In the beginning, there was Iron Man. Released on May 2, 2008, Iron Man stars Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark, a wealthy, extravagant, playboy and mechanical genius who runs Stark Industries, the producer of high quality militaristic weapons and devices. After a life-altering event in which Stark has a change-of-heart in his technological pursuit, he shuts down the weapon manufacturing development of Stark Industries, and focuses his time and money into a suit that is powered from his life-saving energy device now in his heart. Tony Stark becomes Iron Man, and uses his self-powered suit to help those who are being assaulted by terror cells that use the weapons he helped create. Stark initially hides his work from his assistant Pepper Pots (Gwyneth Paltrow) and his friend Lt. Colonel James "Rhodey" Rhodes (Terrence Howard), but is continually pressured into revealing his work from his father's friend and Stark Industries manager Obadiah Stane (Jeff Bridges).
Iron Man was a critical and commercial success, and was not only a boon for Marvel, whose plans now formulated around the film, but also to Robert Downey Jr., who received a re-invigoration of his career thanks to his fantastic and memorable portrayal as Tony Stark. Iron Man also introduced us to Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg), an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D (Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division) who is interested in Stark's work and resolve. Coulson would become a fan favourite, and a mainstay in nearly every Marvel movie to come, and even currently leads a show of his own in the form of Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.. As well as Coulson, the character of Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) was also introduced as the head of S.H.I.E.L.D., who brought to Stark's attention the Avengers Initiative...which we'll get to shortly. Also, the manner in which he was introduced was part of new Marvel mainstay in the form of the famous post-credits scene.
Not to be confused with Ang Lee's Hulk from 2003, The Incredible Hulk is something of a reboot for the character(s) of Bruce Banner/The Hulk. Released a month after Iron Man on June 13, TIH starred Edward Norton as Banner, a brilliant scientist specializing in gamma radiation who, after an experiment designed around weaponization, is afflicted with a condition wherein he transforms into the...uh...hulking green giant (hehe...green giant on steroids) that you are most likely familiar with. The Hulk. The Hulk is big. The Hulk is green. The Hulk smashes. And the Hulk smashes some more. In TIH, he grows at odds with his girlfriend Betty Ross (Liv Tyler), who is fearful of his condition, and her father General "Thunderbolt" Ross, who sees The Hulk as an out-of-control weapon of mass destruction. Also after Banner is Emil Blonsky, a soldier who yearns for the destructive power of The Hulk, and who later in the movie becomes famed Hulk villain The Abomination.
In terms of the MCU, The Incredible Hulk features probably the least amount of overarching continuity, save for a few names that are referenced here and after, as well as the main events that future characters associate Banner with (and of course, THE HULK). Edward Norton also didn't reprise his role as Banner in The Avengers, which instead was given to Mark Ruffalo, who is looking to reprise his role for future instalments in the MCU.
Two years after the success of Iron Man, it's sequel Iron Man 2 was released on May 7, 2010. Robert Downey Jr. returns as Tony Stark, who after revealing himself as Iron Man at the end of the previous movie, begins to associate himself and the suit directly as one entity, becoming a world-wide peacekeeper but also continually hounded by the military for the technology of the suit, of which Stark refuses to divulge out of fear of weaponization. Pepper Pots returns as Stark's assistant, friend, and burgeoning love interest, and introduces Natasha Romanoff, a S.H.I.E.L.D agent otherwise known as Black Widow, played by Scarlett Johansson. James Rhodes also returns, but this time played by Don Cheadle, replacing Terrance Howard from the first film. New this time around though is Ivan Vanko, a Russian physicist whose family was once scientific partners with the Stark family. Vanko swears revenge onto Tony Stark, and produces his own version of Stark's personal energy reactor to take him out, and becomes the character of Whiplash (though he is never actually called by this in the film itself). Aided in his endeavour is disgruntled rival weapons manufacturer Justin Hammer, who aims to bring down Stark Industries in it's entirety.
