5 Marvel Shows to Watch Before Avengers Doomsday

Several months ago, I did a blog post about pre-Endgame movies to watch before Avengers Doomsday. Especially with the recent Doomsday trailers, I thought it a good time to revisit some more Marvel projects to rewatch before the big day. One thing the post-Endgame saga did was canonized television series on Disney Plus. Say what you will about the inter-workings of movies and series, but I’ve enjoyed it. (Though I'm still waiting for them to officially canonize SHIELD)

WandaVision

In the midst of the pandemic, this was our saving grace for nine episodes. It was definitely an amazing way to begin the Multiverse Saga. Remember all the theories and anticipation, watching for Mephisto and Agatha? While Wanda isn't confirmed to be in Doomsday (or alive for that matter) this was our first look at grief during early post-Blip life. A lot of mysteries have been answered from this series, but there are still plenty of question marks, including Wanda's boys and White Vision.         

Extra Credit - The Marvels

Say what you will about this movie (and it making Carol Denvers into a Disney princess) but there's one big thing from this movie to address leading into Doomsday: The X-Men. After getting her superpowers in WandaVision and teaming up with the Marvels in this movie, Monica ended up thrown into another corner of the multiverse where she met Beast and Binary from the X-Men universe. Plus I swear I'm one of the few people who wants to see Ms. Marvel back.

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier 

A number of mixed emotions during this series but I think we were all happy to have this adventure during the pandemic. I'm not sure it was the best received Marvel project, especially after the energy surrounding WandaVision (that was a hard act to follow). It was an emotional adventure transitioning Sam Wilson from the Falcon to being Captain America, but it also introduced our new Falcon, US Agent, and of course Val.

Extra Credit - Captain America: Brave New World

If you went straight from Falcon and the Winter Soldier and straight past this movie on your way to Doomsday, you'd probably be alright. There's no indication that Red Hulk or Sterns will play a part in the next Avengers movie. That being said, this movie serves to further establish Sam's role as Captain America and Joaquin's role as Falcon (I had honestly forgotten there was a new Falcon).

Loki

We can't have a multiverse movie without addressing the Loki who triggered the multiverse. After this variant escaped in Endgame, there was humbling to happen and some Kangs to be discovered. If it weren't for this Loki, we wouldn't have the X-Men universe, What If, Tobey's Spider-Man, or any of the parallel worlds. Last we saw of Loki, he was woven into the fabric of the multiverse, so I'm curious what his role will be in Doomsday.

Extra Credit - Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania

This movie was underwhelming for many people (especially since the Kang storyline was scrapped). However, it attempted to connect the threads of our Avengers to the big bad of Loki. I'm curious what would've happened with this movie and Loki if Kang Dynasty were still happening. I heard rumors we'll see something of Kang being taken care of off-screen in Doomsday, but we'll see.

Hawkeye

On the grand scale of things, this show probably won't have much impact on the events of Doomsday (especially since Jeremy Renner isn't confirmed to appear). However, it does feature Yelena, previously seen in Black Widow, who would become a major player in Thunderbolts. Plus, I also just adore her character interacting with Kate Bishop. 

Extra Credit - Black Widow

Like Hawkeye, this movie doesn't look like it will have direct impact on Doomsday. That being said, this movie introduced the aforementioned Yelena and her adopted father. Both these powerhouses (Red Guardian for his strength and Yelena for her wit) reappeared in Thunderbolts. It's hard for me to decide if this movie or Hawkeye are more crucial.

 

What If...?

Slim chance of any of these characters appearing in Doomsday (except perhaps a variant of Captain Carter), but this hit series gave us a glimpse of what a multiversal epic could be. Three seasons and three epic finales. I think it would be a shame to let this series fade into obscurity, despite the release of Marvel Zombies, so I'd love to see Kahhori or the Hydra Stomper again.

Extra Credit - Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

If we're going into a multiverse grand finale, we ought to include the epic (and horrific) journey that Doctor Strange took across the worlds. This movie isn't exactly what I'd envisioned from a multiverse hopping story, but it was the first (aside from Loki) so it would be a fun (and traumatic) one to revisit.

