The MCU had built an incredible empire over 23 films and 13 years before leading the charge yet again with multiple episodic series on the streaming platform Disney+. Marvel Studios has introduced scores of heroes, villains, sidekicks, and recurring characters that have become favorites among many fans.
While it’s always great to learn more about a favorite character or historic event, it’s important not to distract from the overall flow. Thus far, Marvel only has a handful of movies that are chronologically out of order with respect to release date, the most recent being the upcoming Black Widow film. Mixing things up further could prove deadly down the road, or it could turn out to be the perfect storm.
10 More Prequels: Provide Origin Stories For Beloved Characters
The best part about prequel movies is often times the explanation of a character’s origins and their motivations. There are dozens, if not scores of characters sprinkled throughout the MCU that have yet to have their origin stories told in a significant capacity.
Using the prequel as a means of providing history and background to a fan-favorite character can be incredibly rewarding for the fan base. However, a similar effect can be achieved, albeit in a much smaller capacity, via flashbacks as shown most recently with Bucky’s past in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier (TFATWS).
9 Keep It Going: The Timeline Is Already A Mess
With so many plotholes and discrepancies among timeline continuities already exist in the MCU, prequels simply open the door for more shuffling and reconfiguration. Since the post-covid Marvel rollout, fans have seen two series that take place chronologically between the last two movies that have been released.
While it’s been great for fans to see more of the world in a post-Blip setting, it does create new questions such as where other characters are or if they knew about other events. For example, WandaVision takes place right after Endgame whereas TFATWS takes place months later, but never addresses the wildly significant Westview anomaly from WandaVision. Beyond that, Spider-Man: Far From Home never addresses the new Captain America(s) shown in TFATWS. Peter may have been overseas, but a mantle with such weight being passed would likely be global news.
8 More Prequels: Give Fans The History They Want
In addition to character origins, fans would love to know more about the overall history of the MCU and how it has influenced the stories of today. There have been many glimpses into the past that have admittedly provided some juicy lore and background, but a few-minute sequence in a two-hour film can easily fall by the wayside.
Diving deep into ancient Asgard, Agamotto’s reign with the Time Stone or even Ego’s younger years exploring the universe would be incredible for fans to see; not to mention the history of all of the Infinity Stones. However, to successfully pull this off, there would have to be a somewhat significant reason beyond pure fan service.
7 Keep It Going: No Need To Dwell On The Past With Exciting New Characters & Stories
While many characters from the dawn of the MCU have yet to reveal their full story, many of the actors who play these roles are getting to the end of their contracts and are frankly too old to keep up with the physical demand of being a superhero.
The Infinity Saga was an incredible journey for characters and fans alike. Though with so much emotional weight tied to the events of the past, it would probably just be better to continue the story with new faces.
6 More Prequels: Tie Things Together More Intricately, Including The Real World
Die-hard MCU fans absolutely love little, intricate tie-ins between properties. Even the potential Captain America shield teases in the latest The Eternals trailer has fans going wild. Depending on the story being told, more prequels would provide Marvel the opportunity to tie a lot more details together.
Additionally, many fans were given the opportunity for nostalgic moments with Captain Marvel since things like Blockbuster Video, Radio Shack, and public payphones were still around during her time on Earth. It’s always nice to see something from the real world creep its way into MCU continuity.
5 Keep It Going: No Need To Rehash The Infinity Saga
Considering Endgame already took fans back through many of the important films and moments of the MCU, it may not need to be done again. With the immediate threat of Thanos quelled and the Infinity Stones seemingly destroyed, it doesn’t make much sense to revisit this period anymore.
However, if the energy of the Stones proves to still be in existence like many fans believe, then perhaps Marvel will take audiences down memory lane. Though the MCU has only scratched the surface of potential stories they can adapt from the comics, moving forward makes the most sense.
4 More Prequels: Retcon Some Things That They Weren’t Sure Of When They Happened
Over the course of 23 movies and two shows, so far, the MCU is quite a convoluted mess of stories and character arcs. Many eagle-eyed fans with too much time on their hands have been able to track down minute inconsistencies between films, giving Marvel the opportunity to go back and fix things as they see fit.
One of the most commonly referenced moments of this happening is during Thor: Ragnarok when Hela is walking through Odin’s Vault and briefly stops in front of an Infinity Gaunlet only to dismiss it as fake before continuing to peruse her new trinkets. Going back and fixing small inconsistencies like that would be fairly rewarding for the biggest MCU fans.
3 Keep It Going: The Shows Are Posing New Questions
With the latest MCU properties are posing a slew of new questions that fans are chomping at the bit to know the answers to, making more prequels would only delay the answers for the new burning questions from WandaVision and TFATWS.
While some fans may wish to stay in the Infinity Saga and learn more about it, Phase 4 is moving right along. If fans don’t want to be left behind they’ll have to get on board with the new rollout. The future of the MCU is incredibly overwhelming, but with so many new questions to answer, why rehash decade-old plot fodder?
2 More Prequels: Revisit Dead or Retired Fan-Favorite Characters
There are many characters that have left or are leaving the MCU. Whether it be because they are dead, they are retired, they want to step aside for the next generation of heroes, or the actor’s contract has run out, some fans may feel like they didn’t have enough time to say goodbye.
With the upcoming Black Widow movie, fans will get to see what went on in Natasha’s life between Civil War and Infinity War, which has been a huge gap for fans to guess at. This may also provide fans with closure, knowing it’s her last ride into the sunset, going into the film might give fans a chance to accept that she’s gone. As Vision states so poetically in Age of Ultron, a thing isn’t beautiful because it lasts.
1 Keep It Going: Introduce Fans To The Rest Of Marvel’s Multiverse
Phase 4 is all the internet has been talking about since the dozens of properties for this phase have been revealed by Marvel. With so many new and exciting heroes, villains, and plotlines, it seems superfluous to go back and explore old stories.
In just two shows, the MCU has introduced two or three new organizations, a bunch of new heroes (or at least breadcrumbs for them), a handful of new villains, and even a few new exciting locales. With so many new characters and concepts waiting to be explored, Marvel should look to the future and create a whole new saga for fans to love and obsess over.
About The Author
