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Misunderstood “Flaws” in the MCU

10 years and counting, 20 films, and one of the most loyal and anxious fan communities. Marvel is undoubtedly one of the most beloved franchises in the history of cinema. Since the release of their first movie, Iron Man, back in 2008, the love for the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has only grown. Marvel has done something that almost no other movie franchise has been able to do and that is having a successful Cinematic Universe. This is just one of the reasons that fans of the movies have come to love, not only the movies as a whole, but the characters and heroes as well. With all the love and support that Marvel has gained over these 10 years of production, it is hard to believe that anyone would have anything to complain about. When you ask a member of the fan community their opinion on how Marvel has gone about things, they almost never have anything to complain about, but there are those outside of the community that have negative things to say about the franchise.

Every movie, TV show, novel, or any other form of entertainment will have individuals complain or criticize something that they disliked about the performance or work. The Marvel Cinematic Universe is no exception. With that being said, I believe that everything Marvel does is for a very specific reason and that they are doing an outstanding job when it comes to taking risks and raising the stakes to the point that their movies are only getting better.

Since the MCU is arguably the most popular franchise in cinema history, that means they are going to have a big population of those who criticize or disagree with the ideas that they present in their movies. One thing that main of these critics have a strong opinion toward is the idea that Marvel is unwilling to kill it’s main superheroes and other characters. James Luxford of Metro voiced his opinion by writing, “Saying goodbye to one of the Marvel’s ‘big names’ would be the best thing for the world of the Avengers moving forward.” Similarly, another critic from Screen Rant wrote, “Quicksilver is the only major character to have stayed dead through all this, and the MCU has to follow through with a bigger name if we’re going to start taking things seriously.” Critics of Marvel such as these ones believe that in order to get a dramatic reaction from an audience you need to kill those who the audience cares about. This may be true for other movies but not the MCU. 10 years is a long time to get to know a character and develop a relationship with them just to have them killed in the end. If Marvel were to do this, the very future for the franchise may be at stake of losing fans. Along with thinking that Marvel needs to kill more of it’s characters, these critics believe that Marvel needs to raise the stakes and take risks to increase suspense in their films.

Raising the stakes in a movie such as one in the MCU, means adding parts to film to make it seem harder for the protagonist to beat the antagonist. One individual on Bloody Disgusting talked about movie announcement issues by claiming, “The problem with pre-planning your franchise is the distinct removal of any sort of long standing danger for your characters.” People that believe Marvel needs to raise the stakes think that the films are too predictable and they think they already know what is going to happen before the next movie even comes out. Though this idea may be true, the producers and directors of these films do this on purpose. By allowing the audience to kind of foreshadow what is going to happen next in the coming films by announcing sequels and new films, they introduce the idea of dramatic irony. Dramatic Irony is when the audience watching the film knows what is going on but the actual characters on screen do not. A great example of this would be Infinity War. We know certain characters who perished in this film already have sequels announced, meaning that the characters are going to come back somehow. Although we know this, the superheroes in the film do not which is Marvel’s way of really raising the stakes to the point where though we know something big is going to happen, we don’t know what that big thing is. If you put yourself in one of the characters shoes you would realize that they actually have no idea what is going to happen next. It is MCU’s own unique way of raising the stakes and taking risks, without completely taking out some of the characters that their fans have come to know and love.

When it comes to my own personal ideas, I am sitting right in the middle of all of those people who fell in love with the first MCU movie and have continued to love every film that followed. There are so many people just like me who just cannot wait to see what Marvel has in store for it’s audience next. When I hear of a problem that someone has with the MCU films I always have something to say that opposes their beliefs. When it comes to the problem that Marvel is unwilling to kill its main superheroes/characters I completely understand Marvel’s reasoning not to. To start off, Marvel is the biggest franchise, when it comes to amount of movies, that there has ever been. The great thing about these films is that they have successfully achieve the goal of creating a cinematic universe that people actually love. One thing that a cinematic universe allows you to do is connect films with one another, which is one thing that Marvel is probably best known for. Now, what would happen if you all the sudden they were to kill one or multiple of these famous superheroes. Chances of continuing films or appearances in combining films go out the window. By killing off a main character you no longer can produce films that focus in on that character or even feature them at all. This not only destroys that chances of making more hit solo films but it could hurt the fan community as a whole.

