When did the mcu feel truly special to you

I’ve been thinking about the MCU lately and how, at its best, it really felt like something new and exciting. Those moments where the build up paid off and everything connected are hard to forget.

When did the MCU really feel special to you? Was it a specific movie, post-credit scene, or big crossover moment?

Also, do you still feel excited about where the MCU is going, or do you mostly revisit the older phases now?

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Commentaires

FewWatermelonlesson02026-01-13 07:19

Opening weekend of Black Panther is still one of my favorite theater experiences.

WildMongoose62062026-01-13 08:00

Black panther was such a good movie.

RyansKi2026-01-13 07:21

I think the hype for me started from Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Idk everything just seemed on such a good streak after that, always hyped and couldn't wait for the next release.

I don't even keep up with anything anymore, don't rush to trailers. Not seen the last couple of films in cinema when I would go to midnight releases before (when they done them). I will see Doomsday in the cinema, if its rubbish probably lost me for a long long time.

eyebrows3602026-01-13 12:17

> don't rush to trailers

You have an opportunity to do a rush to the one that's dropping [on here in exactly 2 hours 43 minutes](https://www.youtube.com/@marvel/videos) if you want.

Heavy-Comment-25862026-01-13 07:23

2014. The Winter Soldier is still my favorite cmb film to this day and then to follow that up with something as daring as Guardians and sticking the landing? I mean, c'mon!

eyebrows3602026-01-13 12:16

> cmb film

CoMicBook Film? Comic Movie Book Film? Comicbook Movie... Book... Film?

WildMongoose62062026-01-13 07:25

For me it all started after watching captain america the first avenger movie back at home, and it was such a good movie because of its simplicity. This is when I became a marvel fan and steve rogers became my favourite character. Ever since then I have been watching all the mcu movies and some shows until now either in disney plus or in theatre. I will never forget that day.

akgiant2026-01-13 07:26

Right around the credits of Captain America. I remember talking with friends as we walked out saying, "Man if they can pull off Avengers it's gonna be a whole new ballgame when it comes to Super Hero movies."

Smooth-Mix-43572026-01-13 07:28

Infinity War. It was the first time I came across a villain who didn't seem power hungry or generic or full of nothing but malice. Basically the first time I witnessed a villain portrayed as a grey character with some good sides. Thanos stole the show and instantly became my favourite Marvel character. It changed my perceptions of villains always being pure evil.

No Way Home. I didn't think it was possible but it somehow was. Perhaps the time when I realised MCU got the resources to make anything possible.

I had watched the MCU as early as The Avengers (no I didn't watch every MCU film after that when they released but did watch some of them) but these two were it.

Burningbeard6962026-01-13 07:33

The Avengers was the first time I felt they truly knocked it out of the park and produced a movie that was truly awesome.

sanddragon9392026-01-13 07:42

Yeah.

People forget that the early MCU, other than Iron Man, wasn't really mindblowing. It was all basically a prelude to Avengers, so if Avengers bombed it would have been all for nothing.

Avid_Vacuous2026-01-13 08:18

Even after Avengers, there was a lot of underwhelming movies. Iron Man 3, Thor 2, even Age of Ultron wasn't very mindblowing. It wasn't until The Winter Soldier came out that it became consistently good for a while.

navenager2026-01-13 08:20

Iron Man 3 is an awesome movie. I've never understood the hate.

BiddyKing2026-01-13 09:09

Legit. Great movie. Was in my top 5 MCU films forever but I think GotG3 finally kicked it out

eyebrows3602026-01-13 12:14

It's people still salty about the Mandarin switcheroo. Thing is, they've done enough since that, with both the fake actor Mandarin and the real Mandarin, that it's all retroactively justified as far as I can tell. Renders the switcheroo itself far less annoying.

MajorNoodles2026-01-13 15:05

The vast majority of criticism I witnessed was around how they handled the Mandarin. In my personal experience, people who didn't read the comics enjoyed the movie more than people who did.

