MARVEL CINEMATIC UNIVERSE ROUND UP: THE BEST AND WORST OF PHASE TWO

THE BEST AND WORST OF...

Three years have passed since Marvel's THE AVENGERS premiered in theaters. The film was a mighty finale to what has been referred to as PHASE ONE of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Six films in total that began in 2008 with IRON MAN. These films revolutionized the concepts of film franchises and reinvigorated what was quickly becoming a stale genre. These films set the bar high and as of 2015 no other company has had the guts to take them on. Even DC comics has yet to challenge them and they won't even have a second movie to their combined cinematic universe until 2016, eight years and 12 films after Marvel.

The Avengers was only the beginning. There is grand plot in the works. Every film in this franchise is its own, but together they're building towards something even greater. On July 17th of 2015 audiences were shown the finale to PHASE TWO of Marvel's Cinematic Universe. Another six films have been added to their combined cinematic world for total of twelve. So now we're going to sit in judgement and let it be known what was the best film of Phase Two, the worst, and every one in between. Here we go!

*note: These are my opinions and nowhere absolutes. The joy of making lists such as this is to compare with others and discuss. 

        THE LIST:

IRON MAN 3

Released May 3rd 2013

Box Office Gross: $409 million

Directed by Shane Black, Iron Man has become the flagship sub-franchise in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the character, thanks in no small measure to actor Robert Downey Jr., has become easily and without question the most beloved of all the Avengers (perhaps the most beloved super hero of all time thanks to these movies). IM3 was the first film to follow The Avengers. Marvel Studios waited a whole year before releasing the follow up to The Avengers and as a result people were stoked for this film.

The Extremis storyline from the Iron Man comic books was used for this film. Not only did it introduce Extremis but also the long time evil organization A.I.M. (Advanced Idea Mechanics) from the comic books. But what audiences and comic book fans were actually looking forward to was the introduction of Iron Man's greatest enemy and arch-rival THE MANDARIN. It also changed War Machine into the Iron Patriot (a villain in the comic books believe it or not). But Ben Kingsley isn't Chinese... What's going on here?

The previous two films in the Iron Man series laid subtle hints and set the groundwork for the eventual introduction of the Mandarin. Wisely Marvel thought to save the biggest and baddest of all Iron Man's enemies for last. Well, all that prepwork for the Mandarin became a massive waste of time once this movie was released. In a shocking plot twist (which I didn't see coming) halfway through the movie we find out that the Mandarin is a complete sham, an actor playing the role, an invention of A.I.M. to mess with Tony.

As a result of this one is left after the film with mixed feelings. The actors do a superb job. There are some great jokes and action set pieces in the film plus a wonderful hero moment for Tony. The Extremis story was handled well, better than it was executed in the comic books (an example of Marvel improving upon one of their stories). The Mandarin however feels like a massive misstep. Initially it works but when you look at the Iron Man films as a whole its a huge plot hole and a massive misuse of the character. Then there's Pepper Pots... So, she knows kung fu now? Could've done without that.

After having seen everything come together in Avengers you'd expect some kind of connectivity in this film as well, right? The previous Iron Man films featured SHIELD quite heavily including Nick Fury and Black Widow. At the end of Avengers we see Tony and Bruce Banner leaving together. So naturally you'd expect some recognition of the other heroes in this movie. Nope. SHIELD is only mentioned once briefly in passing. Barely is there even a mention of the other heroes. No Nick Fury either. And when we finally get another hero it's in the end credits scene and it's a joke. ...So... What gives? As a result the film feels closed off, the opposite of every other film in the MCU. Huge plot holes result from this like "where the hell was SHIELD during all these terrorist attacks?" and "where is Captain America when America is being threatened on such a large scale?" Plot holes plot holes plot holes. I get that this film was trying to be its own but after six films doing just the opposite of that it feels like a giant step backwards. I get that these heroes are off doing their own things and can't always help their fellow Avengers but you have to at least acknowledge the others. I thought that was the whole point of this combined universe?

While enjoyable, for the most part the film falls into action movie cliches over and over again, many of these pitfalls being elements of director Shane Black's own creation back in the 1980's. It's like he combined his favorite parts of the Lethal Weapon franchise with those of super heroes. And then the film ends with a completely ludicrous scene of Pepper Pots defeating the main badguy Aldrich Killian. And then Tony's story is completed, he gets rid of the arc reactor in his chest and destroys all his armors. The End. Wow, okay... so now what? At first I was happy with the film and then as time went on and everything began sinking in, my feelings towards it grew worse and worse and worse. And to top it all off nothing from this movie adds anything to the greater MCU. Hell, even Avengers 2 didn't acknowledge a single thing from this film. Is that a fault of Avengers 2 or Marvel admitting IM3 was a misstep?

