Old thread was archived due to the year+ without any MCU content, so here's a new one. With WandaVision wrapped up, this is now just a ranking of all the primary MCU projects in general. Plus my list changed drastically as I've re-watched certain movies over the past year and wanted to update it.
37. The Incredible Hulk (Phase I) - My Rating: 6.5/10
36. Iron Man 3 (Phase II) - My Rating: 7/10
35. Thor: The Dark World (Phase II) - My Rating: 7/10
34. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (Phase V) - My Rating: 7/10
33. Hawkeye (Phase IV) - My Rating: 7/10
32. She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (Phase IV) - My Rating: 7/10
31. Black Widow (Phase IV) - My Rating: 7/10
30. The Falcon and The Winter Soldier (Phase IV) - 7.5/10
29. Moon Knight (Phase IV) - My Rating: 7.5/10
28. Ant-Man and The Wasp (Phase III) - My Rating: 7.5/10
27. Doctor Strange (Phase III) - My Rating: 7.5/10
26. Captain Marvel (Phase III) - My Rating: 7.5/10
25. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Phase IV) - My Rating: 7.5/10
24. The Avengers: Age of Ultron (Phase II) - My Rating: 7.5/10
23. Thor: Love and Thunder (Phase IV) - My Rating: 7.5/10
22. Captain America: Civil War (Phase III) - My Rating: 8/10
21. Black Panther (Phase III) - My Rating: 8/10
20. Captain America: The First Avenger (Phase I) - My Rating: 8/10
19. Loki (Phase IV) - My Rating: 8/10
18. Thor (Phase I) - My Rating: 8/10
17. Ms. Marvel (Phase IV) - My Rating: 8/10
16. Ant-Man (Phase II) - My Rating: 8/10
15. The Avengers (Phase I) - My Rating: 8/10
14. Guardians of the Galaxy (Phase II) - My Rating: 8.5/10
13. Spider-man: No Way Home (Phase IV) - My Rating: 8.5/10
12. Spider-man: Homecoming (Phase III) - My Rating: 8.5/10
11. Spider-man: Far From Home (Phase III) - My Rating: 8.5/10
10. Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness (Phase IV) - My Rating: 8.5/10
9. Avengers: Endgame (Phase III) - My Rating: 8.5/10
8. WandaVision (Phase IV) - My Rating: 8.5/10
7. Avengers: Infinity War (Phase III) - My Rating: 9/10
6. Iron Man (Phase I) - My Rating: 9/10
5. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (Phase IV) - 9/10
4. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (Phase V) - My Rating: 9.5/10
3. Captain America: The Winter Soldier (Phase II) - My Rating: 9.5/10
2. Thor: Ragnarok (Phase III) - My Rating: 9.5/10
1. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (Phase III) - My Rating: 9.5/10
Original Rankings Post with Short Reviews:
35. The Eternals (Phase IV) - My Rating: 5/10 Review: Mega disjointed story, fudging TERRIBLE CG, and a final act that reminds me of the worst Fox X-Men movies. There were some awesome concepts here, some pretty cool characters, and great actors.... but I can't even find the right words to really break this one down. It was just bad.
34. Iron Man 2 (Phase I) - My Rating: 5.5/10 Review: No longer "easily" the weakest movie of the MCU, but certainly one that I don't really like enough to ever feel like re-watching. Mickey Rourke's villain was waaay under-developed and, whie I love the actor, Sam Rockwell's villain was the poor man's Obidiah Stane. Also, I love Don Cheadle as War Machine, but you can't help but kind of feel like Terrence Howard would have played the role more naturally in this one. Black Widow was wasted here too, came off as a real flat "henchman" type character. The only real redeeming qualities were Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark/Iron Man once again. I did enjoy how they touched on Stark's alcoholic past from the comics in an updated way. That brief moment at the end where Iron Man and War Machine team up against the robots was neat too, even while still being the least memorable "showdown" of the entire MCU.
33. The Incredible Hulk (Phase I) - My Rating: 7/10 Review: I seem to enjoy this one a lot more than the casual viewers but I can totally get where people are coming from. Edward Norton just didn't fit as Bruce Banner for me too much, definitely not the way Mark Ruffalo does now. He did well with the part, but it really just seemed like Edward Norton playing Edward Norton. Liv Tyler is a little "meh" in just about everything, too. The villains made this movie for me though, with Tim Roth's super-soldier-turned-Abomination standing out big time, along with General Ross for most of the movie. I loved that chase scene in Brazil, as well as the big showdown between the Hulk and the soldiers in the field. However, the CGI for both the Hulk and the Abomination teetered on the not-impressive side in my opinion, and it really showed during the climactic end battle. I thought it was kind of cool, but the movie had potential to have more than just a "loud, bang up" fight ending that was more-or-less just a rehash of Iron Man's climax. I did like that "Hulk smash" part though.
32. Iron Man 3 (Phase II) - My Rating: 7/10 Review: This was originally a 6/10 and the second-to-last movie on my list. When I initially ranked it, I had only seen it once in the theaters. The "Trevor Slattery" twist left an awful taste in my mouth and that hampered my initial opinion. Watching it for the second time definitely softened my opinion. That "fake Mandarin" twist is still fudging awful, as is the "Batman Forever Jim Carrey/Riddler" arc of the primary villain (which was also revisited with Electro in Amazing Spider-man 2), but otherwise there is a good movie surrounding those. A much more mature tone with MANY jokes that aren't suitable for kids, lots of language that doesn't exist in the MCU other than this movie (calls a kid a pussy for crying out loud), and a real "James Bond" plot that sees Tony need to become the MCU equivalent to a 007 during a stretch where he doesn't have an Iron Man suit. The ending was also badass, with the multi-suit extravaganza - even if Age of Ultron nullified that bit entirely. Not as bad as I originally pegged it but still lower-tier for sure.