I'm sure there are plenty of other movies and series to revisit before the epic crossover of the Avengers, the X-Men, and the Fantastic Four. In a few months I plan to highlight a few more post-Endgame movies. I have my list already and I probably won't finish it (especially as more and more cast members are revealed). I appreciate all that the MCU has done for superhero movies and, despite what vocal internet people say, it's not dead and I can't wait to see it continue to grow and evolve.

Thunderbolts Binge List

I started doing these Marvel binge list posts when MCU Phase Four started and it seemed like half the fans had binged the existing MCU movies for Infinity War and Endgame. Only a couple weeks until Thunderbolts premieres in theaters and it's our first big crossover since Endgame.  Sure, we've had Multiverse of Madness and The Marvels, but that's about as big as we've had since the Avengers' last battle. To prepare for the Thunderbolts, here are the movies that are essential for refreshing your memory before this band of misfits hit the big screen. And with less than a month to go, it may take some literal binging.

Captain America: The First Avenger (2 hours 4 min)

Chronologically we need to start with Bucky. Before he became the Winter Soldier, he was best friends with Steve Rogers. Even though Steve Rogers is out of the picture, Bucky keeps popping up here and there in the post-Endgame Marvel projects. And it seems like he'll be leader of the Thunderbolts (if anyone can lead them).

Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2 hours 16 min)

And with Bucky leading the Thunderbolts, the next logical movie to watch is the way named after him. Is there a better reveal in any MCU project than Steve seeing that Bucky is the Winter Soldier? This was a game changer in MCU history with repercussions still in Phase Five.

Captain America: Civil War (2 hours 28 min)

The first chunk of this binge list is essentially getting to know Bucky again. So we'll continue on with when Bucky finally got his mind back. Like The Winter Soldier, this movie continues to have repercussions across the MCU. Infinity War would have looked very different if not for Civil War. Finally here, Bucky gets some help.

Black Widow (2 hours 13 min)

Though this movie came out after Endgame, the bulk of the movie takes place immediately after Civil War. Joe and I talked about this on the podcast, but a bulk of the Thunderbolts come from this movie. So you'll need to check this movie out to meet Yelena, Red Guardian, and Taskmaster again. And of course we get Valentina appearing in the credit scene, alongside Yelena, after the events of Endgame.

Black Panther (2 hours 15 min)

Optional viewing for Bucky (again) as we have a credit scene of Shuri visiting Bucky and, for the first time in decades, he's not the Winter Soldier anymore (unless he wants to tap into those skills on his own).

Avengers: Infinity War (2 hours 29 min)

Thanks to Wakandan tech, Bucky is better and ready for battle against Thanos. Just in time for him and his Vibranium arm to be dusted by Thanos's Infinity Gauntlet and the Avengers are left to grieve everyone... for now.

Ant-Man and the Wasp (1 hour 58 min)

Now for some new blood. While the Avengers were busy with Thanos (or maybe a short time before Thanos) Ant-Man and Wasp had to face off against Ava Starr who was fighting for her life. In the aftermath of their fight, Scott and the Pyms used access to the Quantum Realm to help stabilize Ava's Ghost powers. I guess we'll see how that works when she appears in Thunderbolts.

Avengers: Endgame (3 hours 2 min)

And we return to the Avengers. After a few years, they assembled again to reverse Thano's snap. So welcome back Bucky and the rest, including Yelena (though we don't learn about her death until Hawkeye), And despite being with Bucky until "the end of the line" Steve decided to say goodbye to his oldest friend. 

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (Episodes 1-6)

We're in the post-Endgame era now. We were all excited for this Disney Plus series, especially after the success of WandaVision. Here is where we met the loose cannon John Walker (aka US Agent) and dealt with the fallout of him trying to measure up to Steve Rogers as Captain America. I'm curious how the years in between will have affected him. This series was also our first introduction to Valentina on screen and we know she'll play a big role with the Thunderbolts.

Hawkeye (Episodes 4-6)

After coming back in the Blip and receiving new instructions from Valentina, Yelena went off to avenge her adopted sister by attempting to kill Natasha's best friend. But of course Yelena and Clint come to an understanding by the end of the finale. And we got some adorably funny banter from Yelena, teasing Kate Bishop, which was my favorite part of this series. 

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2 hours 41 min)

Her part wasn't the biggest in this movie, but Valentina came back and we found out she used to be married to Everett Ross. So while he was aiding the Wakandans, she tried to throw a wrench into their plans. I guess we'll see where that leaves her.

