Marvel Cinematic Universe Watch Order - Updated
Hello my friends. Welcome back!
EDIT: Updated to include latest MCU projects and reflect the details we know about Avengers: Doomsday, as well as to create what I think is the best Watch Order to cover all recent entries in the most satisfying way.
So after posting my last Watch Order for Star Trek I was debating what I could follow it up with. There were obviously a few options that I had in various stages, and several that I can use to link to episodes of my podcast, however the one that jumped out at me the most was the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
The MCU is something that people, including myself, have been debating the timeline of for a very long time. There have also been multiple debates about canonicity, especially of the tie-in media like television shows not produced by Marvel Studios. A lot of these discussions have been in many ways hindered by official licensed material by Marvel themselves, or comments made by filmmakers, which has only thrown more fuel on the already fiery debate. Many people have done some incredible work creating timelines over the years, and have argued quite vehemently against some of the "official" placements made by Marvel Studios, using evidence from the films and shows themselves that provide in-universe dates, or even using phases of the moon to work as accurately as possible to map every single one of these projects to real-world dates. In many cases this provides a fantastically rich and very well-developed timeline, but sometimes a very haphazard watching order as plenty of events can overlap in very interesting ways - for example did you know that Marvel's official position is that the main events of the films Iron Man 2, Thor and the Incredible Hulk, along with several other events, all happen in the exact same week? And in many cases this was made even worse with the introduction of the Multiverse, which is starting to bring in elements from other Marvel media, such as Deadpool and Venom, but also creating its own new alternate timelines such as those seen in What If?
So what is my approach to all of this?
Firstly I am of the opinion that everything released as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, whether the films and shows made by Marvel Studios, or the older shows made by Marvel Television for ABC, Netlfix or anyone else, is canon. This includes all of the Marvel Studios films, the Disney+ streaming shows, the Netflix Defenders Saga, Agents of SHIELD and its associated shows Agent Carter and Inhumans, the shows Runaways and Cloak and Dagger, and the Marvel One-Shots series of shorts. Anything released by another studio in this timeframe featuring Marvel characters is part of the Multiverse, but not part of the MCU.
Secondly I am of the opinion that the timeline may not always be the best way to watch something, especially as in some cases the post-credits scenes, a staple of the MCU projects at this point, can be designed to lead into a subsequent project, sometimes one set quite a bit later in the timeline. What this means is that sometimes it may be better to play a film where the majority of its events take place, and other times it may be better to place it where the post-credits line up the best with the following project. It can be very situational, and so I will need to evaluate this on a case-by-case basis.
Thirdly as we do seem to be heading to Marvel incorporating elements from other films, and crossovers with Sony's Spider-Man and Fox's X-Men series, as well as others, I will include a list of those movies here at the best place to watch them, but I would say that as we don't yet know how much, if at all, these will play a part, that they are entirely optional at this point.
Finally just like with my previous Watch Order I want to make it as satisfying an experience for the viewer as I can. So this means that if I need to break up shows, which I already know at some point I will need to, I want to do so at what feels like a natural break in the story, and ideally not after only one or two episodes. If anything this is a far more important caveat here than with Star Trek, as these shows are far more serialised, and changing shows too often can make it harder to follow these more detailed plotlines, even with the recaps and previously on segments. I have marked a couple of entries by their importantance to the overall metaplot of the MCU's main sagas, but there are notes for other stories as well saying what they connect to, and I will list the main recurring characters and elements in entries where that may not be obvious, allowing you to track your favourite characters if you wish.
Quick note, I'm also going to split this long list into several shorter parts - it should make it easier to deal with, and each part has an overall theme, which I'm going to use to title them. Titles are my own.
So with all that said, let's begin!
Marvel Cinematic Universe
Chapter 1: Assemble
I think its pretty obvious here that the first theme is the building of the MCU, introducing its first major heroes, and featuring Earth's seemingly first contacts with the wider universe, as the heroes come together to save the world from an alien threat, and then how that affects them.
Iron Man
- Iron Man, Agent Coulson, Nick Fury, Rhodey, Pepper, Happy, Jarvis, Ten Rings
- ESSENTIAL. I think this is the best introduction to this universe, giving us a grounded and relatable hero, and the Post-credits scene introduces the idea of there being a wider universe of heroes out there, leading to...
Captain America: The First Avenger
- Captain America, Peggy Carter, Bucky, Howard Stark, Howling Commandos, Tessaract, Nick Fury, HYDRA
- ESSENTIAL. The framing sequence helps to set this in the modern day, with the film as a flashback. Because of how important Cap will be in the universe I also like having him as the second hero to be introduced, and his connection to Peggy is best explored here.
Marvel One-Shot: Agent Carter
- Peggy Carter, Howard Stark
- This works as a ilot of sorts for the series, and while it looks like it will set up SHIELD in the aftermath the series explains why that isn't immediately the case.
