When Marvel gave the greenlight for an Iron Man sequel in 2008, along with release dates for Thor, Captain America and The Avengers, we had a lot to look forward to. Now that plan is comes to its end, next year, what will Marvel have planned beyond?
With Marvel's Thor successfully making it to the top of the international box office even prior to it's general release in the U.S. it's understandably going to be another worldwide hit. It's a great standing for Marvel to bring an unknown to the mainstream and make as much success what they had with Iron Man in 2008. It not only reenforced Thor as a credible money maker it also makes the fantasy and supernatural element of the Marvel universe less of a punt at the box office. This opens the door for a character like Doctor Strange to become reality when considering which characters are worth the investment. The involvement of the Tesseract opens the door for Marvel to include new world, galaxys and universes. With Edgar Wright and Joe Cornish handing in a near finished draft for Ant-Man it seems to me that Marvel are indeed working toward putting together the 'original' Avengers line-up. It's fair to say it may not follow the original story but, hey, none of their movies so far have followed a true line of adaptation.
There has been a lot a talk from both Feige and the fans in regards to characters such as Hawkeye, Black Widow, War Machine and more importantly S.H.I.E.L.D. getting their own cinematic outings. But with The Avengers being the chance for Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D. flexing their muscles does it seem likely to me that large amounts of money will be invested on a 120 minute feature on this theme? I'm inclined to think not. As a fan I would love to see the rise of S.H.I.E.L.D. on the big screen or Nick Fury coming from soldier to Director of the most important organisation on Earth. I would want to see background on how Clint Barton became Agent. Barton and likewise for Romanoff. But whether characters such as this have the big box office draw of a thunder God or a gamma radiatiated scientist with a taste for angry is very questionable. Characters that could form a 'Bourne' style franchise would be interesting and a welcome break from the fantastical. But would be more knish and, in fairness, from what Edgar Wright has said previously about Ant-Man ("...it would be more of a heist movie...") that may be the route this guy will take into the mainstream.
So where will Marvel go from here? The possibilities are endless and, for a fan, exciting. But the avenue they take is not neccessarily going to be what we, the fans, want. It has to be characters that would have mass marketability and would draw interest from the general public. As well as this Marvel has to be able to continue the story that is/will be spanning Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man 2, Thor, Captain America: The First Avenger and The Avengers respectively. They have to find characters whos situations are relatable as well as original. Tony Stark and, indeed, Thor both did as well each other in their 'origin' story from arrogant playboy to hero.
The Incredible Hulk was my personal favourite Marvel movie until I witnessed Thor. His inner angst was more personal to Banner. The rage was epic in itself but the star characters termoil was already in progress from the outset of the movie. For people who hadn't seen Ang Lee's take on the character and weren't aware of what went on during the brief opening credits of The Incredible Hulk, in regards to The Hulk's origin, may have been left a little in the dark. I wouldn't have wanted a reboot personally as it would have wasted precious screentime BUT I'm a comic book and movie fan so I went into the movie knowledgable. This may have left some viewers feeling like they came in mid-movie. It didn't allow enough time for a connection to be made with Banner. This may be reasoning as to why it fell flat in the relatability of this character for some people. Screen time allowed for this in both Thor and Iron man. But that's an observation and opinion only.
But who if the Marvel characters would create that buzz both between the fans and the public alike? Who would be a profitable business decision? And who would fit into the already bulging Marvel Cinematic Universe?
All I can do is give my personal opinion. I, for one, have a long list of characters I believe deserve a big screen outing. But they may not fit in with what has already been set forth. I champion the inclusion of Ant-Man. Not only does the science brain of Pym benefit the cinematic world but it opens the door for a worthy opponent in Ultron for a future Avengers outing. The hero himself is very interesting to me in the sense he's completely original in comparison to the other members. Ant-man or Giant-man would be a worthy team member in conquering a tough opponent. The dynamic of Pym's and Van Dyne's relationship is relatable for the viewing public and their inclusion is imminent in the near future. Even Dr. Selvig elluded to "...[knowing] a doctor who has had dealings with [S.H.I.E.L.D.}..." which obviously shows he is a big game player by the time all six movies have taken place. It's understandable if he doesn't make an appearance within The Avengers until after a solo outing but I cannot wait for his introduction.
I feel Black Panther has great marketability. He's just like Steve Rogers and Thor in the sense he would be a character that would have to find his feet in the modern world. Wakanda and their Vibranium mine would be an interesting world to explore. A civilisation being infiltrated and tainted by the outside world would also be a relevent topic for the modern day. A man fighting to sustain this is just as interesting a topic. Having another strong Black leading character would be an important route to take after having Nick Fury and James Rhodes taking a back seat to date. The same bodes for strong leading female characters. Black Widow and, possibly, Maria Hill are still considered secondary characters but there is plenty of room for one, possibly two, more female(s) in the team. As well as Van Dyne I would love to see Carol Danvers included as she is a superhero who could hold he own, in regards to powers, alongside the likes of Thor and Hulk. Instead of just young boys wanting to be Thor, Iron Man or Captain America it would be sensible for Marvel to make way for young girls to want to be like a hero also.
As for the success of the more fantasy based Thor I think Doctor Strange would have great success as a solo movie. I'm not sure where he would fit into where the current continuation of the MCU but his 'world' is both interesting to explore alone. Much like the nine realms for future Thor sequels.
With so many sequels planned the introduction of too many more charcters would not allow Marvel to focus on the heroes that are already established in the mainstream. I wouldn't want to wait ten years for another Thor or Hulk just so each and every secondary charcter can have the limelight. I would rather see Thor take on Surtur or The Hulk to take on The Leader (Tim Blake Nelson played Sterns so well it would be a shame not to revisit that particular villain). For Marvel to remain consistent with two movies a year I would think that they would want to keep attention on their main players. They would have to up their movie ratio per year in order to introduce new characters and continue established characters big screen outings whilst keeping the flow as of the last 4 years releases. If Marvel and Disney are willing to invest the dollers then I would be wrong in that yet even happier as a fan. But how likely that is is another question.
So for me there are five characters I believe would benefit both Marvel, the current Marvel Cinematic Universe story and us as fans. They are Ant-man (Henry Pym), The Wasp (Janet Van Dyne), Black Panther (T'Challa), Ms. Marvel (Carol Danvers) and Doctor Strange. As for villains, well, the list is neverending. Marvel have got it right so far. No doubt The Avengers will open the door as to what our heroes will face in the future. I cannot wait to see what earth-shattering plan Loki has for dominating our realm Midgard. There's still plenty to come before this initial plan comes to an end but looking to the future is is just as, if not more, promising.
Whether you guys agree I'm unsure but solo movies for each of these coupled with sequels to Iron Man (in 2013), Hulk, Thor, Captain America and The Avengers, we have a pretty busy, but just as awesome, ten years ahead of us. Let's not be greedy. Let's be sensible and look forward to the hype!
Thank you for reading. All comments are welcome.
Your Craptain salutes you!