Captain America: Brave New World (1 hour 58 min)

Obviously the main focus of this movie was Red Hulk and Sam Wilson, but Bucky made an appearance. It's cool to me that despite his history we see glimpses of Bucky's life and success after Endgame. I wonder how much of his Winter Soldier story is available to the public. Full disclosure: I wasn't able to see this movie in theaters so I'm hoping it arrives on Disney Plus in time to view before I see Thunderbolts in May.

And now we watch (these movies/series) and wait for the release. I'm excited! And since half the Thunderbolts are confirmed to appear in Doomsday, I'm curious how this movie will lead into next year. If you want more discussion on the upcoming Thunderbolts, check out our latest Marvel episode on the Latter-Day Saint Geeks Podcast--Joe and I had some fun talking about this one in particular.

Before They Were Heroes (MCU)

You won’t typically see us with any shortage of Marvel content. But while we wait for the premiere of Moon Knight, we’re in a bit of an MCU drought. With how far the Marvel Cinematic Universe has come since Iron Man started the show (or Spider-Man if you want to count 2003 as the beginning). I wanted to take a step back and look at where our heroes were before they became the Avengers.

Chris Evans (Captain America) - Fantastic Four

Before he was Steve Rogers, Chris Evans was already a superhero. Back in the day, he played Johnny Storm in Fox’s first iteration of Fantastic Four. As the Human Torch, we saw him “flame on” in 2005 against Julian McMahon (before he played Jonah in Runaways). At the time, Chris Evan was also known for playing one of the exes in Scott Pilgrim.

Mark Ruffalo (Bruce Banner) - 13 Going on 30

He wasn’t the MCU’s first Hulk, but he is the one we’ve come to love. Before he first hulked out, he was the best friend/love interest in this 2004 romcom. As grown up Matt Flamhaff, it was his influence that showed Jennifer Garner she shouldn’t have wished to grow up so fast. A must see movie for anyone who thinks they grew up too fast and I shamelessly watched it for my 30th birthday last year.

Scarlett Johnansson (Black Widow) - The Prestige

Before Natasha stepped onto the scene in Iron Man 2, she was the lovely stage assistant Olivia in The Prestige. I remember going to see this movie with my brothers and it was trippy! Weird to look back now and see Black Widow in a magic act. She also voiced Princess Mindy in the Spongebob Squarepants movie, if you’re a Spongebob fan.

Chris Hemsworth (Thor) - Star Trek

Before he became the God of Thunder, Chris Hemsworth was a Starfleet captain (albeit for 5 minutes) caught in the middle of a battle against enemies from the future. During his short time as captain of the ship, his wife (played by Jennifer Morrison, Emma Swan) gave birth to the famous Captain Kirk.

Paul Rudd (Ant-Man) - Friends

There are so many wonderful shows and movies I could reference in talking about Paul Rudd. Supporting roles in Perk of Being a Wallflower and Night at the Museum and a recurring role in Parks and Rec. But as it’s me, I’m going to reference his character from Friends: Mike Hannigan. He came out of nowhere towards the tail end of the series. Literally came out of nowhere. Joey basically called out a random name and Paul Rudd responded. He eventually became Phoebe’s soulmate and they were married by the end of the series. Also, does he ever age?

Benedict Cumberbatch (Doctor Strange) - The Hobbit

Depends on your social circle but I feel like our beloved Stephen Strange is best known as Sherlock, but Trekkies might remember that he played the rebooted Khan. But one of his biggest things before Doctor Strange was when he voiced the dragon Smaug in The Hobbit trilogy. You may have your opinions on how well the trilogy was done, but I think we can agree he was a great dragon.

Of course we could also address other heroes like Star-Lord or Gamora, but I figured we’d save their previous lives for another day. After writing this, now I just want to go watch the Star Trek movies again. And The Prestige.

Hawkeye Binge List

It’s almost time for another installation of the Marvel epic. In a month, we’ll finally get a close-up on one of the original Avengers (and one of the only still active in any sense). We know that he’s going to be bringing in a protégé to potentially take over the Hawkeye mantle. In the meantime though, let’s look back at the history of Clint Barton, better known as Hawkeye.

Thor (1 hour 55 min)

He only appears for one scene as Thor is trying to lift the hammer, so you could probably just skip this movie as you’re preparing for Hawkeye. However, it’s still his first appearance and our first glimpse of his skills and his sass.