One thing that Marvel has done better than any other series is it allows the fans to develop a relationship with certain characters, typically the most popular ones. If you were to take out even one of these characters, this may easily anger the MCU fan community. It could get to the point that many fans lose interest in this franchise because the fan favorite characters that most people come to see on the big screen, are gone. For other films that are not as popular as the MCU movies, this is a great way of providing suspense and sadness, but for a series that has been going as long as Marvel has, it is best to keep the fans happy.

When I heard that some people believe that the Marvel Cinematic Universe doesn’t raise the stakes high enough, I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. With the recent release of Marvel’s biggest film yet, Avengers Infinity War, I don’t think that any other movie series has raised the stakes as much as Marvel just did. Now, I can see where people may think that Marvel isn’t raising the stakes because we know somehow all these characters, or at least some of them are going to come back. As I mentioned earlier though, that is exactly the way that Marvel raises the stakes. Going back to the idea of dramatic irony, when the audience knows what is going on but the characters don’t, that is Marvel’s unique and specific way of seriously raising the stakes. When talking about examples of dramatic irony in films, YourDictionary explains, “the words and actions of the characters take on a different meaning. This can create intense suspense or humor. Tension develops between what the audience and characters know is happening.” Dramatic irony allows a great deal of suspense to emerge because if we put ourselves in the characters situation we would realize just how little they actually know compared to the audience.

Along with that, just because we know something is going to happen in upcoming films, does not mean that we know how it is going to happen. This is another unique way of raising the stakes because it allows the audience to make thousands of predictions as to how things are going to go down in the next films but the truth is, we have no idea which direction it is going to go. It allows the fan community to talk amongst themselves, making predictions and asking questions.

Marvel raises the stakes in a way, in my opinion, that no other movie has been able to do as well. They took what we usually associate with raising the stakes and did something completely different. This is why so many people believe that the MCU has done a poor job of raising the stakes because they do not actually understand what the directors and producers are trying to do. They don’t want you thinking that the villain is going to actually win or that your favorite characters are going to die. They want you to realize that there is some hope but not give you the answers as to what will happen next.

Another comment about the MCU that I find extremely surprising is some people believe that Marvel has not taken any risks when making their movies. Taking a risk in a movie is basically going out of your comfort zone and doing something that no one expected you to do. Marvel has completed and released a total of 20 movies in the MCU now and each one is different from the next. When most people think of a superhero they think of someone with extreme powers such as super strength or invisibility; something along those lines. Marvel on the other hand has taken risks when it comes to developing new superheroes that are not like your typical superman. They have introduced characters such as Black Widow and Hawkeye who have no superhero powers at all but are still able to hold their own because of the skills that they have. Marvel has also introduced characters like Doctor Strange, Peter Parker, Steve Rogers and Bruce Banner who were all regular people until something extraordinary happened and they gained powers that are right up their with any other hero. These are all example of taking risks when it comes to their characters and how they chose to fit them into the story.

Along with taking risks having to do with specific characters, Marvel has taken risks when it comes to their films as a whole as well. Doctor Strange was a completely different superhero film than any of us had ever seen before but it produced a great response because many people loved the new idea. Another great example of a movie type that none of us had really seen before was Captain America: Civil War. When we think of superheroes we typically think of them fighting side by side to defeat a villain who is posing a threat to society. Almost never do we think of superheroes, with the same main goal, fighting against each other. The introduction of Civil War was a huge risk by the MCU but it has become one of the fan favorites within the entire movie franchise. In my opinion, almost every single thing that Marvel has done has been outstanding. Everything that they do has a reason for being done, which is all basically to produce movies that keep the audience entertained and satisfied.

