Another year, another San Diego COMIC-CON. SDCC is where all the major movie studios, TV networks, publishers debut their most impressive and high profile projects coming down the pipe line. Marvel Studios, Warner Bros., DC Comics, DC Studios, Disney and many more make the sojourn to SDCC to peddle their wares. While the Con has undoubtedly become part of the corporate machine, fan favorite creators, their best in their respective industries, have a huge presence at SDCC as well.
This year was a more modest Con, with less of the trailer debuts, major announcements (like casting news, project debuts, sneak peeks, etc.) that we’ve come to expect at COMIC-CON. This isn’t that surprising because comicon was living in the shadow of the current, Hollywood Writers and Actors Guild strikes. The strikes have been the top story in entertainment news. A lot of the talent we’d normally expect to see at SDCC are picketing with their fellow writers and actors. Also when the Writer’s Guild went on strike, there was a specific deadline when they were supposed to drop everything and completely stop writing for any of the projects they were working on. So maybe some of the studios and creators couldn’t put something together in time to show audiences.
So it may not have been as massive and bombastic, as it has in years past, but COMIC-CON still debuted some very cool stuff to the fans. I’m going to breakdown my favorite stuff to come out of SDCC 2023! Let’s get started!
MOVIES
The Marvels
TV & STREAMING:
INVINCIBLE (Season 2)
Loki (Season 2)
The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live
Gen V (The Boys Spin-Off)
REDBAND Trailer
Official Teaser
COMIC BOOKS & GRAPHIC NOVELS:
Batman: Gargoyle of Gotham
Godzilla vs Kong vs Justice League
G.O.D.S. (Written by Jonathan Hickman/Art by Valerio Schiti)
Jonathan Hickman is one of my favorite comic book writers of all time. He’s the man behind legendary, character redefining runs on The Fantastic Four, Avengers, and X-Men. Each series is a must read, modern Marvel classic. Set to debut this Fall, G.O.D.S. sounds like the kind of storytelling Hickman does best. Here’s the official word from Marvel on this mysterious new series: “ G.O.D.S. will see two of the industry’s greatest modern visionaries dramatically redefine Marvel’s pantheon of cosmic beings and masterfully deconstruct the forces behind reality. The breathtaking new saga will introduce a host of new characters—all players in a secret conflict at the crossroads of science and magic!”
Though the series will bounce around the entire Marvel Universe, the main cast consists of new characters (Via Marvel):
Wyn, a powerful magic expert who’s operated in secret for thousands of years and is now forced to come out of the shadows.
Aiko Maki, a high-ranking agent brutally loyal to the ways of science and willing to do anything to keep the building blocks of creation in balance.
Dmitri the Science Boy, Wyn’s reckless partner who has a secret mission of his own to discover the dark truth of his past.
Mia the Magic Girl, a young sorcerer struggling to achieve her full potential.
Cubisk Core, a mysterious being of pure corruption seeking to shatter the existing systems.
Take a look at this preview from G.O.D.S. #1…
G.O.D.S. debuts Fall 2023
Captain America by J. Michael Strakzynski
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Marvel just dropped the first trailer for The Marvels, the upcoming sequel to Captain Marvel. The film will be more of a team-up movie than it’s predecessor, with Carol Danvers teaming up with Kamala Khan from Ms Marvel and Monica Rambeau from WandaVision. Of course let’s not forget none other than Nick Fury himself is along for the ride. I think this looks like a blast! Check out the trailer right here:
Our heroes will be facing off against a Kree revolutionary called Dar-Benn (Man, those Kree are just a bunch of assholes). Interestingly she’s seen wielding the cosmic hammer of a Kree Accuser, like the one used by Ronan The Accuser in Guardians of The Galaxy and Captain Marvel.
The film’s villain, Dar-Benn. A dangerous Kree warrior.
Here’s the official synopsis: “In Marvel Studios’ The Marvels, Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel has reclaimed her identity from the tyrannical Kree and taken revenge on the Supreme Intelligence. But unintended consequences see Carol shouldering the burden of a destabilized universe. When her duties send her to an anomalous wormhole linked to a Kree revolutionary, her powers become entangled with that of Jersey City super-fan Kamala Khan, aka Ms. Marvel, and Carol’s estranged niece, now S.A.B.E.R. astronaut Captain Monica Rambeau. Together, this unlikely trio must team up to learn to work in concert to save the universe as ‘The Marvels.”
