Phase 4 Superlatives: Marvel Cinematic Universe

 *Any and all Phase 4 spoilers are fair game.*

This weekend, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is officially taking us into Phase 5 of the MCU. It’s a little wild to think that, after spending more than a decade rolling out its first three phases, Marvel shot through the entirety of Phase 4 in two years. True, part of that was because of releases getting compressed due to delays in the early days of the pandemic, but still. In two years, Marvel put out seven movies, eight seasons of TV, two holiday specials, and a miniseries of shorts. That is some serious output! So, while we wait for Quantumania to burst onto the scene, let’s look back on the Phase 4 that just wrapped. (Note: all of these are purely my subjective opinion.)

 

Best Fanservice – Spider-Man: No Way Home

This one’s a no-brainer. Watching those three Spider-Men interact fills my heart with so much nerdish glee, and I will love it forever.

 

Best Genre Bending – WandaVision

WandaVision is such a television achievement. It’s fascinating to watch it reinvent itself every week as a different era of sitcom, juggling decades of comedy styles while still telling an honest story about love, grief, and superpowers.

 

Best Complex Antagonist – Xu Wenwu, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

If you know me at all, you saw this one coming. There were some other great villains in this phase, but Wenwu is incredible. Complicated, tragic, even sympathetic at times, but still such a selfish, ruthless bastard—Tony Leung Chiu-wai’s masterful performance quietly makes the most of every instant. Give me every single moment of him fighting with the Ten Rings, and give Shang-Chi and Xialing a lifetime of therapy for having been raised by him.

 

Best Platonic Chemistry – Steven Grant & Mark Spector, Moon Knight

Watching Steven and Mark get to know each other—sometimes in irritation, sometimes in hurt, sometimes in comfort, sometimes in love—is such a treat. Bonus points because this is Oscar Isaac generating terrific, dynamic onscreen chemistry with himself!

 

Best Surprise – Werewolf by Night

I figured I was going to enjoy it. If nothing else, it’d be a fun homage to classic monster movies and Gael García Bernal was going to be great. But I came away loving it. This holiday special went harder than it had to, and it paid off in a wonderful way.

 

 

Best MCU World Exploration – Ms. Marvel

There are times when the MCU can feel a little too “our world, with bonus superheroes.” Ms. Marvel, in centering around Avengers superfan Kamala, fully steeps us in a world where all of these heroes exist and influence everyday life and culture. We get references to earlier films, like Kamala’s play-by-play of Captain Marvel taking on Thanos or Kingo’s Bollywood dynasty, and we’re offered nuggets that have been fleshed out in later ones, like Scott Lang’s podcast or the idea of New Asgard tourism. This is a world with an AvengerCon, and it’s beautiful.

 

Best Music Sequence – Black Widow

That intro showing girls being trafficked into the Red Room, set to a stripped-down version of “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” is just everything. In just a few minutes, the film tells you everything you need to know about the Red Room and why Natasha has to tear it down once and for all. The music heightens the emotions even further.

 

Best Romantic Chemistry – Jen Walters & Matt Murdock, She-Hulk

They have one episode and change to work with here, and they bring it. Whether you want to talk Jen/Matt or She-Hulk/Daredevil, this pairing is awesome. They’re fun, they face off well in both the courtroom and a superhero fight, and they give a villain tag-team legal advice while they’re fighting his goons. What’s not to like?

 

Best World Building – Talokan, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

Love, love, love. It’s the costumes, it’s the water bombs, it’s the anticolonial origin story, it’s that beautiful underwater market and the Mesoamerican sports, and it’s definitely all of the Talokanil giving their national salute as Namor sits in a throne made from the mouth of a shark. Talokan’s intro made me so happy, and I can’t wait to see more of it in the MCU!

 

Best Character Reinvention – Loki

Yes, I know that the protagonist on Loki is a variant of the Sacred Timeline MCU Loki, but he branched off from the Sacred Timeline at a point we know. As such, it’s really neat to see this Loki’s growth and development take place in completely different ways than the one who went through The Dark World, Ragnarok, and Infinity War. Tom Hiddleston does so well taking this familiar character down a new path, skirting the line between villainy and anti-heroism as he considers his place in the multiverse.

 

Best Original Song – “I Don’t Know What Christmas Is (But Christmastime is Here)”, Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special

I realize this might be considered blasphemy, given “Agatha All Along,” but the heart wants what it wants. This song, written and performed by the Old 97’s in alien prosthetics, is a delightful, utterly Guardians way to ring in their holiday special. With the gimmick that it’s a Christmas song written by aliens who’ve only heard about the holiday secondhand, it gives us such gems as, “He's compelled his creepy elves / To do his every wish. / One sought to be a dentist, / Now he's sleeping with the fish.”

 

Best Side Story – The Falcon and the Winter Soldier

First of all, bringing in Carl Lumbly is always the right choice. With just a few guest appearances, Lumbly brings Isaiah Bradley’s story to life with power and emotion, highlighting a Black hero who was treated like a criminal and a shameful secret by the very government that created him. Exploring his story at a time when Sam is trying to reckon with his own position as the new Captain America is nicely done.

 

Best Casting Surprise – Hercules, Thor: Love and Thunder

He’s here, he’s there, he’s every fucking where! Brett Goldstein is the MCU’s Hercules! During the Love and Thunder post-credits scene, it was clear they were revealing a new casting from the way they played coy with showing his face, but I knew I recognized his voice. When the camera finally turned to reveal Goldstein in his hairy Hercules glory, I squeed. Really looking forward to seeing him make his proper introduction!

 

Best Unintentional Waterworks – T’Challa, What If…?

In this fun variant timeline about T’Challa becoming Star Lord, Chadwick Boseman gives one of his final acting performances. Wakanda Forever came along later to bring next-level waterworks, but there’s something so affecting about listening to Boseman’s voice as he plays a swashbuckling T’Challa tooling around the galaxy making everybody’s lives better. We couldn’t have asked for a better What If…? episode for him.

 

Best Disability Representation – Makkari, Eternals

After a bunch of Marvel characters with disabilities played by able-bodied actors (Bucky, Rhodey, Matt Murdock, etc.), the MCU has finally brought its first disabled actors into the fold playing significant roles. No shade to Alaqua Cox, because I’m definitely looking forward to Echo, but Makkari has my heart. I just love my Deaf Eternal speedster so much, from her badass fighting to her sticky fingers to her delicious flirting with Druig. Also, without Makkari, how would we know that Thanos’s name sign translates to “giant chin”?

 

Best Cuteness Factor – I Am Groot

The last few years, Grogu has been the reigning champ of adorableness on Disney+, but it’s good to be reminded that, before him, there was Baby Groot. I get such a kick out of watching this tiny agent of chaos run around having fun.

 

Best Inventive Fight Scene – Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

I was not a fan of Multiverse of Madness, but I wanted to give it an earnest superlative, not a petty one. And I hit upon that fight in the last universe between the two Stranges, lifting musical notes off of sheet music to mystical attack each other with music. It’s not always about punches, knives, or energy blasts!

 

Best Unlikely Character Dynamic – Kate Bishop & Yelena Belova, Hawkeye

I was excited to have Yelena show up on Hawkeye anyway, but her scenes with Kate are the absolute best. Yelena comes barreling in, just being Yelena, and Kate has no idea what to make of the assassin who wants to kill Clint Barton but also maybe share some mac ‘n’ cheese? Made of win from top to bottom.