5 More Marvel Movies to Watch Before Avengers Doomsday

It’s a little over six months until the Avengers, X-Men, Fantastic Four, and other heroes crossover on the big screen in Avengers Doomsday. In the last year I’ve done two blog posts about preparing for this epic story: Infinity Saga movies and Disney Plus series. Now it’s time for Multiverse movies (and some extra credit) to watch before December.  

Spider-Man

The inclusion of Tobey McGuire’s Spidey is mostly based on rumor. No confirmation yet that he’ll appear, but you never know since he’s already reprised his roll once. Plus it kind of shows what the multiverse is made of outside of our major players in Doomsday.

Extra Credit - The Amazing Spider-Man

Unlike Tobey, I haven’t seen any rumors about Andrew Garfield returning. That being said, we are heading into a multiverse movie and this would round off the variants of Spider-Man. I’m not saying I expect him to appear necessarily, but it would give him a chance to fight an alien. Or at least encounter one.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

It wasn’t the best received movie of post-Endgame MCU, but characters from this movie are confirmed for Doomsday and will likely play a major role. We are set to see Shuri, M’Baku, and Namor. I wouldn’t be surprised if we also see some of the Dora Milaje.

Extra Credit - Spider-Man No Way Home

I didn't originally intend for there to be so many Spidey movies, but that's just how it played out. In some ways, this one may be the most crucial Spider-Man movie before Doomsday, simply because it portrays multiversal heroes and villains. I’m not sure any project featuring the multiverse had been as epic as this one (except maybe Loki).

Thor: Love and Thunder

Like Black Panther, this movie wasn’t received as well we might’ve hoped. However, this movie shows what Thor had been up to since Endgame. Besides leaving the Guardians and getting in shape, he recovered Mjolnir and became an adoptive father. In addition, there are rumors of Doomsday’s trailer featuring Thor in battle. Maybe it’ll just turn out to be rumor, but we’ll see. 

Extra Credit - Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

Seeing as none of the Guardians have been announced as cast, but we know Star Lord will return at some point and that he’s on Earth (last we know). There’s no reason to think he couldn’t play a part in this battle. Plus, this was possibly the best received movie of the Multiverse Saga. Always worth a watch.

Thunderbolts*

This was the biggest crossover of the Multiverse Saga. Obviously, that's about to change with Doomsday. With these New Avengers headed into the multiverse, it'll be interesting to see how this band of misfits handles the Fantastic Four, the X-Men, and the other heroes of Earth-616. All I can say is that Bob better be okay by the end of Doomsday and Secret Wars.

Extra Credit - Spider-Man: Brand New Day 

As this movie hasn’t been released yet, we don’t know if/how it’ll play into Doomsday. After all, Tom Holland hasn’t been confirmed as part of the Avengers cast this time. Rumor has it that the ramifications of Doomsday will impact this movie or vice versa. All the same, it’s the last Marvel project to release before Doomsday. If any Spidey movie will directly affect the Avengers and company, it’ll be this movie. 

Fantastic Four: First Steps

We finally got the Fantastic Four into the MCU and they did not disappoint! Though in another corner of the multiverse, this movie hit home. I wrote before about the impact this movie had on me and I'm excited to see how this family fights with or alongside the Avengers. The credit scene broke the heart of every parent watching. We have Doctor Doom and the family is on the line.

Extra Credit - Deadpool & Wolverine

Many of our readers probably skipped this movie due to its R rating, but it changed things for the X-Men franchise. Instead of a hard reboot of Fox Marvel movies, Deadpool brought the mutants into the existing multiverse in an emotional and crazy way that only Deadpool could. Now the mutants from the original X-Men movies are headed into Doomsday, all because of Deadpool.

You have your homework now. Ten movies and five series to watch before Doomsday (plus fifteen extra credit movies). The clock is ticking and I'm anxious to see what chaos RDJ will bring as Doctor Doom. 

Pokemon Nicknames: Marvel

A few weeks ago, my daughters were watching Spidey and His Amazing Friends (a great cheesy way to introduce kids to classic superheroes). I’m minding my own business and sn adorable and unfamiliar character appeared: Jeff the Shark. I had to look up the character and see if there was a comic book basis for the cute land fish. The resemblance to Gible is uncanny so immediately went into Pokemon Go and nicknamed my Garchomp “Jeff”. Naturally that led me to more Marvel-inspired nicknames—lots of them based off heroic pets. So here are some of my first favorites:

Trevenant as Groot

Ariados as Man-Spider

Golduck as Howard

Obstagoon as Rocket

(Shiny) Growlithe as Lucky

Gallade as Dr. Strange

Tyrunt as Old Lace

Granbull as Lockjaw

Gible as Jeff

Rhyperior as Rhino

Best MCU Beards for No-Shave November

Each year when No-Shave November comes around, I think to test my genetics and see if I can grow a beard than last year. My genes are such that it took me into my thirties to test myself long enough to get the goatee that I currently have. But November isn’t just about the face fuzz, but about men’s health. Physical and mental. So while I'm having a bit of fun with the Marvel-lous men (they seriously give me beard envy) men's health is serious. Many of us internalized the message to not ask for help. Don’t forget to check in on your mental and physical health. And don’t isolate yourself in the world of men; find your team of Avengers.

Though in no particular order, naturally I had to start here. Because iconic.

Maybe similar to Tony's, but it showed his transition from doctor to sorcerer.

Probably the closest to the beard I'm able to grow (but I lack sideburns).

Fitz started as a baby-faced nerd, but became a tough stubbly spy.

Without Hydra programming, Bucky needed something to keep looking tough.

Maybe Matt got tired of paying someone else to shave him?

Very polished and regal. A beard fit for a king.