I didn't read them so it didn't really bother me.

the_paradox02026-01-15 11:49

True, it was fun to me too

sanddragon9392026-01-13 08:27

Iron Man 3 made a billion and was generally a well-liked movie, other than among a small vocal section of the fanbase who hated on its take on the Mandarin, for some reason or the other.

Of course there were underwhelming movies post-Avengers. But The Avengers is when the MCU was cemented as the apex brand of pop-culture, with the power to drag even "lesser" films along in its wake. Something which the MCU lacks today.

Smooth-Mix-43572026-01-13 08:41

Phase 2 in general was a letdown outside of 2014 in terms of quality. Phase 3 was when the quality took off really.

BiddyKing2026-01-13 09:11

This is far from true. We can say Iron Man 3 was polarising but we still got Winter Soldier, Guardians of the Galaxy and Ant-Man, all films people will list in their top 5 mcu movies. The overall quality of Phase 2 exceeds Phase 1

Smooth-Mix-43572026-01-13 09:13

Outside of 2014 mate, did you miss that part?

Ant Man in top 5? Hmm not too sure about that

BiddyKing2026-01-13 10:14

lol I mean I still disagree. Ultron was also great even if some people act like it wasn’t

Smooth-Mix-43572026-01-13 10:17

you can like it, though personally not a big fan of Avengers 2

Front-Advantage-70352026-01-13 07:36

Thor which is why I love it so much. First time we got away from earth for any superhero film I’d seen prior and got to see what else was out there

sanddragon9392026-01-13 07:43

Thor did a *lot* of heavy lifting in terms of expanded the "grounded" world of Iron Man/Hulk into the cosmos, and laying the ground-work for the MCU as we know it today.

Remember, this was back when Christopher Nolan refused to introduce Robin to his grounded Batman universe *and* also refused to crossover with other DC properties.

an0m1n0us2026-01-13 07:38

Phase 2 and 3. not a dud among them.

bythewayne2026-01-13 07:39

2016/2017 I had watched all the iron man's. For civil War I caught with Cap, for Ragnarok I caught up with Thor.

Also the last two Spider-Man movies were special. I didn't connect with homecoming though.

PKMN_Trainer_Kitana2026-01-13 07:40

The first Avengers movie. That was the first of many MCU movie that truly felt like an event

sanddragon9392026-01-13 07:41

Honestly, the oner in The Avengers during the Battle of New York. That was when it *really* hit me that they'd pretty much brought the spirit of the comic-books - as envisioned by Lee, Kirby and co. back in the 60's - to life.

Plus-Ad10612026-01-13 07:41

Probably the first Avengers movie, because it was the first time anyone had ever done a crossover like that.

Honestly, from the end credit scenes in Hulk, Iron Man, and Thor, it was already pretty exciting how clear it was that they had some vision of a shared universe. I think people forget that it was a shock when that happened. RDJ walking into the end of Incredible Hulk was unheard of at the time.

This goes back to my overall thoughts about the MCU, and the complaints about some of the shows or later movies. *The MCU IS COMPLETELY UNPRECEDENTED*. There’s nothing even close to it, and we have to remember to appreciate that.

What other franchise has this many interconnected films? James Bond has almost as many films, but no cohesive story. The Middle Earth films? Maybe, but there are six of them, by one director. In all seriousness, the best I can come up with is the Fast and Furious series, and it’s nowhere near as good, or vast, or imaginative.

The Eternals may not have been to everyone’s taste, but by God , it wasn’t fucking Moonraker.

eyebrows3602026-01-13 12:19

> because it was the first time anyone had ever done a crossover like that

The chatter and speculation beforehand about "how are they going to pull off 6 main characters?" haha, how little we knew!

LiberalOverlord2026-01-13 07:45

Captain America civil war. The hype seeing it in the cinema at midnight was something else.