Now, with everything that I have said regarding my opinions, I know that many people may still disagree with my ideology revolving around the MCU. Like I said before though, there is almost always a reason behind why Marvel does the things that they do. After reading my ideas and opinions, one thing that many people may still say is “Other movies kill off big main characters and people still watch them.” As mentioned a little bit before, this may work for other films but not the MCU. Most films that do kill big main characters are typically stand alone films with almost no background for the audience. The thing about the MCU is, there are 20 movies along with multiple television shows, comic books, video games, etc. all which provide the audience with the love that they feel toward these characters. It is crucial that other movies make big statements and decisions around killing main characters because that is what makes people love them. Marvel on the other hand gets people to love their films through different ways.

Along with comparing other movies to the way that the MCU has gone about making their movies, many individuals may still have problems with the idea of dramatic irony. One complaint that critics may still have is “Dramatic Irony isn’t the same as raising the stakes.” People who say this is either dislike dramatic irony or they don’t understand it. Dramatic irony is a very interesting way of raising the stakes while still giving the viewers a sliver of hope.

People who believe that dramatic irony is not the same as raising the stakes is because they don’t understand the point of view of the characters. They see raising the stakes as a way of making the audience believe something horrible happened and there is no way to fix it. Dramatic irony provides that same feeling for just the actual characters on screen, rather than us as well. Instead, we know just enough about coming films that we know something has to happen we just don’t know what.

After reading my ideas about taking risks and how Marvel has done so throughout their 10 years of producing films, many people may still have some claims of their own. One of these claims may be, “All Marvel movies are the same, they just introduce new characters in each new film.” Though this may have some truth in it regarding the idea that a hero is introduced and they are up against a villain, this formula is the what the fans of superhero movies have come to love so much. It is one of the main reasons that people have developed a serious passion toward superhero movies. They love the idea of a new character being introduced into the story line and having a new power. Though the overall idea may be the same, each superhero that is introduced has something new to offer. This is the change that the fans love to see. They enjoy getting to know a new character and figuring out for themselves, whether this hero is going to fit into the storyline.

Proof of this love by the fans is within the movie ratings themselves. In an article written by David Bell on Cracked he walked us through how Marvel movies have been getting better by stating, “As you can see, Marvel has consistently had hits since they started making movies, but as time passed, their lower-ranked films slowly caught up with their higher-ranked ones.” As time has gone on, Marvel movies have received more consistently high scores compared to the franchise a few years ago. This is proof of the idea that though Marvel movies may have similar plot lines, each one is unique enough to keep the fans significantly entertained.

When Iron Man came out in 2008, many people could see that this genre on movie was only going to get bigger. 10 years later, we see exactly that, has happened. We have noticed that life long fans have stuck around and continued to watch every single new movie. New fans who have more recently gained a love and passion for the Marvel Cinematic Universe have been increasing by the day. Along with new fans though, more and more critics come about as well. Although there will always be people who have something to criticize about the MCU, there will always be those who have something to say in response. As I have mentioned before, everything that the producers and creators of the Marvel films have done, they have done for a specific reason. The proof of this lies within the fans. Marvel has obviously been doing a lot of things right if they are still making blockbuster films that annihilate the box office, 10 years after their beginning.

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Hidden Messages Within Spiderman 3

     In modern cinema, movies like to do more than just give you a good show; they tend to include messages or lessons that are applicable to our society.

     One movie that does a remarkable job of implementing a message without taking away from an action packed film is Spiderman 3, directed by Sam Raimi. This director was able to allow the audience to watch Spider-man develop as a character without taking away from the main plot. The director was obviously trying to implement a message to the audience through the use of the main character. In the film we see Spider-man gain a new sense of power that we have never seen before. Though this power allows him to better protect the city, it begins to affect Peter Park in his daily life as well. Because of this new found strength, Peter begins to not only neglect, but become violent toward the people he cares about. He begins to allow his emotions to get the the best of him and it has a serious impact on his relationships. Through the use of a fan favorite superhero, the director is trying to convey is that, when we gain a sense of power or popularity, it can go to our head and cause us to turn away from what is truly important in life.