31. Thor: The Dark World (Phase II) - My Rating: 7/10 Review: I love Thor, the character, and have since I was a young kid getting the "Journey Into Mystery" Marvel Masterworks hardcover from my dad. It may be that bias that causes me to enjoy the Thor movies over some more popular MCU movies, but oh well. I dug this one, with my only real complaint mirroring that of many - that the villain Maliketh, much like the Red Skull, seemed to be evil just for the sake of being evil. There was some backstory about how Odin wronged the Dark Elves, but it's really just skimmed over and no reasons are really given. Otherwise, I thought the cast did a fine job. People like to bicker about "too much Natalie Portman" in these movies, or too much time spent on Earth in general, but they seem to forget that both these aspects were huge to the early (most memorable) Thor comic books. Thor's essence was more-or-less trapped in a human doctor named Don, who had to tap his walking stick to turn into Thor, and he clamored over Jane Foster in just about every issue. So seeing Thor interact with Jane and her friends is fine in my opinion, it's something that the character has been doing since his creation. I loved the ending too, the glimpses into all the other realms was great and the final showdown was awesome. But when it comes to stark colored lulls in some of these superhero movies, unfortunately my man Thor falls real guilty at times here. Some scenes are actually kind of boring. And that faux-hand chopping scene seemed extremely rushed, as if they forgot to cram a bunch of character moments between Thor and Loki into the movie and had to do it all in one go. Still have a soft spot for this one, though - all the otherworldly tech and vehicles rule.
30. Hawkeye (Phase IV) - My Rating: 7/10 Review: This was good and, considering I find Hawkeye to be super uninteresting, probably better than I expected. I dug Kate Bishop, I dug Hawkeye way more than I ever have, I dug the pizza dog. Yelena was cool as always, even if some of the comedy schtick got a bit tired. Echo was just badass enough to make me interested in her Disney+ show. I love this show for bringing Kingpin into the MCU, and then I hate it for sort of cartooning him up too hard. He was great in Daredevil, and the performance is still there, but his immunity to pain was such a strange touch. He was always strong and could take a beating, but he wasn't inhuman the way he was presented here. Assuming they didn't kill him off when they insinuated it, but if they did that'll be even worse. That out of the way, I also wasn't huge into the LARPing folks and thought it was a little silly that they played any role at the end. Otherwise, Jack was cool (even when he was teased as a villain), and Vera Farmiga ruled as always (even if her reveal was very predictable). And I don't know if this helps this show's argument, but major bonus points for leaning into the holiday season, will always dig that.
29. Black Widow (Phase IV) - My Rating: 8/10 Review: This movie ruled and if it really was ScarJo's last outing as Black Widow, it MORE than lived up to that character. That whole last half hour was incredible. It was a more "grounded" story relative to the recent Avengers movies but it was the perfect cool down after Endgame and had far more spectacle than I'd expect out of a spy movie. I thought all the performances knocked it out of the park, especially the 4 leads. I really enjoyed the Taskmaster/Dreykov villain combo, even if the motivation was a little to "Bond" for its own good. Still, it made sense to the way the Red Room and the Black Widows had been built up in the MCU previously, this movie just took it a step farther as was the natural progression. My main complaint is that Black Widow survives a few too many life-ending occurrences without any issue. She survives falling several stories, bashing herself off various things on the way down, and still manages to land on her feet. That's a little silly, but far from the silliest thing we've seen out of the MCU so I didn't rub up against it too hard. All in all, a really great movie that just barely stays out of the top tier.
28. The Falcon and The Winter Soldier (Phase IV) - 7.5/10 Review: This was solid and well-acted across the board with some truly memorable characters and moments. I really appreciated the social commentary being made with the show, and the elements they borrowed from the source material really fit with the themes and tone. However, it doesn't rank higher because it focuses on an A-plot that is stretched too long and too thin in the Flag Smashers, and develops an extremely riveting B-plot centered around John Walker that has a bitter-sweet payoff that ultimately disappointed me. While I enjoyed the acting, some of the characters sort of took a backseat to others - namely Bucky, who could have had a bit more to do here. Returns like Zemo and Sharon Carter were welcome, and while both characters left an impression I can't help but feel they were slightly under-utilized in the big picture. Zemo's mask definitely was, at least. But I really dug Sam becoming Cap, John Walker pre-finale, and anything involving Isaiah Bradley, so there was definitely enough good to outshine the bad.
27. Moon Knight (Phase IV) - My Rating: 7.5/10 Review: Oscar Isaac puts on a masterclass in acting in each episode of this show, especially episode 5. It can't be overstated how great he did with the material, or the technical wonders the MCU had to have implemented to make his performance(s) come off so flawless. May Calamawy is also great as Layla, especially in the finale. Ethan Hawke was serviceable but the character itself was sort of one note and boring, I honestly enjoyed the trippy "psychologist vision" version of him more. The story was pretty straight forward action/adventure romp for the first 3 episodes, and then the last 3 added a much needed layer to the overall psychological side of it. I dug that it was self-contained with no larger connections to the MCU, and the post credits scene was pretty great. I loved the emphasis on mental health and the idea of learning to cope and work with the way one's brain works. All that said, for only being 6 episodes, the grand majority of the story just didn't click for me. If it weren't for Isaac's performance, it would have been a lot duller. The CGI was fudging awful in spots, but ended up getting better. The designs for the gods varied in quality, but they were still decently fun. For as "fresh" a take on a Marvel property as this was, the last episode is the epitome of the "big CG superhero third act" that the MCU gets valid criticism for often. Not only that, but that finale episode really felt disjointed and weirdly edited, with plot conveniences left and right. Overall, it was good enough and I am still looking forward to seeing where the character goes next (again, thanks to the post credits scene), but I'd be lying if I said it didn't leave a bit to be desired.
26. Ant-Man and The Wasp (Phase III) - My Rating: 7.5/10 Review: This was a fun follow up to the first movie but I honestly thought it paled in comparison. Some of the humor came off a lot more forced this time around, and none of the shrinking sequences were as fun as the first movie, save for maybe the car chase bit. I thought the villain was badass though - far more interesting than Yellow Jacket, and the connection between Hank and Goliath was a nice little comic nod that goes along way in the plot. And that post-credits scene was real memorable. Overall though it just kinda came off as the "obligatory sequel" where everything just tried to be bigger (literally in some aspects) but ended up coming off more-or-less the same.