Agent Carter Season One
- Peggy Carter, Howard Stark, Howling Commandos
- Starts a year after the end of the war.
Agent Carter Season Two
- Peggy Carter, Howard Stark
- Takes place a year after the last series.
Iron Man 2
- Iron Man, Black Widow, Rhodey, Agent Coulson, Howard Stark, Nick Fury, Pepper, Happy, Jarvis, Ten Rings
- While I'm hesitant to mark this as Essential I think if you do want to follow the core Avengers storyline this is the important next step. Back to the "present" as we pick up six months after the first film. The opening works really well to catch an audience back up.
Incredible Hulk
- Bruce Banner/Hulk, Thaddeus Ross, Betty Ross, Blonsky, Samuel Sterns, Iron Man
- I think its better to watch this here, as while Thor feels like it should be next, the differences between Hulk here and in Avengers feel like there should be some time between them.
Marvel One-Shot: A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To Thor's Hammer
- Agent Coulson
- A nice little short featuring Coulson.
Thor
- Thor, Loki, Sif, Heimdall. Odin, Jane Foster, Darcy, Dr Selvig, Agent Coulson, Hawkeye, Tessaract, Nick Fury
- ESSENTIAL. The introduction to the more magical and cosmic sides of the universe. Ups the stakes of the universe so works well as one of the last things before Avengers.
Marvel One-Shot: The Consultant
- Agent Coulson, Blonsky, Iron Man, Thaddeus Ross
- The short that explains Tony's role in the Hulk post-credits sequence.
Avengers
- Iron Man, Captain America, Black Widow, Hulk, Thor, Hawkeye, Loki, Agent Coulson, Nick Fury, Maria Hill, Dr Selvig, Jarvis, Tessaract, Thanos
- ESSENTIAL. The first big event as we get the Avengers coming together. The first real essential story for the larger narrative at play.
Marvel One-Shot: Item 47
- This short worked as the SHIELD pilot.
Agents of SHIELD 101-107
- Extremis
- Agent Coulson gets his own show to lead, and a team of SHIELD agents including the enigmatic Skye. The first seven episodes are fairly self-contained and introduce us to Coulson's team, starting some mysteries but mostly just working to expand the universe. I'm not highlighting Coulson and other cast members in this show after this however, just guests.
Thor: The Dark World
- Thor, Loki, Sif, Odin, Heimdall, Jane Foster, Darcy, Dr Selvig, Aether, Collector
- ESSENTIAL. Introduces the concept of the Infinity Stones, which obviously become of major importance later on. Works as a nice conclusion to Avengers with Loki's storyline, and ends up with an intriguing cliffhanger for the next chapter. Loki gets plenty of development here that becomes very important later on.
Agents of SHIELD 108-112
- Episode 8 is a direct follow up to The Dark World, and the big plot for the series starts to come together after episode 112, so this is a good place to break.
Iron Man 3
- Iron Man, Rhodey, Pepper, Happy, Jarvis, Ten Rings, Bruce Banner, Extremis, Trevor
- ESSENTIAL. While Extremis was mentioned earlier in SHIELD, this is where it really factors, with the main thrust of this dealing with Tony's PTSD after the events of the Avengers, with several of his changes I would argue making this Essential to the story.
Marvel One-Shot: All Hail The King
- Trevor, Ten Rings
- A fun little short that follows up on Trevor and obviously can't take place too long after Iron Man 3.
Chapter 2: Shadows
The theme I'm going for here is that of building threats in the background, undermining the heroes, or larger forces and threats from beyond Earth that could play a factor in the future.
Agents of SHIELD 113-116
- Sif, Kree
- Where the Clairvoyant storyline really starts to come together.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier
- Captain America, Nick Fury, Black Widow, Maria Hill, Falcon, Bucky, Sharon Carter, Peggy Carter, Wanda Maximoff, Pietro, HYDRA
- ESSENTIAL. A proper game-changing event for the series, and has distinct affects on SHIELD especially.
Agents of SHIELD 117-122
- Maria Hill, Nick Fury, HYDRA
- Sees how the events of Winter Soldier affect Coulson's team.
Guardians of the Galaxy
- Star-Lord, Gamora, Drax, Groot, Rocket, Nebula, Collector, Kraglin, Thanos, Power Stone, Kree, Knowhere
- ESSENTIAL. Heading off into space to meet a new group of heroes, and learn more about the Infinity Stones and Thanos.