The Avengers (2 hours 23 min)

Sure he’s mind-controlled for most of the movie, but here we get our first true appearance for Hawkeye. From Black Widow’s talk with Loki, we learn they have shared history. We also get reference to Budapest (which is later discussed in Black Widow). But what really matters here is Hawkeye joining the team and becoming an Avenger.

Avengers: Age of Ultron (2 hours 21 min)

The Avengers return to the fight after Loki’s scepter is located. First, he’s attacked. Then he’s the only one to avoid mind control. And then we find out he has a secret family. Just when we thought he was just the guy with the bow and arrow, he’s the one who holds the team together by giving them reprieve. Not only that, but he ends up being a motivating factor to Wanda and Pietro joining the cause.

Captain America: Civil War (2 hours 28 min)

After seemingly retiring, Clint gets pulled away from his family to help Cap. I honestly wish we’d seen more of his story here. He shows up, helps Team Cap in the airport fight, and then gets imprisoned at the Raft. I wish we knew exactly why he joined Team Cap. Was he against the accords? Did he just want to stop Zemo? All he said was he was disappointing his kids. Maybe someday we’ll find out.

Black Widow (2 hours 13 min)

Obviously Clint doesn’t appear in this movie and Natasha isn’t going to appear in Hawkeye. However, this movie introduces Yelena, another Widow and Natasha’s adoptive sister. As you could assume from the post-credits scene (which takes place after Endgame), we can expect to see Yelena in Hawkeye. Whether she’ll be antagonistic or Clint wins her over… I guess we’ll see.

Avengers: Endgame (3 hours 2 min)

We start with that heartbreaking scene with his family dusted during the Snap. As the world falls into chaos, Clint just loses himself. As he started assassinating people as Ronin, it was a dark time (to say the least). As a father and husband, I can’t imagine the pain and the grief he experienced. And then after five years to go back in time and lose his best friend Natasha… by the time Thanos 2.0 was defeated, it would be a vast understatement to say he had some difficult trauma to deal with. But I suppose that might be what the Hawkeye series is going to be about. 

Now the countdown begins for Hawkeye. Not long after that, Spider-Man. And Disney has no intention of slowing down! 

Sever the Nerve

Warning: Spoilers contained for Black Widow. Duh.

Does it matter that Natasha Romanoff is already dead and this movie should have probably been made after Civil War? Nah, we are just excited to have a new MCU film released after a two year drought! 

Released in theaters and on Disney Plus with Premiere Access, Black Widow is, in some ways, a response to the very successful Wonder Woman, an earlier movie led by a female superhero. Black Widow takes the concept of the female superhero and supersizes it with the Red Room treatment. We learn that there is an entire army of "black widow" operatives, all made up of little girls who were viewed as "trash", trained to be super spies that could rival the super soldier program that produced Captain America.

The montage that is shown over the film's opening credits perfectly sets up the plight of women. Set to Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" as sung hauntingly by Malia J, we see countless girls being taken into captivity and trained as operatives. It's sad and evocative and powerfully soul-stirring. 

Black Widow pits the idea of female disenfranchisement against the idea of toxic masculinity. The Black Widow Ops Program is an allegory for female sex trafficking, even sterilizing the girls against their wills (hilariously and horrifyingly described by Yelena). Enter David Harbor as Alexei "Red Guardian" Shostakov, a walking embodiment of toxic masculinity. He's past his prime, mansplains everything to his two very capable daughters, asks only about himself, and assumes Yelena's aggression is due to it being her "time of the month". I mean, Alexei even shares a name with the pig!

Black Widow is ultimately about family and relationships...

Natasha and Yelena are raised by a "fake family" of Russian operatives, and each walks away with a different view of the family: Natasha resents that the family was a cover and feels that it was never real, whereas Yelena still holds on to the warm memories of growing up with a mother figure and rejects the idea that the feelings were false. 

Natasha adopts the Avengers as her new family. That's not a new idea -- the Avengers have always been a a family of misfits. Alexei scoffs at this, asking where her family is now. He tries to show fatherly love, but he can only muster a story about urinating, and the lyrics to "American Pie". 

