With Iron Man kicking off Phase 1 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe in 2008, countless superheroes began to find brand new life as they were pulled from print and brought to life on the big screen. For more than a decade, die-hard comic book fans, as well as casual moviegoers, would be in awe seeing heroic characters achieve tremendous feats in movie theaters around the world. An exhilarating conclusion then came in Phase 3 with Avengers: Endgame, released in April 2019.
Following the penultimate battle between Earth’s Mightiest Heroes and Thanos, Phase 4 of the MCU was filled with many emotional consequences. Wanda Maximoff desperately clung to her family’s fleeting memories as she tried to reconstruct a destroyed vision as well as creating mirages of her two unborn sons using Darkhold magic. As for Steve Rogers, he decided it was the right time to hand over the Captain America mantle to Sam Wilson and spend the rest of his waking days with his love, Peggy Carter.
The calm before the storm
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Soon after, the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a whole fell into a much calmer situation. Before settling down with multiversal friends in New York, audiences watched Spider-Man go on fantastical adventures abroad. Many new characters were introduced, with Shang-Chi and The Eternals appearing in their own solo films. Kate Bishop, Ms. Marvel, Moon Knight and She-Hulk were just a few names shown for the first time on their own Disney Plus shows. But as we would soon find out, peaceful times don’t last in the world of superheroes.
Kang the Conqueror was once just a prestigious human scholar who accidentally discovered the multiverse while experimenting with his peers. Trying to collect all of his variants in one place and at some point to discuss the impending possibilities of what they had just discovered, Kang’s most despicable variant sabotaged the meeting of the minds. As the name suggests, this evil variant now uses all the technological weapons of the past, present and future to conquer many timelines and planets.
The MCU Phase 5 A-Team
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Since the Avengers are now dismantled (some even sacrificing themselves for the greater good), Phase 4 not only has a responsibility to bring new Marvel characters to the forefront to deal with this threat, but also to show audiences that these newcomers can fill the shoes with those from the past. Thanks to a now-deleted post from the Latin America-based Disney website, we now know which Marvel heroes would be called upon to play bigger and bigger roles as the MCU progresses.
The first name mentioned was Hailee Steinfeld’s Kate Bishop. Bishop was trained by Clint Barton himself when she debuted in the Disney Plus miniseries Hawkeye. Already in battle with Yelena Belova, the younger sister of Echo, Kingpin, and Black Widow, it’s no surprise that she will inevitably feature more prominently in future phases of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
A deaf martial artist who made his debut in the second half of Hawkeye, Echo is also on the short list of characters who will supposedly have a more pressing position as the MCU evolves. Maya Lopez will stop at nothing to get revenge on Kingpin, the man who orchestrated her father’s murder. Her already established connection with other Marvel characters, as well as the fact that she’s getting her own solo Disney Plus show in 2023, shows that she’s definitely one to watch.
At first glance, 16-year-old Kamala Khan looks like any teenager who idolizes a polarizing public figure. For Khan, Captain Marvel is that singular inspiration. She suddenly becomes like his idol when she finds family bracelets, which give her superhuman abilities. Being the first Pakistani hero in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Khan ends up battling not only otherworldly djinn, but also an agency that suppresses super humans called Damage Control. Given that Ms. Marvel is the show in which the concept of mutants is introduced to the MCU, there’s no doubt as to why she’ll play a bigger role in the future.
The beloved Daredevil also features in this prestigious ranking. Lasting three seasons before the MCU even officially premiered, Matt Murdock was already heavily featured in his own Netflix show. After Disney bought Marvel, Murdock made a cameo in Spider-Man: No Way Home and has an upcoming role in She-Hulk: Attorney At Law. Premiering in spring 2024, it will also have its own Disney Plus show. Whether he’s only carrying out street-level heroics or partaking in multi-versal storylines, his longtime fans can’t wait to see the return of the Devil from Hell’s Kitchen.
The most surprising hero to receive this unique spotlight is Ironheart. Even if MCU enthusiasts still know little about this hero or his origins, the character of Riri Williams will be the spiritual successor of Tony Stark, now deceased. She will make her debut in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Considering the movie already looks like a smash hit, she won’t have a hard time finding her place in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Noted as a bonus entry, the reintroduced Captain America is also mentioned in this statement. Seeing how quickly Sam Wilson took on a heroic charge to stop the hate in The Falcon and Winter Soldier, we as fans should welcome him with open arms to lead this new class of MCU superheroes.
Mosy can agree that promoting all of these characters in the next phases of the Marvel Cinematic Universe will provide great stories not only for fans, but also a great line of defense for any villains who wish to do harm to society.