There's a decent amount of more action in this film compared to it's predecessor, with significantly more flashy scenes early on and a particularly explosive finale, where Rhodey even gets to don a militarized version of the Iron Man suit and becomes War Machine, next to Tony's newly upgraded suit. Iron Man 2 also shows off Romanoff's skill-set as an elite operative, as well as more of the character of Happy Hogan, Stark's friend and bodyguard/chauffeur from the first movie played by Iron Man 1 & 2 director Jon Favreau. Like Iron Man before it, Iron Man 2 has many of it's best scenes with the focus on Tony's ingenuity and discovery (or rediscovery), with RBJ continually at his prime. Even so, however, Iron Man 2 is often looked at as the weaker entry in the MCU, but I still hold it's by no means a bad movie.
Things got interesting when Thor was released on May 6, 2011. Now having enough success and momentum with them, Marvel brought Asgard and the demigod himself to the big screen as production ramped up for the upcoming Avengers movie. Thor introduced the titular hero, played by Chris Hemsworth, as the brash and egotistical heir to the throne of Asgard, which is held by the powerful and legendary Odin, Thor's father. After a poorly handled confrontation involving the Frost Giants on Jotunheim, with his friend Sif and The Warriors Three, along with his notorious brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston), Thor is cast out of Asgard by Odin, who banishes Thor and his powerful hammer Mjolnir to Midgard, also known as Earth. On Earth, Thor meets scientist Dr. Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), who helps Thor realize his own humility and humanity, all while together helping defend Earth from sinister forces hailing from Jotunheim and Asgard.
Thor is quite significant in the MCU in that it brought modern audiences far into the outreaches of Marvel's continuity with characters that inhabit other worlds, a feat that is to soon be repeated again with Guardians of the Galaxy (down below). Thor is also a primary catalyst for future MCU material, particularly The Avengers, where events occurring in Thor have enormous repercussions throughout the movies. Thor also happens to be a damn good movie, and also one of the shortest films of the MCU, not overstaying it's welcome, but delivering a lot of info and cool scenes in a compressed form. Also of note is the first appearance of famed sharpshooter Clint Barton, or Hawkeye, played by Jeremy Renner.
Thor also attracted some pretty silly controversy in the form of, you're not going to believe this, the badass character of Heimdall, here played by the awesome Idris Elba. Why was this controversial? Because Heimdall was black, where in the comics, he is mostly portrayed as white. Yeah. I shit you not that's what caused people to get mad.
And two months after Thor came Captain America: The First Avenger on July 22. The film stars Chris Evans as Steve Rogers, a sickly and feeble, yet impassioned and determined soldier during World War II, who undergoes an experimental chemical procedure that transforms him into a super soldier with uncanny and visceral strength, vitality and reflexes. Donning a patriotic outfit and the moniker Captain America to inspire his fellow troops, Rogers undergoes operations to stop the Nazi-affiliated HYDRA led by Johann Schmidt, who is revealed as villain Red Skull, played by the memorable Hugo Weaving. HYDRA is in possession of a powerful and mystical blue cube known as the Tesseract, an item that is originally referenced in Thor, and plays an increasingly larger part in the MCU over the course of the following movies. Along with Rogers is Colonel Chester Phillips, played by Tommy Lee Jones, and officer Peggy Carter, played by Hayley Atwell, who both train Rogers as he develops the persona of Captain America. Also of note is his friend Bucky Barnes, played by Sebastian Stan, who aides Rogers on the battlefield throughout the movie.
