Era, sell me on the MCU. Is it even for me?

[Sölf]

Okay, some backstory.

Very short version:
I have seen all MCU movies up to and including Avengers 1 (albeit years after release with the excpetion of Ironman 1 which I saw in theaters). I thought Avengers 1 was good and all others before mediocre at best.



Long version:
Back when Ironman 1 first released, I saw that one in theaters. It was a friends birthday and he wanted to see it. I thought the movie was okay - not god, not bad, just okay - but certainly not good enough to get me to watch the second Ironman installment. All the others that were released - Hulk, Captain America and Thor - didn't interest me in the slightest.

Fast forward to the release of Avengers 1. Suddenly everyone was gushing over the movie. And I had to admit, watching the trailer it looked fun. But apparently you had to watch all other previous movies to really "get the experience" so to speak. Yeah, I had no interest and doing that, especially since I thought Ironman was mediocre and the others movies were apparently worse.

So I never really got deeper into the MCU. It of course didn't help that I am more of DC fan (even if back then it was basically Batman only - now it's a bit more thanks to the Arrowverse and the other DC movies) and Marvel was never really my thing. So I never bothered with watching the later standalone movies as well. I also think most trailers look more or less identical in terms of what the movie will entail - the "marvel formula" so to speak - so not really liking Ironman 1 I just didn't bother to even try the newer movies. I did try to watch Jessica Jones, but episode 1 bored me to death, so I stopped after that one.

Fast forward until 2 years ago. I saw that Netflix hat all of the Phase 1 MCU movies, so I decided to finally give this another shot. I rewatched Ironman 1 and still thought that one was mediocre. The opening sequence/first act of Hulk was more fun than anything in Ironman - the rest was also okay. I don't remember anything past act 1 that from Hulk, Captain America, Ironman 2 or Thor. That already tells you how memorable those movies were. When watching Avengers I did have fun though - that was a pretty cool movie. So, knowing what I will get in those I would like to continue watching. But I have to watch another 4+ movies inbetween those teamup movies and after "knowing" how "good" those will be... meh. Not feeling it at all. Especially since most MCU fans think Ironman 1 is one of the best MCU movies. That alone turns me down.



So, Era, sell me the MCU. After posting this, would I even have fun with the other movies? The one that actually still does interest me would be Winter Soldier, just because that one is supposed to be quite a bit different. Still, I would watch them in release order, so the next up on the list would be Ironman 3 if I am correct.

 

[Gay Bowser]

It got better. I recently went back and rewatched Iron Man 1 and 2 and, yeah, there's parts of them that are a little more rough than I remembered.

Just watch Winter Soldier and if you like it, watch more. Or try Guardians of the Galaxy. Iron Man 3 would be fine too, but it's possible you just find Tony Stark a little off-putting (I do too).

 

[AGoodODST]

I think you are really over thinking the act of watching a movie.

Just put one on and if you want to keep watching it do so. If you I don't like it turn it off lol

 

[Noppie]

You definitely don't need to watch everything, and I personally disliked early MCU myself but love the later stuff, so maybe try some of the later stuff instead. Watching all of them in order when you don't particularly like them sounds like a waste of your time to me :P

 

[ZeoVGM]

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

 

[KOfLegend]

Phase one is the weakest by far. As someone who binged all the movies before Infinity War, the first really good MCU movie was Captain America: The Winter Solider or maybe Iron Man 3. Everything before that was meh imo. Give the next couple of movies a shot and see if you like them.

 

[Supercrap]

I think u can skip like ironman 2,3 n thor 2 but all the other movies are actually pretty good and tie things together

 

[Neece]

I think you are really over thinking the act of watching a movie.

Just put one on and if you want to keep watching it do so. If you I don't like it turn it off lol

Click to shrink...

This pretty much. Nothing anyone is going to tell you is going to make any difference on if you will like them or not.

 

[Rosebud]

I've seen about half and it was enough to know I don't like it. And that's fine, they are just movies.