Overall Ranking: 5 out of 10

This movie feels like one big ego trip for director Shane Black and if you listen to the commentary track of the film it hammers that feeling home. Speaking of hammers...

THOR: THE DARK WORLD

Released November 8th 2013

Box Office Gross: $206 million

Directed by Alan Taylor (who's most recent film was this summer's Terminator Genisys), Thor: The Dark World capitalizes of what was only briefly touched on by the first film. We see more of Asgard. We see more of the Nine Realms. More action. More of the greater Marvel Universe. The first Thor film was very much a coming of age story, a young arrogant Thor learns what it means to care for others and fight for something besides himself. He learns what it means to be a hero. In this film that character growth is furthered as Thor fights for all the nine realms learning what it means to be a king.

The only fallout from Avengers that we saw in Iron Man 3 was Tony having PTSD. Avengers was barely acknowledged in IM3. Thor 2 feels like a proper sequel to Avengers whereas we open the film with Loki's trial in Asgard for what he had done in Avengers. Also we see the aftermath of the Tesseract's mind control of Erik Selvig and how it has effected him. And the story of the Tesseract is further explored with Odin introducing us to the Infinity Stones. The problem of having an expanded universe with other heroes is dealt with quite nicely in this film. Most of the story takes place off Earth and the action that does take place on Earth is brief and in London, an ocean away from the rest of the Avengers. Taking all these things into account, the film fits beautifully into the expanded MCU.

Loki plays a huge part in this movie, especially in the second half. The interactions and dialog between him and Thor are wonderful. You really do believe they're brothers. In fact every scene with Loki is amazing. Tom Hiddleston is a major highlight of the film. What's even more amazing is after being a treacherous wretch in the last two films, by the end of this one you come to care for Loki and even tear up at his "death scene." That's a huge credit to this film and one of the aspects that gives this film so much rewatchability.

Regrettably the film is not perfect. One of the major problems with the first film was that there were so many great side characters and not nearly enough time spent hanging out with them. The Warriors Three, Lady Sif, Heimdall, and Frigga are here again thankfully. Frigga and Heimdall are explored more and given more screen time which is great. But sadly the Warriors Three and Sif are still only here in passing it seems. But seriously, Thor comes with a lot of supporting characters. The movie would have to be nearly 3 hours long to give them all the screen time they need (hint hint Marvel, it's okay to make a 3 hour movie every now and then. Please make Thor 3 three hours long).

This film is also a game changer. We didn't know the Tesseract was an Infinity Stone until this film. We didn't know there were any Infinity Gems at all in the MCU. And then Thor 2 comes along and blows our minds and the doors wide open by telling us there are Infinity Gems in the MCU and what's more that we've already seen two of them! The end credit scene of this film was literally a jaw dropper. We meet an Elder of the Universe in Benicio Del Toro and quite possibly Adam Warlock's cocoon.

There are so many great things about this film. The characters are written perfectly. The acting is wonderful. And the twist near the end of the film is still wicked awesome (the twist where Loki turns on Thor... or does he?)! The MCU is further explored and widened. If you can't tell, I love this movie. I came out of the theater feeling I had a new favorite Marvel film. And after two years the feeling has held strong. I rewatch this film more than Thor 1, Cap 1, and any of the Iron Mans. Bravo, Marvel! Bravo! I can't wait for Thor: Ragnarok!

Overall Ranking: 8 out of 10

I don't know why people don't like this movie more. Thor isn't even in my top ten favorite Marvel heroes and I still love this film.

CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER

Released April 4th 2014

Box Office Gross: $259 million

Now here's a sequel I wasn't looking forward too at all. The first Captain America film in my opinion is perhaps the weakest of all the Marvel Studios films. It felt like it had to be made just to set things up, not that anyone wanted to make it. Okay, I'm being a little harsh. There is a lot of good in the film but overall it felt like we were watching it just to get to Avengers. Anyway, Captain America (and his terrible costume from Avengers) felt like the weakest of all the characters in the MCU. All that was about to change...