Sounds like a hell of a lot of fun to me! The Marvels hits theaters November 10th.
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We had three exciting new trailers for upcoming projects drop this week. They’re all exciting in their own way, so let’s dive right in and check them out!
SECRET INVASION
I love Nick Fury! So it’s really cool to see him headlining his own MCU project, especially with Ben Mendelsohn, who is such a fantastic actor. I love Don Cheadle’s line from the trailer when Rhodey says to Fury “You’re the most wanted man on the planet.”. That is the exact type of situation Nick Fury should be in, in a Nick Fury movie or story. I really dug up this trailer! It looked very cinematic, had I not known it was a television miniseries. I would’ve thought it was a movie that would be released in theaters.
Here’s the official synopsis: “Fury and Talos (Ben Mendelsohn) try to stop the Skrulls who have infiltrated the highest spheres of the Marvel Universe.”
In addition, to returning characters, like Talos, we have a few new faces in this project. Emelia Clarke is playing G’iah, daughter of Ben Mendelsohn’s Talos. We first met her character as a little girl in 2019’s Captain Marvel.
Secret Invasion Premieres on Disney+ June 21st!
BLUE BEETLE
Blue beetle was originally intended to be released directly on to the HBO max streaming platform. But the studio and other people within the industry, who would given their insight, works also impressed by the film that they decided to release theatrically. I can see why they would make that choice, because this looks like a lot of fun. Take a look at the movie’s official synopsis:
Mexican-American teenager Jaime Reyes gains super powers when a mysterious scarab binds to his spine and provides him with a powerful suit of blue alien armour.
Jaime Reyes AKA The Blue Beetle
Jaime isn’t the first Blue Bettle, that honor goes to a man named Ted Kord. Kord was a brilliant science and the head of Kord Industries. Like Batman, Ted didnt have superpowers, instead relying his intelligence, physical skill, and the advanced tech. I will always have a soft spot in my heart for Ted Coord, but at the bottom is at the end of the day he was really just a poor man’s Batman. Interestingly, enough the character night owl from Alan Moore’s seminal, classic Watchmen was loosely based on, and inspired by Blue Bettle.
Ted Kord
The Original Blue Beetle
It’s not clear if Ted Kord has any role in this movie. However, there is a brief glimpse in the trailer of the characters riding in “The Bug”, Blue Beetle’s very cool hover ship. This is another great example of how Nite Owl from Watchmen was inspired by The Blue Beetle, including Archie, Nite Owl’s ship in Watchmen. “The Bug” it is one of my favorite superhero vehicles in all of comics, so it’s really exciting to see it brought to life on screen. But it still doesn’t answer whether or not the original Blue Beetle will be making an appearance. We’ll have to wait and see.
The Bug hovercraft from the trailerThe Bug as seen in the comics
Blue Beetle hits theaters on August 18th
SPIDER-MAN: ACROSSTHE SPIDERVERSE
Here’s the official synopsis: Miles Morales catapults across the Multiverse, where he encounters a team of Spider-People charged with protecting its very existence. When the heroes clash on how to handle a new threat, Miles must redefine what it means to be a hero.
Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse is arguably the best Spider-Man film to date and is certainly in the conversation for one of the best superhero movies of all time. Initially, I was hoping that the sequel would focus more on Miles and his journey as Spider-Man and his developing relationship with Gwen Stacy’s Spider Woman. I wasn’t that enthusiastic about another big Multiversal adventure. However, after seeing the new trailer, I have to say I’m really intrigued by where they’re going with this new movie. It seems like a really interesting direction and has me very excited.
Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse Opens June 2nd
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The Final Trailer for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever has just dropped and this looks like one hell of an exciting film! In addition to the new trailer, which you can check out below, Wakanda Forever is introducing quite a few new characters and concepts into The MCU. With the movie’s release fast approaching, it seemed like a good idea to give you all a much better look at two of the new characters making their MCU debut in the film: Namor The Submariner and Riri William a.k.a. Iron Heart. In this article, we dive into how these exciting new characters affect the world of Wakanda, as well as the rest of The MCU. But first, watch the new trailer, right here:
As we’ll get into later in the article, to bring the character of Namor and his world to life, South American culture and mythology were huge influences for the filmmakers when it came to costumes, set design and more in the new film. Something you can see on display in the beautiful image below. Them gorgeous cover for this month’s issue of the excellent Empire Magazine, features (from left to right) Queen Ramonda, Shuri, and Namor.