25. The Avengers: Age of Ultron (Phase II) - My Rating: 7.5/10 Review: Honestly felt a little bored the first time I watched this, but after a re-watch I realized I enjoyed it more than I thought. For a while, this would have been even lower on my list. I just feel like it was a little too long, a little too bland-looking (color pallet-wise) and a little too confusing. A lot of things had to be left to figure out or speculate on when that shouldn't have happened. I didn't like Kick Ass guy's take on Quicksilver, though Scarlett Witch ruled. I'd rather Ultron's look be closer to comics-Ultron, as opposed to just his little robot minions - but James Spader killed it in the voice acting department. I thought the ending was a little too close to The Avengers climax (big action set piece throughout a crowded city), and if it weren't for the floating city aspect it would have played exactly the same too. The Vision is one of my all-time favorites, so it was cool to see him show up, even if his debut scene was definitely a little lacking. They could have explained Thor's Jacuzzi scene a lot more, too. I also felt like Ultron's demise came on WAY too easily and quick, and some of the little comedy parts (little-Ultrons being scared of Hulk, for example) were rough. Overall though, this is a fun enough movie if a little disappointing.
24. Doctor Strange (Phase III) - My Rating: 7.5/10 Review: This was a great movie really heightened by the main character and Cumberbatch. Guy nailed his stuff and brought a real weight to a the character who, while just as snarky, is a little more dark than Tony Stark. This movie as a whole was a little darker than the more colorful movies in the MCU while still achieving the colorful atmosphere that you'd expect when it comes to a Doctor Strange story. At the same time, the comedic front put up by Strange was a highlight of the film, his character seemed very real. There were a few iffy moments but for the most part this was wall-to-wall action - which was by far the most interesting part of the film. The trippy action sequences were a treat - including the climactic meeting with the evil force Dormammu. This film also featured a real, multi-layered primary villain whose motivation held water. No character in this movie was free of faults which leaves plenty of room for great character development. While I still prefer some earlier MCU entries, this movie stood out as a memorable adventure on its own merit.
23. Captain Marvel (Phase III) - My Rating: 7.5/10 Review: Pretty damn good. After a choppy first act it really picked up and I enjoyed it a lot. Normal try-hard Marvel humor at points but I appreciated that the origin bits were handled in an interesting, surprisingly artistic way instead of just a by-the-numbers origin story. It had actual character depth, weighty moments and all the action you’d expect. About as good as you can hope for when it comes to a superhero movie that leans more “sci-fi” than usual. I dig the world it set up and am looking forward to the inevitable sequel.
22. Captain America: Civil War (Phase III) - My Rating: 8/10 Review: This movie was arguably saved by the second act and the emergence of the promising Spider-man character. Everything surrounding it felt a little rushed and, honestly, forgettable. A main string-pulling villain whose motivation and plan were really kind of weak and in turn made our two main Avengers, Iron Man and Captain America, look pretty stupid to get duped so hard. His initial issue with the heroes wasn't paid off well and couldn't deliver after the "main event" of the movie that featured the debut of Ant-Man's "Giant-Man" alter-ego fighting against Spider-man in the middle of a huge airport. This movie was the exact opposite of how I felt toward Age of Ultron - I thought I liked this movie more than I did until I re-watched it with my father a few weeks later and realized that I was actually kind of bored waiting for the Team Cap vs. Team Iron Man showdown. Once it came and went I almost didn't care enough to watch more but the finale fist fight is worth waiting for. I was definitely still more entertained by this than those ranked lower, obviously, and I really enjoyed the chemistry between RDJ and Chris Evans when they're playing off each other in more antagonistic roles. Their work really elevated this movie past the previous films on this list as they brought a real emotion to both their characters that added new layers even after years of playing them despite the wonky reasoning behind their conflict. And like I alluded to earlier, that climactic Winter Soldier/Captain America vs. Iron Man fist fight was both incredibly emotional and well-pulled off in terms of low-key action sequences. #TeamCap
21. Black Panther (Phase III) - My Rating: 8/10 Review: Great movie, all around. The casting was perfect for each role, the effects were as good as you'd expect, and the plot was fantastic. It was a little too long and there were some questionable elements (armored rhinos were the worst) but for the most part it was an extremely fun adventure romp. While I'm not black, I can appreciate this movie on a different level for the cultural significance at has apparently held among the black community, so that alone gives it a boost. While Black Panther is a great character on his own, it's really the villains Killmonger and Klaue that standout in this movie for me. While the ending was beautiful, I do wish it panned out a little differently to leave a Killmonger return open - but the way he ended made perfect sense for the character, and it was an awesome send-off after the movie built him up as not only a threat, but an extremely sympathetic threat. Good stuff for sure.
20. Captain America: The First Avenger (Phase I) - My Rating: 8/10 Review: This movie has grown on me big time, I used to think it came off way too much like an Avengers prequel - a film just to shoehorn Captain America into the fold before the movie everyone actually wanted to see. Which was sort of the case, but I shouldn't have let that sully my movie-going experience. When I learned to look at this one as a more adventure movie in the lieu of Indiana Jones as opposed to a superhero film, I began appreciating it a lot more. It's a straight forward story and it sets up a lot of the best parts of the current MCU. Though he gets some slack, I very much enjoyed the Red Skull in this one - even though he just seems to be evil for evil's sake. Regardless, I enjoy the subtle approach at Captain America's origin to the point that they even kept his costume extremely basic, saving the more popular looking outfit for The Avengers. This is a really fun movie.
19. Loki (Phase IV) - 8/10 Review: To be honest I didn't love the start of this series. It took until the 3rd-4th episode, when things started getting really wild, to hook me. I feel the earlier episodes were packed with way too much exposition solely to pad the run time whereas were Loki to be a film, it would have taken 20 minutes to cover the same information. But the series definitely picked up with the inclusion of Richard E Grant and the opportunity to explore more Loki variants, and the finale was a masterclass in not just storytelling but also in transitioning an entire decade-old franchise into forward motion. At the time of this writing I haven’t seen Kang in the MCU yet, but Jonathan Majors rules and his portrayal of He Who Remains was fantastic.
18. Thor (Phase I) - My Rating: 8/10 Review: Pretty much everything positive I had to say about The Dark World applies here x10, except with this one the villain was outstanding and easily the most memorable of the whole MCU. Seeing the almost-Shakespearean rivalry between Thor & Loki play out within not only a family conflict, but a war between Asgard & the Frost Giants was definitely something to behold. I liked the Earth scenes more in this one than in the Dark World, too, and the showdown with the Destroyer was so badass (even if not entirely true to the comic book character its based off of). The battle on the rainbow bridge at the end was really fun stuff. But what really stood out to me as making this movie was the setting. It looked great - a perfect mixture of fantasy and science fiction (which Asgard was supposed to be, essentially). This was kind of lost in The Dark World, where the new director took Asgard's look in a more typical fantasy style (that is, until those Dark Elf tie-fighters showed up). Couple the setting with Loki and a great hero/villain rivalry, and this is a classic in my opinion. That's not a sentiment many agree with, but I thought Thor was just great.