- Groot, Rocket, Watcher
- While these shorts technically follow the majority of second film, as Groot has grown up by the final scene of Vol 2, it seems better to put all the Baby Groot stuff together in order. The Watcher appears in Episode 5 of Season Two, and will become more prominnt in the Multiverse story later.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2
- Star-Lord, Gamora, Drax, Groot, Rocket, Nebula, Mantis, Kraglin
- ESSENTIAL. Lots of important changes for the Guardians, and the last time we see them for a while. Some may argue with me saying this is essential, but I think for characters like Gamora and Nebula especially there is a lot here of great import.
Daredevil Season One
- Daredevil, Foggy Nelson, Karen Page, Kingpin, Claire Temple, Stick, Vanessa, The Hand
- A much more adult take on the Marvel heroes as we meet Daredevil and Kingpin.
Agents of SHIELD 201-210
- Peggy Carter, Howling Commandos, Inhumans, HYDRA
- The first ten episodes tell a very connected and self contained story.
Jessica Jones Season One
- Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Trish Walker, Jeri Hogarth, Claire Temple
- Introduction to Jessica Jones and Luke Cage. Takes place over a large period of time.
Agents of SHIELD 211-219
- Sif, Kree, Inhumans, HYDRA
- Overlaps with events in Jessica Jones, but best watched all together I think. Some events in 219 lead into Age of Ultron
Avengers: Age of Ultron
- Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Bruce Banner/Hulk, Black Widow, Hawkeye, Wanda Maximoff, Pietro, Dr Selvig, Jarvis/Vision, Rhodey, Nick Fury, Maria Hill, Ultron, Falcon, Peggy Carter, Heimdall, Thanos, Mind Stone, HYDRA
- ESSENTIAL. The retun of the Avengers that follows up on some open plotlines, and has key events that will be built upon later.
Agents of SHIELD 220-222
- Inhumans, HYDRA
- Conclusion of the SHIELD/Inhumans plot for this season.
Ant-Man
- Ant-Man, Hope Van Dyne, Hank Pym, Cassie Lang, Janet Pym, Peggy Carter, Howard Stark, Quantum Realm
- Expands on SHIELD and gives us more older heroes before going for a self-contained story. Its very good and has some great character stuff for later, but I don't think it needs to be marked as Essential.
Daredevil Season Two
- Daredevil, Foggy Nelson, Karen Page, Punisher, Elektra, The Hand, Stick, Claire Temple, Kingpin, Jeri Hogarth
- This takes place over a large period of time, overlapping with the following series quite a lot, however is probably best watched all together here. Introduces Punisher and Elektra
Luke Cage Season One
- Luke Cage, Misty Knight, Claire Temple
- Happens much quicker than Daredevil, and actually finishes before that does, but best watched together.
Agents of SHIELD 301-310
- Inhumans, HYDRA
- The start of the next season lays some more groundwork for the Inhumans, and brings Ward's storyline to an end, serving as a nice conclusion for this chapter.
Chapter 3: Divided
This chapter really starts to dismantle some of the unified heroes around the world, as SHIELD and the Avengers, as well as the street level heroes, go through some major changes. While new heroes debut, everyone is in their own corners of the world.
Iron Fist Season One
- Iron Fist, Colleen Wing, Claire Temple, Jeri Hogarth, The Hand
- As a more direct tie-in and prelude to Defenders, I think this is for the best starting the next chapter, although the show is a bit muddled at times.
Agents of SHIELD 311-318
- Inhumans, HYDRA
- There's a nice time gap between 318 and 319, so this works well watched here.
The Defenders
- Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, Elektra, Stick, The Hand, Misty Knight, Colleen Wing, Foggy Nelson, Karen Page, Trish Walker, Claire Temple
- Bringing together Daredevil, Jessica, Luke and Iron Fist and others to fight the Hand.
Captain America: Civil War
- Captain America, Bucky, Falcon, Black Widow, Iron Man, Black Panther, Sharon Carter, Thaddeus Ross, Everett Ross, Wanda Maximoff, Vision, Rhodey, Hawkeye, Spider-Man, Ant-Man, Zemo, Ayo, Sokovia Accords
- ESSENTIAL. While the opening technically takes place before Defenders, the film is best watched all at once in my opinion. The Post-credits actually follows some later entries. A lot of big changes for the overall narrative.
Black Widow
- Black Widow, Yelena, Red Guardian, Thaddeus Ross, Sokovia Accords
- This film takes place entirely between the end scenes and the post-credits for Civil War. The post-credits scene however is set YEARS later and spoils some upcoming plots. Watch it in Chapter 6.
Agents of SHIELD 319-322
- Kree, Sokovia Accords, Inhumans, HYDRA
- The Accords are mentioned in 320, with them starting to affect our heroes here. 319 picks up from 318 after a time jump, so is best to watch here with the others.
Black Panther
- Black Panther, Shuri, Okoye, Ayo, M'Baku, Ramonda, Everett Ross, Bucky
- ESSENTIAL. This takes place not long after Civil War and Black Widow, so best watched here. Introduction of Wakanda, which becomes quite important.
