Now in its fourth section, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has 28 motion pictures, with Physician Unusual within the Multiverse of Insanity changing into the latest launch in Could 2022. There are various extra motion pictures within the works, in addition to an entire host of reveals, together with Moon Knight, WandaVision, Loki, and Hawkeye now out on Disney+. With a lot content material popping out at completely different instances, protecting completely different time intervals, it’s powerful to know the order of occasions.
Need to watch the MCU in chronological order? You’re in the best place. We’ve organized the film in story order, so your watching expertise will be as seamless as attainable. We’ve additionally included some fast film summaries for a refresher (contemplate this your spoiler warning).
Captain America: The First Avenger
Steve Rogers undergoes a harmful, experimental process throughout World Struggle II to show him right into a super-soldier. Dubbed “Captain America,” he then battles the Nazis and Hydra — a covert division of the Nazi Social gathering growing highly effective weapons fueled by a mysterious artifact often known as The Tesseract. Alongside the best way, Captain America loses his greatest good friend James “Bucky” Barnes throughout a mission, defeats Hydra chief Johann Schmidt (aka Pink Cranium), loses The Tesseract, and ultimately sacrifices himself to save lots of the world by piloting an airplane stuffed with explosives into the Arctic Ocean. Discovered and thawed out 70 years later, he meets SHIELD Agent Nick Fury, who affords him an opportunity to turn into a hero once more.
Learn our full Captain America: The First Avenger evaluation
Captain Marvel
Air Pressure pilot Carol Danvers is caught within the explosion of an engine constructed utilizing alien expertise, growing highly effective skills that she first wields as a soldier for the Kree, the alien race that saved her life with a blood transfusion. She later makes use of her powers to defend Earth when the Kree endanger the planet throughout their battle with the shape-changing Skrulls. She leaves Earth within the Nineties to assist deliver an finish to the Kree-Skrull battle, solely to be known as again years later as a result of occasions of Avengers: Infinity Struggle.
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Iron Man
Sensible billionaire engineer Tony Stark develops a high-tech armored go well with and turns into a one-man military. After stopping a former companion whose greed had turned him right into a battle profiteer, Stark is approached by SHIELD agent Nick Fury to hitch one thing he calls “The Avengers Initiative.”
Iron Man 2
Tony Stark’s battle in opposition to a pair of opponents — one with a private vendetta in opposition to Stark and his household — ends in some new additions to the MCU, together with SHIELD agent Black Widow and Tony’s good friend James Rhodes, who will get his personal set of military-enhanced armor (incomes him the code identify “Struggle Machine”). Nick Fury reveals that Tony’s father was a founding member of SHIELD, and after the mud settles following a battle with Russian villain Ivan Vanko and his military of drones, SHIELD stories {that a} unusual hammer has been discovered within the desert in New Mexico.
Learn our full Iron Man 2 evaluation
The Unimaginable Hulk
Genius scientist Bruce Banner makes an attempt to duplicate the super-soldier serum that gave Captain America his skills, solely to undergo an unintended publicity to gamma radiation that causes him to rework right into a green-skinned behemoth — dubbed The Hulk — when his coronary heart price rises above a sure stage. After defeating a psychopathic soldier mutated by a mixture of the serum and Banner’s blood, Banner (and Hulk) go into hiding.
Thor
Scorching-headed Asgardian Thor is stripped of his powers and banished to Earth — particularly, New Mexico — after the most recent transgression in opposition to his father, Odin, the ruler of Asgard. His diabolical half-brother Loki schemes to maintain him there and take the throne for himself, however after Thor redeems himself, his powers and his magical hammer, Mjölnir, return to him. Later, Nick Fury reveals that SHIELD is in possession of The Tesseract (final seen in Captain America: The First Avengers), and we study that Loki may be very a lot nonetheless alive and is manipulating the scientist tasked with finding out the highly effective artifact.
Learn our full Thor evaluation
The Avengers
Loki agrees to acquire The Tesseract for an alien race known as the Chitauri in change for a military that can assist him take over Earth. He infiltrates SHIELD headquarters, prompting Nick Fury to assemble The Avengers for the primary time. Bruce Banner, Tony Stark, and Steve Rogers are ultimately joined by Thor, together with SHIELD brokers Black Widow and Hawkeye, and collectively they cease Loki and his Chitauri military after an enormous battle in Manhattan. The Tesseract is distributed to Asgard, and the Chitauri’s mysterious chief is later revealed to be Thanos, who was trying to amass The Tesseract for his personal functions.
