In a modern film age bursting with releases of all genres, one franchise has stood above all the rest in pop culture; you know what it is, the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Watching Avengers: Endgame on March 25th, 2019 was more than just a film; it was a cultural event eleven years in the making. The entire audience in the London BFI IMAX theatre was cheering through most of it, something you rarely see in UK cinemas. We’re seeing reaction videos pouring in from all over the place and with such a momentous conclusion upon us, it’s the perfect time to look back on the series.
I was thirteen when the original Iron Man came out in 2008 and since then, the franchise has gone from strength to strength, only suffering a couple of speed-bumps along the way. While many would bemoan the oversaturation of the superhero genre in theatres today, Marvel has never put out a truly awful production. It’s impressive enough that they’ve sustained this level of quality for over a decade but even more so is how interconnected and multi-layered the series has become. Truth be told, future generations who watch these movies will be spoiled rotten having access to all of them at once.
The MCU has worked out so unbelievably well because it had both a clear roadmap and superbly crafted development for all its main characters; any filmgoer regularly following the franchise knows that. No attempts to create cinematic universes by other studios have come close to what Marvel and Disney have crafted, with the DC Extended Universe, Monsterverse and Dark Universe all either falling behind or bowing out completely to name a few. Seeing Marvel’s success, the MCU really has changed the landscape of cinema in the 2010s as other production studios throw their hats into the ring, only to come up short by chasing profits rather than cohesion.
Of course, Marvel is far from perfect; most would point to their lack of compelling villains that don’t always make an impression. In addition, the longer the series goes on, the more difficult it will be for casual movie-goers to keep up. While I scored Avengers: Endgame a full five out of five, for a common movie-goer, it may rank at a four for example. With all that said, here is my personal ranking of all the films to date…
21. Thor: The Dark World (2014): The weakest MCU production, mostly down to its underwhelming plot and characters. Impressive as the effects may be, most of what happens in The Dark World is bland, insignificant and forgettable.
20. The Incredible Hulk (2008): The second attempt at bringing Hulk to the big screen sticks out quite a bit, most notably for Edward Norton’s merely passable portrayal of the character. The action involving him and Tim Roth’s Abomination also lacks dramatic weight.
19. Iron Man 2 (2010): Downey Jr is still strong, and the action is enjoyable, but Iron Man 2 is an average sequel. The middle act slows to a crawl as it struggles to balance out plot components between itself and the inevitable Avengers crossover.
18. Thor (2010): An ok introduction to the character, with some stumbles with its fish-out-of-water story and weak romantic sub-plot. Tom Hiddleston’s Loki is arguably more well-fleshed out than most other elements and grew to a higher popularity.
17. Iron Man 3 (2013): While fans were left fuming at creative decisions, Iron Man 3 is far better paced and more thrilling than 2 as Tony is forced to rely on his wits just as much as his futuristic toys throughout the film.
16. Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017): Tom Holland makes for a great Peter Parker and Michael Keaton a great villain, although Homecoming doesn’t raise the stakes when compared to previous efforts with the character, it’s still a fun time.
15. Ant-Man (2015): The MCU takes on comedy to good effect as Paul Rudd fully embraces the character and the bleeding edge tech that shrinks him back and forth. Not all the jokes land but it’s still a worthwhile outing.
14. Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018): Evangeline Lily joins the MCU and shares the screen with Paul Rudd very well. Combining the two actors together also makes for more dynamic and creative action scenes.
13. Captain Marvel (2019): An entertaining prequel with plenty of funny moments. Brie Larson works well enough in the role but it’s Samuel L. Jackson that provides the bulk of the fun against the nineties backdrop.
12. Guardians of the Galaxy (2014): A lovingly crafted homage to the eighties, great chemistry between the characters and gorgeous celestial vistas make the first Guardians solid. One of the weakest villains in the series keeps it from going beyond that.
11. Captain America (2011): Establishes the character of Steve Rogers effortlessly, while making full use of its World War Two setting to create a unique perspective and tone that begins the series chronology.
10. Doctor Strange (2016): The MCU takes a turn for the bizarre with an amazing technical suite and pitch-perfect casting of Benedict Cumberbatch as the good doctor. Its only real blemish is Mads Mikkelsen as the villain.
9. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 (2017): A sequel that makes big strides forward from the original, with a laser-sharp focus on family. Add to that the solid performance of Kurt Russel as Ego and you’ve got a great film.
8. Black Panther (2018): More than a turning point for black cinema, Black Panther delivered easily the franchise’s best villain as well as strong thematic ties to both African and African-American culture.
7. Iron Man (2008): The original and best Iron Man film was a modest offering that absolutely nailed its main character through Robert Downey Jr’s excellent performance, not to mention kick off the MCU with one simple scene that had everyone sticking around after the credits.
6. Thor: Ragnarok (2017): Far and away the best Thor film and possibly the funniest MCU entry; Ragnarok embraces its silliness and places its colourful characters in a zany, vibrant battle across Asgard and beyond.
5. Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015): Probably the weakest Avengers film if you forced me to rank them, but it still boasts a string of incredible set-pieces as well as a surprisingly poignant moment between characters on Hawkeye’s farm.
4. Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014): Winter Soldier provides the strongest thriller story alongside some of the best fight choreography as Cap finds that the enemies of the modern day are not so black and white, uncovering a dark presence within SHIELD.
3. The Avengers (2012): Delivering everything you wanted from a grand superhero smackdown, the first Avengers film was a brilliant climax to phase one and the best culmination of Marvel characters that anyone could have asked for up to that point.
2. Captain America: Civil War (2016): Perhaps the most pivotal chapter of the MCU from a storyline basis, Civil War is a verses film done right, not to mention a superb close to the Cap trilogy. The twists and turns in this one are some of the most shocking in the series.
1. Avengers Infinity War/Avengers Endgame (2018/2019): Judged as one whole movie split into two parts, the final Avengers film is a masterpiece that brings together everything and everyone in the MCU for the ultimate culmination of conflict and character.
Looking to the future, the MCU has been forever changed by the events of Endgame and we may not see another ensemble production for some time. Having expended every ounce of story thread and closed all the main character arcs, it’s likely that Marvel will stick to standalone character films for a while, which I feel is the right way to go. With Spider-Man: Far from Home set to wrap up phase 3 in a couple of months, there’s still a fair bit for fans to salivate over in terms of sequels. The possible additions of both X-Men (After the release of Dark Phoenix) and the Fantastic Four (Following the deal between 21st Century Fox and Disney) are an enticing proposition that could take the series in a different direction. For now, audiences the world over have been given something special over the last decade; a string of twenty-two films that tell one of the most memorable and entertaining stories ever put on-screen. Here’s to the MCU’s future, whatever it may bring…
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