Maybe you can enjoy some as a single thing and ignore the other 50 films, was my case with Black Panther.

 

[Jest]

I think you are really over thinking the act of watching a movie.

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+1

I mean at the end of the day these are just fun action films. They do have *some* character depth in terms of overall character arcs... but they're not and will never be dramatic tour de force films.

The quality of the films largely improves overall, with general consensus that Thor 2 drops the ball... but yeah.. just toss it on when you want to kind of relax and watch some action and that's it.

 

[Scarecrow]

I'd say Winter Soldier is the best MCU movie. Infinity War is one of the best action movies of the last few years with impeccable pacing, tho it helps to be invested in the characters on screen. Most entries past Avengers 1 are pretty much comedy movies that involve super heroes, some more so than others (the Guardians/Galaxies, Thor 3). They're fun fluff without much to chew on.

 

[Aprikurt]

Honestly Phase 1 is kind of a slog. Avengers 1 was a great proof of concept, and it just got so much better from there.

 

[El Bombastico]

I think you are really over thinking the act of watching a movie.

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This is a nerd forum. Overthinking shit is kinda the whole point.

 

[Kurita]

Just... try watching the movies?

 

[Alexandros]

You don't really have to watch everything, you can safely skip some movies and not lose much context. For example, you can watch just Winter Soldier, Guardians of the Galaxy and Age of Ultron from Phase 2 and easily follow everything.

 

[sredgrin]

Phase 1 was not great on release and don't neccessarily hold up well, but 3/4ths of Phase 2 is good and so is phase 3.

I mean, they are popcorn blockbusters that go down easy, this isn't like getting into Tarkovsky or anything.

 

[Strings]

Go along and see them if someone else wants to because why not, but don't force yourself to watch them all. I can understand folks who love it all and live and breathe this stuff, but the majority of them are just okay blockbusters and a couple are pretty terrible.

 

[Kwigo]

Just get Disney+ and watch some of them.
It's not like you're losing a limb if a movie you watch is bad.

 

[TripleBee]

While the movies do only get better imo, if you didn't have any interest in phase 1 - I don't think you'll all of sudden love the following phases.

 

[Deleted member 41178]

Just get Disney+ and watch them, not much more to it really.

I will add though that by the sounds of it you enjoy the CW shows and DC movies so I'd be surprised if you couldn't get some enjoyment out of Marvel's offerings.

 

[AWizardDidIt]

They get better but if you weren't at all interested in any of the phase 1 movies, I don't think they improve *so* much that you're going to suddenly turn into an MCU super fan. Watch Winter Soldier or Guardians of the Galaxy and if you like them, keep going. Do it through Disney+, it's a pretty cheap way to just binge all of them.

 

[Mekanos]

Watch them or don't. They're superhero blockbuster movies meant for wide consumption. Do you enjoy that kind of thing?

I don't think the series is really meant for binging. It's much more enjoyable watching them gradually over the years.

 

[Keldroc]

Watch them, and if you don't enjoy them stop watching them.

 

[Spiderman]

Watch them, and if you don't enjoy them stop watching them.

Click to shrink...

It sounds so simple.

 

[Choppasmith]

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Click to shrink...

I know this is a hot topic but it's not REALLY MCU, just a good Marvel show.

Anyway, if you just want to watch a fun MCU movie that doesn't take itself too seriously, try Thor Ragnarok. It was specifically made by Taika Waititi as way to course correct from Thor The Dark World and mostly ignores a lot of what happened in that film.

 

[cvxfreak]

MCU isn't really big in Japan, so it took me a few years before its popularity elsewhere of it caught my eye.

I saw Avengers on an airplane in 2012, then AOU in 2015 in theaters. Didn't really stick with me. I saw Civil War a year later as I liked the idea and Spider-Man finally showed up, but again it didn't really resonate too much with me. Saw GOTG Vol. 2 on a plane and thought it was funny but nothing to get too excited about. Black Panther was the next one I saw, given its ties to Civil War and its immense popularity. I liked it but once again I wasn't hooked. A month later, I saw Infinity War on opening night with friends, and that's what finally got me invested in the whole thing.