     Spiderman is a superhero that has been around for a very long time. From the beginning of the very first Spider-man back in 2002 all the way up to Spiderman Homecoming in 2017, Spider-man had always been a fan favorite when it came to superheros. When it comes to Spider-man, he has always been portrayed as a sort of under dog. The directors have all had a way of being able to make the audience love him. Spider-man 3 started off just like that as well.

     Spider-man 3 began like any other Spider-man film, with him fighting bad guys to try to save the city. What Spider-man 3 did differently than the others is it introduced us to another side of Peter Parker. He came across a “symbiote”which allowed him to be even stronger than he already was. At first, this new found strength was used to help overcome his enemies and continue to keep the city safe. As the movie progressed we began to see how this new found power was affecting Peter’s character. He did not act the same toward the people that he loved, particularly his girlfriend which led them to break up for a short amount of time. This led Peter down a road in which he almost lost everyone and everything that he loved. It wasn’t until he realized what he was becoming that he was able to free himself from the power that was overcoming him.

     The director of this film showed us a side of Spider-man that we were not meant to like. He was showing us how becoming prideful can lead us away from what truly matters. Becoming popular or gaining new confidence is not necessarily a bad thing. Being confident can actually be a very good thing; until it turns into pride. Looking at the actions of Peter Parker after gaining his new powers gives us a great example of letting our pride get the best of us.

     Peter Park was someone who had always put family and friends first. After gaining this power, we see him to begin to turn away from those he cares the most about. Mary Jane is a perfect example of someone who had always been there for him. As soon as he gained the power he got through the symbiote, his relationship with her changed significantly. Peter Parker and Mary Jane broke up because of the way Peter was acting. Plans of marriage and a future together were shattered in an instant. Peter also began to treat his neighbors poorly. He no longer interacted positively with them as we saw toward the beginning of the film. The director wanted to show us how we tend to turn away from those who have always been there for us when we gain a sense of popularity or recognition within society.

     As if ignoring people who care about you isn’t bad enough, Peter began to act violently toward them as well. Up until this point, Spider-man had always been portrayed as a shy, nerdy guy who could never hurt anyone. After gaining the symbiote, we no longer see the introverted guy that we knew Peter to be. He becomes very obnoxious and aggressive. One example of this is when Peter is in the bar with his ex-girlfriend. When he is asked to leave he immediately threatens the employees at the establishment. He then proceeds to start a fight with multiple individuals which leads to him hitting Mary Jane to the floor. The most interesting part of that scene is as soon as he hits Mary Jane, he looks directly at the suit that gave him his powers. You can see the deep regret within his eyes. The director to show the audience what the suit was doing to Peter’s character. Another situation in which Peter acts violent is when Eddy is taking pictures of him in his new suit. As soon as Peter realizes this, he smashes the camera to pieces. Spider-man is someone who has always accepted and welcomed fan support. Because of this new found pride, he begins to act aggressively toward his fans.

     The final way that the director shows us how power can play with our mind is showing Peter Parker's emotions getting the best of him. As stated before, Peter has always been a shy and kind hearted kind of guy. The director gives us a taste of Peter letting his emotions getting the best of him by the way he treats his neighbors. His neighbors had always been kind hearted people who Peter loved dearly. As soon as one little thing goes wrong, Peter snaps and takes his anger out on those who live next to him. You can see the sadness and surprise within his neighbors eyes when Peter acts this way. They have never seen him act in such an assertive way. His new found power has taken a toll on his emotions and has made him feel like it is okay to act poorly toward others, whether it be in a physical way or an emotional way.

