The summer season of 2019 delivered what stays arguably the cinematic occasion of the millennial era. Avengers: Endgame was the end result of 11 years of world-building and 22 movies, and audiences ate it up like a giant, fats turkey on Thanksgiving Day. The Marvel Cinematic Universe pulled a feat no different franchise had, earlier than or since, delivering spectacular thrills and unforgettable moments whereas tying all its free ends in a messy however nonetheless enticing bow.
It wouldn’t be an overstatement to name Endgame the occasion of a lifetime, even when the declaration would make some movie purists cringe. The movie was the right illustration of the MCU’s model, a set of jokes, characters, and tales so bold and, dare we are saying it, daring that they modified the way in which we devour cinema. The movie, and your entire MCU idea, was an enterprise of Herculean proportions, and it was efficiently pulled off, dazzling audiences and leaving them in shock and awe on the overindulgence they witnessed on the massive display screen.
The post-Endgame panorama, nevertheless, is drastically completely different. Maybe it’s the pandemic that made us extra cynical and unforgiving, or maybe it’s Marvel’s beforehand impervious appeal lastly carrying off. Or possibly it’s the studio’s appreciable delight setting all this up. Nevertheless, the MCU is now wanting uglier and extra tiresome than ever. Just like the once-delicious meal that turns into tasteless after consuming it one too many occasions, the huge franchise is now lifeless, soulless, and worst of all, boring. Gone are the thrills and surprises that constructed the Marvel legend, changed with fixed cameos and more and more forgettable post-credit scenes meant to arrange the subsequent chapter in a seemingly limitless e book.
M(eh)CU
The post-Endgame panorama is making audiences really feel stressed. Marvel’s as soon as united fan base is now break up down the center, with these savagely defending it in opposition to any type of criticism on one aspect and people who really feel betrayed by the once-mighty franchise on the opposite. Section 4’s initiatives have been divisive and uneven; critics are actually much less keen to miss Marvel’s errors as a result of they’re extra obvious than ever, flaunting themselves in our faces as if daring us to name them out. And name them out we have now.
Critics are now judging these projects not as individual achievements, but as cogs within a larger machine. They aren’t singular or even distinguishable from one another; indeed, they are sentences meant to build a paragraph, which will then make a page, and so on. So it’s not a matter of whether Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is enjoyable in and of itself, but rather if it’s successful in setting up the Young Avengers or not. Fans and even certain critics love saying how the MCU built its success on its ability to create one continuous story and keep its audiences invested. But that formula can only last for so long, and it’s already straining, especially after the introduction of the Disney+ shows.
How streaming accelerated the MCU’s fall from grace
There’s a strong case for how the Disney+ shows and their arrival accelerated the MCU’s decline. At first, the idea seemed genius: six-hour stories focusing on underrated yet crucial characters sidelined in the movies? Shut up and take our money! But when they finally arrived, we saw them for what they were: tiny cogs to accompany the larger cogs in this ever-spinning factory.
Marvel and Disney never had any desire to explore or develop these characters. It can be argued that WandaVision‘s main purpose was to introduce two of the Young Avengers (Wiccan and Speed) and set up Wanda for the Multiverse of Madness. Similarly, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier existed to turn Sam into the new Cap for Captain America 4,while Loki‘s duty was to establish Kang as a bad guy for Ant-Man 3 and solidify the multiverse in the MCU. Hawkeye and What/If had no real purpose, which is why no one remembers them. Moon Knight was deliberately set apart from other Marvel projects, with no gratuitous references or setups, but failed to really make the character memorable.
Two-and-a-half-hour films whose only purpose is to have a 20-second post-credit scene is one thing. It’s not ideal, but people are somewhat used to it. However, they aren’t willing to spend eight hours on a rambling story and receive only a measly post-credit scene in return. Marvel should’ve known better than trying to replicate its supposedly surefire formula on the small screen. Television and film are different mediums, and what works on one won’t work on the other; the fact that this needs to be said is outright ridiculous.
By introducing its streaming content, the MCU drove itself into a trap from which there’s no gettiing out. It tried to cut corners and replicate its big-screen success on the small screen without putting in the work or trying to create content suited for this new medium. In short, it became its worst enemy; it became the DCEU.
In the notorious and still-divisive Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Zack Snyder famously introduced three Justice League members via 10-second videos from security camera footage. The scenes were clumsy, rushed, superficial, and arguably laughable, and critics and fans responded accordingly. Was this the way the DCEU planned to introduce its Justice League? Whereas the MCU spent the time introducing each prominent Avenger character via a standalone project — or, in Black Widow’s case, by sticking her in every Captain America film — the DCEU built its Justice League via security footage. Fans sneered at the DCEU, ridiculing it and putting Marvel on a pedestal, praising it for taking years to build its universe.
