The Marvel Cinematic Universe Thread.

[The Top Crusader]

I like each movie having it's own thread, and as they come out I think that can continue, but they do so much over-lapping and story-building from movie to movie, that I thought it might make sense to have a general place for random discussion... and they also today unveiled their slate for upcoming movies that we know very little about, which probably don't need their own thread yet.

Next year's Ant Man has apparently been moved back to Phase 2, and here is our Phase 3:

Captain America 3: Civil War – May 6, 2016

Doctor Strange – November 4, 2016

Guardians of the Galaxy 2 – May 5, 2017

Thor: Ragnorok – July 28, 2017

Black Panther – November 3, 2017

Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 – May 4, 2018

Captain Marvel – July 6, 2018

Inhumans – November 2, 2018

Avengers: Infinity War Part 2 - May 3, 2019

[Wakko]

I can't wait till Phase Three. These movies look fantastic, and Doctor Strange will hopefully be amazing. So far, I've been impressed with Phase Two and hope Phase Three will be just as good.

[Whitty Whit]

I haven't been doing a lot of keeping up with the MCU as a whole; I just wait for the movies to come out and watch them. I love the idea of Cap 3 and Thor 3. I've always been fascinated with Norse mythology even before Marvel's interpretation so I always find it interesting the way they portray the Norse gods. I can't wait for Ragnarok. Guardians 2 will be amazing simply because of Chris Pratt. I'm excited for Antman. I don't know much about it and since I don't have the time/money to get heavily involved in the comics enough to actually get an idea of what he was like in comicbook fasion, I really want to watch that movie.

Did anybody get the Phase 1 box set? I've been thinking about getting it, but lots of people say that the quality of the case and stuff isn't good.

[Wakko]

I have yet to get it, and that's what I've heard too. Annnd Benedict Cumberbatch is in the running to play Doctor Strange.

[The Top Crusader]

Did anybody get the Phase 1 box set? I've been thinking about getting it, but lots of people say that the quality of the case and stuff isn't good.

I have it... it looked cooler in pictures than it does in person. I got a good deal on it so I'm satisfied, but if I had paid the MSRP price I would have been annoyed. The case is just cheap plastic instead of metal, but the extra little odd and end things are sort of cool. Maybe I'll post pictures later.

Up to that point I only had the films on DVD so it was nice to upgrade them to blu-ray and 3D where applicable.

And yeah, Marvel pretty much wants Cumberbatch, and he wants to do it, they are just ironing out details and making sure there aren't scheduling conflicts.

[bookworm]

Isn’t Benedict Cumberbatch a bit young to portray Doctor Strange? I thought he was an older character.

[Catspaw]

I don't know what some of those movie titles actually mean story-wise, but I'm looking forward to finding out! I really enjoy the Marvel universe and it's nice to know that they're planning out lots more good stuff, though that does mean that some storylines are bound to be dragged out for a while.

I definitely like the idea of Benedict Cumberbatch, though I have no idea about the character at all.

[The Top Crusader]

[Blitz]

I just started keeping up with Marvel and they are awesome plans.

[Catspaw]

Top, I can't stop looking at that gif! That is awesome and terrible, all at the same time.

[The Top Crusader]

So apparently it's official... Spider-man is joining the MCU.

Sony will still make the solo films and have some creative control, but Spidey is likely for Cap 3.

[Catspaw]

I saw the news today about Spiderman and Marvel, and to me it's very weird. To me they have always been totally separate things (though I think I've heard that in the comics in the past they were together at times) and the thought of adding Spiderman in with the Marvel crew that I'm familiar with from the films over the last few years is odd. I'm sure they'll find a way to make it work, but I can't say that I'm excited at all right now.

[The Top Crusader]

I'm more interested in Marvel Studios having significantly more input (apparently?) in the solo Spider-man films, but at the end of the day I'm happy that Marvel is able to use their own IP again, even if I don't see the point of him being AN AVENGER or whatever (although we don't really know what they have planned exactly, and neither do they 100% at this point).

[bookworm]

even if I don't see the point of him being AN AVENGER or whatever

I don’t think he’ll join The Avengers proper, he’s just being added to that Civil War storyline because apparently he’s an important part of it in the comics.

[The Top Crusader]

Yeah, my preference would be his role in that and otherwise just cameos in the MCU with his own solo movies, and probably a decent role in the big Infinity War thing they are building to that will allegedly use everyone.

Obviously in over 50 years of comics he's teamed up with everyone in Marvel and even Batman a couple of times, and has at times been with the Avengers, but he's always shined as a solo character with all his money issues and such. If you're buddies with Tony Stark that loses a lot of the impact.

[Catspaw]

Yeah, my preference would be his role in that and otherwise just cameos in the MCU with his own solo movies, and probably a decent role in the big Infinity War thing they are building to that will allegedly use everyone.

Obviously in over 50 years of comics he's teamed up with everyone in Marvel and even Batman a couple of times, and has at times been with the Avengers, but he's always shined as a solo character with all his money issues and such. If you're buddies with Tony Stark that loses a lot of the impact.

Okay, that makes more sense to me. Hopefully they're following your plan, Top! I never even thought about the Tony Stark/money issues thing, but I can see how that would be a conflict.

[bookworm]

So do you know if future Spider Man films will now be MCU canon? Or only what he does in movies on 'this side'?

[The Top Crusader]

I think they will be MCU canon... they shifted around the Phase 3 calendar to make room for a new Spider-man so that's what I take it to mean, but I'm not sure if that's 100% verified.

[bookworm]

That's interesting, because what I've heard a lot of people say, including you here Top, is the reason they most wanted this reunion was so Spidey could have good solo movies. We will be getting that out of this, but not until after he's played his part with the Avengers on Marvel's side of things. If you think that through, if both studios are canon to each other, that means his solo movies are going to be after he reveals his identity in Civil War. So in fact we won't get a real standalone Spiderman film as far as him just going around doing whatever a spider can, it's going to have the baggage of whatever he's pulled into by Marvel dragging along with it.

Get what I mean? It's not like Marvel is coming on board to do a remake of Green Goblin or a story like that, it's going to be picking up where his Civil War story left off. So this studio collaboration may have come too little too late to give people what they really wanted; it seems it would have been better to have had it happen a few years earlier, before Civil War was imminently upon us. Then Marvel could have helped set up some stand alone Spiderman movies establishing their take on the character before he was pulled into the Avengers or whatever and then he would go back to Sony and continue on from there. It would have covered both sides.

[The Top Crusader]

Yeah, I am wondering if they are going to really twist around the events of Civil War and not have him reveal his identity or something--because yeah, a solo film series starting right from that would just be really odd. It could work later in a series but it's a bad starting point.

Of note, there are unsubstantiated rumors that Robert Downey Jr. is going to have a big role in Spectacular Spider-man, as it is rumored to be called. New rumor every day, so who knows? Amusing though because they don't seem to want to give us Iron Man 4, but he keeps showing up as a major player in other people's solo films.

-- 05 Mar 2015 02:03 pm --