     Though most of us go to the movies just to have a good time, more often than not we can learn something. Spider-man 3 in specific gives us a great idea of what happens if we let power and popularity get to our head. It can completely change who we are as a person and how other people view us in society. Peter Parker’s reputation was significantly changed after he was exposed to this new found power. Just like in our lives, if we gain a sense of popularity, we tend to like the feeling and we take on the role of someone who is above everyone else. As seen in the movie, we turn away from those we love and we allow our feelings to get the best of us. We get to see this first hand within this film. We need to recognize when our pride is blocking what is truly important. In the film, we see Peter free himself from the symbiote that was giving him his new found power He then returns to his normal self and regains the love and respect he once had from his friends and family. Popularity is not necessarily a bad thing. We all want to be recognized in society, but we can’t let that take the place of what truly matters.

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The Best of the MCU

Since 2008 when Marvel released their first superhero movie, Iron Man, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) fan community has become one of the biggest. Marvel has now produced 19 other films packed with tons of superheros that society has come to admire and love. Marvel movies are more than just films that you go to see and then forget about them over time. Each movie is packed with incredible scenes that you go on to talk about for weeks after the movie was released. This brings me to my question, What are the five most memorable/impactful scenes from the MCU films?

5. The first scene that I have chosen for this list comes from one of the more recent films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor Ragnarok. What caused this to movie to become a fan favorite in the MCU is because of how it crushed the two films that led up to it. A critique stated on IMDB, “Ragnarok is the child of confident filmmaking and understanding of what the Thor franchise could have always been.” While the first two Thor movies disappointed many fans, Ragnarok fixed any issues that we saw within the previous two films. Thor Ragnarok changed the game by implementing new ideas and characters into the MCU. Though it is full of remarkably well done scenes, one stands out from the rest. Toward the end, when Thor realizes his true power potential, he is able to fight off Hela and her army to save Asgard. We get to see what Thor is thinking through a flashback clip of Thor’s father. Because of this thought, Thor is able to gain enough motivation and confidence to overpower the threat that was endangering the people of Asgard.

4. The next scene on the list comes from the very first film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Iron Man. This movie was able to include scenes that we had never really seen before in cinema history. The one scene that I chose made the list mostly because it is the first time in Marvel history that we see the coming about of a superhero. The number 4 scene on the list takes place within a cave when Tony Stark works tirelessly to manufacture his very first Ironman suit, all while being held captive by terrorists. Tony had recently been captured by these terrorist and was given the task of composing a weapon of mass destruction in exchange for his release. During the time that he was given to create this weapon, Tony instead works to develop a super suit in hopes to use it to gain his freedom. Once completed, Tony uses the super suit and is easily able to defeat his captors.

3. The next scene comes from one of the biggest MCU films of all time, Marvel’s: Avengers. Of all the films that Marvel Studios has created, this one really changed the game forever. Anthony Lane on Rotten Tomatoes wrote, “If you are a Marvel fan, then The Avengers will feel like Christmas.” Being a huge Marvel fan myself, I can honestly say that this is no overstatement. This was Marvel’s first attempt at combining plot lines of numerous films into one big plot. Though it was a huge risk, Marvel was able to pull off one of the most successful movies in regards to combining plot lines. The scene that has taken the number 3 spot is quite possibly one of the most well known scenes in not only MCU history, but cinema history as a whole. During the battle in New York, we see for the first time ever, 6 Marvel superheroes coming together to fight for one thing. This scene is quite often referred to as, Avengers Assemble.

2. In the movie, Marvel’s: Avengers, we get to see our favorite superheros fighting side by side for the very first time. The scene that is taking the number 2 spot on the list is actually the complete opposite. Though we had seen our favorite heros fighting verbally, we never had witnessed them actually fighting against each other. The airport battle scene in Captain America: Civil War, is definitely something that any true MCU fan remembers. This movie as a whole changed our idea of superheroes immensely. After seeing Marvel’s: Avengers it is hard to believe that anything could break this team up. They all seemed to develop a chemistry and bond that couldn’t be broken. Captain America: Civil War shattered that idea. In the airport battle scene, two teams, both led by two of the most well known and respected super heroes, Iron Man and Captain America, go head to head in a full on battle.

