Has the Multiverse Saga been a disappointment? It's too soon to say one way or the other and it almost feels like a ludicrous question to ask while thinking back to the joy of watching Spider-Man: No Way Home or the fun we've had exploring the TVA in Loki. Heck, while not perfect, even Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness gave us John Krasinski as Mister Fantastic and a comic-accurate Black Bolt!
Despite that, something isn't quite clicking. Real-life controversies aside, Jonathan Majors has done a terrific job as Kang, though we're still scratching our heads over why Marvel Studios would introduce the Conqueror and subsequently kill him...in an Ant-Man movie.
Deadpool 3 has all the makings of a modern classic and we're sure both Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars will be jaw-dropping epics. However, regular moviegoers and fans alike appear to have grown tired of the Multiverse; whether Marvel Studios hasn't done a good enough job of selling them on the concept or The Flash flopping should be blamed is up for debate, but it's become a relief to watch an MCU movie - Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, for example - without so much as a single mention of alternate realities and lookalike doppelgangers.
Since Avengers: Endgame, we've had an endless stream of MCU content in theaters and on streaming which, while novel at first, has become somewhat exhausting. Nothing feels special now and the blame for that likely falls at the feet of ousted Disney CEO Bob Chapek. Marvel Studios has struggled to keep up with the demand and was recently forced to go back to the drawing board with how they approach TV shows after trying to make them the same way they produce movies (hence why Daredevil: Born Again has essentially been scrapped in its current iteration).
So, with The Marvels, a sequel to the $1.1 billion hit Captain Marvel and the critically acclaimed Ms. Marvel TV series, shaping up to be a box office disappointment, what can be done to "save" the MCU?
Mutants.
Deadpool 3 will take us back to Fox's X-Men Universe and is more than likely going to leave at least a few of those characters stranded on Earth-616 for the next few years. Rumour has it Avengers: Secret Wars will be followed by a soft reboot, and "The Mutants Saga" being next makes the most sense to us.
We still want to see the MCU's other heroes given the chance to shine, but in the right hands, the X-Men franchise's potential is limitless. Wolverine should absolutely headline his own movie or TV series, while there are countless X-Men teams in the comics who can all take centre stage across vastly different projects. Some can fight Sentinels in the streets of New York City, while others hit the high seas or head into outer space. X-Factor can solve crimes, whereas X-Force will tackle the jobs too violent and dirty for the likes of Cyclops and Jean Grey.
With an exciting slate of X-Men projects revolving around new and fan-favourite heroes and villains, Marvel Studios has the chance to deliver a truly fresh start and to allow the story of The Avengers to continue while focusing on a new singular story for the world's mutants. Handled correctly, the likes of Apocalypse and Mister Sinister are the sort of big bads who can overshadow even Thanos. These characters also lend themselves to smaller, self-contained stories, no bad thing after two Sagas of constantly building to the next big threat (and how do you ever top a villain who conquers the entire Multiverse, anyway?).
We're going to have to be patient and Marvel Studios is bound to get back on the right track before then; they are, after all, taking steps to make up for recent misfires. However, we believe it will be The Mutant Saga which takes the MCU back to its former glory, particularly in the face of emerging competition from DC. In Feige, we trust...