The proposed column, if we can call it that, is titled Marvel Mondays. Let’s see just how many that’s going to be.

Less, now; checking my notes, I first had the idea for Marvel Mondays back in February. That certainly would have been a more comprehensive look at the MCU, and actually I’m kind of glad I kicked that can month after month, because even though I like Marvel well enough (at least when the ask is only 3-4 movie tickets a year) I don’t know that I want to write that much about capes. Doomsday will premiere on 18 Dec and [*checking calendar*] hm. That’ll still be half a year. 26 Mondays between now and then.

There’s certainly enough source material — somewhere between 35 and 70 “official” movies, depending on how you want to count the various takes on the Fantastic Four and all the X-Men (once outside direct Diz control but since purchased along with Fox) and of course the Sony Spiders. Reddit, being Reddit, has a thread offering a multitude of takes, whether you want ‘official’ or not or Disney+-TV-show-inclusive or not — or diagetic chronological, or movie release order.

I’m not exactly up for tackling a full rewatch of seven seasons of Agents of SHIELD,¹ to cite one of the more peripheral works, though the 12 episodes of Loki (besides totally being worth a rewatch) are probably a bit more central to whatever multiversal shenanigans gives us a RDJ Doom to start with. Also it’s hard to skip Phase 1 though I kind of want to skip Phase 1² and even in the Big Team-Up Avengers Movies, not everyone is a starter, you know what I mean? Some capes could have stayed on the bench.³

I don’t really want to dig for Doomsday spoilers to see which parts of the MCU are going to be relevant, so we’ll have to make educated guesses. I also don’t want this to break down, stop being fun, and become just a homework assignment, so we’ll visit with some favorites in the MCU even if they aren’t going to be Doom-relevant.⁴

Let’s consider some big blocks. What the columns might actually cover.

• Captain America: The First Avenger, Agent Carter, & What If…
• Winter Soldier, Civil War, Black Widow
• Ant-Man, Ant-Man and the Wasp, and (with regret) Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania
• Comedy and Capes: Guardians, Ragnarok, Love & Thunder, Deadpool.
• Infinity War & Endgame
• The MCU Spidey⁵
• The Sony Spiders⁶
• The Netflix Diversion⁷
• Ultron. Eternals. Inhumans. Dancing around the X-men.
• OK, fine: Let’s talk about X-Men. [X-Men, X2, Last Stand]
• Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings⁸
• Loki and the TVA
• The other time travel movie: First Class & Future Past
• Doctor Strange, Spider-Man: No Way Home, & Multiverse of Madness
• Capt. Marvel & Miss Marvel & The Marvels
• Not Quite Captain America: Brave New World & Thunderbolts*
• OK, fine: Let’s talk about Agents of SHIELD
• Revisiting Iron Man: Back to where we started
• The Fantastic Four: First Steps
• Wanda Vision & VisionQuest⁹

There are other corners I’d love to revisit, like Moon Knight, and there’s enough slack in the schedule that I might just do that. And some of the topics I’ve listed above might have to be split into two parts (or might demand a sequel). This isn’t a promise, or a contract¹⁰, but is the current plan. We’ll have to wait and see how much I actually have to say about Marvel. [/mblind]

..

¹ I tapped out at the end of season 4 when it was first airing; I suppose I should get around to the rest someday but other that a rewatch of the Ghostrider arc, I’m not feeling it, ya know?

² Iron Man in 2008 was 18 years ago; Avengers (the first one), six films and just 4 years after that. We’ve had a long time with those particular films and those versions of these heroes. Here: Overly Sarcastic Productions – Detail Diatribe: The Lost Art of Marvel’s Phase 1 [1hr43min]. Better than I can do it and probably not the last time we’ll cite a take from Red & Blue

³ I’m not saying the Guardians of the Galaxy don’t really belong in an Avengers movie but they had to bend over backward and tie Thanos directly into those films (& two main GotG characters) to get that inclusion to work. It could have been more of a Captain Marvel thing, is what I’m saying.

⁴ especially if they aren’t relevant.

⁵ Tom Holland, basically. His Spidey is more than just behind-the-scenes studio negotiations but we’ll cover what’s on screen and just a little bit of that Sony-Disney dance.

⁶ basically an excuse to watch the rest, including the two Miles outings. And make fun of Morbius and Madame Web. why not.

⁷ I CAN’T cover all the seasons but we’ll talk about “street-level” Marvel, the crossovers and about Matt, who seems to be Disney’s Favorite Defender.

⁸ I think we need to go back and re-watch this one (or watch it) and find the place for it.

⁹ Can’t cover VisionQuest until December

¹⁰ totally non-binding, not enforceable