Then I went back and saw Thor: Ragnarok, Doctor Strange, Guardians Vol. 1, Spider-Man Homecoming, Iron Man 3, Winter Solider and Ant-Man, which finally allowed me to appreciate the universe-building elements Marvel and Disney were going for. I like the MCU a lot now and will see new movies and streaming series on day 1 if I can.

I did eventually get back to the Phase 1-2 movies, like Iron Man 1, 2, First Soldier, Hulk, Thor and Dark World... and they are rough. I'm actually glad those flew over my head upon release due to their lack of popularity in Japan as I probably wouldn't have bothered by the time Infinity War rolled around. It surprises me that Iron Man and The Dark Knight were released in the same year. The latter is a far better film overall and I would've bet on DC over Marvel in 2008 based on that.

 

[Sölf]

So what I get from the posts so far is that The movies to become better - whatever that means - so I may as well watch some P2 movies and if it doesn't "improve" I just stop.

Okay then.

Also, I do know those are just movies. The thing is that I like the idea of a world where everything is connected. In the end, this is basically just a TV show in movie format in terms of storytelling so to speak. And I liked the first big teamup and I am pretty sure I will also like the other big team ups. Just getting there is the problem.

Anyway, will try to get my hands on Disney+ (or see if the movies are available anywhere else here in Germany) and watch 1 or 2 P2 movies and see if I feel any different afterwards.

 

[timshundo]

I can't watch anything before Thor Ragnarok, it's so boring and superhero-y.

Everyone that's like "just watch them omg" is underselling how much an investment it is to "get into" the MCU. These are 2-3 hour movies each and theres like 20. OP is asking if they're worth the time. Can yall try a little harder here?

OP I hadn't seen ANY of the MCU before Black Panther. Once I saw the reviews for Infinity War and got roped into the hype through some nerd friends I sat down and watched all of them. Everything before, I'd say, Guardians of the Galaxy, was so hard to get through. I'm never gonna go back and watch them ever again haha. But it made Infinity War/Endgame worth it. My best friend watched Infinity War/Endgame without knowing any of the MCU and while she thought they were cool, she knew it didn't have the same impact on her because she didn't know all the backstories.

I really like the MCU for how... weird it's getting. WandaVision is realllly weird for the superhero genre and I like it.

So I'd say do something I might get in trouble for saying: watch one of the newest avengers movies, maybe even Infinity War, and see if all the references to all the past movies piques your interest. Then you can go back, watch them all, then finish with Endgame. Just an idea. Maybe Avengers Age of Ultron?

Also I skipped the Ant-man movies. I finally watched them recently and they weren't worth it. Still skippable lol.

 

[CloudWolf]

Winter Soldier, Thor Ragnarok and maybe Black Panther are the only MCU movies that I would say are really worth a watch. If you like those and want to delve deeper, go for it.

 

[AstronaughtE]

So what I get from the posts so far is that The movies to become better - whatever that means - so I may as well watch some P2 movies and if it doesn't "improve" I just stop.

Okay then.

Also, I do know those are just movies. The thing is that I like the idea of a world where everything is connected. In the end, this is basically just a TV show in movie format in terms of storytelling so to speak. And I liked the first big teamup and I am pretty sure I will also like the other big team ups. Just getting there is the problem.

Anyway, will try to get my hands on Disney+ (or see if the movies are available anywhere else here in Germany) and watch 1 or 2 P2 movies and see if I feel any different afterwards.

Click to shrink...

It would be like joining in on a tv show and a character shows up with a tan and glasses and there's dramatic music and everyone who has been watching from the beginning gasps. You'll be able to understand the broad strokes, but you'll be missing details. They're like...well...comic books.

 

[Sölf]

My best friend watched Infinity War/Endgame without knowing any of the MCU and while she thought they were cool, she knew it didn't have the same impact on her because she didn't know all the backstories.