17. Ms. Marvel (Phase IV) - My Rating: 8/10 Review: This was a nice, grounded superhero origin with a direction style that seemed so fresh for the MCU. There were a few dud beats but overall I really dug the show and loved where it ended up. Iman Vellani is RDJ/Iron Man-level casting and she personifies Kamala Khan so perfectly. The insight to the Muslim culture was appreciated to, as it wasn't heavy-handed or a normal negative stereotype. Overall I appreciated the show for being a breezy watch each week. Something I could throw on and feel comforted by, knowing I'd be getting a Marvel story without huge stakes. It was real fun while it lasted, and I'm just hoping Kamala Khan can eventually return to this street-level vigilante role after what is sure to be a cosmic adventure in The Marvels.
16. Ant-Man (Phase II) - My Rating: 8/10 Review: If there's one thing I disliked here, it was how un-Paul Rudd Paul Rudd seemed. He was still funny, and in scenes seemed to come off the way we'd expect, but I was hoping for a much more comedic character. Regardless, the dude played one hell of a quasi-serious hero role. The supporting cast was awesome too, Evangeline Lily killed it as Hope - can't wait to see her as The Wasp. You could tell Corey Stoll was having a great time playing Yellow Jacket, and Michael Douglas actually seemed like he was having a good time too. And the physics-defying end battle was one of the best from the MCU, making such small set pieces seem so grand. This is what a superhero movie is all about, even if I feel this type of origin story was done a bit better in Iron Man.
15. The Avengers (Phase I) - My Rating: 8/10 Review: I've seen this one so many times that it's actually started to wear a bit thin on me. For a long time Avengers would have been my number one, but with each re-watch, the plot holes stick out a bit more and the clumsy dialogue shines through big time. Other than that though, this is a near-perfect team up movie and the best product of a shared universe that the cinematic world has ever seen. You need to appreciate this movie just for what it is, a culmination of years of planning to bring these classic characters together in one movie. Bringing back Loki in his classic Avengers-villain role was a nice touch, and the Thanos hinting got any comic fan giddy when they first saw it. That shot of them all assembled in New York is a classic Hollywood moment now.
14. Guardians of the Galaxy (Phase II) - My Rating: 8.5/10 Review: I really, really liked this movie. Taking the MCU on a sci-fi path was not what I saw coming until this was announced, but after seeing it, I was glad it happened. Some of it is a little clumsy and doesn't quite fit, but for the most part, it does. It's super entertaining action and characters with some of the coolest locations the MCU has given us. Knowhere in a giant Celestial's severed head is such a cool visual. The prison scene, the final battle, the dance-off... so many memorable things in this one. This is also the best ensemble cast the MCU has had yet, with the Guardians having even more on-screen chemistry than the Avengers in my opinion. Chris Pratt beefed up big time for the role and it worked out well, he did great in it. Some of the jokes were a little corny, but overall Star Lord is a top hero now thanks to this movie. All the subtle hints at his parentage left plenty of place for speculation, and one sign of a good movie is when it leaves you wanting more. GotG definitely did that.
13. Spider-man: No Way Home (Phase IV) - My Rating: 8.5/10 Review: I'll admit this movie was a bit disjointed. There were a lot of storytelling shortcuts and "shrug off" moments (Ned's magic, Strange's attitude), but the pure nostalgic magic that the second half of this movie presents is enough to look past that stuff. Other than Tom Holland, who was legitimately great in this movie, Andrew Garfield stole the show. As someone not huge into the Amazing Spider-man movies, this really made me miss Garfield's take on it. Tobey Maguire was great too, and came off a lot more "real" than the original trilogy (which I obviously love). Willem Dafoe was another absolute highlight, that dude is horrifying. Jamie Foxx was as Jamie Foxx as ever, and while I dug this version of Electro, I don't really see much connective tissue to the character he's supposed to be reprising from ASM2. Sandman and Lizard were both pretty secondary, and neither had incredible CGI which made them a little less interested them. By the end battle, this is easily my favorite MCU Spider-man movie even though I know that's totally because it brought back the nostalgia within a story that's a little uneven.
12. Spider-man: Homecoming (Phase III) - My Rating: 8.5/10 Review: Tom Holland was the best Peter Parker hands down, and really made me realize how old Tobey Maguire seems playing a graduating high school student in Spider-man 1. This dude had the quips and the confidence down and oozed the comic book character. It's wild for me to think we had the stuttering Andrew Garfeild approach just a few years ago, and already Holland shows up and just exudes this different, refreshing air for Peter Parker. Less angsty, more embracing of his heroic fate - just like the best incarnations of the character from the comics. The suit and all the various powers, adapted from numerous eras of the comic, were badass. I really enjoyed seeing Happy Hogan return, and the way they integrated the different aspects of past MCU movies was at its peak here. The characters were memorable. Ned was the fun relief sidekick. Flash Thompson was a whole new take on the character and I dug it. Incorporating both versions of Shocker from various Spider-man stories was neat, let alone having the Shocker at all. Michael Keaton stole the show with his memorable and unpredictable villain. This was a solid Spider-man movie that ranks there with the best of the genre. Deserving of the praise and the Spider-man legacy.
11. Spider-man: Far From Home (Phase III) - My Rating: 8.5/10 Review: Homecoming was always just about on par with Spider-man 2 but this one stole the show. Save for Thor: Ragnarok, this is a comedic peak for the MCU too and, while it definitely had some staples of MCU storytelling, the cast and location really did well with presenting it differently. I was wondering how a Spider-man movie that takes place outside of NYC would play for me, personally, but it ended up being an extremely welcomed breath of fresh air. Holland continues to be the best theatrical Peter Parker. Mysterio did suffer from the same pitfalls as a lot of MCU villains - under-developed due to only appearing in one movie, with his entire true backstory coming during one real info-dumpy speech over the course of only one scene. But Gyllenhaal put in a great performance as the character. He made you believe that Mysterio could be an alright guy despite us all obviously knowing otherwise, and he really ramped up his intensity during the climax. His line "FIRE ALL THE DRONES" was about as loud and intense as I can remember Gyllenhaal. I dug the others in the cast too, all the characters given screen time did well. The MCU callbacks to movies like Iron Man and Captain Marvel were great, and the fudging cameo in the post-credits scene RULED. I audibly popped a "aw yes!" when it happened - and then the bombshell that was dropped on Spider-man himself was a great way to leave us on a cliffhanger while the MCU takes a few months off from releasing movies. Really fun stuff.
