*Spoilers.*
Phase 2 was sort of a transitional period for Marvel. For my money, it starts out a little slower—Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. takes a while to get going, and Thor: The Dark World is a step down from its predecessor. But at the same time, it does some really great things and expands what the MCU can be—Captain America: The Winter Soldier remains one of the best films in the franchise, and I love watching the MCU branch out into new possibilities with stuff like Guardians of the Galaxy and Ant-Man.
Best Twist – Iron Man 3
I wasn’t overly impressed with the half-baked way this film depicted the Mandarin, an early example of their "avoid comic book racism by erasing the character’s culture altogether” efforts (boo to the Ancient One!) But I do like the resulting bait-and-switch, where we discover that “the Mandarin” is actually a washed-up actor hired by A.I.M. to play the part of a terrorist, taking credit for the explosions caused by their uncontrolled experiments. Even better, Iron Man 3 giving us a fake Mandarin left the door open for the real Xu Wenwu, which will forever and always be an amazing thing.
Best Level Up – Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Seasons 1-2)
I’m not going out on a limb when I say the first half of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s first season is fine, a superhero threat-of-the-week procedural with a bit of mystery box intrigue thrown in. But pretty much immediately after the release of The Winter Soldier and the S.H.I.E.L.D. revelations therein, the series kicks into high gear. There’s action, betrayals, great spy work, and an exciting season finale, only for the show to continue its upward trajectory in season 2 with the introduction of memorable new characters and some strong work on the Inhumans plot arc.
Best Mind-Bendy Sci-Fi – Thor: The Dark World
The Dark World isn’t one of my favorites, but I love how the film demonstrates the coming Convergence. Jane and Darcy investigating those pockets of physics-defying phenomena is great, especially the truck suspended in midair. The Convergence makes the third-act showdown feel a little less typical, with murmurations of starlings appearing out of nowhere and Thor and Mjölnir slipping through the pockets and getting bounced around all over. This gives us one of my favorite shots in the film: Thor having to take the Tube back to the battle because every time he tries to fly with Mjölnir, he gets spat out somewhere else.
Best Fight Choreography – Captain America: The Winter Soldier
I will bang this drum all day every day. The way the Winter Soldier fights is so. Freaking. Cool. Watching this in the theater, I had so many moments of utter nerdish glee at the sheer coolness happening on my screen; the highway fight is an absolute thing of beauty. And in addition to having one of the most badass antagonists around, the film also does a nice job of balancing the different fighting styles of Steve, Natasha, Fury, and Sam (especially when the wings come into play.)
Best CGI Characters – Guardians of the Galaxy
Like a lot of MCU fans who aren’t big comic readers, I went into Guardians of the Galaxy not knowing any of these characters, but Rocket and Groot immediately jumped out to me as the best ones. Rocket was so complex and intriguing, and Groot was an absolute dear. I did not have “by the time I leave the theater, I’ll have teared up over a sentient tree and a gun-toting raccoon” on my bingo card, but, well…. “We. Are. Groot.”
Best Examination of Gender Politics – Agent Carter (Season 1)
This show came before Jessica Jones on Netflix and Captain Marvel on the big screen, way before WandaVision, Ms. Marvel, or She-Hulk on Disney+. And yes, we’d of course seen capable, kickass women in the MCU prior to this—women like Natasha, May, and Gamora, and even Peggy herself in Captain America. But this was the first time a female character was the star of the show. The story centered on Peggy, and we got to see her be an awesome spy while raging against the sexism of her world in this cool Marvel period piece. The show will always be special for that.
Best Little Moments – Avengers: Age of Ultron
Age of Ultron is rated on the lower end of the Marvel spectrum for a lot of fans, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t still great stuff to be found in it. Thinking back on the film, a lot of my favorite moments are just that: moments. Little snatches of flavor that color the film and sweeten the viewing experience. Steve splitting a log with his bare hands. Rhodey urging Tony to “represent” as they struggle in vain to lift Mjölnir. Steve and Thor’s delicious hammer/shield combos in battle. Pietro using his super speed to swipe candy from a dish. The film’s greatest contribution to the MCU as a whole is the introduction of the Maximoffs, but within this phase, it’s most memorable to me for these little things that add so much.
Best Genre Play – Ant-Man
I’ve talked before about how I like it when the MCU uses superheroes as a backdrop against which to tell stories in other genres. While phase 1 dabbles with this a little bit, phase 2 really starts to play, where we see a superhero political thriller in The Winter Soldier and a superhero space opera in Guardians of the Galaxy. With Ant-Man, we get a superhero heist flick, and it is so. Much. Fun! It has all the entertaining heist hallmarks while also dealing with super suits and incredible shrinking technology, culminating in a wild third act that’s as action-packed as it is humorous.
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