2021 MCU Output Ranked
The year 2021 has been, quite possibly, the most productive year in Marvel’s Cinematic Universe. With four movies and five shows, there was hardly a shortage of Marvel content to enjoy. But how do they rank? Here’s MY rankings! And remember, this is OPINION!
WORST: Black Widow
In the year 2010, we were introduced to Scarlett Johanson’s Black Widow, and since then we’ve seen her kick all sorts of ass. Ever since her STRONG presence in 2013’s Captain America: The Winter Soldier, fans have been clamoring for a stand-alone Black Widow movie. In 2021, we finally got that movie…
TWO YEARS AFTER THE CHARACTER DIED IN ENDGAME!!! What the hell!?
All throughout the movie, I felt as though this was Marvel/Disney going “yeah, we’ll give them what they wanted” long after we stopped asking for it. It’s like receiving a Christmas present in April; the spirit of the holiday is just long gone! This gift you’re giving me is devoid of all jollyness!
And the villain? HAH! What a waste! Seriously, that had to be the WORST MCU villain since Kaecilius from Doctor Strange! TERRIBLE!
But the movie isn’t without virtues; ScarJo’s Natasha is always a joy to watch, David Harbour and Rachel Wisz gave strong supporting performances, but it was Florence Pugh’s Yelena Belova who stole the show! A Yelena Belova movie, please!
In the end: Too little too late, but better late than never.
8- What If…?
What If…? is a series that showcases alternate realities of the MCU based on small, seemingly insignificant changes. This concept alone easily gives the writers enough material for five to six seasons of the show, based on the Phases 1 to 3 movies alone. If you add the Phase 4 movies and shows, PLUS the Marvel Television shows that have been confirmed canon… hoo boy, we might be talking twenty seasons, MINIMUM!
The show’s greatest strength, however, is also its weakness: each episode attempts to tell a Marvel Movie story in 21 minutes. This leads to stories being rushed beyond belief. Legitimately fascinating stories, like Killmonger becoming king of Wakanda, aren’t given the proper time to be fleshed out like they deserve. Other stories, like the Zombies episode, also feel underwhelmingly presented.
All in all: brilliant idea, but the execution needs work still.
7- The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan carry this show, let me just get that out of the way. Their on-screen chemistry is fantastic, and the characters of Sam and Bucky really play off each other marvelously. Add to that the character of John Walker, a fascinating guy who straddles the line between hero and jackass, and you’ve got a great ensemble show.
TOO BAD THE VILLAIN SUCKS! Seriously, Karli Morgenthau may well be one of the WORST MCU villains ever. She’s the leader of a terrorist group, but she has the charisma of wet paper. She also lacks any true physical presence, which MAY be blamed on her actress being so short (which is no dig against Erin Kellyman, who is otherwise a great actress.)
I think the worst part of it is that the show really falls into the same trap that Black Panther did: take a villain that has a legit point, and then do everything to make the villain’s personal character as repugnant as possible so that the heroes can present a milder, more Status-Quo Friendly version of their goals. Karli’s crusade for justice for those who’d had everything they gained during the Blip taken away was painted as the personal grudge of a girl who lost her mother figure.
The final word on this show is: great heroes, lackluster villain.
6-Loki
Loki was the kind of show that had you glued to your seat from start to finish, counting every day, every hour, every MINUTE till the next episode. It started strong, and it ended stronger! A great cast, a fantastic plot, an unforgettable cast of characters…
…except that they ALL outshine our title character! Seriously, it felt as though Loki himself barely got to do anything in his own show! There were times when Loki was treated more as a side character, and that the REAL main character of the show was Sylvie!
But god DAMN did that finale service! And let’s give it up to Johnathan Majors, who only had ONE episode to sell us on Kang the Conqueror being a threat, and he passed with FLYING COLORS!
Final word: Everyone BUT the title character rocked.
5- Eternals
The MCU continues its proud tradition of taking C-List comics fodder and turning them into multimillion dollar money printers. The Eternals had EVERYTHING going against it, starring characters nobody but Marvel fans had ever heard of before, starring a sizeable cast, in a two and a half hour movie. Had this movie come out at ANY OTHER DECADE, it would have flopped hard.
That said, the movie has two major faults. First off, it devotes so long to exploring its sizeable cast, that the film feels sluggishly slow. Second, because the film ONLY has two and a half hours of running time, there’s always this need to rush through EVERYTHING so that the movie could get to the action parts.
Eternals is the kind of project that would have benefitted far, FAR more from being a Disney+ original series. Six forty minute episodes would certainly have allowed for better paced story telling.
My final thoughts: An Avengers-style movie that shouldn’t have tried to be a movie.
4- Hawkeye
Though as of this writing the show is yet to air its final episode, Hawkeye has been nothing but a joy to watch from Episode 1. It’s a Buddy Show. It’s a Redemption Story. It’s the tale of a man trying to ensure his past doesn’t hurt his present anymore. It’s the story of a young girl getting to help her hero, becoming something of a sidekick. It’s so many things at once.
Jeremy Renner and Hailee Steinfeld make quite the duo on-screen, and honestly it’s SUCH a joy to watch Steinfeld’s Kate Bishop grow to become a more competent heroic figure. Her growth is a breath of fresh air in this day and age, where too many female hero characters just start off amazing and so they often have to deal with baloney storylines dealing with an unearned Impostor Syndrome (looking at you, Rey Skywalker).
All in all, I have little else to say! This show’s awesome!
3- WandaVision
What started off as a simple homage to classic sitcoms soon evolved into one of the best mystery series of 2021, and quite possibly one of, if not THE best show of the year.
Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany really gave it their A-Game, making us believe that this really was a sitcom-inspired interpretation of our favorite Avengers couple. A special round of applause has to go to Liz Olsen herself, who really showed a great range of emotions as Wanda Maximoff.
But let’s be honest here: it was Catherine Han’s Agatha Harkness that stole the show! And who DIDN’T vibe with her theme song, “Agatha all Along?” I still look it up on YouTube now and then, because it’s a banger!
The last word: the BEST MCU show, notwithstanding our exceedingly high expectations for that final episode.
2- Spider-Man: No Way Home
Not only am I not afraid to call this the BEST MCU Spider-Man film, but I can safely consider it one of the best Spider-Man films of all time. No ifs, ands, or buts about it.
I don’t wanna say too much more, since as of this writing it’s still in theaters, but I can say this: Expectations were not only met, they were exceeded. BRAVO!!!
BEST- Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
A martial arts movie mixed with high fantasy and the Superhero genre, that’s Shang-Chi.
The reason I say Shang-Chi was the BEST Marvel project of the year is because the movie was pretty much the MCU doing what it does best: take a C-List tier comic book character and elevate it to a larger than life, big screen hero. We’ve seen it happen with the Guardians of the Galaxy, Doctor Strange, Captain Marvel, and now we saw it again with Shang-Chi.
But more than that, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is, at its core, a fun martial arts movie with plenty of heart. The action is amazing and well choreographed, the cast of characters is superb, and Xu Wenwu has quickly become one of my all-time favorite MCU villains! And the character of Shang-Chi himself? FANTASTIC! I went in knowing little about the comic book, and I came out wanting to learn more about him! THAT is how good the movie was!
All in all, I consider Shang-Chi a great movie. I fucking loved it, and would eagerly recommend it to anyone!