Click to shrink...

This is the main thing why I even would watch them in order. A colleague of mine who is not interested in these movies is currently watching them with his son, but somewhat out of order. Which ended by him Watching Avenger 1-4 but nothing in between (mainly because he didn't even know there are movies in between) and he understood nothing and thought Infinity War and Endgame were bad.

So... no, I definitly won't watch Infinity war or so without watching the previous stuff... xD

 

[Rodelero]

They get significantly better over time frankly. Even the weaker recent films are significantly better than Ironman 2 and Thor 2.

Some films standalone quite well, like Captain Marvel and Guardians of the Galaxy, so they can be a good shout as your next watch.

Am currently watching the series in chronological order, and having just finished Ironman 3, I don't dislike any of the remaining films.

 

[Azerare]

Winter soldier is a great film to watch imo. Compared to most of the MCU films it really holds well on its own. Others to a similar effect would be Black Panther, and Guardians of the Galaxy.

 

[Alien Bob]

If it's the interconnectedness and team ups you're after, that ramps up significantly after Age of Ultron, to the point where Captain America: Civil War is basically an Avengers movie and casually introduces huge characters who get their own movies, and the ending of Thor Ragnarok leads immediately into Infinity War.

It can confuse people who aren't into it, but I eat that shit up.

And post Avengers 1, Winter Soldier and Guardians raise the quality bar significantly and that rising tide did raise all boats, so to speak.

 

[MrHealthy]

So what I get from the posts so far is that The movies to become better - whatever that means - so I may as well watch some P2 movies and if it doesn't "improve" I just stop.

Okay then.

Also, I do know those are just movies. The thing is that I like the idea of a world where everything is connected. In the end, this is basically just a TV show in movie format in terms of storytelling so to speak. And I liked the first big teamup and I am pretty sure I will also like the other big team ups. Just getting there is the problem.

Anyway, will try to get my hands on Disney+ (or see if the movies are available anywhere else here in Germany) and watch 1 or 2 P2 movies and see if I feel any different afterwards.

Click to shrink...

Don't make Thor 2 one of those movies. Its often debated as one of the worst MCU films, at the very least its one of the most forgettable. Iron Man 3 is decisive because of how it portrays a certain fan favorite villain. But if you are not familar with the comic history it likely will be fine.

The Winter Solider and Guardians are your best bet. I also personally really loved Ant-Man which is basically just a heist film.

 

[Idde]

Here in the Netherlands Disney+ is only eight euro's a month or so. Germany probably won't be much more expensive?
And if you liked the Arrowverse I'm pretty sure you'll enjoy most most of the MCU.

Not all of it is as good, but starting in phase 2 it really improved. Winter Soldier is so much better than First Avenger, it isn't even funny. Guardians of the Galaxy has a lot of charm and I personally thought Iron Man 3 was pretty okay. Skip Thor 2. I also really liked the light hearted fun of Ant-Man.

By Phase 3 Marvel really found it's stride and it got better and better, with a lot of really great movies. Especially compared to stuff like the first Thor, of Iron Man.

So the 'worst' is pretty much behind you. Throw on Cap: Winter Soldier and see if you like it. If you do, continue on with Guardians of the Galaxy. And so on.

They're ultimately movies that are supposed to entertain you. If you don't enjoy them, just stop watching :) Great as I personally think a lot of them are, it's also completely fine not to have seen the MCU :)

 

[Coxy]

I think you are really over thinking the act of watching a movie.

Just put one on and if you want to keep watching it do so. If you I don't like it turn it off lol

Click to shrink...

This! In the time the OP took to write that they could have just tried it.

 

[fontguy]

It's just product. You really don't have to force yourself to consume it.

 

[dejay]

Personally I'd say even though I found some of them a trudge, it's worth sitting through most of them. Part of the reward is knowing the references and knowing the characters, particularly towards the end of Phase 3.