Iron Man 3
Tony’s pursuit of the terrorist chief often known as The Mandarin embroils him in a battle with a rival scientist that endangers everybody round him and injures each his good friend Comfortable Hogan and his girlfriend, Pepper Potts. He ultimately decides to destroy the vast majority of his Iron Man fits to be able to maintain them out of the fallacious arms.
Learn our full Iron Man 3 evaluation
Thor: The Darkish World
An historic battle between the Asgardians and the Darkish Elves is reignited when a cosmic convergence of occasions unleashes the Aether, a strong weapon hidden eons in the past. Thor’s mom is killed within the ensuing battle and Thor is pressured to enlist the assistance of Loki, who had been imprisoned on Asgard because the occasions of The Avengers. Thor defeats the Darkish Elves’ chief, Malekith, and the Aether is moved off Asgard for safekeeping. The Aether and The Tesseract are first recognized as “Infinity Stones” on this movie, and due to that, it’s indicated that they shouldn’t be saved close to one another.
Learn our full Thor: The Darkish World evaluation
Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Captain America, Nick Fury, and Black Widow uncover that SHIELD has been infiltrated by Hydra, the evil group launched in The First Avenger, however are pressured to go on the run after they’re framed as murderers and enemies of the state. They’re joined by Air Pressure rescue pilot Sam Wilson (aka Falcon) and his high-tech wings as they try to show Hydra. They quickly uncover that Bucky Barnes isn’t solely alive however has been brainwashed by Hydra and became the highly effective murderer often known as the Winter Soldier. Hydra’s plot is ultimately foiled, leaving SHIELD in disarray and the Winter Soldier on the run.
Learn our full Captain America: The Winter Soldier evaluation
Guardians of the Galaxy
Half-human mercenary Peter Quill (aka Star-Lord) steals a mysterious orb from a distant planet however is pressured to assemble a ragtag crew of reluctant heroes — together with Thanos’ daughter, Gamora — to retrieve it after it’s taken by the renegade Kree warrior Ronan. The orb is one other Infinity Stone, certainly one of six historic artifacts with energy over time, area, and actuality. Ronan decides to make use of the stone for himself as a substitute of giving it to Thanos, however Quill and his crew defeat him and provides it to the galactic peacekeepers often known as the Nova Corps on the planet Xandar.
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Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
Peter Quill and his crew — Rocket Raccoon, Drax, Gamora, and Groot — discover themselves focused by a harmful alien race, area pirates, and a residing planet who can also be Quill’s father. Within the means of overcoming these threats, they’re joined by Gamora’s adopted sister, Nebula, who’s on a mission to kill Thanos. They win in the long run, after all, however not with out struggling a heartbreaking loss: Quill’s adoptive father, Yondu, sacrifices himself to save lots of his son.
Learn our full Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2 evaluation
Avengers: Age of Ultron
The Avengers uncover Hydra experimenting with Loki’s mind-controlling employees from The Avengers and free twins Pietro and Wanda Maximoff, who’ve tremendous velocity and weird telepathic, telekinetic powers, respectively. Whereas finding out the gem within the scepter, Tony Stark and Bruce Banner by chance create Ultron, a synthetic intelligence that tries to destroy humanity. To defeat Ultron, the crew creates Imaginative and prescient, a sentient, artificial being powered by the scepter’s gem — revealed to be one other Infinity Stone. The crew beats Ultron with assist from the Maximoffs, however not earlier than Pietro dies and most of a European nation is destroyed. Within the aftermath, Hulk exiles himself, Thor returns to Asgard, and the unique crew successfully disbands, leaving Captain America and Black Widow to coach new recruits Struggle Machine, Wanda (aka Scarlet Witch), Imaginative and prescient, and Falcon. In the meantime, Thanos vows to take issues into his personal arms and personally retrieve the Infinity Stones.