Captain America: The Winter Soldier might just be the best super hero movie ever. It was completely unexpected and utterly fantastic. Regardless of what you may think of Iron Man 3, the Mandarin twist was 100% unexpected and shocking (despite being 100% wrong). The plot twist in Cap 2 was totally unexpected as well but one that is completely right. The entire world of the MCU is rocked! Thor 2 was a game changer on a universal level. Cap 2 is a game changer on an Earth level. SHIELD, what once was so interconnected with all the Avengers films, is no more. Holy crap!

The action in the film is down scaled to the level of Captain America, but that is what's so cool about it. Harsh, hard hitting, hand to hand fisticuffs! This is everything you've ever loved about Rambo, Jack Ryan, and all the other great action heroes of the 1980's and 90's. And that's the thing, this isn't a super hero movie in the way that we know them. This is a spy thriller! It's fresh and invigorating. It's the most serious and humorless of the Marvel films and that's one of the reasons why it's so great. The direction of the Russo Brothers is perfect.

There's plenty of character growth for Captain too. With Avengers we didn't really get to see him adjust to the 21st Century. Here it's thrust to the forefront. We get to see him deal with a world dramatically different from the one he left behind. Working for SHIELD he sees many things he doesn't agree with, secrets being kept from those who should be in the know. Friends not telling friends the whole story. He doesn't know who to trust. Captain America at first glance is a very black and white character and this movie thrusts him into a world of grays. It's a brilliant story and wonderfully executed. And since the crux of the plot is occurring within secret missions and with SHIELD itself you can totally buy that the other Avengers wouldn't know what was happening. It's all covert ops until the end climax.

The supporting cast is wonderful. I never thought I'd like Falcon, but now I like Falcon. Nick Fury is cool as always and Black Widow actually goes through some character development too. I loved seeing Batroc and Crossbones in the film. Arnim Zola was perhaps the most wonderful character to see in his computerized form. He mentions an algorithm he designed to target potential threats to HYDRA. A smart audience member will see this a huge reveal with tons of potential for future films with robotic adversaries (what I'm saying here is that this should have been what infected Ultron and made him go bad). The algorithm plot is totally convincing, totally believable, and totally forgotten by the time we get to Avengers: Age of Ultron... ughh.

And then there's the Winter Soldier himself. Mysterious, deadly, and scary. The Winter Soldier is played off perfectly in this film, even the musical ques for him are haunting. And with him I believed that our heroes, Cap, Black Widow, Nick Fury, and the others were in actual danger and could possibly die. That is a huge bravo to the filmmakers here as I felt none of that in Avengers 2. I can't rave enough about this film and how great it is. Honestly the movie may be too good because so far no other Marvel movie since has surpassed it. After Thor: The Dark World I thought I had a new favorite Marvel film. I thought the same thing six months later after watching Captain America: The Winter Soldier.

Overall Ranking: 8 out of 10

Pure gold. One of the best super hero films ever made, because it's not a super hero film. It's a reinvention of the genre and a total game changer.

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY

Released August 1st 2014

Box Office Gross: $333 million

Of all the comics in the Marvel Universe, Keith Giffen, Dan Abnett, and Andy Lanning's cosmic saga from 2006 to 2010 is one of my favorite sections in all comicdom. Among that saga was the reinvention of the Guardians of the Galaxy. That comic holds a very special place in my heart and has forever changed my view of comic books. As a result I was extremely excited for the Guardians of the Galaxy movie and simultaneously filled with trepidation. The Guardians are so unique and different, there's no way that the filmmakers could get it right.

Drax Concept Art

Well, they got it half right. Marvel continued making super hero movies disguised as something else, in this case an outer space science fiction epic a la Star Wars. They completely embraced the sci fi aspect of the story and left Earth behind. This was a wonderful choice. Overall I feel the filmmakers did what they had to do to get this amazing franchise established and accepted by the world at large. Some of what really made this comic and these characters special is lost but overall its essence is there.

Concept Art of Nebula & Gamora

Guardians is loaded to the teeth with humor. I assume the filmmakers thought they needed to go heavy on the humor because of the unusual subject matter. In their defense it worked and the film was incredibly successful exceeding everyone's expectations. But we all know that financial success doesn't necessarily mean good quality. I feel the humor helped establish the movie franchise but will ultimately hurt the film's longevity. Some characters too are spot on translations from the comic while others are barely recognizable from their comic book counterparts.

