ReasonForOurHope

Monday, July 25, 2022

San Diego ComicCon 2022 - The MCU

Thank you for your patience, dear reader.  In the last week or so I finished directing a musical and I took the written part of a my comprehensive exam for a Master's degree in Philosophy.  The musical went well.  I am still waiting to find out how I did not my exam.

Anyway, I know I have a great deal to catch up on.  


 This year's San Diego International Comic Con is wrapping up.  In the past, this event has been the Super Bowl of Comic Book related news and announcements. 

In this post I will look at the updates to the MCU.  In future posts I will look at other announcements from the event.


MARVEL CINEMATIC UNIVERSE

The MCU has laid out their plan for the foreseeable future.

Iron Man through Avengers: Endgame (with Spider-Man: Far From Home as an epilogue) has been labeled The Infinity Saga.  This current cycle of movies and TV shows will be known as The Multiverse Saga.

Below is the plan going forward.

PHASE 4

There are only two more projects for this phase remaining.


  • She-Hulk: Attorney-at-Law: August 17, 2022

Of all the Disney+ shows, this one looks like it could be the worst.  I'm not opposed to the comedic tone, but it seems so out of step with the what has made Marvel the most successful cinematic franchise.  The shame of it is that I think the concept is fascinating: super-powered legal show.  But it seems to be focusing on Jen's neuroticism rather than the fascinating topic.


  • Black Panther: Wakanda Forever: November 11, 2022

Seeing the teaser was a bit emotional.  The visuals are beautiful, but it did not give us any insight as to what is happening in the story now that Chadwick Boseman has passed.  We also see the introduction of Namor: the Sub-Mariner.  I would like the look of the character a lot more if he did not have that piercing through his nasal septum.  It is too distracting.


PHASE 5


Here is the plan for the next phase:


  • Ant Man & The Wasp: Feb 17, 2023
They are supposed be have Kang be the main villain of this story.  This is interesting considering (as we shall see later) the new Thanos of this phase is Kang.  We saw him introduced in Loki, so it will be interesting how and why he interacts with Ant-Man and the Wasp

The Ant-Man movies have been fine and fun, but not the top tier of the MCU

  • What If...? Season 2, Early 2023
The first season was half good.  Each episode it seemed that the first half was a simple rehash of the story we already know, but the second half of each episode tended to be very good.  

With the focus on the Multiverse Saga, I'm wondering if we might eventually get a non-animated Uatu
  • Secret Invasion: Spring 2023
This is a cool concept from the comics: the shapeshifting Skrulls have been secretly replacing key Marvel characters for years.  In the comics, the execution of this story was not great.  But this Disney+ show could be cool, focusing on Nick Fury and Maria Hill.

  • GOTG Vol 3: May 5, 2023
This might be the most anticipated of this phase.  It is the capper to the Guardians trilogy.  While the 2nd one was okay, the first one is at the top of my list of MCU films.

  • Echo: Summer 2023
I honestly don't know why they are making this show.  This character was only mildly intersting in the Hawkeye show, so I am not really excited for this.

  • The Marvels: July 28, 2023
As Captain Marvel and Ms. Marvel haven't been that exciting, I'm not really excited for this one either.  I believe that Monica Rambeau is going to be in this too and I really liked her in WandaVision, so that could be cool.
  • Loki season 2: Summer 2023
The last season was enjoyable (though I am still creeped out about the idea that he was in love with a female version of himself).  I thought of it as the closest thing in the MCU to Doctor Who.  Since the this show really brought forward the multiverse, I'm looking forward to how this will shape the story going forward.

  • Blade: November 3, 2023
I am very curious as to how dark they are going to let this movie get.  Blade is an incredibly cool character and I like the casting.  So far they have not released any real images or information, so we will see.
  • Ironheart: Fall 2023
Riri Williams is horrible in the comics.  Miles Morales is too, but he was awesome in the Into the Spider-Verse.  Kate Bishop is insufferable in the comics, but she was fairly enjoyable in Hawkeye.  America Chavez is also horribly written in the comics, but she wasn't that bad in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.  I am hoping that they are able to do the same for Riri, otherwise, this show will not be very enjoyable.
  • Agatha: Coven of Chaos: Winter 2023/2024
While she was a fun part of WandaVision, I don't see how they are going to build an entire series around her.
  • Daredevil: Born Again (18 episodes!): Spring 2024
Of all of the announcements going forward, this is the one that I am most excited about.  I recently completed watching Season 3 of the Netflix Daredevil show and it was amazing.  I'm so glad that they are bringing back Charlie Cox and Vincent D'Onofrio.  I'm curious if this "Disneyfied" version will be very different than what has come before.  But these actors have earned enough good will from me to be completely into this show.  I hope the other supporting cast comes back as well.
  • Captain America: New World Order: May 3, 2024
I really liked Sam Wilson's journey to embracing being Captain America.  While his show had a few flaws, Anthony Mackie carried it as the moral center.  I'd like to see where this movie takes him.
  • Thunderbolts: July 26, 2024
I won't spoil this story for anyone who hasn't read the comic, but this could be one of the best parts of phase 5.  The concept is awesome and I think they've been planting the seeds of who is going to be a part of this team.  This could be cool.


PHASE 6

Only 3 things were announced for Phase 6

  • Fantastic Four: November 8, 2024
I know that it is silly, but my jaw dropped to see John Krasinski as Reed Richards.  Marvel has not confirmed whether or not he will be the MCU's official Mr. Fantastic, but he should be.  Right now the my ideal casting would be:
-John Krasinski: Mr. Fantastic
-Emily Blunt: Invisible Woman
-Ving Rhames: The Thing
-Joe Keery: The Human Torch.

It seems like this is the only former Fox property that Marvel is introducing in now.  I think they are keeping the X-Men characters in reserve for the post-Phase 6.

  • Avengers: The Kang Dynasty May 2, 2025
This shows the Marvel is all in on Kang as their main baddy.  What is great about this using Kang is that in the comics there are so many versions of him throughout the timestream that they can explore some really interesting stories.

The question now is: who is in the Avengers?  With most of the founders dead or gone, who is going to be considered the main Avengers team.
  • Avengers: Secret Wars:  November 7, 2025
This looks to be the conclusion of the Multiverse Saga.  And if they decide to throw everything and the kitchen sink here, we could have some incredible fun like we did in Spider-Man: No Way Home, where alternate universe versions of any Marvel property throughout the years could make their way here.  

Thoughts?

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