MCU: Here’s What Went Wrong in Phase 4

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by Anna Munhin Nov 26, 2022 News
MCU: Here’s What Went Wrong in Phase 4

The majority of fans know that the Marvel Cinematic Universe has had a rough time recently. The films and Disney+ series have not put forth the best quality since the beginning of Phase 4. One of the films in the franchise got a B and the other a B, according to Cinemascore. Eternals was the first rotten film in the MCU and only managed to get a 34% approval rating. The numbers show that the MCU is not in good shape. DC's competition has had a better track record with the release of the Justice League cut and The Batman being a better film than people were expecting. The MCU was at a disadvantage during this phase.

It's understandable why some films weren't reaching the billion-dollar numbers others previously had, as the MCU films in Phase 4 were mostly doing well. Eternals is one of the lowest box office totals for the MCU, making only $164 million in the US. The MCU is having to rely on its past praise to get people to see it. What did the MCU do to make this happen? There are five things that hurt the project.

Quantity Over Quality

Thor: Love and Thunder - Natalie Portman
Marvel Studios

Overexertion is one of the more obvious issues that can arise when creating multiple films in a franchise within a short amount of time. Between the new series on Disney+ and the movies coming out in theaters, there was not enough quality control at the Disney offices It shows with their output.

We went from about 11 movies within a phase to multiple movies a year in addition to TV shows and now a special presentation film for a streaming giant. Something is going to turn out not as good as the other things. The lackluster visuals were a sign that the franchise's VFX teams were too busy and faced with impossible deadlines to meet the planned output. It was during The Infinity Saga that quantity over quality made each release feel like an event.

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Marvel Studios

The poorly received Phase 4 was probably caused by COVID-19. Changes had to be made to meet safety guidelines. The overall feeling of the phase was messed up because shows and movies had to be delayed. The production of The Falcon and Winter Solder was delayed due to the need to change the villains in order to fit in with the new world. WandaVision's finale felt rushed and open-ended due to the fact that it had to pivot from an initially planned 10-episode arcs.

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Marvel Studios

It was always going to be a problem for the MCU after the movie. You have to start from the bottom with new characters that people can connect to. If new characters can't live up to expectations, they will fail. Many have been critical of characters like America Chavez in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness or Riri Williams, also known as Ironheart. America is criticized for being "surprisingly passive for long stretches of the film" in which the character is given very little to do, and very little is achieved overall with her character beyond her being a plot device for the film to get the avengers Many fans of the character have been excited to see it brought to life.

eternals-chloe-zhao
Marvel Studios / Disney

Eternals was the first time that Marvel really started to experiment with their formula and do something truly unique and different, but there were other projects that were the same way. It could be WandaVision or Moon Knight. The stories didn't go as far as they could have. Moon Knight and WandaVision gave up on their original ideas for big action set pieces in order to fit with the franchise. This is something that She-Hulk: Attorney at Law criticized, which could mean a change going forward. A lot of Phase 4 movies and TV series feel like cookie-cutters because of the MCU formula.

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Marvel Studios

The issue of quantity over quality is what this is about. It was already known that Feige didn't pay much attention to the marketing of Doctor Strange 2. Even though Feige has full control of the franchise, there is too much content for him. Some of it won't get the time it needs to be an excellent product. The pre-production of the Blade remake was halted due to creative differences and Feige not being present in its development. Will P 5 be enough to help boost the MCU or will they keep going down? It may be difficult to tell at the moment.