NAMOR: THE SUBMARINER
Namor is one of Marvel’s oldest characters. Often featured in comics fighting alongside Captain America in WWII. He’s basically Marvel’s Aquaman, if Aquaman were a massive asshole who blurred the line between hero and villain.
Namor from a recent issue of Avengers
Like Aquaman, Namor is usually portrayed as the King of Atlantis. However, in Wakanda Forvever, while Atlantis still exists, Namor (played by Tenoch Huerta) will be the king of a different lost undersea kingdom called Talocan from Aztec mythology. This change takes nothing from the character, while adding a whole lot of potential. The filmmakers have created the opportunity for Namor himself, set design, costumes, VFX, and more to be inspired by Mesoamerican and South American mythology. From what we’ve seen in trailers and photos released from the film. The costume design and visuals for Namor, his people, and his kingdom, have looked spectacular. Wakanda was so richly and beautifully brought to life for these films, so it’s only appropriate that they attempt to do the same thing with Wakanda and Black Panther’s South American, antagonistic, counterpart. This has the added benefit of helping Namor stand out against the already successful and well established big screen version of Aquaman over at DC. We’ve already had a very successful Aquaman film with it’s own unique visual language, and by adding these beautiful flares to Namor’s world, it helps differentiate the two characters.
Namor
Namor and T’Challa arguably have one of, if not, the greatest rivalries in The Marvel Universe. The characters have a long history of animosity and bad blood, which is just another reason it’s a shame that we won’t see T’Challa appear in this film.
Until recently, it was unclear if one major part of Namor’s backstory would be translated into The MCU. However, it was recently revealed by Namor himself, actor Tenoch Huerta, that like his comic book counterpart, the Namor of The MCU is a Mutant. In the comics, Namor has often been referred to as one of “the first mutants”. His mother was Atlantean and his father was human, who passed the X-Gene on to him. Atlantean’s are already born with enhanced abilities from evolving at the ocean depths. The combination of his Atlantean heritage and his mutation, make Namor extremely powerful character with abilities far beyond those of normal Atlanteans. Namor is without question one of the heavy hitters of The Marvel Universe. Anybody who can go one on one with The Hulk is not to be taken lightly.
RIRI WILLIAMS: IRON HEART
Namor isn’t the only new character to make their debut in Wakanda Forever, Riri Williams a.k.a. Iron Heart (played by Dominique Thorne)will also apppear in the film, with her own Disney+ show to follow. A much more recent addition to The Marvel Universe, the character was created by Brian Michael Bendis in the pages of Invincible Iron Man. Riri is a teenage prodigy and a genius on par with Tony Stark or Shuri. While attending MIT, she reverse engineered the Iron Man armor and build her own armor out of materials taken from the MIT campus. She’s mentored by characters like Pepper and goes on to team up with other young heroes like Kamala Kahn’s Ms Marvel and Miles Morales.
A brief glance at the Iron Heart armor from the new trailer
She was shown briefly in the 1st trailer for Wakanda Forever, working alongside Shuri in her lab. There are a few quick shots in this new trailer, showing her working own her suit and flying into battle. Considering that the character is from Chicago in the comics, I suspect she’ll have begun working with Shuri through one of the Wakanda Outreach Programs T’Challa implemented at the end of the first Black Panther. Below we have the best look yet at the Iron Heart armor Riri will be wearing in the movie. Like a lot of superhero movie/TV reveals, this one came from promotional material for toys connected to the movie. You’d be surprised how often we get our first look at major comic book characters on film through toy advertisements.