Mcspeed1232026-01-13 07:46

I remember when Thor stuck the landing,I was like oh sh$t,they may have actually cracked this.The MCU (still does) had a way of condensing all this dense story material into a nice true to form but palatable movie for audiences and then compare that to 2011 Green Lantern,basically DCs Thor and it didnt stick the landing,I was like ooooh theyve got the magic sauce.Thats just one instance of this

Any-Transition952026-01-13 07:48

WandaVision for me, during the pandemic lockdown. Before that, I didn't really run in circles that cared about the MCU, most of my friends only saw it as just another blockbuster franchise like Transformers. It wasn't until I started rewatching the whole run again that gave me a new found appreciation for the whole franchise.

Monsieur-2472026-01-15 04:00

I enjoyed the MCU anyway, but never thought it was deep. Then I was blown away many times watching the storyline of Wanda’s grief, from Avengers Ultron through to Multiverse of Madness, with WandaVision as a central chapter. It is such a touching, human, emotionally-realistic story. Really beautiful, tragic storytelling.

Bullstang2026-01-13 07:53

When I daydreamed and schemed up what future plot lines could be. Now I just catch the movie

Methylobacterium2026-01-13 07:53

Iron Man. More specifically, the post credits scene with Nick Fury.

ShookMyHeadAndSmiled2026-01-13 07:57

For those of us who remember the Dark Times, long before Superman: The Movie, just learning that Iron Man was in production was unreal. I kept hearing him referred to as obscure and third-rate, but any comics reader can tell you he's as much the backbone and connective tissue of Marvel comics as he is for the movies. He pays for everything and makes everything cooler.

In those benighted times the best we could do was Eddie's Father trying not to get angry and Cap's motorcycle helmet. Honestly, George Reeves was better than the Doctor Strange pilot movie.

I get so tired of hearing how bad this or that Marvel/DC flick is, though some of them are. That doesn't mean we're not in the Golden Age of superhero movies. They're better than they've ever been, and I'm grateful for each one.

Not only do I pay to see every one, I go on opening weekend. I do that so they make as much money as possible and may continue to be produced. This will end someday.

CaptHayfever2026-01-13 08:10

I never watched Courtship of Eddie's Father; that was Bixby!?
(I *have*, however, watched the 5 Bixby Hulk telefilms, & I like those.)

KalelRChase2026-01-13 14:09

Check out My Favorite Martian.

CaptHayfever2026-01-13 14:44

I *did* see some of that one.

DerekPaxton2026-01-13 08:46

You are right. I went back to watch Tim burtons Batman, which was cool at the time, and it’s unwatchable now.

Big kudos to Nolan for making the gritty Batman movies. The really paved the way for superhero movies to be accepted by a wider audience.

MajorNoodles2026-01-13 15:11

I never thought he was obscure. When I was a kid, I remember exactly 4 Marvel superheros having their own cartoons. Spider-man, Fantastic Four, X-Men...and Iron Man.

I know there were others. But those are the only 4 I clearly remember.

spidervenom6192026-01-13 17:12

It's not the fact that he was "Obscure" that was the issue, Tony's biggest issue is that nobody cared for him due to how bad his character was written until RDJ's comes and save the day for him in 2008.

Prior to Iron Man 1, Tony's Character was that he was a massive prick that he always think he was right and he had like zero humor. Freaking Steve Rogers of all people was more funny then Tony was and that should be considered a crime lol.

Arrgie-Barrgie2026-01-13 08:04

Ultron and Civil war

TDStarchild2026-01-13 08:06

Shared universes and crossovers are so common now, yet still so novel for 2012 Avengers. It was a huge idea to combine film franchises like that at the time. Iron Man was a big deal, but Avengers was next level

People always speculated, but the only real mainstream examples we had were stuff like Freddy vs Jason or Alien vs Predator

Then Infinity War/Endgame kicked it up more notches. They’re legitimately on the short list of most hyped films in my lifetime, maybe behind only The Phantom Menace

xXKingDadXx2026-01-13 08:07

For me personally it started at Iron Man 1, but man that first circle group shot of the Avengers in New York and Captain America giving orders perfectly to fit each characters strengths was pure cinema.