Inhumans
- Black Bolt, Inhumans, Sokovia Accords, Kree
- Has some tie-ins to the Inhumans that have been present in SHIELD, but more self-contained.
Spider-Man: Homecoming
- Spider-Man, MJ, Vulture, Iron Man, Happy, Pepper, Aaron Davis, Scorpion
- ESSENTIAL. Following up on Spidey a few months after Civil War. Relatively self-contained but lays groundwork for its sequels, as well as establishes the relationship between Peter and Tony Stark.
The Punisher Season One
- Punisher, Karen Page, Billy Russo
- Frank Castle returns to deal with a conspiracy.
Doctor Strange
- Doctor Strange, Wong, Ancient One, Time Stone, Thor
- ESSENTIAL. This film takes place over about a year, so a lot of scenes overlap plenty of previous stories, but the majority of its main events fit best here. Characters and concepts introduced here pay off in important ways later on.
Cloak and Dagger Season One
- Features Roxxon, who been mentioned several times elsewhere.
Agents of SHIELD Season Four
- Ghost Rider, Darkhold, Inhumans, HYDRA
- The whole of this season, while divided into 3 distinct storyarcs, all follows into itself very quickly, with the whole season only taking about six weeks to resolve. Introduces the Darkhold which will reappear a few times.
Jessica Jones Season Two
- Jessica Jones, Trish Walker, Jeri Hogarth, Foggy Nelson
- Mentions the Raft, which appeared in Civil War, and the Accords.
Luke Cage Season Two
- Luke Cage, Misty Knight, Claire Temple, Foggy Nelson, Iron Fist
- I think this show is really underrated personally. Some great stuff here.
Iron Fist Season Two
- Iron Fist, Colleen Wing, Misty Knight
- A huge improvement on Season One. Overlaps a bit with the start of Daredevil and starts pretty much straight after his appearance in Luke Cage. Best to watch here as one.
Cloak and Dagger Season Two
- The second season makes reference to several other heroes, and works nicely to conclude this section.
Daredevil Season Three
- Daredevil, Foggy Nelson, Karen Page, Kingpin, Dex/Bullseye, Vanessa
- The first episode covers a long period of time since the Defenders. One of the best seasons of TV in the MCU in my opinion, and easily the highlight of the Defenders Saga.
Chapter 4: Infinity
While this may at first seem disjointed with the new characters that are introduced, it has several unifying ideas. First Thanos is coming and the Infinity Stones are in play, and secondly time travel becomes an important plot point.
Runaways Season One
- Nico Minoru
- Runaways focuses on a group of kids and is quite self-contained, with each season leading into the next. However I have divided it up a bit as it overlaps a lot of these other events. In fact most of this chapter happens in a VERY short and very busy timeframe.
Agents of SHIELD 501-510
- Kree, Inhumans
- These ten episodes mostly take place in the future, suggesting that the world will end.
Runaways Season Two
- Nico Minoru
- Continues to build the saga of the Runaways and their extended cast.
Agents of SHIELD 511-514
- HYDRA
- The SHIELD team return to the present.
Runaways Season Three
- Nico Minoru, Cloak and Dagger, Darkhold
- This season also features time travel and sees the return of Cloak and Dagger.
Agents of SHIELD 515-518
- HYDRA
- A new threat emerges trying to stop the SHIELD team.
The Punisher Season Two
- Punisher, Karen Page, Billy Russo
- Frank returns in a much less complicated storyline. Overlaps with previous.
Agents of SHIELD 519-522
- Kree, Thanos, HYDRA
- These last four episodes actually overlap with some big events later on, and make some mention of them, but I think they work better watched closer to the rest of the season due to the narrow timeframe.
Jessica Jones Season Three
- Jessica Jones, Trish Walker, Jeri Hogarth, Luke Cage
- This overlaps with the rest of the previous events, but doesn't really intersect.
Ant-Man and the Wasp
- Ant-Man, Hope/Wasp. Hank Pym, Janet Pym, Cassie Lang, Ghost, Jimmy Woo, Quantum Realm
- ESSENTIAL. While mostly self-contained the post-credits here suggests that something quite dramatic will happen soon, but doesn't really suggest what. Lays some important groundwork for later on.
Thor: Ragnarok
- Thor, Loki, Odin, Heimdall, Hulk/Bruce Banner, Valkyrie, Korg, Miek, Doctor Strange
- ESSENTIAL. As Sakaar exists outside of the rest of time I'm placing this here, despite part of it being alluded to here. The reason for this is that the post-credits directly leads into...