Here’s Marvel’s official synopsis for Wakanda Forever: In Marvel Studios’ “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett), Shuri (Letitia Wright), M’Baku (Winston Duke), Okoye (Danai Gurira) and the Dora Milaje (including Florence Kasumba), fight to protect their nation from intervening world powers in the wake of King T’Challa’s death. As the Wakandans strive to embrace their next chapter, the heroes must band together with the help of War Dog Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o) and Everett Ross (Martin Freeman) and forge a new path for the kingdom of Wakanda. Introducing Tenoch Huerta as , king of a hidden undersea nation, the film also stars Dominique Thorne, Michaela Coel, Mabel Cadena and Alex Livanalli.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever hits theaters November 11th
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*EDITOR’S NOTE: A lot of interesting content was revealed at this year’s COMIC-CON, so I’ll be updating this page with new content over the next several days.
Its that time of year and Comic-Con is upon us once again! This the venue where audiences get a sneak peek at some of the most exciting and anticipated projects in the superhero, sci-fi, and fantasy genres. There were quite a few notable announcements, trailers, and first looks, so let’s dive right in!
MARVEL STUDIOS
After The Infinity Saga came to a close, fans have been eager to see where The MCU would go next. The head of Marvel Studios, Kevin Fiege, did not disappoint. As we’re heading towards the end of Phase 4, Marvel debuted the films and Disney+ shows that would make up not only Phase 5, but Phase 6 as well!
As you’ll notice, not all of the films and TV shows that make up Phase 6 have been revealed. Some of these projects could hidden beceause even their title would spoil certain surprises that Marvel has in store. I also wouldn’t be surprised to see some of those spots taken up by sequels for characters like Shang-Chi and Doctor Strange or even an X-Men related project. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a film about the main Marvel Universe version of The Illuminati or even a Doctor Doom solo movie. We’ll have to wait and see. Like The Infinity Saga before it, Phases 4, 5, and 6 will collectively make up…
Culminating in not one, but TWO Avengers films, with monumentally exciting titles…
Exciting stuff, but there’s more MCU where that came from…
She-Hulk: Attorney At Law
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania
The 3rd installment in the Ant-Man franchise marks the beginning of Marvel’s Phase 5. The big news in this movie is Jonathan Majors appearing as Kang The Conqueror. When we met He Who Remains, a much nicer variant of Kang, in Loki Season 1, we were warned that his variant’s are dangerous to put it mildly. When it comes to The Avengers’ the greatest foes, three names top the list: Thanos, Ultron, and Kang. Considering that the next Avengers movie is called Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, you get the idea that Kang is as bad and as dangerous as they come. Jonathan Majors did a fantastic job of playing a variant of Kang in Loki Season One so I’m very excited to see what he does with a much more malevolent version of the character in this film. Below Marvel revealed an exciting poster for the upcoming movie, where you get a good look at not only Ant-Man and The Wasp, but Kang The Conqueror in his traditional comic book attire, along with Scott Lang’s daughter Cassie as her superhero alter ego, Stature.
Guardians of The Galaxy Vol.3
While some of the Guardians of The Galaxy panel is available to watch on YouTube, the brief teaser James Gunn cut together for the audience in Hall H , hasn’t made it’s way online yet. However, there were some cool reveals, it was officially confirmed that the film’s villain will be The High Evolutionary. The character will be played by Chukwudi Iwuji. Earlier this year, Iwuji played Clemson Murn in the spectacular “Peacemaker” series. He made a hell of the entrance by taking a page out of Tom Hiddleston’s playbook and showing up for the panel in character and costume.
Chukwudi Iwuji on stage in Hall H as The High Evolutionary.
The High Evolutionary is Doctor Herbert Wyndham, a geneticist who specializes in creating human/animal hybrids. Rocket has been frequently referred to as the central character in Vol.3., so going on some sort of journey of self discovery to find his ”creator” or ”father”, makes a lot of sense. Many fans have speculated that The High Evolutionary would be revealed to be Rocket’s creator. This reveal seems to have confirmed this running fan theory.
Daredevil: Born Again
Charlie Cox and Vincent D’Onofrio return as Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk in the first 18 Episode Disney+ series. Notably, Fiege referred to this as the show’s “First Season”, implying that this isn’t a one off, like WandaVision, for example. Born Again refers to one of Daredevil’s most iconic stories, however Season 3 of the Netflix Daredevil series was largely an adaptation of this classic Born Again storyline. Even if the Netflix shows aren’t completely considered canon in The MCU, I doubt Marvel would rehash a story that we’ve, mostly, already seen, canon or not. Especially with Cox and D’Onofrio returning. If i had to guess, I’d say this is probably a Civil War or Age of Ultron situation, adaptations in name only and vastly different from the source material. I think that’s the most likely situation with Daredevil: Born Again. Out of all the projects revealed at COMIC CON this year, this is the one I’m most excited about.