10. Thor: Love and Thunder (Phase IV) - My Rating: 8.5/10 Review: I really loved this one. When I learned to accept that this movie was a tried-and-true romcom wrapped up in a big, swashbuckling marvel adventure, the vision of the film REALLY became clear. When I realized they were telling a romance story, I was able to accept the somewhat giddy comedy of big lunk Thor as it was juxtaposed with the very grounded drama of a dying Jane Foster, who was trying to hide her ailment behind a big lunk Thor personality of her own. The Thor/Jane stuff was the true emotional core that, weirdly, I don't hear anybody talk about when this movie comes up. Anyone claiming this was nothing but comedy had to have missed the entire third act, which was mostly very depressing. Even if it was, at times, hopefully depressing. I don't know if that makes sense. I just feel like some folks were expecting Ragnarok 2 - another HEAVY METAL fantasy viking slaughter fest but ended up getting a much more heartfelt story than they were hoping for. That's perfectly valid, but it was just great for what we got. Gorr was awesome, Valkyrie rules, Korg added a lot. Loved the goats. Some of the "dad Thor" stuff at the end, specifically the final battle where an army of children help him out, was a bit heavy-handed, but I can shrug that off due to it tying into the theme of true love left unrealized, considering he could now never have a child with his true love. Plus I enjoy the "Love and Thunder" twist at the end and now desperately want to see a "Lone Wolf and Cub" style Thor story sometime in the future.
9. Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness (Phase IV) - My Rating: 8.5/10 Review: I can only see this movie moving up my list upon re-watches. I had an immensely fun time watching this, with several "fist-pumping in theater" moments. If it weren't for the extended time with the movies higher on this list, I imagine this one would be pretty top-tier. Sam Raimi is turned up to 11 with his direction and, as a Raimi fan, I loved to see it. All performances were top notch but Elizabeth Olsen puts in a heroic performance as the Scarlet Witch (which is ironic considering she's full-blown villain here). I can understand the few polarizing opinions on her being the main baddie, but even though WandaVision ended on a generally positive note, everything we learn in that series sets up this role for Wanda to a tee. When she's stalking the heroes toward the end of the film, it's truly a thing of nightmares and I loved it. Doctor Strange was handled well here too, much better than in No Way Home, and seeing the different variants was awesome. "Defender" Strange as an undead proxy for MCU Strange was so badass, especially with that cloak of demons he used to get to Wundagore. America Chavez was really well utilized and it was nice seeing some LGBTQ+ representation in the MCU without it being a pandering element. And before this gets too long, I loved seeing the Illuminati. Krasinski as Mr. Fantastic was great and here's hoping he's back in a full fledged Fantastic Four movie eventually. Captain Carter ruled (and is a fudgein babe ps). It was nice to see Xavier back with the classic Animated Series hover chair (and music), and having an alternate Captain Marvel was great. By far my favorite of the Illuminati, though, was Black Bolt. I'm a huge fan of the Inhumans comics and was happy for the actor from that awful TV show get a comic-accurate whack at him on the big screen. All their deaths were grizzly as hell and absolutely not what one has come to expect from the MCU, with, again, Black Bolt's standing out most brutal to me. All in all, a great movie that's designed for repeat viewings. I loved it.
8. Avengers: Endgame (Phase III) - My Rating: 8.5/10 Review: A very satisfying cap-off to the first 10/11 years of the MCU. All the throwbacks were great fun to see, and the return of the beloved "dusted" was fun. Even though this one is 5 on my list, there's a strong argument for the Cap/hammer moment being my absolute favorite moment of any MCU film. Tony's death was perfectly done - a callback to the end of Iron Man, but then the tragedy of him not uttering a single word during his final moments. Cap's story played out how I expected it more-or-less, and I thought it was a great send-off for him. It makes sense that he'd get the final scene when you think about how the Russo brothers had written all the Captain America movies since The First Avenger - this was them putting a definitive finale on the character (even if he does somehow show up again). Thanos was still a great threat, and I loved how they played around with different versions of him. I'd really need to write a novel to sum up my complete thoughts about this movie, so I'll just leave it at that. It was a great time to spend in a theater.
7. WandaVision (Phase IV) - My Rating: 8.5/10 Review: I love Wanda and Vision is one of my favorite characters from the comics, so it was great to get to see these characters get some extended time to shine after being somewhat side-lined in the main movies. Seeing White Vision was honestly something I never expected, and I thought the philosophical conversation that ended his "arc" in this series was done perfectly. I also loved Agatha and she's easily one of the stronger MCU villains. Wiccan and Speed were a cool addition, even if things didn't pan out too well for them - though I do imagine these versions will appear later on down the line. Jimmy Woo, Darcy, and to a lesser extent, Hayward were welcome additions to the show. I loved the theorizing that was made possible by the week-to-week structure, even if just about every single one was debunked in service of a much more straight-forward story (which is fine by me for the most part). I loved how it wrapped up, with Wanda realizing her true abilities and finally becoming the triumphant Scarlet Witch. This could have been a 9.5 for me if it weren't for the Quicksilver/Pietro/Fietro/Ralph story. While Evan Peters' surprise appearance was one of the highlights of the show, and while it was neat to see him in the classic Halloween costume, how they handled his explanation for being there was lackluster. Theories/multiverse aside, he only had 2 scenes in the finale and they weren't very impactful by any means. If pulled off better, I could forgive them a bit easier for blatantly using fan expectations for "water cooler talk" only to completely side step it, but the reveal that he was Ralph was disappointing and dinged the score a bit. Still a great series with a great story that I could see moving up this ranking list as time goes (it's #6 at the time of this writing).
6. Avengers: Infinity War (Phase III) - My Rating: 9/10 Review: The best Avengers movie for sure. It's a little too long (but I stress it didn't feel it), the tone shifts a bit (but it was pulled off nearly flawlessly), and it at one point it was jarring going from space-to-Earth (ONE time). Otherwise, this movie was nearly perfect. I enjoy Rangarok and Winter Soldier a bit more after only one viewing, because those movies fit incredible storytelling and fun stories into the average run time of these sorts of movies, but this movie was near perfect for what it was. The most impressive cast maybe ever, balanced as perfectly as you could imagine. The weight of the ending was lost for anyone who knows of future Marvel plans, but it was still extremely ballsy to end the big 10th year blow-off film on such a down-note. Perhaps my favorite post-credits scene since Iron Man or the first Avengers too. All around great outing from Marvel.
