The Marvel universe so far and what is ahead

The Marvel Cinematic Universe, or the MCU, is a vast place. The first time anyone has tried to tie so many movies into one universe. If someone died in Thor, they wouldn't show up in Captain America. Something so ambitious that very few actually thought it would work. Over seven billion dollars later, those few were proven right.

Marvel movies have become surefire hits. People's trust in Marvel is outstanding. You really only have to look at the opening weekend for Guardians of the Galaxy. Yes, it is a good movie, but that was only half the reason for its opening weekend of $94M. When people see Marvel has made movie, people are willing to trust that it will be good.

With the Ant-Man trailer dropping yesterday, I thought I'd take a look at the MCU at a whole. Starting with Phase One.

Phase One

Movies- Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man 2, Thor, Captain America: The First Avenger, Marvel's The Avengers

This all started with Iron Man. No one knew what a success the movie would have been. Yes, they thought it'd make some money, but most doubted that it would make $98M on opening weekend. And no one knew what the movie would kick off. The universe that Iron Man started. Then, you have  the Hulk movie that most people don't realized is the second movie in the MCU. It didn't do well at the box office and only scored a 67% on Rotten Tomatoes. It's probably the reason that Marvel is hesitant to make a new one. That and Bruce Banner would have to be the Hulk for a good portion of the movie.

Iron Man 2 was the movie that really made it clear about where the movies were going. The movie was not as well received by critics and the public as the first one, but it did make more money. This movie is considered by many as one of the few missteps that Marvel has made. Thor and  Captain America: The First Avenger are the two movies that introduced us to two new superheroes. They were both were received okay and did good at the box office. That being said, if you ask ten different people, five of them will say Thor was the worst series start of a series for Marvel. The other five will say Captain America was. I say Thor. 

And the finale film of Phase One, the biggest movie of the MCU, The Avengers. The movie with the biggest opening weekend in history. The movie that made everyone believe in the crazy vision Marvel had. The movie that people say is one of the best, if not the best, comic book movies of all time. The movie that brought all of the heroes, Mavel's best villain, and added a few more to the mix. The one that ended a phase and kick started the next.

Phase Two

Movies- Iron Man 3, Thor: The Dark World, Captain America: The Winter Solder, Guardians of the Galaxy, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Ant-Man

The phase started out okay. Iron Man 3 did amazing at the box office but was not well received by the fans. As for me, I thought it was a great movie, just not a great Iron Man movie. The next movie did about the same, except it made less many at the box office. Thor: The Dark World did well at the box office but many believe the first was better. I am one of those people.

The phase really got better with the next two movies. Captain America: The Winter Soldier set a new standard for Marvel films not named Avengers. The film was fun, but still serious. It was a spy thriller that happened to have superheroes in it. Then Guardians of the Galaxy did the same thing. Maybe Winter Solder was better made, Guardians was a better time. It was a giant space adventure that stil felt like it belonged with the rest of the MCU. These two films really made it feel like Phase Two was going to be better than one.

That just leaves the last two films. Both will premiere later this year. One is expected to be a huge hit and one is a wild card. Avengers: Age of Ultron is expected to be bigger and better than the first. Whether it will make the same type of money is a little bit more up in the air. But that is really not much of a concern. Ant-Man on the other hand, no one is quite sure about. With all the controversy surrounding the film, some even doubted it would get made. But it did and now the questions are if 1) the movie will be any good and 2) how well will it do at the box office?  I think it will be fine on both counts. Maybe that is just my trust in Marvel.

Phase Three

And that brings us to Phase Three. With sequels to Captain America, Thor, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Two Avengers films, Marvel also starts four new series. Benedict Cumberbatch will lead Doctor Strange, while Chadwick Boseman will star in Black Panther. Captain Marvel will be next. It will also e Maevel's first female lead film. It will be followed by Inhumans. Not much is known about the last two.

So, there you have. The MCU from 2008 all the way up to 2019. Whether or not the plan works the way Marvel wants is yet to be seen. But it is a good time to be a Marvel fan.