Captain America: TFA is definitely a more unique Marvel film than what may be readily apparent. Taking place during WWII, likely to the surprise of audiences, the film has a decidedly more sinister and violent tone than previous Marvel outings, largely due to the presence of the Nazis. On top of that, the portrayal of Captain America is highly self-referential and has almost a tongue-in-cheek feel about it that, in the context of the film (and later movies) works really well in establishing the persona of both Captain America, and Rogers who inhabits it. There's also some noted references and relations to Tony Stark in the presence of his father, Howard Stark, who works with Rogers over the course of the film. Cap also serves as a near direct lead in to the next Marvel outing, as Rogers is left in a cryogenic state, and reawakens 70 years later, his legacy remembered and also renewed.
And now we come to The Avengers, released on May 4, 2012, and the final movie in Marvel's "Phase One" of film collections, featuring an ensemble cast of Iron Man, The Hulk (now played by Mark Ruffalo), Captain America, Thor, Black Widow, and Hawkeye, as well as plenty of S.H.I.E.L.D personnel like Nick Fury, Phil Coulson, and Cobie Smulders' Maria Hill. Also featured is Thor character Loki, once more played by the great Tom Hiddleston, as the primary villain. When Loki emerges from the depths of space with an alien army of Chitauri, hell-bent on enslaving the human race, Nick Fury calls together the ultimate defence: The Avengers. Now, tasked with working together to stop Loki's campaign, the Avengers must contend with not only each other over ideological differences, but with an increasingly paranoid S.H.I.E.L.D. that seeks more powerful and destructive methods to combat external threats.
And it's awesome.
What we get is an incredible and satisfying showcase of the best of the best in Marvel's Universe up to the point of the The Avengers. It's a movie where the odds were always against it. The Avengers is a film that, by all accounts, should never have worked. But it does. And it does so superbly, with multiple crowd-pleasing moments, thrilling action, and a fantastic pace that makes it an entirely enjoyable and memorable film of which all future ensemble superhero movies will now have to match. There were plenty of moments when it could have all gone wrong, but The Avengers beat expectations and came out showing a bright future ahead for the MCU, and assured movie-goers everywhere that Marvel had the superhero movie formula down to a science.
So how do you follow up something like The Avengers? Well, by featuring the man who started it all come to grips with the aftermath. Iron Man 3 was released on May 3, 2013, one year after The Avengers, beginning Marvel's "Phase Two," and returned to the life of Tony Stark as he tries to come to grips with his traumatic experience in Avengers, all while being haunted by a past mistake involving the Extremis program, as well as a new threat in the form of the Mandarin (Ben Kingsley), a mysterious bomber who angers Stark to the point of obsession. Suffering from PTSD after New York, Tony becomes irrational and frustrated, and his careless calling out of the Mandarin results in catastrophe that sends Stark far from California, where he must piece together not only his suit, but the mystery surrounding the Mandarin, Extremis, and it's creator Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce) while he is believed to be dead back home.
Iron Man 3 also features returning characters Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau), Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow), and James Rhodes (Don Cheadle) now assuming the mantle of the Iron Patriot in the wake of Stark's presumed death. It's a pretty crazy film, and is waaaay more in-depth than it's predecessor Iron Man 2, and also boasting some memorable, and surprising, twists that might throw even the most stalwart of comic readers off. If you were turned off by Iron Man 2, Iron Man 3 is Tony Stark's redemption.
The most recent Marvel film, as of this writing, Thor: The Dark World is the obvious direct sequel to Thor, and like Iron Man 3 before it, also a pseudo-sequel to The Avengers, and was released on November 8, 2013. This movie was actually my first "review," of sorts, so I'm going to shamelessly plug it by saying you can find Here! TDW follows Thor and his comrades Sif with the Warriors Three as they tend to the chaos in the Nine Realms around Asgard that has resulted from the destruction of the rainbow-like portal Bifröst at the end of the original Thor. Loki is imprisoned from his actions in Avengers, and peace is slowly returning to the realms with Odin and Thor's guidance. However, on Earth Dr. Jane Foster discovers a strange portal that leads her to an ancient weapon called the Aether, which infects her and alerts the Asgardians. The Aether is a weapon of universal destruction planned to be used by the Dark Elves, old enemies of Asgard. With the Aether activated, the Asgardians realize that something called the Convergence has begun, of which could result in universal annihilation. Thor journeys to Earth to take Jane to Asgard, where she may be helped. This causes a chain of events that awaken the Dark Elf Malekith, played by the fantastic Christopher Eccleston, and causes Thor to release Loki to help combat the threat.