Avengers: Infinity War
- Thanos. Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, Falcon. Black Widow, Hulk/Bruce Banner, Rhodey, Wanda Maximoff, Vision, Black Panther, Spider-Man, Doctor Strange, Star-Lord, Gamora, Nebula, Drax, Groot, Rocket, Mantis, Loki, Heimdall, Bucky, Shuri, M'Baku, Okoye, Ayo, Wong, Pepper, Thaddeus Ross, Tessaract, Aether, Power Stone, Mind Stone, Time Stone, Soul Stone, Infinity Gauntlet, Nick Fury, Maria Hill, Collector, Sokovia Accords
- ESSENTIAL. Thanos arrives and makes his play for the Infinity Stones. The Snap.
Agents of SHIELD Season Six
- Despite the cliffhanger of Infinity War this is best placed here, as it takes place a year following the Snap.
Captain Marvel
- Captain Marvel, Nick Fury, Maria Rambeau, Talos, Skrulls, Kree, Tessaract, Monica Rambeau
- This is essentially a large extended flashback establishing who Fury was contacting, and is placed here because of its post-credits being the next step leading to...
Avengers Endgame
- Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Black Widow, Hulk, Hawkeye, Rhodey, Ant-Man, Nebula, Rocket, Captain Marvel, Okoye, Thanos, Valkyrie, Pepper, Korg, Miek, Gamora, Loki, Wong, Ancient One, Wasp, Doctor Strange, Spider-Man, Black Panther, Shuri, Bucky, Wanda Maximoff, Star-Lord, Drax, Mantis, Groot, M'Baku, Jane Foster, Happy, Hank Pym, Janet Pym, Cassie Lang, Ramonda, Howard Stark, Thaddeus Ross
- ESSENTIAL. Picking up not long after the end of Infinity War before jumping several years ahead. Features time travel using the Infinity Stones and ends several important storylines.
Agents of SHIELD Season Seven
- Features its own time travel as the crew travel through an alternate history.
Loki Season Two
- Loki, T.V.A., Victor Timely/He Who Remains, the Void
- ESSENTIAL. This picks up on the alternate Loki who escaped and introduces the Multiverse, a concept that will be important in the upcoming Saga.
Chapter 5: Multiverse
With the Multiverse now in play after the events of Loki now is the best time to explore the other Marvel projects, mainly the long list of films from Sony and Fox. I’m not going to mark anything in this section as Essential, but some characters and concepts will reappear, either directly or as variants, as we continue forward. Also not every Multiverse story will be here, as we will visit other worlds in the following sections.
Spider-Man 2
Spider-Man 3
- Spider-Man, MJ, Aunt May, Norman Osborn, Harry Osborn, Doctor Octopus, Sandman, J. Jonah Jameson, Uncle Ben, Venom, Symbiotes, Oscorp
- Introduction to the Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, his love interest Mary Jane Watson, and his villains Green Goblin, Doctor Octopus, and Sandman. Also gives us J. Jonah Jameson and the Daily Bugle.
X2: X-Men United
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
X-Men: The Last Stand
The Wolverine
- Wolverine, Xavier, Cyclops, Phoenix, Storm, Magneto, Mystique, Beast, Rogue, Colossus, Nightcrawler, Iceman, Shadowcat, Deadpool, Pyro, Sabretooth, Toad, Gambit, Blob, Juggernaut, X-Men, Mutants, Weapon X
- The first set of X-Men films. Origins isn't great, but leads to some comedy later on, and Is probably best placed after X2 to conclude Logan’s backstory. The Wolverine works as an epilogue of sorts to the main trilogy. Introduces the X-Men, including Professor Xavier and Magneto, and Wolverine.
- Hulk, Thaddeus Ross, Betty Ross, Glenn Talbot
- The Ang Lee film with Eric Bana. An interesting character study.
Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer
- Mr Fantastic, Thing, Human Torch, Invisible Woman, Doctor Doom, Silver Surfer, Galactus
- The introduction of the Fantastic Four and some of their strange enemies including Doctor Doom, Silver Surfer and Galactus. Not terrible.
Elektra
- Daredevil, Elektra, Bullseye, Kingpin, Stick, The Hand, Foggy Nelson
- Two films very much of their time, but Elektra returns later on. Also some interesting takes on Kingpin and Bullseye, and Foggy Nelson.
- Punisher, The Russian
- I'll be honest I really like this film.
Blade II
Blade: Trinity
- Blade, Vampires
- A trio of films focusing on the vampire hunter. A new version of this character is coming, and the original will return as well.
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance
- Ghost Rider, Caretaker, Hell
- Two films focusing on the Johnny Blaze iteration of Ghost Rider, who is heavily rumoured to return in the future.
Amazing Spider-Man 2
- Spider-Man, Gwen Stacy, Lizard, Electro, Harry Osborn, Oscorp
- Introduction of the Amazing Spider-Man, and his love interest Gwen Stacy as he deals with Oscorp and the villains Lizard, Electro and Rhino.
