killmonger is a fantastic villain and the script is solid.
  10. Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021) This one cracks the top 10 simply for the beautiful cinematography, excellent writing, closure of a divisive Iron Man 3 story, and introducing underrated and underutilized POC into the MCU.
  11. Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018) This film gives the comedy from the first but is such a deeper film.  Seeing the spotlight on the Wasp is refreshing but of all the MCU films, this one is the best use of an ensemble cast.  I am not a huge fan of the Ghost character (never have been) and I don't get the gender swap or the reason to use this Iron Man villain anyway.  Ant-Man has plenty of classic baddies that could have been used instead.  That being said, Hannah John-Kamen is fantastic in the roll.  Randall Park is a true highlight!
  12. Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)  The first truly comedic film in the MCU, this movie took a bunch of characters that never hit popularity in the comics and made them household names.  This one would rank higher if Phase 3 didn't give us so many great movies.
  13. Marvel's The Avengers (2012) In my top five movies of all time but doesn't make top 5 on this list.  How is that possible?  I wish I could tell you.  In this list, It is being compared to other films telling the same story whereas in the other list, it is being compared to all movies across all genres. It's consistently rewatchable because it's neither too dark or too light.
  14. Iron Man (2008) The one that started it all.  There will never be a better Tony Stark than Robert Downey Jr.  I have to wonder, 10 years later, if Terrence Howard regrets being an douche over salary. The sad thing is, I liked him as Rhodey.  This film sets the tone for the MCU and, in general, is a great origin story.  I wish we didn't lose Obadiah Stane so soon in the MCU because he was a great villain.
  15. Ant-Man (2015) This one is comedy at its finest but I wanted so much more out of this movie that what it gave us.  It's a great film but it's a terrible Ant-Man film.  The origins of Ant-Man are actually pretty dark and they skipped over Hank Pym completely to give us Scott Lang.  Yes, I like the movie, but I want the tragic Ant-Man. I will say that Evangeline plays the darkness in Hope to perfection.
  16. Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) When I first watched this film, I didn't care for it. It felt rushed (which it was in an effort to make a release date for it's successor, "The Avengers".) and I didn't feel as though it fit the MCU thus far. 8 viewings later & it only gets better.  I wish we could get an Agent Carter film instead of 2 seasons of a cancelled TV show, but alas, it's not my franchise to create.
  17. Thor: The Dark World (2013) Another good film usually ranked in the bottom 3. I actually like this better than it's predecessor. Do I wish Natalie Portman was given more to do? Yes. Does that make this deserving of the bottom 3? Hell no.  Upon a recent rewatch, it fits fantastically into the MCU and bumped up a few spots.
  18. Iron Man 2 (2010) I really don't get the hate for this flick. We get Don Cheadle as the new and improved Rhodey and the relationship between Stark and Pepper is fleshed out.  Justin Hammer is an amazing villain and yes, I do wish some better choices were made with Whiplash, but all in all, this film sells it.
  19. Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019) A nice follow-up to Homecoming and it closes out the Infinity Saga well enough but I feel like Jake Gyllenhaal was just chewing the scenery.  It took me 3 viewings to appreciate the film on it's own.  Martin Starr is fantastic. The two post credit scenes are really where this film shines.
  20. Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) So many people hate this film. First, James Spader is a National Treasure. Does this movie follow its comic counterpart? No. Is it fun? Yes. We get to meet Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch and Vision plus our first look at Wakanda and Ulysses Klaue. Finally giving Hawkeye something to do was a smart choice. This is a good movie. It might not be a good Avengers film when compared to the other two, but it's still a good movie. There was a lot of studio interference in this one and that's never a good thing, but I am still a fan. Plus, killing off Quicksilver was a bold move.
  21. Iron Man 3 (2013) I'm not nearly as mad about the Mandarin twist as some fan boys but, this is my least favorite of the trilogy though I do enjoy the character development of Tony and the exploration of his PTSD post Avengers.  Upon recent rewatch, Pepper is kind of a bitch.  Like, the dude saved the world and is having a severe mental breakdown.  Maybe shut the fuck up Pepper with your whining.
  22. Thor (2011) Of the MCU, this is probably my favorite origin story.  So why does it fall so low on the list?  See the disclaimer above.  The Destroyer was a weak choice as a secondary villain and there is some terrible edits in this, but the comedy aspects, the introduction of Loki, and the fleshing out of Agent Coulson is some great story telling.
  23. The Incredible Hulk (2008) I know people claim this should be forgotten in the MCU. I disagree. This is a fantastic film that could have lead to great things if only Universal would play ball. I still have hope that Abomination and The Leader will make future MCU appearances. Even this low on my list, this is still a good movie.
  24. Eternals (2021) This feels like it would have been a great flick 10 years ago.  It is certainly a fun film and it creates some interesting issues for the MCU going forward but it just feels like a spoiled child was told they could do whatever they want and Feige would figure out how to put it in the MCU.  It is pretty and it is a cool story, but if they did not mention the Avengers or Thanos, I wouldn't know this was a part of the MCU.
  25. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)  This one feels like a standalone film, detached from the MCU.  It's not a bad flick, it's just not an MCU movie.  I dig the Ego story line, even though it is as far from the comics as it could be and there are some very high points in this film, but it just doesn't duplicate the success of the first one.
  26. Doctor Strange (2016) Why is such a visually beautiful film on the bottom of my list?  Beautiful as it might be, it's just not one of my favorites.  It plays a little slow and I hate the floating head Dormammu and just about everything about that battle plus when he first meets the Ancient One, the graphics are that of an old Soul Train episode.  I love Bendy Arm Cucumber Patch as Dr. Strange but Strange was never one of my favorite characters.  Like GOTGv2, this doesn't feel like a part of the MCU.
So, there you have it.  There's my updated MCU rankings.  I will update as I watch the additional films or as my mood changes.

Feel free to fight me in the comments!
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