Summary
The first three phases of theMCUhave been grouped together to make up what fans know asThe Infinity Saga.This saga tells the story of the six Infinity Stones and the heroes who have to group together to stop the Mad Titan Thanos from using them to wipe out half of life in the universe.
When telling any story, every character needs an origin, a story that helps the audience understand their motivations and personality. While a lot of new characters got their own movie in theMCU’sInfinity Saga,characters like Black Widow and Spider-Man had their origins explained in a separate film from their debut. However, some origin stories in this saga are better than others.
7Ant-Man
Rotten Tomatoes: 83%
The firstAnt-Manmovie had a lot to prove. The character was largely unknown to general audiences in 2015, and comic fans were left to wonder why the studio chose to start the franchisewith a legacy version of the heroin Scott Lang. What’s more, the movie was set to release just after the secondAvengersmovie.
Luckily, everything worked out for the size-changing hero. Paul Rudd turned out to be a great comedic lead in this unconventional heist film. Also, the smaller stakes of this solo adventure proved to be just what the MCUneeded after the earth-changing events ofAvengers: Age of Ultron.
6Doctor Strange
Rotten Tomatoes: 89%
Doctor Strangein 2016 had the difficult task of bringing the concept of magic into the MCU. While this was already a difficult enough task, the studio also had to make the title character relatable and feel down to earth.
Despite the fact that this origin story contained some stellar visuals unlike anything seen in cinema before, the story ofDoctor Strangenever loses sight of its main character. Audiences get to see an arrogant surgeon lose everything in a car accident and then climb out of his despair by traveling down a new road. Not only did this new road help showcase Stephen Strange’s positive aspects, but it also helped viewers get to grips with the mystic arts displayed in this film andlater installments of the MCU.
5Thor
Rotten Tomatoes: 77%
The firstThormovie had a lot to tackle. It had to set the stage for the titular God of Thunder to enter the MCU, while alsogiving the villain, Loki, time to shine. The latter part was important as Loki would be showing up as the main antagonist in theAvengers.
The result was a Shakespearian drama that saw Thor learn what it is to be human, eventually giving up what is important to him to be a hero. This decision also helps viewers understand why Loki hates his brother and why he would want to be on a collision course with Earth.
4Captain America: The First Avenger
Rotten Tomatoes: 80%
Every superhero origin needs to explain what powers the character has and how they got them. However, it was more important inCaptain America: The First Avengerto establish why Steve Rogers deserved those powers.
As the heart and soul of the Avengers,Captain Americaneeded to prove to audiences that an earnest character from the 1940s could still work in the 21st century. The result was a great WW2 epic that saw viewers side with Steve during every difficult decision. What’s more, it was great to see him hurled forward in time to meet some other familiar faces with thegrowing threat of the Tesseractsetting up future installments.
3Black Panther
Rotten Tomatoes: 96%
After the first string of MCU movies,most comic fans were left wondering when Black Panther would be showing up. The King of Wakanda was the next logical step for the franchise; however, Black Panther didn’t show up in his own film first. Instead, his debut came in the team-up movieCaptain America: Civil Warin 2016.
Black Panther made a huge impression on the audience in this debut outing, but fans wouldn’t get a real idea of what the character was about until his own solo film in 2018. The movie explored the origins of the fictional nation of Wakanda as well as the Black Panther. The firstBlack Pantheris also praised for including one of the best villains in the MCU, Killmonger.
2Iron Man
Rotten Tomatoes: 94%
Iron Manin 2008 wasn’t just an origin for the superhero but the entire MCU.The main focus of the movie was fixed on Tony Stark as Robert Downey Jr. charmed audiences with his stellar performance asIron Man quickly became a lot of people’s favorite Marvel character. It may feel tame by today’s standards, but this first movie in theInfinity Sagareally opened the doors for what would become the MCU.
While the movie is light on references to the wider universe, there are easter eggs for fans to find who knows what they are looking for. This movie also marks the first appearance of Nick Fury in the famous and first MCU post-credit scene.
1Guardians of the Galaxy
Rotten Tomatoes: 92%
Once Marvel had proved that audiences would come out tosee some well-known heroes team up,they needed to prove that the idea was not going to grow stale. The answer to this was theGuardians of the Galaxy, an epic space opera that featured a talking tree and raccoon.
Although Marvel found success in this superhero blockbuster with its high production levels and CGI battles, it was the character work that fans fell in love with. Each member of this band of misfits had a backstory that audiences could connect with, making everyone cheer on the MCU’s biggest weirdos as the franchise continued.