X-Men: Days of Future Past
X-Men: Apocalypse
X-Men: Dark Phoenix
- Xavier, Magneto, Mystique, X-Men, Mutants, Wolverine, Pietro, Cyclops, Phoenix, Beast, Storm, Nightcrawler, Colossus, Blink, Iceman, Shadowcat, Apocalypse, Sentinels, Weapon X
- The second group of the X-Men films, with Days of Future Past combining old and new casts for a time travel adventure before going in a new direction.
- Mr Fantastic, Human Torch, Invisible Woman, Thing, Doctor Doom
- The second attempt at the Fantastic Four and Doctor Doom. Not great.
- Punisher, Billy Russo
- Second attempt at Punisher. Features Jigsaw as the villain. I think its very underrated, and has a camp charm.
The Gifted Season Two
- Blink, Mutants, X-Men, Sentinels
- A series focusing on mutants in a world without Xavier and the X-Men or Magneto, and how they deal with the racism from humanity. Unfortunately it was cancelled and so ends on a cliffhanger.
- Caretaker, Hell
- Originally intended to be part of the MCU, its current standing is unknown, and its links were downplayed upon release.
- Spider-Man, Uncle Ben, Spider-Woman
- Very self-contained but features the birth of a Peter Parker.
Legion Season Two
Legion Season Three
- Mutants, Xavier
- A series by Noah Hawley focusing on the son of Charles Xavier as he deals with his fractured psyche. Ran for three seasons
- Rhino, Dmitri
- Another self-contained Sony story featuring a Spider-Man related character.
What If? Season Two
What If? Season Three
- Watcher, Captain Carter, Doctor Strange, Ultron, Infinity Stones, Kahhori, Birdie, Storm
- The Watcher guides us through the Multiverse, showing worlds that diverted from the MCU at some point, with some ideas that we might see again. Features a version of pretty much every character in the MCU, as well as a few others.
Chapter 6: Generations
Returning to the MCU’s Sacred Timeline the main focus here is how the older heroes link to newer ones, usually protégés and other characters inspired by them, as well as explorations of family. However with the Multiverse Saga still ongoing, and its overall direction still relatively unclear, I am using my best judgement to mark what I consider to be essential going forward.
- Wanda/Scarlet Witch, Vision, Monica Rambeau, Darcy, Jimmy Woo, Tommy, Billy, Agatha, Pietro
- ESSENTIAL. I think this is a great way to start this chapter, and it is supposed to pick up quite soon after Endgame.
- Eternals, Celestials, Blade
- This seems to be meant to take place later, but I like having it early, as though the return of the Blipped is what creates the inciting incident for the "present day" plot. Blade has a brief voice cameo in the end.
- Deadpool, Colossus, X-Men, Mutants
- ESSENTIAL. Our first entry outside of the Sacred Timeline that I’m putting in the main list, for reasons that should become apparent very soon, as we return to the X-Men timeline. Introduces a great new character, a more adult tone, and takes some steps that will lead in interesting directions.
Hawkeye
- Hawkeye, Kate Bishop, Yelena Belova, Echo, Kingpin, (Val)
- Takes place over a few days over Christmas, and introduces Echo. The Black Widow post-credits scene takes place before this and features Val, explaining Yelena’s presence.
- Mutants, X-Men
- A fairly self-contained film with some minor connections to the following.
- Wolverine, Xavier, Laura, Mutants
- ESSENTIAL. One of the best non-MCU films, and one of the best X-Men related films. A conclusion to the story of Wolverine, and sets up some important things for later.
- Shang-Chi, Ten Rings, Wong, Blonsky, Captain Marvel, Bruce Banner
- More self-contained than most bits in this section, except for the final scenes, which suggest the Ten Rings may have a larger role to play going forward.
- Moon Knight, Scarlet Scarab, Khonshu
- This really starts to explore the gods of the MCU, something that happens in the following as well, hence why I have placed it here when it takes place a bit earlier.
- Thor, Jane Foster, Valkyrie, Korg, Star-Lord, Nebula, Rocket, Groot, Drax, Mantis, Kraglin, Sif, Miek, Zeus, Darcy, Dr Selvig, Heimdall, Hercules
- I feel this had far more connections at some point, but was heavily rewritten. Continues to build the mythology after Moon Knight though.
- Falcon/Captain America, Bucky, Sharon Carter, Zemo, Ayo, Rhodey, Val, John Walker, Joaquin Torres, Isaiah
- Introduces the new Captain America, and follows up on the Snap's effects on the world.
- She-Hulk, Daredevil, Wong, Hulk, Blonsky
- A lot of fourth wall breaking here, something that might become more common. Very derided by certain corners of the internet but I genuinely think its pretty great.