Thor: The Dark World continues the trend from the first Thor of continually expanding the MCU outside of Earth, with a specific scene of the film involving Thor and Odin making a passing reference to what is sure to be a huge part of films farther down the line, involving the origins and nature of the Aether and Tesseract, the blue cube seen in the past movies (what will later be known as Infinity Stones). TDW also brings a lot more action to Asgard than the previous film, and it makes for some exciting scenes that give a hint to what kind of out-world design that is going to prominent in Guardians of the Galaxy. Speaking of which, look out for a mid-credits scene involving Benicio Del Toro as the Collector, a character next to be seen in GotG!
And now the movie releasing in just a few short days on April 4, 2014, Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Starring Chris Evans once again as Steve Rogers/Captain America, the focus this time around, compared to something like Thor, is much more internal involving the workings and secrets of S.H.I.E.L.D. first alluded to in The Avengers. Returning once more is Samuel L. Jackson and Scarlett Joansson as Nick Fury and Natasha Romanoff respectively, and also featuring new character Alexander Pierce, played by the legendary Robert Redford. The action in this movie looks heightened and drastic, and Winter Soldier is looking to be another strong hit for Marvel, with critical praise, and some really cool trailers. Check it out this weekend!
Due later this year on August 1, 2014, Guardians of the Galaxy is likely going to be the most obscure and far-out Marvel movie yet. I mean, there's a talking raccoon named Rocket. Yes. Rocket Raccoon. Voiced by Bradley Cooper. Talking raccoon named Rocket. And you know what? This movie looks freaking awesome! Just look at this trailer:
I KNOW RIGHT? A fantastic trailer and premise has me quite excited. With Chris Pratt (from the recent Lego Movie!) as Starlord, real name Peter Quill, Zoe Saldana as Gamora, Vin Diesel as Groot, and Dave Bautista as Drax the Destroyer, along with previously mentioned Bradley Cooper as Rocket, the misfits all make up the group known as the Guardians of the Galaxy. What's interesting about Guardians is that the film will be the ultimate test of seeing how far Marvel can keep the interest in the grand continuity in modern audiences with a movie based on source material that most people aren't familiar with. I will say that so far, the trailer enough has me interested, and from what I understand, I'm not the only one who's excited!
Also of note is Karen Gillan as the warrior Nebula, who you can see in the trailer with the blue complexion! Her character is a soldier for Thanos, and that's a name Marvel movie-goers will get familiar with in no time. Thanos appeared in a mid post-credits scene in The Avengers, by the way. Yeah, that weird dude with the sinister smile? That's Thanos. And he's a bad mofo.
And last, but not least, the end for "Phase Two" comes in Avengers: Age of Ultron. There's not a lot of assured info yet that I can really say, apart from the the introduction of the two mutants Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch. This is REALLY weird, considering that Quicksilver is appearing outside the MCU in X-Men: Days of Future Past, with another actor and everything. Figure that out.
Ultron is an A.I (artificial intelligence) that aims to control Earth through a means not yet revealed, and will be played by James Spader. Apart from that, expect the return of the original cast of Avengers, as well as maybe some cameos from the Guardians.
There was also short teaser that was released recently:
And....that's that! I hope you liked this little overview of the Marvel Cinematic Universe! Future plans for "Phase Three" involve Ant-Man, a rumoured Doctor Strange movie with Johnny Depp, and of course, a major Avengers movie involving Thanos. So there's some killer stuff coming soon! And until then, we've got some awesome movies to see as well. It's a good time to be a Marvel fan!
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