In this video, IGN does a great job of explaining what Daredevil’s future in The MCU looks like. Check it out:
DC ENTERTAINMENT
The Sandman
Neil Gaiman, the celebrated author and creator of The Sandman comic series that the new show’s based on, breaks down the trailer in the video below.
SHAZAM: Fury of The Gods
Black Adam
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Here are some beautiful alternate and artist made posters for Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings
On this episode of The World’s Best Podcast, we give our straight out of the theater reaction, to latest MCU film, Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings! While not a FULL SPOILER review, a few MAJOR SPOILERS get dropped in our discussion, so listener beware! Instead of the studio, we recorded this in our car, immediately after seeing the film, which is why there’s a little background noise. However, I did want to include some Easter Eggs, interesting background info, and connections to the rest of The MCU, that just might enrich your experience when seeing Shang-Chi.
I absolutely adore this Special Edition Cover for EMPIRE Magazine’s Shang-Chi issue
One of the cool things about Shang Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings, is that certain elements of the character’s history have been present in The MCU, all the way back to the first Iron Man film in 2008. None of this really counts as a spoiler, because it’s nothing that hasn’t been shown in the trailer. is nothing that you haven’t seen in the trailers. The Ten Rings is like a more mysterious, ninja HYDRA. I’m going to elaborate on how the organization was pulling the strings and making moves during some key moments in The MCU. The Ten Rings make their debut in the first MCU movie, Iron Man, in 2008. The Ten Rings were the terrorist organization that kidnapped Tony Stark at the beginning of the movie. They want him to make a weapons of mass destruction but instead Tony plans an escape by building his Mach 1 armor. With that Iron Man, and the MCU, was born.
In Iron Man 2, it’s revealed that, in a deleted scene, agents of The Ten Rings, helped Mickey Rourke’s Whiplash get past security and onto the race track, where ha attacked Tony in his race car during the Monaco Grand Prix.
Even in Ant-Man, towards the end of the film the current head of Pym Tech, Cross has finally been able to replicate his hands on Hank Pym’s shrinking technology. Cross, who’s a real sack if shit, intends to sell it to the highest bidders. Many shady buyers showed for the unveiling of the Yellowjacket, Cross’s version of the Ant-Man suit. Including Hydra, A.I.M., several agents of The Ten Rings. If you have Disney+ I’d also recommend checking out the short film All Hail The King, starring Ben Kingsley‘s character from Iron Man 3, Trevor Slattery. Not only is it a really fun little short, it also has a really cool connection to Shang Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings.
Listen here: https://www.spreaker.com/episode/46360628 Or subscribe/listen on Spotify, Stitcher, Spreaker, iHeartRadio, Deezer, Podchaser, Castbox, Podcast Addict, Google Podcasts, & Apple Podcasts/ITunes…
Thanks for reading! Follow us on Twitter @PJWrightWBM, Instagram @worldsbestmedia2017, and our Facebook Page, Worlds Best Media. Those likes and follows, as well as iTunes reviews, go a long way to supporting World’s Best Media. We really appreciate the loyalty and support shown to us by our fans, so thanks again! Stay healthy and stay safe!
First things first, if you haven’t seen it yet (and even if you did, watch it again), take look at this incredible video Marvel Studios put out, giving us a look at its upcoming films and reminding us why we love going to the movies in the first place! Watch it here:
My God, those sons of bitches at Marvel have done it again! Goddamn if this isn’t one of the most effective pieces of marketing material I have ever seen. The use of Stan Lee’s voice over, coupled with the images of all of the amazing MCU films we’ve seen so far was genius.
It was like in Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Luke doesn’t want anything to with The Jedi or The Resistance. Trusty old R2-D2 decides to give Luke a little kick in the ass, by playing Leia’s message from all those years ago, “Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi. You’re my only hope.” Luke gives R2 an annoyed, but slightly amused look and replies, “That was a cheap move.” Yeah. Sure. It was a cheap move, but it worked like a goddamn charm.