Learn our full Avengers: Age of Ultron evaluation
Ant-Man
Ex-SHIELD agent Hank Pym recruits kind-hearted thief Scott Lang to steal a prototype size-changing go well with created by his former protege earlier than it’s bought to Hydra. Scott makes use of Pym’s personal size-changing go well with — which additionally permits him to speak with ants — to forestall the sale and defeat the villain, whereas additionally discovering a technique to shrink to sub-atomic measurement and enter a mysterious area outdoors of time and area often known as the Quantum Realm.
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Captain America: Civil Struggle
The aftermath of Avengers: Age of Ultron leads the United Nations to determine the Sokovia Accords, placing the Avengers below management of the federal government. This fractures the crew, and a subsequent terrorist assault that kills the chief of Wakanda is blamed on the Winter Soldier, placing two teams of Avengers — together with new recruits Spider-Man and Ant-Man, in addition to T’Challa (aka Black Panther), the Wakandan inheritor to the throne — on the hunt for him. Iron Man and Captain America lead their new groups in a combat in opposition to one another, leaving the Avengers’ loyalties divided. After his innocence is confirmed, Winter Soldier is granted asylum in Wakanda.
Learn our full Captain America: Civil Struggle evaluation
Black Widow
Black Widow is settled in an odd place within the MCU timeline, after the Avengers’ Civil Struggle and earlier than the rise of Thanos. As such, it’s a much more private story, taking a deep dive into the lifetime of Natasha Romanoff, aka Black Widow. When a harmful conspiracy with ties to her previous threatens to unravel her life as an Avenger, Natasha confronts the darker components of her previous, together with the makeshift spy household she constructed and deserted lengthy earlier than her heroic turns.
Learn our full Black Widow evaluation
Spider-Man: Homecoming
Excessive-school pupil Peter Parker returns residence after serving to Iron Man combat Captain America in Captain America: Civil Struggle, and finally ends up battling with a villain wielding refurbished Chitauri expertise salvaged after the battle in The Avengers. Initially mentored by Tony Stark, Peter learns to be a hero with out the high-tech go well with, defeats The Vulture, and turns down a suggestion to hitch The Avengers — preferring to stay a solo hero.
Learn our full Spider-Man: Homecoming evaluation
Physician Unusual
Smug neurosurgeon Stephen Unusual loses using his arms in a automobile accident, ultimately touring deep into the Himalayas to review the mystic arts in an try to repair his damage. After gaining talent along with his new powers, Unusual is drawn right into a battle with a renegade sorcerer and ultimately saves the mortal realm — with some assist from fellow sorcerers Wong and Mordo — by bending time with an artifact often known as the Eye of Agamotto. He later returns to New York Metropolis to proceed his research.
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Black Panther
Following the occasions of Captain America: Civil Struggle, T’Challa returns to Wakanda and should overcome a problem to the throne from rivals each throughout the African nation and coming from outdoors its borders, together with the lethal Erik Killmonger. T’Challa manages to win the throne, however decides to lastly share the secrets and techniques of his technologically superior nation with the world.
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Thor: Ragnarok
Following the occasions of Avengers: Age of Ultron, Thor returns to Asgard, hoping to forestall the prophesied apocalypse often known as Ragnarök. Odin dies, and Thor quickly finds himself exiled on the far-off planet Sakaar by Hela, his brutally bold sister who destroys Thor’s hammer, Mjolnir, and takes over Asgard. Thor encounters each Hulk and Loki on Sakaar, and makes his escape from the planet together with one other Asgardian he meets there often known as Valkyrie. The quartet is pressured to destroy Asgard to be able to cease Hela’s conquest (with Thor dropping his eye within the course of), and escapes with the surviving Asgardians on a big spaceship — solely to come across Thanos’ large warship throughout their journey by way of area.
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Ant-Man and the Wasp
Below home arrest as a result of occasions of Captain America: Civil Struggle, Scott Lang is as soon as once more recruited by Hank Pym and his daughter, Hope van Dyne, to assist rescue Hope’s mom, Janet, who was trapped within the Quantum Realm years earlier. Hope dons a brand new size-changing go well with and turns into The Wasp. Collectively, Scott, Hank, and Hope evade a number of villains and the FBI, and rescue Janet from the Quantum Realm. Nevertheless, throughout a subsequent expedition into the Quantum Realm that happens through the occasions of Avengers: Infinity Struggle, Janet, Hope, and Hank out of the blue flip to mud, leaving Scott trapped within the sub-atomic nethers.