Concept Art of Nebula & Gamora

All in all the movie left me with mixed feelings. I'm happy that these characters have been featured in a feature film but I have some serious reservations for their future prospects. To be truthful the movie is one of the better films of Phase Two but definitely not the highlight. The more I watch the film the more the disappointment from my initial viewing creeps back in. I see missed opportunity and drab characters. I'm sorry, Marvel, but the buzz is wearing off and now I feel the annoying hangover creeping closer.

Click here for my full review of Guardians of the Galaxy

Overall Ranking: 7 out of 10

Sadly the more I watch this film the more I seem to be dissatisfied with it. It see paper characters and the humor eventually loses its novelty. I firmly feel that the longevity and integrity of this film is reliant heavily on what Marvel does with the second Guardians film. Don't let me down, Marvel.

AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON

Released May 1st 2015

Box Office Gross: $459 million

My anticipation and expectations for this film were extremely high. Now I feel it was impossible to live up to the first film (unless you sold your soul to Mephisto himself). The film was shorter than the last Avengers and had way more characters and plot to deliver. The film felt less dire and more humorous. Due to the success of the comedy heavy Guardians of the Galaxy, Marvel loaded up Avengers 2 with humor. Here the humor only detracts from the film.

Still, the film has grossed a ton of money and by a financial point of view has become a tremendous success (the second highest grossing Marvel film of all time). Still, the movie leaves much to be desired. Maybe it's because a few of the previous films were so good that this one feels disappointing by comparison. Lots of wasted actors and missing character moments. And where was Arnim Zola's algorithm? Right there was a bit of set up already done for you but you didn't use it. The movie even starts off inside a Hydra base, c'mon!

Click here for my full review of Avengers: Age of Ultron

Overall Ranking: 6 out of 10

In retrospect this movie was destined to disappoint. Expectations were too high and what was so fantastic about the first Avengers was something that cannot be repeated. The only thing that could've saved the film was if Marvel would've sucked it up and made the film 3 hours long. What this movie needed most was more time.

ANT-MAN

Released July 17th 2015

Box Office Gross: $180 million

Here's a movie I can't say enough good things about. Continuing to reinvent the super hero genre Marvel Studios gives us a heist film rather than a common variety super hero movie. I feel like I did when I first watched Iron Man 1 or Thor 1. I feel like a kid watching this movie, the joy of seeing something astonishing for the first time, a feeling I didn't think I'd get again with super hero movies. This movie had everyone thinking it was going to be Marvel Studio's first failure. Instead it is one of the highlights of Phase Two and a remarkable feather in their cap (feather... Cap... Falcon... hey, I just got that).

And it fits into the greater Marvel Cinematic Universe so well. The appearance by Falcon, Agent Carter, and Howard Stark are wonderful. This film simultaneously pushes the MCU forward while deepening its history. We learned that there were super heroes before Iron Man and after Captain America. The film shows us exactly how much potential there is in a character like Ant-Man and just how great a super hero he can be. Personally I want a movie about Ant-Man in the 1980's starring Michael Douglas and featuring Wasp. Speaking of the Wasp, I thought they handled her and Hank Pym's characters very well, extremely well in fact. Evangeline Lilly and Michael Douglas are amazing in the film. And of course Paul Rudd is the perfect Scott Lang!

It even shows us a whole other corner of the Marvel Universe, the Quantum Realm or better known as the Microverse. The filmmakers leave us satisfied with a wonderful story while chomping at the bit for more Ant-Man! There is no sequel for this film in the works for the next five years but in less than a year we will get another film with the character. That's right, Ant-Man is going to appear in 2016 in Captain America: Civil War! 

Click here for my full review of Ant-Man

Overall Ranking: 7 out of 10

I was blown away by how well this film was done. It didn't have the "Oh my God, this is my new favorite!" feeling, but it is one of the best entries in all of Phase Two! Marvel, I applaud you once again.

And there you have it! The line up for Marvel's Phase Two. And now my ranking of the best and the worst staring with the worst:

*note: Again these are my opinions and not absolutes. I actually like all of these movies and think they are all good films.

THE WORST
#6

#5

#4

#3

#2

#1

 THE BEST

Well, do you agree? No? Leave comments below and give me your lists of the Best and the Worst of Marvel Studios' Phase Two!

And here's to a wonderful PHASE THREE!!!