One of the all-time greatest franchises is the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In order to avoid being spoiled by the internet, fans flock to see the following episode as soon as it is released. As a result, audiences have come to expect to see the MCU heroes band together to vanquish Thanos (or other villain the film employs). That, though, may become one of the franchise’s most pressing issues as it grows. While each film stands well on its own, it requires knowledge of the others to be fully appreciated. While that isn’t a problem with the MCU’s first several films because they’re still establishing the cast, it becomes glaringly obvious in the sequels.
Yet as the series progresses, it will be the books and comics as well as the movies that readers will need to comprehend. Understanding character histories and driving forces in subsequent films is also likely to benefit from the Disney+ original Marvel series. However, for today’s Marvel fans, who often watch each new film the day it’s released, this may not be an issue. Future Marvel fans, however, may be put off by the amount of preparation work required to fully appreciate the upcoming film or television adaptation.
Needing to Understand so Much History
Fortunately, seeing an MCU film doesn’t require any prior familiarity with the comics. However, as Marvel continues to produce new stories, more and more of these new tales will inevitably involve elements from older Marvel tales. Although this is an asset in terms of establishing the setting and the characters, it may be a drawback when it comes to following the plot. Absolutely nothing can ruin the enjoyment of seeing Avengers: Infinity War. However, the stakes and character dynamics are best grasped if one has seen all of the films in the series prior to this one.
Watching Guardians of the Galaxy is perhaps the greatest way to gain a sense of Thanos as a villain, despite the fact that he is introduced briefly and hints at his activities in the post-credits scenes of both The Avengers and Avengers: Age of Ultron. While the Time Stone is used in Avengers: Infinity War, its significance is better grasped in Doctor Strange, both in terms of how he employs it and why he possesses it in the first place. Without knowing her backstory from Captain Marvel, audiences may see her dramatic entry into the last fight in Avengers: Endgame to be too convenient.
Future Fans Have a Lot of Homework
Fans of the MCU who have been there from the beginning, or who have taken the effort to catch up, might not find this as much of a problem. If the events following the Thanos snap are crucial to the plot of a new film and the audience hasn’t seen any Marvel movies, they may be left feeling confused and frustrated. With its ongoing expansion into the Multiverse, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has become a complicated web of characters and plotlines.
Everyone who loves Spider-Man, whether they prefer Tom Holland or Tobey Maguire or Andrew Garfield, will love No Way Home. It would have helped to have seen the Spider-Man films starring Tobey and Andrew before viewing their cameos in Spider-Man: No Way Home so that one could grasp the context of their characters’ lives. Thus, while knowing the film’s past wasn’t necessary to enjoy it, it would help understand the film’s two other Peter Parkers and the villains who traveled from them.
How Fun Are the Movies or Shows Without Previous Knowledge?
The films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe have consistently delivered on their promise to be enjoyable and exciting. It’s possible that this could cause problems for the Marvel series on Disney+, as it raises questions about how much of the story an audience could understand without having seen the film. Will viewers of Falcon and the Winter Soldier, for instance, fully grasp the emotional odyssey Sam Wilson endured en route to becoming Captain America? If Moon Knight were to appear in a future MCU film, would it make sense for those who haven’t watched the comic book series? Without having seen Hawkeye, how can we account for Kate Bishop’s presence?
Do Stand-Alone Movies Make Sense Anymore?
Is it still worthwhile to make a movie that functions as a standalone origin tale? Especially considering the widespread familiarity with MCU heroes. If a film centers on a character already established in the MCU, then it raises problems regarding continuity errors involving why every movie is not a team-up movie. Spider-Man: Far From Home made up reasons why the other Marvel Cinematic Universe characters couldn’t join Peter Parker in his battle against Mysterio. Wanda appears in Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness after the events of WandaVision.
The origin story of Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings was well done, and the film’s inclusion of Wong, Bruce Banner, and Captain Marvel in a post-credits scene helped to connect it to the rest of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The Eternals allude to Marvel Cinematic Universe events but don’t directly address them. Disney+’s Moon Knight is able to stand on its own without referencing any of Marvel’s other works because it is its own origin narrative. Is this, however, a character who can easily slot into team-ups without any direct ties to the wider MCU? When a problem occurs in isolation, it begs the question of why nobody else is doing something about it. It could be questioned whether or not the heroes in a team-up film are given room to develop on their own.