1.The scene that gains the number 1 spot comes from Avengers Infinity War. This scene was able to master every aspect that contributes to making a scene so memorable. Thor arriving in Wakanda when all hope seemed lost is truly a scene that will impact all those who witness it, whether you are a die hard MCU fan or just someone looking for a good film. Thor throughout the film had been through so much. He was the most impacted by Thanos and had lost so much because of the mad titan. Though he had lost everything, he still seeked revenge and that is what motivated him throughout the entirety of the movie. Knowing how much he had been through made this scene even more incredible because we saw how he overcame his hardships.

Many things go into making a good movie. What separates good movies from great movies are the moments within that you will cause you to remember them forever. Marvel movies are jam packed with scenes that make you admire what is going on. These five scenes listed are the most impactful/memorable because they contain all the aspects that go into making a phenomenal scene. The camera angles and movement, music, characters, and suspense are just a few aspects that need to be focused in on in order to develop a scene that will stick with the audience. These 5 scenes were able to take into account each one of these aspects and put them all together to create a visual masterpiece.

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Avengers Assemble

     With a stellar cast and years of build up through other Marvel Films, Marvel’s Avengers is a masterpiece for anyone who experiences it. Not only does the film appeal to the lifelong Marvel fans, but the general movie goers as well. Quite often, movies that have characters from multiple other films become too much, but the superior acting and thrilling plot line makes this combination of Marvel characters outstanding. Each character has their own background and story to tell but the director was able to intertwine all these separate movies and plots into one story that will not disappoint. You not only get to see action packed scenes filled with multiple of your favorite MCU superheroes, but this particular Marvel film is full of incredible acting and directing, as well as comedy.

     All throughout this blockbuster, there are moments of nail biting action scenes involving every character, each with their own unique role. Unlike most movies that bring together multiple plot lines, Marvel’s Avengers does an outstanding job of bringing together each plot perfectly, so that each character has a reason for being there. Through superb acting as well as directing, the action scenes are some of the best in cinema. The film truly grabs your attention and it does in such a way that it is almost impossible to look away.

     When it comes to the acting of movie, everyone in the film deserved to be there. It is as if each actor was born for the role that they were chosen for. These actors, such as Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Hemsworth,  make it seem unimaginable that anyone else could play the characters well as they did. What arises in a film because of perfectly executed acting is emotional connections between the audience and certain characters. This leads to greater success in following films. Acting is a huge part of making a movie truly outstanding, but without great directing, actors cannot work to their full potential.

     Some of the choices that the director made regarding emotional connectivity were sheer genius. There are an abundance of moments when the music and pace of the film snag the attention of anyone watching. The script of this specific film was brilliantly written due to its ability to make everything seem so real but also including enough humor to keep those comedy lovers happy.

     Comedy can really make or break film, mostly because there is a time and place for humor within any great film. When it comes to this specific film, Marvel hit it right on the head. When going into a theater to see a “superhero” or “action” movie you do not anticipate it to include comedy. Marvel has been able to input comedy into all there films thus far, but they really master it within this movie. Many action films attempt to input comedy into their films but it becomes an issue when it interferes with the overall idea and message of the film. Avengers inputs comedy in such a way that it doesn’t take away from the overall plot, but it keeps all fans happy throughout the entirety of the film.

     For those seeking adventure and a plot line that is second to none, Marvel’s Avengers is the movie to experience. The combination of the brilliant actors, timely music, character backgrounds, and pure thrill throughout the entirety of the film, make this movie a work of art. This movie is a game changer for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, opening the door for many more action packed films just like it in the near future.