The black widow agents are a type of family too.  Girls stolen from their homes, and bonded together by abuse and terror. A sorority shaped by strife. Even when their brainwashing is broken, they still remain bonded as sisters.

The plight of women has its DNA all over this flick. Yelena sees the bruises on Natasha's back, a nod to domestic abuse victims. Ingrid forces Taskmaster to "smile", just as women are often told to do. Yelena makes fun of her sister's "superhero pose", the overly sexy pose that ScarJo often does, and which sometimes receives criticism for being sexist, degrading, and objectifying. And Natasha is even bound by a pheromonal lock, a parallel to the the Stockholm syndrome that abuse victims might experience with their abusers. 

In order to break free, Natasha must sever her olfactory nerve to overcome the pheromonal lock. Sometimes we have to get rid of toxic relationships. It can be painful and difficult, and we might not think we have the strength to break free, but when we "sever the nerve", we set ourselves on a path towards freedom, independence, and a life not bogged down by toxic connections. 

"I'm worse at what I do best, and for this gift I feel blessed. Our little group has always been and always will until the end."

Black Widow Binge List

We're finally nearing the release of Black Widow.Barring another pandemic, we're set to see Natasha's solo adventure on November 6--possibly with a Disney Plus release like Mulan. If you need a refresher on Black Widow before the movie gets released, check out this list. I posted it to Facebook back in March when it supposed to have a spring release. But since it was delayed, here we go again!

Iron Man 2 (2 hours 4 min)

Obviously the film mostly focused on Tony's issues (and he has lots of them) but Natasha was slipped in there to help him out/keep an eye on him. While Iron Man 2 tends to be associated with general distaste among fans, it did give us the introduction of Black Widow and War Machine. So despite the lack of focus on Black Widow, pull this one out and give it a watch.

The Avengers (2 hours 23 min)

Black Widow gets a bit more spotlight in this movie. The general focus ends up being on Cap, Thor, Iron Man, and Hulk. All the same, Black Widow gets a decent spotlight and we get a glimpse into her past when she talks to Loki. The movie also gives Natasha her new family, the Avengers.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2 hours 16 min)

Again, she's not the focus of the movie, but she gets more screen time than before. Black Widow teams up with Cap to fight against Hydra's infiltration of SHIELD. Like in Avengers, we get some small glimpses of her past. Nothing specific, but we see how big of a deal it is for her to reveal all of her covers when she spills SHIELD's secrets.

Avengers: Age of Ultron (2 hours 22 min)

Unlike Avengers and Winter Soldier, where we only got verbalized references to Widow's past, in this movie we get some glimpses of her past when Wanda messes with her head. It's here that we really start to see how much the Red Room messed with her head. Finger crossed we get more of that in her solo movie.

Captain America: Civil War (2 hours 28 min)

Avengers 2.5, as they call it. Screen time is split pretty well between all the major heroes in the movie, but we get some good moments of Natasha still. Compared to when she was so secretive just a few years prior, this movie gives us a chance to see how much Black Widow has grown to care for her fellow Avengers, especially Cap; she shows up at Peggy's funeral and she lets Cap and Bucky pass in the end.

Avengers: Infinity War (2 hours 40 min)

Technically this one and Endgame take place after her solo movie, as we've been told, but I'm guessing they'll do some sort of tie-in. Even if it's just to lead us into how she teamed up with Cap and Falcon. I have some doubts that they'll show Cap and Falcon, but I'm guessing we'll get the connecting link.

Avengers: Endgame (3 hours 2 min)

Can't do a Black Widow prep list without showing her end. I'm guessing I'm not the only one that got thrown off by this. We probably all guessed that Black Widow was going to take place after Endgame, but since she died getting the Soul Stone, we got thrown for a loop. Endgame showed a great ending to her arc, in my opinion. She went from being a solo agent in Iron Man 2 to being a "family" woman in Endgame.

Agent Carter Season 1 (8 episodes - about 40 minutes each)

For optional, additional viewing, check out Agent Carter on Disney Plus. It takes place in the 1940s, so obviously you won't get any appearances of the Widow herself. However, you will see the Red Room where Natasha was trained, as well as the appearance of a spy they sent to face off against Peggy and her team.

Which movie do you think will be most important for your Black Widow prep? What do you hope to see in the movie? Any big tie-ins you're predicting? 