- Spider-Man, Mysterio, Nick Fury, Maria Hill, Happy, Jonah, Talos
- ESSENTIAL. Originally released much earlier, but its closely linked to its sequel, so better placed here.
Venom: Let There Be Carnage
- Venom, Eddie Brock, Carnage, Mrs Chen, Symbiotes
- Takes place in its own timeline with its own version of Venom who bonds with Eddie Brock, and his villains, including Carnage. Both of these two are best watched together I think before they link to the following film.
- Spider-Man, Doctor Strange, Wong, Jonah, Happy, Green Goblin, Doctor Octopus, Lizard, Electro, Sandman, Mysterio, Daredevil, Eddie Brock, Venom
- ESSENTIAL. Starts immediately after the last, but the majority takes place months later. Previous film could also count as essential, but this ties in closer to the Multiverse arc at play.
- Venom, Eddie Brock, Mrs Chen, Knull, Symbiotes
- Venom and Eddie return to confront Knull, the so-called God of Symbiotes. Its unclear whether this will have any relevance or not going forward, but it does fit for the best here.
- Black Panther, Shuri, Okoye, M'Baku, Ramonda, Ayo, Namor, Riri Williams, Everett Ross, Val
- ESSENTIAL. The themes of this chapter are quite heavy here due to real-life issues, and the world gets bigger. Namor will also be returning in the future.
- Star-Lord, Drax, Mantis, Rocket, Groot, Nebula, Kraglin, Cosmo, Knowhere
- Very low stakes, but very interesting, as we get to see the Guardians enjoying Christmas. Has no villain either.
- Ant-Man, Wasp, Hank Pym, Janet Pym, Cassie Lang, Victor Timely/Kang the Conqueror, Quantum Realm
- ESSENTIAL. The first real introduction of Kang, a character teased in Loki. The focus of the arc seems to have changed from Kang, but I still expect this to pay off somewhere down the line.
Chapter 7: Incursion
This is where the Multiverse arc that is building in the background really starts to become more prominent, but also other plots develop as more characters on our main worlds come into their powers.
Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness
- Doctor Strange, Wong, Scarlet Witch, America Chavez, Xavier, Mr Fantastic, Black Bolt, Captain Carter, Maria Rambeau, Tommy, Billy, Clea
- ESSENTIAL. Happens after No Way Home, and features more of the Multiverse, introducing some concepts that will likely become more common going forward such as Incursion.
- Spider-Man, Gwen Stacy, Miles Morales, Kingpin, Tombstone, Scorpion, Aaron Davis, Spider-Man Noir
- ESSENTIAL. Our first animated feature film, as we go to another world and really start to open up the Multiverse, through a focus on Spider-Man and variants. Plenty of links to other worlds, and references to a lot of Marvel history.
- Vampires, Vulture
- Post-credits scene features Vulture due to events of No Way Home, but with recent things happening at Sony I’m not sure if the plot threads it sets up will be followed up on.
- Deadpool, Colossus, Cable, X-Men, Juggernaut, Mutants
- Following up from the first film, and introducing some time-travel elements that will be used in the sequel, but I don’t think anything is especially missed if you choose to go straight to the sequel, so for that reason I am not marking it Essential.
- Echo, Kingpin, Daredevil, Hawkeye
- Returning from Hawkeye, this show explores Echo in more depth, and shows some aspects of life during the Blip. Hawkeye’s appearances are reused footage from that show.
- Star-Lord, Nebula, Rocket, Groot, Drax, Mantis, Gamora, Kraglin, Cosmo, Adam Warlock, Phyla, Knowhere
- A very emotional story and conclusion for the Guardians. Essential for those characters, but maybe not for the universe overall yet.
- Nick Fury, Maria Hill, Talos, Skrulls, Rhodey, Everett Ross, G'iah, Sonya Falsworth, Extremis
- A sequel of sorts to Captain Marvel, featuring Nick Fury and the Skrulls.
- X-Men, Mutants, Xavier, Wolverine, Magneto, Cyclops, Storm, Phoenix, Gambit, Beast, Rogue, Nightcrawler, Cable, Sentinels, Watcher, Black Panther, Captain America, Iron Man
- A follow up to the old animated series from Marvel Studios Animation. Cameo from the Watcher suggests that this universe is definitely connected to everything else we are seeing in the Multiverse at least. Seems to be influencing current X-Men ideas in the MCU more than previous films are.
- Ms Marvel, Red Dagger, Yusuf, Captain Marvel, Mutants
- Delightful introduction of a fun new hero, that fits well here as its post-credits leads to...
- Captain Marvel, Monica Rambeau, Ms Marvel, Nick Fury, Valkyrie, Maria Rambeau, Yusuf, Kate Bishop, Beast, Kree, Skrulls,
- ESSENTIAL. Brings together several heroes in some interesting ways, with a couple of fun post-credits appearances. Counting this as essential as based on some revealed casting information it will likely form key groundwork for Avengers: Doomsday.