Learn our full Ant-Man and the Wasp evaluation
Avengers: Infinity Struggle
Thanos decimates Xandar to amass the Energy Stone, one of many Infinity Stones, then takes The Tesseract — revealed to be the Area Stone — from the ship carrying what’s left of Asgard. He defeats Thor and Hulk, then kills Loki and many of the remaining Asgardians. Hulk crashes on Earth and warns the Avengers of Thanos’ plans to get rid of half the inhabitants of the universe by gathering all six Infinity Stones. Thanos manages to amass each the Actuality Stone — the Aether from Thor: The Darkish World — and the Soul Stone, however in engaging in the latter, he kills his daughter, Gamora.
Now in possession of 4 of the six Infinity Stones, Thanos battles the remaining Guardians of the Galaxy, Iron Man, Spider-Man, and Physician Unusual on his former residence planet, solely to have Physician Unusual inexplicably give him the Time Stone — revealed to be the Eye of Agamotto — to be able to save Iron Man’s life. Thanos leaves Iron Man and Nebula stranded on the planet, then heads to Earth, the place he battles the remaining Avengers earlier than ripping the Thoughts Stone from Imaginative and prescient’s head, killing him. Thor wounds Thanos with a brand new, extra highly effective weapon, however is unable to forestall him inflicting half of the universe’s inhabitants to fade in a cloud of mud. Simply earlier than disappearing, nonetheless, Nick Fury sends an emergency name to 1 Captain Marvel.
Learn our full Avengers: Infinity Struggle evaluation
Avengers: Endgame
The best stakes Marvel has ever performed with, Endgame offers with discovering that one-in-a-million profitable timeline that Physician Unusual teased in Infinity Struggle. Choosing up 5 years after The Snap, the remaining Avengers proceed to serve the world, albeit in a extra nuanced capability. Captain America is main grief counseling, Black Widow is coordinating emergency service efforts, and Thor is, effectively, fats, drunk, and enjoying video video games in Earth Asgard.
When Scott Lang is by chance launched from the Quantum Realm by a wandering cat after 5 years, he realizes that though the world has modified fully, he skilled only some hours of time within the Quantum Realm. Rounding up the remainder of the Avengers, they enterprise again in time (by way of most of the earlier motion pictures in a very good homage to the breadth and element of this universe) to seize the Infinity Stones earlier than Thanos can get them. Thanos, nonetheless, will get sensible to the plan, resulting in a showdown of epic proportions between his planet-eliminating energy and the mixed forces of the galaxy. This remaining battle proves Endgame‘s stakes really are increased than any earlier movie within the MCU.
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Spider-Man: Removed from Dwelling
The primary film after what’s being known as “The Blip” is appropriately lighthearted. Marvel’s Spider-Man movies have a teenage innocence to them — a minimum of in the beginning — that recontextualizes the Marvel Cinematic Universe as one which has suffered however is now complete once more. Nevertheless, it’s additionally the primary movie following Tony Stark’s loss of life, and Peter Parker is left damaged and on the lookout for a father determine. He thinks he finds that in Quentin Beck, a Inexperienced Lantern-like warrior who has traveled to earth to defeat 4 legendary elemental creatures who destroyed his planet. Seems, Beck isn’t who he says he’s and turns into one of the crucial harmful, manipulative villains Spider-Man has ever confronted. Particularly since his affect appears to increase from past the grave.
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
Part 4 of the MCU kicked off with a couple of TV collection on Disney+. Shang-Chi was the primary film entry to the post-Infinity Struggle saga. And it’s a fantastic one. Not solely does Shang-Chi introduce an thrilling new hero, it deftly incorporates parts of the earliest MCU motion pictures by telling the story of the prison group, the Ten Rings. (You could recall listening to about them in Iron Man movies.) Simu Liu stars as Shang-Chi, inheritor to the group who has rebuffed his future, hoping to guide a traditional life in America as a substitute. However when the previous catches as much as him, he’s pressured to face as the ultimate impediment between his father’s relentless ambition.
Eternals
Eternals spans millennia, however the core of the story happens in a post-Endgame world. Whereas the movie doesn’t all the time grapple effectively with the existence of immortal guardians on Earth who simply randomly determined to not choose up arms in opposition to Thanos, Eternals does introduce a compelling new superhero crew to the MCU. A race of historic aliens who’ve secretly guarded the Earth for hundreds of years, an surprising tragedy now brings them out of the shadows to tackle their most historic enemy, the Deviants.