Unpopular Opinions: MCU

I started off this week with a countdown on Facebook to Black Widow and the launch of MCU Phase 4. I feel it's only appropriate to pair that countdown with a reflection of sorts to the history of the MCU. Phases 1-3 had movies, shorts, Netflix, Hulu, and network shows. Now we're moving into an area consolidated to movies and Disney+. So as part of my reflections, here are a few of some unpopular opinions about the MCU thus far.

Iron Man 2 and The Incredible Hulk weren’t so bad
They are two of the lesser loved MCU movies. They’re not fantastic blockbusters, but they aren’t as bad as people make them out to be. The big problem with Iron Man 2 is that they bit off more than they could chew (Black Widow’s introduction, Whiplash, Justin Hammer, etc.) but it didn’t make the movie bad. On the other hand, I think the big problem with The Incredible Hulk is how it kind of came out of nowhere and became irrelevant afterwards. It assumed you knew the backstory of The Hulk and it kind of just threw us in there. Also, especially since they re-cast Bruce Banner, the movie kind of became inconsequential. We’ve seen Ross since then, but the Abomination and Betty just disappeared (although the Abomination was mentioned in Agents of SHIELD).

Iron Fist was good
I think the biggest issue people have with Iron Fist is how it’s so different from the comic book character. So to be fair, I’ve never read the comics. Maybe that’s why I enjoyed Iron Fist. Danny Rand was a refreshingly chill character compared to Daredevil, Jessica Jones, and Luke Cage being so angsty. Also, as far as Season 2 is concerned, it was one of the shorter seasons of any Netflix MCU show, so I think that helped keep the pacing up. The 13-episode Netflix seasons made them feel like 13-hour long Marvel movies. And that got kind of exhausting. So even shaving off three hours made it more manageable.

Daredevil Season 1 wasn't so great
Before I watched Daredevil, I heard how great it was. But I was disappointed. Matt Murdock was cool and I liked Daredevil as a character and a concept. However, as the season went on, it felt drawn out. Like I said with Iron Fist, the 13-episode seasons often felt like a super long movie. I much preferred the shows where each episode felt like a self-contained story with an over-arching plot. In my opinion, Jessica Jones, Runaways, and even Cloak & Dagger did a better job at that.

Agents of SHIELD Season 1 was good

I've heard a lot of complaints over the years about Agents of SHIELD's bumpy start. As the series started in the post-Avengers/MCU Phase 2 era, they took some time figuring out their footing. Until the Winter Soldier tie-in episodes, the series didn't have an over-arching story per se. It kind of just seemed like an MCU cop show, where each episode was its own story. Maybe it's just because I had lower expectations that I liked it? I don't know. But it's still my favorite MCU TV show thus far, ever since I started binging seasons 1-2 during grave shifts.

Captain Marvel is good
I don't know what it was about Captain Marvel that got people up in arms last year, but I liked it. Granted, the 90s nostalgia helped, but it added a story into an era of the MCU that we'd never seen before. Also we got some backstory with Nick Fury and Phil Coulson (though I'm still kind of bitter that we didn't get as much Coulson as I wanted). Maybe the details of Fury's eye injury wasn't important, but it was a fun addition. In addition, the plot twist was unprecedented. Everything I'd read had the Skrulls as bad guys, so we were set up for the Kree to be the good guys. But we'd also only seen the Kree as the bad guys (in Guardians, in SHIELD, etc.) so I didn't know what to expect. All that made the experience more fun for me. Honestly, my biggest disappointment with Captain Marvel is that she didn't have a bigger role to play in Endgame, after all that buildup.

Black Widow isn't necessary
Don't get me wrong; I'm looking forward to seeing Black Widow. However, I'm skeptical about it. My worry is that the whole movie will be pure fan-service for the people who've wanted a female-led Avengers movie. Representation matters (as Joe explained this week), but it has to be done right. If Black Widow is done right, it'll be great. My fear is that it's just a cash-grab and it won't matter after it's done. We've had lots of standalone MCU movies over the years (Ant-Man, Doctor Strange, etc.), but none of them have been filler; they've all been relevant to the universe. But since Natasha is dead... how is her standalone movie going to relate to the future of the MCU? I'm skeptically optimistic, but mostly skeptical.

2020: Year in Preview

2020 is fast approaching. So as I watch the new episodes of Runaways, here are some of my thoughts on stuff coming in the new year.