JolyneBestoJoJo7702026-01-13 08:18

Age of Ultron, lmo. First MCU movie I actually watched in theaters.

Though Pietro's death pissed me off as a kid... And still pisses me off now.

CharlieEternal6162026-01-13 08:18

I joined the mcu pretty late, I had never paid attention to it but Black Panther caught my eye so I went to watch it - wanted to see more of him - did some research and found out about this thing called mcu and that Black Panther will be in Avengers movies. So I binged the entire mcu up to Black Panther in a weekend and became hooked. I guess coz I was new to it it felt new, exciting and special. I felt that way up until Multiverse of Madness, that sorta ruined everything for me.

Anyway I still watch some stuff if it has characters I like, but it's no longer that interconnected world that it used to be, it's lost the thing that made it special. It's now just a bunch of projects that are either pretty good or pretty awful - like Multiverse of Madness.

Avid_Vacuous2026-01-13 08:20

Phase 3

SuperKeith882026-01-13 08:25

The build-up to The Avengers actually happening after "Captain America" was quite a time to be alive for fans. That ecstatic energy that was gonna be released once every fan had seen it. And boy was it something truly special after I saw it on opening night.

I was not around to have seen "Superman: The Movie" in theaters in 1976 because I wasn't born yet. So "The Avengers" felt like that to me because I read Marvel Comics growing up. To see them all come together & in such a comic booky way really blew up the entire superhero movies landscape.

StrLord_Who2026-01-13 08:55

The end of Iron Man.

BiddyKing2026-01-13 09:07

Every Avengers film, and Civil War which some refer to as Avengers 2.5 with good reason. The magic of the cinematic universe came together in these moments, making this something we would never see replicated (as many studios tried and failed to start their own). And I attribute the failings of post-Endgame purely to the fact they stopped doing Avengers films at the end of each phase. Because the quality of the releases is still there (for the most part), but not having a periodic film to tie the disparate heroes and stories together has made it feel less special. But at least we’re finally getting another Avengers film end of this year. 7 years was too long a wait but better late than never

RentSpecial49972026-01-13 09:14

Seeing Iron Man in the theaters as a college freshman was an amazing experience.

TimelineKeeper2026-01-13 09:26

I've never actually been very big on Marvel before the MCU. Spider-Man was great, the first blade, too. The X-Men films were interesting, but they're so all over the place.

I've actually seen every marvel movie other than the first Captain America movie in theaters (I was moving between states and missed it, but watched it just before going to the first Avengers movie).

Sometime in 2014, between Winter Soldier, Guardians and Daredevil, with Jessica Jones' first incredible season is when I would say my hype really began. Ultron was a little underwhelming, but upon rewatch, it actually foreshadows so much and holds up really well. Otherwise, tho, I don't think I was really ever let down by anything they released until the What if series and Sexret Invasion.

Post Endgame feels like the series went from a story in which they built a coherent world, to a world where they set stories that feel less and less coherent to each other. Like I said, largely, I still enjoy the MCU, warts and all. But there are definitely warts. Optimistically, I'm hoping Doomsday and Secret Wars make me look back at these last few years like Ultron. Ultimately, tho, I really hope they don't reboot the series and just push on and get the ship back on course. Tell a story with a coherent world again.

puppychow182026-01-13 11:27

Phase 1: the build up to the team up in 2012; and then the second build up to beating Thanos in 2019.

carson630002026-01-13 11:40

First time I saw Iron Man in a suit of armour that wasn’t built in a cave, out of scraps. It knocked me back in my chair and made me think “*that* is a page from a comicbook, come to life.”

snowe992026-01-13 14:41

A smaller moment that doesn’t get mentioned much - when Sam’s Falcon showed up in Ant Man

It was kind of like the - “holy **** these guys can just pop up in each others movies? Outside of the Avengers??” moment that made the Universe feel super “real”

Norin_Radd12092026-01-13 15:00

When Thors Hammer was seen in the end credits of Iron Man 2.

