There was a time when the Marvel Studios logo guaranteed greatness and that time was...well, about three years ago. Since The Infinity Saga concluded, we've seen a notable dip in quality, a rise in inconsistency, and an approach to storytelling that feels more akin to the DCEU than the MCU.
Simply put, Phase 4 has been a mess. For the most part, the films and TV shows we've been treated to have been very good. In fact, the vast majority have been damn near great. Across the board of what has been dubbed The Multiverse Saga, however, we've seen Marvel Studios drop the ball with this opening wave of stories both in theaters and on Disney+.
From baffling creative decisions to a lack of connectivity and way, way, waaaay too much content, Marvel Studios appears to be swapping out quality for quantity. It's a worrying trend that, while potentially a minor bump in the road, also has us concerned about what's to come.
Read our thoughts on Phase 4's biggest mistakes and why we're wringing our hands over the next two Phases by tapping the NEXT button below.
They Don't Know How To Tell Stories On TV
To put it bluntly, Marvel Studios has made it abundantly clear they don't know what they're doing when it comes to small screen storytelling. Episode lengths are wildly inconsistent, too much happens one week and not enough the next, and most problematic is the fact each finale has had way too much to address (with mixed results).
After over a decade of producing movies, it was never going to be easy for the MCU to suddenly shift to episodic storytelling without any bumps in the road.
There's plenty to love about all these Disney+ TV shows. However, whether it's Ms. Marvel's decline in quality with those middle chapters or Loki's exposition-heavy finale, it's apparent Marvel Studios needs to take a beat and figure out what they're doing before knocking out series after series.
Subverting Fan Expectations (In A Bad Way)
There's absolutely nothing wrong with subverting fan expectations because we certainly don't want Marvel Studios to become predictable.
Unfortunately, whether it's Mephisto teases that went nowhere, Jack Lockley's shoe-horned role in a mid-credits scene, "Ralph Bohner," or pretty much everything about She-Hulk: Attorney at Law's finale, that doesn't always work. Keeping fans on the hook with blatant false promises isn't a smart way to keep them on board, and it's growing tiresome.
Look, we're not complaining that things didn't go exactly how we wanted. That's okay. Still, just like how the Disney+ TV shows wait until the finale to have their leads "suit up," this trope is wearing thin and indicates the MCU isn't giving fans what they want.
Way Too Many New Characters
As much as we appreciate this expanded Phase 4 slate giving Marvel Studios the opportunity to introduce new characters, there are just way too many. Having new faces like Hercules and Clea randomly show up in post-credits scenes has become an irritating bad habit, while others simply aren't getting their due.
Taskmaster was botched badly in Black Widow, while Eternals threw countless new heroes at us. The only one of those that left a lasting impact was the one the movie killed (we're talking about Ikaris, of course), and that's yet another example of the MCU needing to slow down.
It's all well and good throwing Moon Knight, Kate Bishop, The Mighty Thor, White Vision, and Werewolf by Night into the mix - to name just a few - but not when there's no clear indication of where they're going next. It's throwing sh*t at a wall to see what sticks and doesn't benefit new or existing characters in this shared world.
Where's The Connectivity Gone?
This is a question we'd love an answer to. Not every MCU story has directly linked to another, but it's always felt like there's been a direct throughline for fans to follow. Whether it's The Falcon showing up in Ant-Man or a post-credits scene teasing the next step in a wider plan, the connectivity of this shared world has always been something really special.
In Phase 4, nothing has really tied into anything else. There are tentative links, but those are ones fans have had to create in their own minds such as He Who Remains being responsible for the Multiversal madness in Spider-Man: No Way Home.
That film perfectly set the stage for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, but didn't get so much as a mention. In fact, Strange felt like a totally different character. This comes down to clashing production schedules and Marvel Studios' penchant for reshoots coming back to bite them. As a result, Phase 4 feels directionless and woefully disconnected.
Too Much Of A Good Thing
For anyone who has ever indulged in eating a lot of candy on Halloween, we're sure you'll be all too aware that, sometimes, too much of a good thing can in fact be bad. With a total of 17 projects in Phase 4 (one of which, The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, still hasn't technically been officially announced), it's been a busy year.
Yes, Phase 4 kicked off in 2021 with Black Widow and will end this year. We should be grateful for such an immense amount of MCU content, but is it wholly necessary?
Why Marvel Studios is so intent on rushing through this Infinityb Saga is hard to say. We'd guess pressiure from Disney to produce a greater amount of content for its streaming service is at the heart of this matter, but even then, this mad dash to the finish line - 2026's Avengers: Secret Wars - is perplexing.
The Multiverse Is Underwhelming
When it became apparent Marvel Studios planned to explore the Multiverse, we couldn't have been any more excited. Unfortunately, what we've seen of it thus far - outside of Spider-Man: No Way Home's fan-pleasing cameos - has been nothing short of underwhelming.
Whether it's Benedict Cumberbatch hamming it up as multiple Variants of himself or Tom Hiddleston having to act alongside a lot of bad actors playing Lokis (outside of Richard E. Grant), this hasn't lived up to expectations. The alternate realities we've visited haven't been up to much, and the whole thing just feels muddled and confusing for the most part.
As we head into Phases 5 and 6 in The Multiverse Saga, it's not exactly great that most fans don't have faith in the concept this entire wave of storytelling is based around. They're clearly making it up as they go and, this time, that doesn't fly.
Kang Isn't A Convincing Threat...Yet
Look, we are somewhat jumping the gun on this one, but Marvel Studios needs to do more if they hope to make Kang the Conqueror someone we can take as seriously as Thanos.
In fairness, the Mad Titan had only made a single appearance by the end of Phase 1, with Phase 2 relegating him to little more than a couple of cameos before Avengers: Infinity War rolled around. In Kang's case, he's appeared for a dailogue-heavy exchange in Loki and now looks set to be the big bad...in an Ant-Man movie.
Jonathan Majors is terrific, but we're not convinced Kang is going to be the world-ending threat he's been billed as. The whole Variant concept has already made him feel interchangeable, so we hope things change on that front in the years to come.
It's Only Going To Get Busier
We can't fault Marvel Studios' announcements at either Comic-Con or D23 as the likes of Daredevil: Born Again, Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, and Deadpool 3 are all incredibly exciting.
The problem is, we're in store for two more overly busy Phases, with the same messy approach to storytelling - whether it's giving a supporting character like Agatha Harkness her own show or throwing a bunch of B-List characters into Thunderbolts - set to be prevalent throughout the entire Multiverse Saga.
Unless Marvel Studios can quite rapidly get a grasp on how to tell so many stories in such succession, we can't help but think fans will soon be longing for the days of the Infinity Saga.
Oh, wait, are you still with us? We have one more blunder Marvel Studios made with Phase 4...
Letting Taika Waititi make Thor: Love And Thunder
'Nuff said.