5. Iron Man (Phase I) - My Rating: 9/10 Review: This is the best superhero origin story put to film yet, in my opinion. Just about as perfect a comic book origin adaptation as you can get. Robert Downey, Jr. killed it as Tony Stark, obviously, and has yet to kill it the same way so far. The action was great, the characters were great, the villain was great. The third act kinda fell flat during the final battle but picked right back up for the ending. The "I am Iron Man" deal was so, so good. And the post-credits scene that hinted at what was to come is legendary now. Sam Jackson showing up as Nick Fury was a stroke of genius.
4. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (Phase IV) - 9/10 Review: A better origin story than Iron Man... there, I said it. Never ever expected that, but I definitely think Shang-Chi takes the cake. It didn't waste time having us watch the true-and-tried trajectory of an origin movie by making us sit through a "fish out of water" story with a learning montage, instead it integrated flashbacks perfectly to accent what was happening in the current-day story perfectly. In fed us information as we needed it when the main plot required that we learn it. Simu Liu was great as Shang-Chi and I can't wait to see more of him in the MCU. Awkwafina was fudging great as Katy and I'm SO happy that this movie kept that relationship platonic and not romantic. Big step for the MCU. Everyone in the cast was great. Bringing Ben Kngsley back as Trevor Slattery was a stroke of genius and almost single-handedly redeemed his plot point in Iron Man 3, though Wenwu's explanation for how a splinter of the Ten Rings created a "boogie man" called the Mandarin to attack the US did a lot of good in that department too. A movie that redeemed Iron Man 3 was not something I was expecting. The whole third act, while definitely stepping into what would usually be the "common big CGI smash up" finale that most MCU movies get, this movie did so in a way that was so fresh and interesting and fun. Movie went from street level to "flying dragons around and battling them" level. Just an incredibly fun experience. Great stuff.
3. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (Phase III) - My Rating: 9/10 Review: I love this movie. For a while, this one was just below the first but after a rewatch months later, I find myself relating to this one a whole lot more. I think the Starlord/Ego dynamic plays into that too. Not that my father and I are on bad terms, we're a little more distant than the childhood version of myself would have expected, so it hits strings there. It was both funnier and more emotional for me than the first. Pretty much the whole third act really moved me, I'm a sucker for father/son issues in films. That includes the best part of this film: Michael Rooker's Yondu. He played a much more complex role than the original lead on. Drax was on, Baby Groot was awesome, Star Lord was once again a great lead, the Gamora/Nebula arc was fantastically paid off here, and Rocket was once again the backbone of the movie. There were a few jokes that didn't hit, but most of them did for sure. Kurt Russel killed it as Ego and I loved his story. Great stuff.
2. Captain America: The Winter Soldier (Phase II) - My Rating: 9.5/10 Review: Where the first Cap movie was a straight adventure, this was a straight action movie and didn't apologize for it once. The action in the MCU has never looked better and the character development was great here. At least for Cap, I could have done without the whole "Nick Fury lives" thing that the MCU is so fond of doing. But other than that, this movie delivered on all fronts. The follow up to Bucky Barnes' storyline was great too - The Winter Soldier is arguably the most badass villain any MCU movie has seen so far. It's almost a shame that he'll be put in the hero role sooner than later apparently, because the mechanic between he and Steve Rogers was the most interesting part of this film. The ending where we see that Bucky saved Cap at the last second was such a feel-good moment for us comic fans, though. And Robert Redford being in a superhero movie and actually looking like he gives a crap was just about one of the most off-putting but coolest things ever.
1. Thor: Ragnarok (Phase III) - My Rating: 9.5/10 Review: I felt sort of guilty moving Spider-man down from 2 so quickly after it took that spot - but after finally geting around to Ragnarok, this is certainly one of the absolute best superhero movies I've ever seen. As a lifelong fan of Thor in particular, this was the movie I always knew he was capable of having. It actually surpassed my childhood imagination, as Thor was hardly the comedic vessel back then as he is nowadays. This movie ties up so many threads perfectly. Odin's whereabouts were handled beautifully. The Thor/Loki dynamic was explored far better here than any film before it, and it was used perfectly as the third cap to the Thor trilogy. Hulk being far more realized than ever before was cool, standing upright with his shoulders back. The Thor/Banner stuff was the comedic core. And this was definitely comedic - but it was equally as epic and heartfelt. This movie, upon a few more rewatches, could easily top my list. It really depends on whether I'm in a "political action drama" mood or a "fantasy sci fi" mood, but Winter Soldier definitely has some serious competition for me now. Also: CATE BLANCHETT'S HELA OMIGOD
> Updated to finally add The Eternals in there. Movie was pretty gosh darn bad.
Agreed. It was a way to introduce some new characters to the MCU, but the whole flashing back and forward constantly throughout the movie made this feel like a DC movie instead of an MCU movie.
I just rewatched Incredible Hulk since it was on HBO. Some really dated CGI, but other than that, it's not nearly as bad as I remember. Certainly not upper tier, but is still enjoyable. The final battle still sucks.
> I just rewatched Incredible Hulk since it was on HBO. Some really dated CGI, but
> other than that, it's not nearly as bad as I remember. Certainly not upper tier,
> but is still enjoyable. The final battle still sucks.
Yah I know it's one of my lowest-ranked movies on this list but I can't say I dislike Incredible Hulk. It was a fine movie, especially for when it released (only the second MCU movie ever), just not quite as good as the majority.
@bonham2 Imo it was fairly straight forward (and frankly kinda boring) up until the back half of today's episode, but I suppose that was somewhat the point.
As for this episode's ending...
...I believe ol' hippo lady at the end (Egyptian goddess Taweret) placed Mark/Steven in some sort of mental construct to save him from dying after being shot, or he's simply in some sort of limbo that she's now visiting him in. In ancient lore, she's the goddess of fertility and represents regeneration and rebirth. I imagine she'll be helping him out of this limbo state and I theorize it'll be by "unlocking" his third personality from the comics, Jake Lockley, likely via opening that other sarcophagus in the psych ward.
