Marvel Cinematic Universe

The MCU, a collection of movies and TV shows set across a shared narrative.

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

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D proved that the MCU could be bigger than film and continues to reinvent itself season after season whilst keeping its core as solid as ever. It had a rocky start, but once it hit pace it has continued to go from strength-to-strength.

Antman

Marvel's heist movie has some tonal flip-flops but lands on all six feet to make a very unlikely hero a comedic and heartfelt success, proving that size really doesn't matter.

Avengers Assemble

It's no small feat to weave together this many characters and somehow make them all feel equally relevant, interesting, and enjoyable to watch. Funny, action-packed, and just so much fun; the comic-book team up to beat when it was released and now just brilliantly packed with teases of everything that has come since.

Avengers: Age of Ultron

A minor blip that keeps getting stronger on rewatch, especially in the wider context of the MCU. Still, even for first-time viewers the action and spectacle of the original are well maintained and the introduction of yet further characters continues to impress.

Avengers: Endgame

After all these years, they stick the landing so damn well! An extremely fitting finale to the definitive superhero era and many of its main characters.

Avengers: Infinity War

Sublimely well balanced, a perfect culmination of all the varying plot threads across the MCU and a cross-over event that rivals the source material itself. Practically perfect!

Black Panther

A beautiful and iconic introduction to one of the more interesting MCU characters, with epic action and a plot that adds some much-needed real-world impact to the MCU.

Black Widow

A fun and distinctly different take on the MCU, providing a much-needed focus on one of its most important characters.

Captain America: Civil War

The Avengers movie that everyone wanted. Despite its flaws and plot holes, there's a lot of fun on offer here and some fantastic moments to Cap out (heh) a brilliant trilogy.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Marvel does espionage and does it extremely well. Who would have though that Captain America would be the trilogy that defined the early phase of Marvel movies.

Captain Marvel

Captain Marvel is played perfectly and looks set to be a fitting lead for the next generation of the MCU, even if some of the origin felt a little, well, unoriginal.

Daredevil

The first season is astounding, riveting, memorable, funny and utterly fantastic. The third almost lives up to that praise. The second has its moments. Overall, its an extremely solid take on the Man Without Fear and must-watch television for superhero fans.

Deadpool & Wolverine

The merc with a mouth meets the MCU... and immediately takes it by storm!

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

Visually beautiful and with some fun ideas, but whilst I struggle to find specific faults, it just never quite clicked.

Echo

A little disjointed, but still a rare Marvel moment that isn't all about the big explosions.

Eternals

Messy and far too overloaded, but with some nice moments and solid characters. Perhaps better as a TV series...

Falcon and the Winter Soldier

A decent fleshing out of two interesting characters from the MCU, with a solid ending and some powerful themes, yet ultimately let down by a lacklustre first half and a generally poor, rushed execution.

Guardians of the Galaxy

Perfection. A brilliant soundtrack, hilarious cast, and wonderful direction combine to make a superhero tour de force! Still makes me laugh hysterically, tear up occasionally, and love every damn minute – and I don't see that ever changing!

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

An almost worthy successor, with some excellent character development, yet another brilliant soundtrack, and a captivating story. Plus, it's utterly stunning to look at. Unfortunately, let down a little by some elements of the humour.

Hawkeye

An excellent, action packed, heartfelt introduction to some of the new generation of Avengers.

Jessica Jones

A dark and depressing look at addiction, abuse and guilt wrapped up in a surprisingly entertaining superhero show. The first season is astounding; the second struggles finding the light outside of its immense shadow.

Loki

One of the MCU's best characters stars in one of the MCU's best TV shows. A mind-melding adventure filled with twists, laughs, and mysteries.

Moon Knight

A little twisty at times and surprisingly lacking in action, but brilliantly portrayed and hugely enjoyable.

Ms Marvel

An epic adventure with pitch perfect casting, superb direction, and some truly inventive layered animation.

Quantumania

A visual feast with a solid story, some decent gags, and a surprisingly compelling introduction of the new Big Bad of the MCU.

Secret Invasion

A mess with some incredible actors and a few decent ideas, which ends on a slightly odd half cliffhanger.

Shang-Chi

Beautiful choreography and some stunning visuals elevate what is otherwise a fairly by-the-numbers Marvel outing, albeit a highly enjoyable one.

She-Hulk

Takes time to find its feet, and I can't help but feel that under all the humour is a grittier law show that would actually be kinda great, but by the end, I was really quite enjoying the dynamics. Plus, Tatiana Maslany is fantastic.

Spider-Man: Far From Home

A fun, grounded, and often charming take on Spider-Man that does a whole lot to also move the MCU forward. Top marks.

Spider-Man: Homecoming

The Spider-Man movie you've always wanted but never imagined you would get. Truly brilliant and a welcome addition to the MCU.

Spiderman: No Way Home

An excellent look into what makes Spiderman, Spiderman, whilst paying respect to the franchises that came before. Top marks all around.

The Defenders

So much action-packed goodness with a great plot and yet further fantastic performances from the central cast. Frankly, Netflix are beginning to rival their silver screen relatives in terms of deserved hype.

The Guardians of the Galaxy Christmas Special

Very, very weird, but not entirely awful.

The Marvels

Whilst Kamala decidedly steals the show – and some of the plot points are not overly explained – this is still a solid team up and a whole lot of fun.

The Punisher

The MCU's grimdark, broody antihero gets a definitive take thanks to Netflix and the excellent Joe Bernthal. Season one comes highly recommended.

Thor

An enjoyable introduction to the Asgardian arm of the MCU, with some great world-building and fun dialogue. Not the best plot but an entertaining ride throughout.

Thor: Ragnarok

An extremely fun, vibrant and action-packed ride that lacks emotional depth. Easily the best Thor film but not quite worthy of inclusion in the MCU's greatest hits.

Thor: The Dark World

The black sheep in the MCU family but still a fun enough ride, despite some irritating human characters and flat humour.

Wakanda Forever

A little overloaded, but they did well to balance the legacy of the first film and the future of the franchise.

Wandavision

A refreshingly original opening half, with some excellent character arcs and depth, but a little let down by a more cookie-cutter superhero finale.

What If..?

A wonderful collection of ideas with some surprisingly dark moments and a finale that was much more interesting than I'd ever have guessed.