Nev-man2026-01-13 15:18

The screenings of Iron Man, Avengers Assemble, Black Panther and Endgame all felt like some of the most truly special cinema experiences to me.

Quirky-Sky-4892026-01-13 16:05

"I am Ironman"

robertluke2026-01-13 16:18

Honestly Iron Man 2. We have black widow and Thor’s hammer. It felt like everyone could potentially meet finally. I honestly didn’t think it would succeed though. Like it might get a few movies in and then get left unfinished. Never thought we’d have anything on Endgame’s level.

Willow18832026-01-13 16:40

Honestly, for me, it was Iron Man. Hooked right off the rip. After that, probably Civil War—that was like an IW/Endgame teaser.

spidervenom6192026-01-13 17:09

Phase 3 Civil War,

Of Course The Winter Solider and Most of the TV shows were the started of it but from Civil War onwards, the MCU simply couldn't missed at all for me except for like two bad tv shows in Inhumans and Iron Fist Season 1 during Phase 3 and honesty most of Phase 4. It wasn't until Secret Invasion that twerp of a tv show that I first start to feel "This ain't working, something's wrong."

Even a film like Eternals my biggest issues with it is that it's too long for me personally.

rmeddy2026-01-13 17:15

Coming out of the first Guardians, that felt like the real tipping point, if they can get this to work, there is no stopping them.

Curious-Paramedic-392026-01-13 17:29

Winter soldier for me

Heisenburgo2026-01-13 18:08

I saw every film from the 2016 to 2019 time period in the theater with my family. Phase 3 felt so special to me, the way the universe evolved as they reached the climax of the Thanos storyline. Will never forget being 15 and watching Tony and Cap America fight, then being 17 and watching Thanos defeat the Avengers, you just HAD to be there. I guess that's how boomers felt with the OG Star Wars movies and all.

niicofrank2026-01-13 19:23

most of the answers here are not about the specific responses given but more that they came out when the person was younger and/or happier

Consistent-Annual2682026-01-13 19:43

Civil War. It's where I really felt the writers took all of the characterization from all the previous movies and asked our characters how they would naturally react in a given situation that had no straight answers.

It felt like the most mature evolution of the shared cinematic universe up to that point.

Slodes2026-01-13 19:47

A few moments come to mind:

\-The first time the OG Avengers united in a cinematic moment during the battle of New York

\-"It's not wise to keep two infinity stones so close" - Thor Dark World post credit scene

\-Airport battle during Civil War

\-The Snap

\-"On your left" (this would undoubtedly be top of this list)

OjamasOfTomorrow2026-01-13 22:53

Right now. It still does. I’ve loved pretty much everything they’ve made.

spaceraingame2026-01-13 23:36

When I saw Iron Man 1 in theaters

No_Abroad_63062026-01-14 01:59

The Avengers. I was taking the kids to the movies, messed up the time for our original planned film and decided to go see Avengers instead of going home. Walked out amazed and apologized to my husband for not bringing him along—I did not expect it to be that good. Instead of just whiling away an afternoon, Avengers launched us on an enjoyable family movie/tv journey.

God_Flow_102026-01-14 02:36

First Avengers movie in a packed theatre. Clinch up legolas! *entire theatre bursts into laughter

Left_Composer_64492026-01-14 06:03

On the first weekend of May 2012, my Dad wanted to take me to see Avengers in 3D, I wasn’t interested but I reluctantly agreed. I watched the movie and was completely blown away, that’s when I fell in love with the MCU. I thank my father for taking me to see Avengers on that day, if it wasn’t for him, I never would’ve been invested in these movies

knotsteve2026-01-14 19:52

I was all-in when Iron Man lived up to my expectations. I'm amazed at how long they were able to sustain the quality before inevitably giving in to the pressures of being a content factory.

In that first decade, the low points felt like growing pains, more than misfires.

I'm hopeful, but more for TV than movies. Blockbusters are a risky business now. The next two Avengers flicks feel more like a storm that the MCU needs to weather, a last chance to milk all of the Marvel franchises before they have to sell people on a new beginning.