Spider-Man: No Method Dwelling
One of many MCU’s most bold motion pictures, No Method Dwelling picks up proper after the occasions of Far From Dwelling, with Peter Parker’s (Tom Holland) secret id revealed. Framed for Mysterio’s homicide, Peter is a pariah in all places he goes, to the purpose that his greatest associates can’t get into their most well-liked schools on account of their affiliation with him. Feeling responsible, Peter asks Physician Unusual to forged a spell to make the world neglect he’s Spider-Man. However, because the saying goes, “Watch out what you would like for.”
Peter realizes he doesn’t need everybody to neglect he’s Spider-Man, inflicting the spell to go awry, opening up a number of paths to various universes. Because the multiverse opens, villains of various universes and timelines start to enter Peter’s New York, all searching for vengeance on Spider-Man. Now, Peter should resolve the timeline and enlist Physician Unusual yet one more time to cease the multiverses from destroying our personal.
Physician Unusual within the Multiverse of Insanity
The MCU spent a number of motion pictures and TV reveals to introduce the idea of the multiverse and construct a powerful basis. Lastly, the universe dives in headfirst in Physician Unusual within the Multiverse of Insanity. After Spider-Man: No Method Dwelling opened and closed the multiverse, issues aren’t so reduce and dry anymore. Seems, a mysterious new adversary has emerged, forcing Physician Unusual to enlist the assistance of some mystical allies each outdated and new to go into the multiverse and confront the brand new risk on the supply.
Methods to watch in launch order
Favor to look at the movies so as of launch? That’s a enjoyable technique to see how the flicks have developed when it comes to particular results, tone, and storytelling, and you’ll start to understand simply how effectively thought out the MCU was, with Easter eggs for the bigger plan sprinkled into motion pictures way back to 2008’s Iron Man. On the unfavourable aspect, you’ll bounce everywhere in the timeline. Right here’s how one can do it:
Part One
- Iron Man (Could 2008)
- The Unimaginable Hulk (June 2008)
- Iron Man 2 (Could 2010)
- Thor (Could 2011)
- Captain America: The First Avenger (July 2011)
- The Avengers (Could 2012)
Part Two
- Iron Man 3 (Could 2013)
- Thor: The Darkish World (November 2013)
- Captain America: The Winter Soldier (April 2014)
- Guardians of the Galaxy (August 2014)
- Avengers: Age of Ultron (Could 2015)
- Ant-Man (July 2015)
Part Three
- Captain America: Civil Struggle (Could 2016)
- Physician Unusual (November 2016)
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (Could 2017)
- Spider-Man: Homecoming (July 2017)
- Thor: Ragnarok (November 2017)
- Black Panther (February 2018)
- Avengers: Infinity Struggle (April 2018)
- Ant-Man and the Wasp (July 2018)
- Captain Marvel (March 2019)
- Avengers: Endgame (April 2019)
- Spider-Man: Far From Dwelling (July 2019)
Part 4 (together with TV collection)
- Wandavision (TV collection, January 2021)
- The Falcon and The Winter Soldier (TV collection, March 2021)
- Loki (TV collection, June 2021)
- Black Widow (July 2021)
- What If…? (TV collection, August, 2021)
- Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (September 3, 2021)
- Eternals (November 5, 2021)
- Hawkeye (TV collection)
- Moon Knight (TV collection)
- Ms. Marvel (TV collection)
- Spider-Man: No Method Dwelling (December 17, 2021)
- Physician Unusual within the Multiverse of Insanity (March 25, 2022)
- Thor: Love and Thunder (Could 6, 2022)
- Black Panther: Wakanda Endlessly (July 8, 2022)
- The Marvels (November 11, 2022)
- Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (February 17, 2023)
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (Could 5, 2023)
Future MCU motion pictures and TV reveals
- Blade (Film — TBA)
- Incredible 4 (Film — TBA)
- She-Hulk (TV present — TBA)
- Secret Invasion (TV present — TBA)
- Ironheart (TV present — TBA)
- Amor Wars (TV present — TBA)
- Wakanda Collection (TV present — TBA)
Editors’ Alternative