I don't know if the whole "psych ward" aesthetic was her doing to present him with a somewhat familiar setting with familiar people & iconography from his life or if that's just Mark's own mind doing it. I figure it's the latter since negative crap like ol' Ethan Hawke showed up in there too. It could also have been some sort of magic Ethan Hawke is using to trap him. Either way I imagine Taweret will have some sort of information or means of saving Mark/Steven and bringing him back to the real world.
I also think I remember Steven mentioning Taweret in an early episode, somewhat foreshadowing this happening.
Also, for a little Moon Knight/LOST connection cause you know I can't stop relating everything to LOST...
The "four toed statue" that Jacob lived in toward the end of LOST was originally a huge statue of Taweret before getting destroyed way back in the day. Being the goddess of fertility, this was some neat symbolism in regards to the fertility problems that plagued the Island's history, but I had always wondered what the significance was in pointing out that the statue only had four toes. Turns out that's the number of toes hippos have, so by pointing that out in the show they were subtly foreshadowing the nature of the Island's fertility issues. Of course, no one would know that without seeing the series all the way through or obsessing over it enough to research Egyptian gods because of a statue that shows up for like 40 seconds total, but alas.
All this despite Taweret in Moon Knight has a normal five-fingered hand haha
Haven't seen the latest episode of Moon Knight but it's not that confusing. It's just not giving you massive exposition dumps which, I assume is what the MCU usually does.
Just about every episode has at least one long dialogue scene where they give you a history lesson and explain how it’s significant in what they need to do that episode (aka dumping exposition). I dunno if we’re watching the same show. I agree it’s not that confusing, and I don’t necessarily think dumping exposition is inherently bad, but the back half of this most recent episode is the only bit that really leaves you in the dark without somebody just explaining what’s happening with dialogue.
I've really enjoyed Moon Knight so far. I like that each episode has had a very different feel than the rest. It's definitely very different than anything we've seen in the MCU so far, but I'm ok with that. Oscar Issac is killing it in his role(s). I probably wouldn't like it as much if not for him.
Added Eternals to my list. I didn't hate it as much as so many do. I thought it was ok, but still not better than most of the other MCU stuff.
32. The Incredible Hulk 31. Iron Man 30. Iron Man 3 29. Iron Man 2 ----------------------------------------------------- 28. Thor 27. Doctor Strange 26. Eternals 25. Thor: The Dark World 24. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier 23. What If…? 22. Guardians of the Galaxy 21. Ant-Man 20. Captain America: The First Avenger 19. Black Widow 18. Hawkeye 17. Spider-Man: Homecoming 16. Black Panther ----------------------------------------------------- 15. Captain Marvel 14. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings 13. Loki 12. Spider-Man: Far From Home 11. Ant-Man and the Wasp 10. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 9. The Avengers 8. Avengers: Age of Ultron 7. Captain America: Civil War 6. WandaVision 5. Spider-Man: No Way Home 4. Avengers: Endgame 3. Avengers: Infinity War 2. Captain America: The Winter Soldier 1. Thor: Ragnarok
It's getting harder and harder to rank things with so many shows and movies on the list.
I will agree that Oscar Isaac is killing it in the role, but I'm not enjoying the show as a whole (haven't seen yesterday's episode yet).
I will say this, I might be confused because it's not holding my attraction. I keep going on my phone, and then I force myself to watch again and I'm lost. Maybe I'm just bored instead of confused.
Updated my list to include Moon Knight having just watched the finale. My opinion on this may change over time (they all do when it comes to the MCU), but I think it solidly slots in at #22 for the time being. It was just okay in my opinion, even if Oscar Isaac puts in one of the best acting performances of the entire franchise.
Almost time for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness! I've steered pretty clear of all the trailer breakdown videos and theory videos this time around, which I had been watching pretty heavily for most of the MCU movies for a while. It was mostly due to a lack of time, but I'm ok with it. This one feels like it's going to be more enjoyable going in with as little info as possible. I can't believe Thor: Love and Thunder is coming out just 2 months later! I've been looking forward to both of these for a while. They feel like a couple of the "bigger" movies in the franchise, so it's crazy that we're getting them so close together.
Just got home from Dr. Strange, and I thought it was awesome. WAY better than the first one. It's hard to discuss anything without going into spoiler territory. I'll just say the multi-verse has led to an infinite possibilities of what they can do in the MCU. My only gripe is some of the CGI didn't look too great. With so much green screen going on, it can be hard to not get pulled out of the immersion sometimes.
Usually when I go to rank something new, I start at the top of my list (the lowest rankings) and work my way down by comparing it to each title one at a time and trying to decide which one I like more. This gets tricky though, because some of the MCU projects are quite different from each other and hard to compare. I'm finding that's definitely the case with Multiverse of Madness. I thought it was going to end up somewhere in the middle of the pack, but as I've gone down the list, I keep finding myself picking it over the next movie, over and over again, even movies that I feel like I enjoyed more. I'm not explaining it well, idk, lol. This is what I ended up with. I could definitely see it changing after a second viewing.
Oh yeah, also added Moon Knight.
34. The Incredible Hulk 33. Iron Man 32. Iron Man 3 31. Iron Man 2 ----------------------------------------------------- 30. Thor 29. Doctor Strange 28. Eternals 27. Thor: The Dark World 26. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier 25. What If…? 24. Guardians of the Galaxy 23. Ant-Man 22. Captain America: The First Avenger 21. Black Widow 20. Hawkeye 19. Spider-Man: Homecoming 18. Black Panther ----------------------------------------------------- 17. Captain Marvel 16. Moon Knight 15. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings 14. Loki 13. Spider-Man: Far From Home 12. Ant-Man and the Wasp 11. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 10. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness 9. The Avengers 8. Avengers: Age of Ultron 7. Captain America: Civil War 6. WandaVision 5. Spider-Man: No Way Home 4. Avengers: Endgame 3. Avengers: Infinity War 2. Captain America: The Winter Soldier 1. Thor: Ragnarok
> @bonham2 I feel like our lists are pretty similar, with just a few notable differences.
> I almost didn't even rate What If at all. It felt so weird rating it along with all
> of these other shows and movies, since it was animated, and hypothetical. But, at
> the end of the day, I did enjoy it somewhat.