- Daredevil, Kingpin, Punisher, Foggy Nelson, Karen Page, Bullseye, Vanessa, Yusuf
- Picking up after Echo but continuing months further on, this sees the return of Daredevil, Kingpin, and their associated characters, along with several new faces including serial killer Muse, vigilante White Tiger, and references to other New York based heroes including Ms Marvel. Ends on a cliffhanger for Season Two, which will likely follow it closely.
- Spider-Man, Norman Osborn, Tombstone, Harry Osborn, Nico Minoru, Daredevil, Doctor Strange, Sokovia Accords, Scorpion, Doctor Octopus, Venom, Dmitri, Thaddeus Ross, Iron Man, Oscorp, Symbiotes, Gwen Stacy
- An alternate take on Spider-Man and his interaction with other heroes and villains in the wake of the Sokovia Accords. Gwen Stacy will be appearing in Season 2.
- Jack Russell, Elsa Bloodstone, Man-Thing
- An expansion of the more horror elements of the Universe. Relatively self-contained so far but a lot of fun.
- Agatha, Billy, Tommy, Witches Road
- A follow up to WandaVision, featuring Agatha returning and undergoing her own quest, starting in Westview.
- Captain America, Joaquin Torres/Falcon, Thaddeus Ross, Celestials, Samuel Sterns, Isaiah, Betty Ross, Sidewinder, Bucky
- The new Captain America finds himself caught in a conspiracy while helping new President Thaddeus Ross. Also follows up on some plot threads from Eternals.
- Deadpool, Wolverine, T.V.A., Laura, Blade, Elektra, Gambit, Happy Hogan, Human Torch, the Void, Colossus, Pyro, Sabretooth, Juggernaut, Toad, Russian, Blob, Bullseye
- ESSENTIAL. Despite taking place in a completely different universe to the main MCU, this connects a lot with events we have seen before, featuring many returning elements from Loki, as well as callbacks to many things in the Multiverse chapter, as well as variants of many characters returning. Takes place in 2024 and introduces many elements that may have a role in the larger Multiverse arc, and it is likely we will see these characters again at the conclusion of this saga.
- Spider-Man, Gwen Stacy, Miles Morales, Spider-Man 2099, Spot, Aaron Davis, Mrs Chen, Spider-Woman, Spider-Man Noir
- ESSENTIAL. Spider-Man really starts to explore the Multiverse, with plenty of links to other worlds, and references to a lot of Marvel history. Features the MCU Prowler in a cameo. There is a sequel due that may or may not link more to what is coming up in the MCU.
- Yelena Belova, Bucky, John Walker, Red Guardian, Ghost, Bob, Val, Taskmaster
- ESSENTIAL. A new team of characters under Val come together to investigate the mysterious Bob, and become the New Avengers. Many of these characters are returning in the future so I would expect this to be essential.
So that is where we stand right now. There's several upcoming Marvel projects that obviously will need to be placed on the timeline when they release, and several others that have been delayed due to links to other projects still in development, and its unclear how connected all of the varying stories will all be as we build to the inevitable Secret Wars film. If you want a list of the confirmed upcoming projects we have:
- Daredevil, Kingpin, Punisher and others return for a new adventure.
- Riri Williams confronts a new villain in The Hood.
- The sequel to Miles's last adventure, featuring the return of Gwen, Miguel and the Spot.
- A live-action series featuring the character played by Nicolas Cage in the Spider-Verse films.
- A new take on the Fantastic Four as they go up against Galactus. This seems to be on another Earth, and the characters will also return in the future, so expect it to be essential.
- Super-powered actor Simon Williams leads this adventure.
- Another follow up to WandaVision that will see the Vision return.
- We know that a new Spider-Man film is in the works with Tom Holland returning and Sadie Sink co-starring. It is currently expected to drop between the two Avengers films.
- Doctor Doom will challenge the Avengers, and we now know from casting announcements that many of the X-Men characters will be involved in some way, as well as the Fantastic Four, Thunderbolts, Ant-Man, Namor, Shuri, M'Baku, the new Captain America and Falcon, Shang-Chi, Doctor Strange, Loki and Thor, who will all be returning.
- The Multiverse Saga will come to a close. Expect this film to function in a similar way to Endgame, bringing multiple heroes together against Doom.
As well as this there are also several rumoured projects including sequels to Shang-Chi and Doctor Strange. I'm sure we will have further details and reveals in the near future, maybe even at this year's Comic-Con, and as you can imagine I will be watching excitedly.
I may update this in the future, but I think I'm done for now. Look after yourselves as best as you can my friends, both physically and mentally, and reach out for help if you need to.
Until next time. Bye for now.
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