Cut to six years later, and Marvel did the same as the DCEU — and the result was the same. Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
Wake up, the audience is leaving
Nearly 15 years after its inception, the MCU is already in its midlife crisis, and we can tell. It no longer seems to have a set purpose or even a clear path. Instead, it seems like it’s throwing a bunch of ideas at the wall and seeing what sticks — another thing is has in common with the DCEU. It’s bringing auteurs to direct some of its major blockbusters yet stifling their efforts and limiting their visions, resulting in Frankenstein films that please no one. The MCU is also doubling down on its most divisive element — humor — to the delight of some and the enraged annoyance of others.
However, its most egregious mistake is how ugly its movies look nowadays. The VFX teams have openly expressed their dislike for Marvel, calling them the “worst” client to work for and openly criticizing their tight schedules and demanding and unrealistic expectations. Overworked, overstressed, underpaid artists are rushing against the clock to finish the VFX for the latest MCU project and delivering subpar results, but who can blame them? Overworked, overstressed, underpaid workers can only do so much when everything is working against them. And it’s not like the Marvel team has their back; on the contrary, they’re the first ones to go to Vanity Fair and throw them under the bus for reasonable laughs.
Today, that’s all of the MCU is: low-cost laughs, low-cost plots, low-cost VFX pictures, and low-cost thrills. How can a movie with a $200 million funds come out low-cost? In some methods, Marvel continues to be a trailblazer. However audiences are uninterested in low-cost merchandise and might not ignore or comprise their unhappiness. What was as soon as the happiest fandom on the web has change into bitter and offended, elevating their voice to complain about these movies that not appear spectacular or placing. How lengthy earlier than they begin avoiding them fully?
To be truthful, it’s not just like the MCU is struggling box-office-wise. Thor: Love and Thunder dominated the weekend, elevating $302 million worldwide, whereas Physician Unusual within the Multiverse of Insanity is nearing the $1 billion mark. Audiences nonetheless like their Marvel content material; they only don’t like it anymore. As soon as, it was unimaginable to suppose followers won’t be excited concerning the subsequent MCU venture; these days, it’s taking place earlier than our eyes. Is it so ridiculous to suppose the MCU’s glory days are behind it?
Evolve or perish
The MCU is at a crossroads. Its charms are carrying off quick, but it surely doesn’t appear anyplace close to carried out; not too long ago, Marvel President Kevin Feige and his staff went on a retreat to plan the next 10 years of MCU content. To be clear, it’s not like the MCU can’t continue; it can and most definitely will. What’s at stake here is its reputation as a cinematic milestone and game-changing franchise. We are talking about the battle for the soul of the MCU, or at least whatever’s left of it.
The franchise’s problems become especially glaring as it reaches the lower tier of its catalog of characters and starts greenlighting projects for Werewolf by Night and Nova. True, the MCU has turned nobodies into somebodies before; Iron Man and Star-Lord were C-list characters before Feige and company turned them into superstars capable of anchoring their own blockbuster trilogies. However, the MCU was still exciting in 2008 and 2014; it was full of promise and originality and had audiences eating from the palm of its massive hand.
That’s the issue here: the MCU is no longer exciting. After a series of disappointing shows and films, can we honestly say we are looking forward to She-Hulk’s debut? How about Echo or Ironheart, or any of the other Disney+ shows that are coming in the near future? Heck, Hercules debuts during Thor: Love and Thunder‘s midcredit scene, and the internet is as silent as Black Bolt. Does anyone even remember Black Bolt? He made his MCU debut in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, a film that premiered just two months ago and already seems forgotten about despite the massive prerelease hype.
Hardcore fans know Phase 4 is building toward the Secret Wars storyline, an event that pits multiple versions of multiple characters in a Super Smash Bros.-style tournament. But whereas the comic book storyline was a character study of the rivalry between two of Marvel’s most intriguing and complicated figures, Mr. Fantastic and Doctor Doom, the MCU’s version will probably be a collection of cameos held together by a sorry excuse for a storyline and some very dirty-looking scenes.
It’s hard being excited about something when we know it might be awful. The MCU once trained us to expect wonder and spectacle from its films. Now, it’s training us to expect fan service and increasingly stupid jokes about how absurd everyone’s superhero cod ename is. What was once a promise now seems like a warning: “the next film will be just as bad, you just wait and see!” Marvel must stop half-assing its films and shows and start living up to its reputation as a game-changer. Otherwise, the same audience that once put it on a pedestal will tear its altar down with their bare hands. Because one thing’s for sure: there’s nothing people love more than ripping a fallen idol apart.
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