I didn't like the action and characters of Iron Man 3, but the character arc for Tony after Avengers was interesting and gave some context for his later actions. I didn't like the writing for Age of Ultron or the repetitive, pointless action, but watching Wandavision now, I wouldn't have appreciated it as much without a proper origin story for one of them.

I actually liked Dark World, which probably makes me crazy. I'd prefer to watch that again over, say, Far From Home.

I will say, if you go for watching most of them, don't binge them. If you want to skip some, maybe check out YT quick synopsis of them instead. Hell, the Cinema Sins "Eveything Wrong With ...." videos often form a surprisingly understandable synopsis whilst being entertaining.

 

[Skunk]

I'mn going to stop you OP right after you said you're a fan of the Arrowverse. Yes, then. The MCU is absolutely for you and it's much better than almost the entirety of the Arrowverse (which is not at all an insult to the Arrowverse, but it's really not even close). Iron Man 3 and Thor 2 are immediately after Avengers, and after that, starting with Captain America: The Winter Soldier basically everything from that point on ranges from good to outstanding.

 

[mbpm]

Pick a stronger offering from recent times and give it a shot.

It's not Tolstoy. You'll know if you like it or not.

 

[Readler]

While I agree that Phase 1 was the weakest, I'd still say that Iron Man 1 is among the best MCU movies ever.

But yeah I wouldn't sweat it. You watched a couple of movies, and didn't really like it. You shouldn't need to watch all 22 (?) films to be able to form a decision. Watch Guardians of the Galaxy, the most approachable imo, if you really need to, otherwise just bin the idea.

 

[Alien Bob]

I actually liked Dark World, which probably makes me crazy. I'd prefer to watch that again over, say, Far From Home.

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I still find it forgettable but every time I've watched it again I was like, "Hey now, that wasn't bad at all." Yes, it's a waste of Christopher Eccleston, but it's still a fun movie about a space god with a big hammer. It's mediocre at worst, but still has plenty of good bits.

 

[Farmboy]

They get better but if you weren't at all interested in any of the phase 1 movies, I don't think they improve *so* much that you're going to suddenly turn into an MCU super fan. Watch Winter Soldier or Guardians of the Galaxy and if you like them, keep going. Do it through Disney+, it's a pretty cheap way to just binge all of them.

Click to shrink...

This is pretty good advice. WS and GotG are two of my favorites, certainly (none of the phase 1 films come close).

Phase 3 was were it started clicking and becoming more than the sum of the parts for me. Even the movies that were mediocre as stand alones became worthwhile as part of this grander story. Culminating in IW and Endgame, which really... there hasn't been anything like it. And now they're taking it in interesting and original directions with WandaVision. It's a lot of fun.

 

[JigglesBunny]

Watch Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Guardians of the Galaxy and Black Panther. If even those don't do it for you, probably time to accept that the MCU isn't going to be for you, which is fine.

 

[Siggy-P]

Not gonna lie, if you don't like those first few i canf imagine you liking the rest so much. You may enjoy them but theres no massive increase in quality if that's what you're after.

Marathoned them all with my gf a few months back as she hadn't watched any of them. There are a couple that get a bit better and a couple that get a bit worse.

 

[RedSparrows]

I decided long ago I'll watch the odd Marvel film on a rainy Saturday afternoon. Good for that.

 

[plain]

Don't waste your time. It gets way better after Thor 2 but IMO, if you weren't hooked by the first Avengers film, then it's not for you.

 

[Sande]

I'd say definitely watch Infinity War and End Game, and whichever highest rated / most relevant ones you feel like watching before those.

I like MCU, but a lot of it is mediocre filler to me. You shouldn't feel the need to watch all of them to get to the good stuff.

 

[Galkinator]

Just watch some of the better received movies, and if you like them consider catching up with the entire infinity saga so you'll know the continuity. I think you're making this a bigger deal than it is.

Also, phase 1 is the by far the worst one, with IM1 & Avengers 1 being the better films.