Sometimes you can't care to shave (and sometimes you want to see your capabilities).

I think we all had beard envy for Cap's temporary on-the-run beard.

Fury was trying to look homeless. A beard helps, I guess?

I don’t know that I ever want chops like Hugh Jackman, but it’s iconic now. 

I had to finish off with The Thing’s bolder-y beard. Love it!

Flashback: First Impressions of the Guardians

(Guest post by Russell)

First impressions are often a big deal. I thought I offended my wife during my first interaction with her. Fortunately, for me, she has no memory of it and now we have a great story to tell. When I first heard about the Guardians of the Galaxy back in 2014, I was very much like Korath responding to Star-Lord the first time, “Who?” I knew it was going to be a Marvel movie and I had enjoyed the other movies I had seen up to that time.  I recall hearing on the radio that the soundtrack was the first album that was number #1 and made up of previously released tracks. A classmate of mine at the time told me that the “Guardians of the Galaxy” were to the “Avengers” what the Suicide Squad was to the Justice League. This did not clear things up for me a whole lot, but  I saw the trailer and it looked fun. However, the timeframe for going to see it was not in the “I have to do this right now” section of my to do list. 

In the midst of a lot of moving for a lot of crazy reasons including cockroaches and cop calls for neighbors, we found ourselves in our almost empty apartment when my wife asked, “Do you want to take a break and go see a movie?” I replied, almost with tears in my eyes, “YES! Can we go see Guardians of Galaxy?” My wife replied in the affirmative and off we went. Not only was the soundtrack awesome and still remains one of my favorites to this day, but it was just a fun movie. I had no expectations and found myself laughing while enjoying the action and story as well. I loved the resolution of the Guardians with the people of Xandar. I loved Star-Lord doing a dance-off with Ronan and pretty much all of the funny things he does in the movie. Trying to pick up on Gamora by telling her about Kevin Bacon. Drax taking everything so literally that nothing ever goes over his head. Rocket speaking perfect “groot” language and taking fake legs and eyes just for the fun of it. I loved Groot’s sacrifice and dropping little firefly like things all over the place and on an on. I love when serious things are happening in a movie, but the movie does not take itself too seriously. Do you know what I mean? Yes, the Guardians so an epic walk, but it’s to the song “Cherry Bomb” and it’s right after they are all trying to get into leather pants and jackets, except Drax and Groot, so it’s serious, but funny. Seriously funny, my favorite kind of funny, seriously.

I especially loved how the “good” guys had their flaws and still worked together to beat the bad guys. That is not to say that I in any way, shape, or form condone any of the bad things that the good guys did, but in the end, they all stood together (literally, which was hilarious!) to beat Ronan from destroying Xandar. I guess it’s just a good reminder that in spite of flaws, we can still do good. 

So, my first impression of the movie was, “THIS IS AWESOME! I LOVE THIS SO MUCH! I’M LAUGHING SO HARD! THIS IS AWESOME!” and it gave us the much needed break to get back to packing, unpacking, cleaning, and getting back to life. I have since seen "Volume 1" a number of times, but that first time will always serve as a tender mercy of being able to take a break from life for a while, which, I suppose is sometimes what movies and entertainment are meant to do.

I Am Groot: Season 2

I was going to do a Creature Feature about Groot that was a whole page full of “I am Groot” with different variations of punctuation and pictures of Groot. That may still happen at some point (maybe for an April Fools post) but for today I just wanted to talk about the second season of I Am Groot. Last year Joe wrote about the first season and why we love Groot, so make sure you check that out, but one reason I like these is that even though they’re MCU canon, they’re just for fun. It’s doubtful that Groot’s bird or snowman will play a critical role in Kang Dynasty or Secret Wars, but Groot’s mini-adventures can bring you joy nonetheless. 

Are You My Groot?

This episode was especially relatable as a parent. Groot did everything he could to keep his new little bird baby out of trouble… only for more trouble to ensue. But then the bird finds his mommy in the end anyway, so it all ends well I guess. Also an apparent reminder of Disney’s obsession with dumb birds. 

Groot Noses Around

On a serious note, this episode makes me wonder how the heck Groot’s anatomy works if that fake nose gave him the sense of smell. Or maybe the nose was a special technology that enhanced the sense of smell? Either way, the important lesson that came from this episode was the importance of enjoying the little things in life. But then the relatable part of this short was ignoring your faults and problems to put some ease in your life.

Groot's Snow Day

This episode went from cute to holy creepy snowman to that’s cute. Robo-Snowman kind of reminds me of Calvin’s snowmen and of the ones from Doctor Who… but with alien technology. To be honest, if it were for cute Groot, this short could be the thing of nightmares to some viewers.

Groot's Sweet Treat

This episode Groot was me when I hear a patient has brought us a treat. Gotta get there quickly or you never know if the good stuff will still be around. Maybe that’s why I found myself thinking “Go Groot go! Hurry!” throughout the story. And then just as he’s succeeding…

Groot and the Great Prophecy

Bringing the Watcher in to narrate an episode of I Am Groot was brilliant and wonderfully added to the comedy (side note: Where is Season 2 of What If?). This legend or prophecy (whatever you want to call it) brings to mind thoughts about how I think I’m supposed to be doesn’t always line up with who I’m meant to be. Especially coming from a religious perspective, there’s an interesting overlap of the two concepts. But then again I try not to take these shorts too seriously, because it’s Groot.

So in conclusion, I am Groot. I am Groot! I am Groot; I am Groot. We are Groot!

Marvel Dad Jokes: Cosmic Edition

Ready for some marvelously, out-of-this-world humor? You’ve come to the right place! Enjoy jokes featuring Guardians of the Galaxy, and some of their cosmic Marvel cousins.