I agree our lists are similar, but I agree with Broccoli that your Iron Man 1 ranking is shocking. I don't think it's as great as many people make it out to be, especially over a decade and countless movies and shows afterwards, but it still holds up really well.
I watched the newest venom movie the other day. While it wasnt horrible, it just wasnt that good. It felt hollow if that makes any sense. I really liked the first one though.
@Broccoli @bonham2 I don't think Iron Man 1 is a bad movie or anything, I enjoy everything in the MCU. I just think the MCU has gotten a lot better over time. Also, I think Iron Man is at his best when he's interacting and working with the other heroes in the MCU, not so much when he's doing his own thing. Maybe I'd like it more if I had seen it when it first came out, but I was a bit late to the MCU. I don't remember the exact timing, but I think it wasn't until the first Avengers was coming out that I finally saw it.
Also realized I had Black Widow entirely too high on my list. I still thought the movie ruled for the most part but thinking retroactively, mixed with the fact that I never feel a desire to re-watch it, I realize I overrated it in a big way initially. That dropped a significant amount of spots on my list just now. Still dig it though!
36. The Incredible Hulk 35. Iron Man 34. Iron Man 3 33. Iron Man 2 32. Thor ----------------------------------------------------------------- 31. Ms. Marvel 30. Doctor Strange 29. Eternals 28. Thor: The Dark World 27. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier 26. What If…? 25. Guardians of the Galaxy 24. Ant-Man 23. Captain America: The First Avenger 22. Black Widow 21. Hawkeye 20. Spider-Man: Homecoming 19. Black Panther ----------------------------------------------------------------- 18. Captain Marvel 17. Moon Knight 16. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings 15. Loki 14. Spider-Man: Far From Home 13. Ant-Man and the Wasp 12. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 11. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness ----------------------------------------------------------------- 10. The Avengers 9. Avengers: Age of Ultron 8. Captain America: Civil War 7. WandaVision 6. Thor: Love and Thunder 5. Spider-Man: No Way Home 4. Avengers: Endgame 3. Avengers: Infinity War 2. Captain America: The Winter Soldier 1. Thor: Ragnarok
I added Thor: Love and Thunder. Also, while I didn't change the original Thor's position, I did adjust the tier marker so that it falls in my bottom tier. Me and my family are finally re-watching the entire MCU. We watched Thor the other night and I enjoyed it even less than I remembered. Not enough to drop it's ranking, but it definitely belongs in my bottom tier. I'm curious to see what other changes I make as I work through this re-watch. This is my first time doing a full re-watch since shortly before Endgame, and there's a ton of new stuff since then. I think the biggest contenders to change positions in my list are Multiverse of Madness, Shang-Chi, Black Widow, and most of the shows, since I've only seen all of those once.
My top tier was getting way too big, so I finally decided to split it into two. I'm sure nobody else cares, but it helps me keep things organized! I've enjoyed everything in the MCU so far. Even the movies in my bottom tier I enjoy to some degree. I'm torn on Iron Man. People are always so surprised by how low I've ranked it. After watching it again, I still feel pretty much the same about it. I DO like it, it's a solid movie. But I would rather watch any of the movies/shows I have ranked above it. I think part of the problem is that it doesn't feel enough like a superhero movie. I can't really explain why, it just feels more like an early 2000s action movie.
They were entertaining enough for a once-watch. But I'd never bother to re-watch any of it. I find it to be simple, popcorn entertainment, and nothing more. To say I "liked them", I guess I liked them, they weren't boring. But to make a tiered list? Nah.
I've seen:
Iron Man 1, 2, Thor, Black Panther, IW, Endgame, Antman, Moon Knight, half of Dr. Who 2. I think that's it??????
@Kommie We get it, we get it, you're too cool and far too smart for MCU movies. You don't have to keep reminding us, we won't forget. You have the superior taste, this will be noted.
Some folks find ranking these things to be, get this, fun.
> @theJaw It's about time you watched Love and Thunder! Glad you liked it (almost)
> as much as me
Yah I thought it was great and honestly most of the criticisms folks throwing around as far as plot holes go can easily be explained using what's presented in the movie itself. I'm having a hard time fully understanding how folks are so down on this movie.
Like MoM, it definitely took detours off the beaten path of the "MCU movie" template, so I can understand needing time to adjust, but people are acting like it's awful or didn't make any sense when it did. I feel like phase IV, for some folks, has been the "expectations" phase. MCU has admittedly battered down a formula for these things, but I feel like any movie that has tried to be its own thing and stray from that one formula has been nitpicked to death by the internet.
I say this while acknowledging the lowest movie on my list is The Eternals, which is a good example of what I just talked about haha. But I just thought that was a bad movie, didn't have to do with any of the risks it took really.
>> @theJaw It's about time you watched Love and Thunder! Glad you liked it (almost)
>> as much as me
>
> Yah I thought it was great and honestly most of the criticisms folks throwing around
> as far as plot holes go can easily be explained using what's presented in the movie
> itself. I'm having a hard time fully understanding how folks are so down on this
> movie.
I really haven't even seen that many criticisms for it! All I see over and over again is "too funny" and "not enough Gorr". Ok, those can be valid criticisms, but what about the rest of the movie? There was still plenty more to like. I'm sure there are plenty of people out there who legitimately didn't like it, and that's fine, but a lot of it seems like bandwagon hate to me.
> I really haven't even seen that many criticisms for it! All I see over and over again
> is "too funny" and "not enough Gorr". Ok, those can be valid criticisms, but what
> about the rest of the movie? There was still plenty more to like. I'm sure there
> are plenty of people out there who legitimately didn't like it, and that's fine,
> but a lot of it seems like bandwagon hate to me.
Yah some folks are pointing out how the Eternity bit could have just solved the Thanos snap situation, but they're forgetting how the plot of this movie reveals the only way to find Eternity and how that way wasn't known to the larger MCU until the events of this movie. Stuff like that. But yah, it's mostly the comedy and lack of Gorr.
But I have a fellow MCU fanboy pal and we've been going back-and-forth all morning about it. He chalks it up as a complete miss and seemingly can't find a good thing to say about it, which just baffles me. But I suppose that's how opinions work after all haha
For me, the movie is so silly that it works lol. There are serious and sad parts to justify the plot, but in the end is just Thor trying to navigate through life and changes. A lot of tragedy in his life tbh.
My only complaint would be Zeus, but even that satire of a character fits into all the silliness.
