Marvel’s upcoming Phase 5 will finally pay off the Phase 4 Disney+ shows in a way that hasn’t been done yet, by referencing them more regularly.
Stage 5 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe kicks off in 2023, and the upcoming films will finally start to pay off the Disney+ television shows. The continuation of the Multiverse Saga will see films like The Marvels, Captain America: New World Orderand Thunderbolts expand on stories that were first introduced in series such as Ms.Marvel and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. The post-pandemic era of the MCU will hopefully feature more crossovers and focus on an ongoing narrative for the saga as opposed to telling inconsistent stories that don’t seem to connect.
Some of the Phase 4 films were already incorporated into the streaming shows such as Black Widow and Hawkeye gold Wanda Vision and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. However, many more Marvel crossovers in Phases 5 and 6 between the shows and the films have already been teased, and they will eventually lead to massive multi-hero stories like Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars. The pandemic really affected the execution of some earlier Phase 4 projects due to many delays and storylines being cut, along with needing to meet crucial deadlines. It also contributed to a lack of payoffs and connections throughout the phase.
Phase 4 Didn’t Reference MCU TV Shows Enough
An interconnected franchise like the MCU should be referencing other projects regularly. Some projects like Moon Knight and Werewolf by Night worked exceedingly well by not having to connect directly to the films. Eternals focused more on the new characters being introduced instead of focusing heavily on references. The problem with this, unfortunately, is that all the films and shows eventually lead to something bigger. Marvel’s Phase 5 slate will be filled with spinoff series such as Echo, iron heartand Agatha: Coven of Chaos along with films including The Marvels and New World Order. This is great since the Phase 4 films didn’t refer to the shows very often. The more spinoffs that are introduced, the higher the chance of the movies referencing them more frequently.
Every Marvel TV Show Connection In Phase 5
The biggest connection that Phase 5’s opening film, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania has to Phase 4 is that Kang the Conqueror will play a pivotal role in the film. Kang was initially introduced as a variant called He Who Remains in Loki. What If…? season 2 is confirmed to have episodes that feature Phase 4 characters and storylines. Secret Invasion will likely tie into The Marvels due to Wanda Vision‘s post-credits scene featuring a Skrull visiting Monica Rambeau to bring her to space. Tea Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 will build on their appearance in Thor: Love and Thunder. Iron Man’s MCU replacement Riri Williams will make her debut as Ironheart in Black Panther: Wakanda Foreverthe finale of Phase 4, before appearing in her titular series in the fall of 2023. Echo series will act as a spinoff of Hawkeye but also bring back Kingpin and Daredevil, the latter of whom most recently appeared in She-Hulk: Attorney at Law and will reunite with Wilson Fisk in Daredevil: Born Again. Coven of Chaos will bring back Agatha Harkness and Dottie from Wanda Vision. And finally, Thunderbolts is expected to be the culmination of Phase 5, featuring Phase 4 characters like Yelena Belova, Red Guardian, and John Walker.
The delay of Blade and how the Stage 5 slate is affected gives Marvel Studios more time to make sure their stories are fleshed out properly and that they can connect to other MCU properties. It will help with the Multiverse Saga’s consistency and could culminate in the most unique phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe to date.
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