Doctor Who Series 12 (January 1)
We got confirmation recently that Doctor Who series 12 would be starting with a New Year’s episode this year. We’re gonna see more of the Thirteenth Doctor’s personality and of her companions’ lives. I’m looking forward to the return of different enemies. Judoon, Cybermen, and Daleks are all slated to appear. We’ve also got historical figures like Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison appearing. And an overall series arc, instead of just individual stories. It should be great!

Crisis on Infinite Earths (January 14)
SPOILER ALERT FOR PARTS 1-3
The December portion of this year’s Arrowverse left us hanging in… well, the Vanishing Point. We’ve got two more episodes left (the Arrow and Legends portions). Confirmed characters yet to appear are short (most of the confirmed characters were in the first three episodes); we can still expect appearances from Stargirl, some of the Legends (probably in their episode), and parts of Team Arrow (probably in their episode as well). I was really hoping to see more of Black Lightning, Clark Kent-167 (from Smallville), Huntress-203 (from Birds of Prey), and Superman-96 (from Superman Returns). But perhaps, like the final battle in Endgame, we’ll get all the heroes back together for a final battle in January.

Digimon Adventure: Last Evolution Kizuna (February 21)
Premiering in Japan first, this new Digimon Movie later come to the United States in the spring. After the events of Digimon Adventure Tri, we’ll jump forward another few years. Everyone is slowly progressing towards their lives featured in the Adventure 02 epilogue. And finally we get the reappearance of the 02 kids! They were just silhouettes in Tri, but they’re back! It also looks like we might get a new Digivice (looks like a smartphone) and possibly a look at a level above Mega (previously only officially addressed in video games).

Onward (March 4)
Not a lot has been released about this new Pixar movie yet. We know it’s star-studded though: Chris Pratt, Tom Holland, Octavia Spencer, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus are all set to voice characters. The small amount that’s available tells us that we’ll be introduced to a world of magical creatures. However, it seems they’re losing their magic. I’m curious what the overarching plot will be. I’m looking forward to it.

Mulan (March 25)
Adding to the ever-growing list of Disney remakes, we’ve got Mulan coming in a few months. We’ve been told it’s going to be quite different from the cartoon. We won’t have the music, we won’t have Mushu, and we won’t have Shang. I’ve heard that it’ll be more accurate to the original Chinese legend. I’m honestly not sure how I feel about it (I loved Mushu and Cri-Kee) but I’m willing to suspend judgment until I see it.

Black Widow (May 1)
After years of waiting, fans finally get a Black Widow movie. As long as it’s not 100% fan-service, I’m sure I’ll enjoy it. We’ve got it set between Civil War and Infinity War. No indication that it’ll show us how she ends up with Cap and Falcon before Thanos’s goons come to Scotland. The recent trailer did show us that we’ll end up getting glimpses at Natasha’s past. Even if it’s not shown in explicit flashbacks, we’re likely to get some explanations at least. I’m hoping that we get some small tie-in to the future of the MCU. My brother had the idea that maybe there’ll be something with the Skrulls and SHIELD that’ll tie into the credit scene in Far From Home. I guess we’ll see.

Agents of SHIELD Season 7 (Summer)
No official release date yet, but we’ve got one last mini-season of SHIELD left. As the team blasted into the past, FitzSimmons were split up and Mack, Deke, and Daisy were brought in with May and Yo-Yo in critical condition. And on top of all that we got a Coulson Chronicom LMD joining the team. So into the early 20th Century we go, with different SHIELD personnel set to appear along the way. Since they had time to plan for this end, I’m optimistic for a solid ending.

Lizzie McGuire Reboot (???)
After almost two decades, Lizzie McGuire returns. Disney+ hasn’t announced a release date yet, but we have had some details of what to expect. We know that Lizzie and her family are coming back. Shortly after the reboot was announced, Gordo was announced to be returning. The part I’m looking forward to most is that animated Lizzie is coming back. Not adult animated Lizzie, but it should be teenage animated Lizzie, meaning she’s still a kid at heart (is that too cliche?). In the meantime, Lizzie McGuire and her movie are on Disney+ already.

Obviously not a comprehensive list, but just some things to get excited for. We know The Eternals and The Little Mermaid remake are set to release. What else are you waiting for?