The video begins by showing us our most beloved moments and characters from throughout The MCU. All of this is set to Stan Lee’s beautiful voiceover. He delivered a message full of nostalgia, friendship, community, and hope. In other hands it might have sounded a little hokey, but this is Stan Fucking Lee. The guy’s a pro! From everything I’ve heard in addition to creating almost all of marvels most popular characters Stan was just a really good guy. Anyone who knew him talked about what an amazing person he was. He was humble man despite the indelible success. He always loved his fans and was genuinely grateful for reading his work. They didn’t call him Stan “The Man” Lee for nothing!
But then we’re shown a brief piece of footage, from an audience watching Avengers: Endgame opening night. A movie theater full of people, watching the now iconic “portals“ scene, culminating in Captain America’s unforgettable battle cry of “Avengers Assemble!” The theatre absolutely ERUPTS! Cheering! Applause! This is something I certainly related to because I had the exact same experience when I saw Avengers: Endgame opening night with my father. One of the things I’ve noticed over the last 20 years or so, is that for a really excellent film, if there was a rousing triumphant moment, people used to clap and cheer. Or even if the movie itself was just great, a cut above the rest, the audience would sometimes applaud. As if they were watching a Broadway show live. That has become increasingly rare over the last few decades. I can count on one hand the amount of times an audience has engaged with a recent movie like they did with Avengers: Endgame. The night I saw it, it wasn’t a special fans screening, it wasn’t a midnight show. It was just opening night, I’m sure a lot of the people in the audience were just movie fans not necessarily diehard marvel fans like myself and my father were. Yet when Cap picks up fours hammer and tape sign Thanos and when Captain America once again utters those immortal words “Avengers Assemble!” The entire audience flipped out, people were standing up and clapping as if it was a playoff game at a sporting event. That’s the kind of communal movie going experience I miss. That’s the type of audience interaction that I miss. For so long one of the big reasons I didn’t like to see films in theaters as much as I used to, is because audience etiquette has gone down the tubes. People talk and take out their phones. However if somebody yells something out, claps, or cheers simply because they got caught up in the moment, they became lost in the story unfolding on the screen, that kind of audience engagement is wonderful and has become all too rare. That’s the kind of movie magic Marvel is trying to remind us of with this amazing look at PHASE 4. it’s a big part of what I think is missing from the movie theater industry. It’s one of the reasons they’ve struggled over the last few decades. Marvel is sending us a very clear message here: LET’S GET BACK TO THE MOVIES!
A few interesting observations…
I really love how for some of these sequels were given new, creative titles, instead of just calling them part 2 or part 3. For example, we have Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (great title), instead of Black Panther 2. Captain Marvel 2 is now The Marvels and Ant-Man 3 is Ant-Man and The Wasp: QuantumMania
I thought it was particularly cool that Captain Marvel 2 has been re-titled, The Marvels. Carol Danvers is still the main character, but she’ll be fighting alongside two new lead characters with deep ties to Captain Marvel in the comics and The MCU. The film will feature Monica Rambeau, who was memorably introduced (and developed superpowers) in WandaVision, and eventually becomes the superhero known as Spectrum. To refresh your memory, the first Captain Marvel film took place in the 90’s and Monica was the daughter of Carol’s best friend. Monica was also one of the best side characters in WandaVision, so seeing her in the Captain Marvel sequel as an adult, with her own superhero experience, working alongside the woman she idolized growing up, will be a welcome addition to the film.
The Marvels not only marks the big screen debut of Monica Rambeau, but Kamal Khan, AKA Ms. Marvel, as well. Ms. Marvel is one of The MCU’s new Disney+ series premiering later this year. The story follows a Pakistani teenager named Kamal Khan from New Jersey who develops extraordinary abilities and her favorite hero just happens to be Captain Marvel. So Carol Danvers is a big inspiration for Kamala and connects to the character in some interesting ways that the Disney+ series will delve into. Ms Marvel is interesting because her story is basically a modern day retelling of Spider-Man. She’s a teenage girl juggling family, friends, and the life of a superhero. The Marvels premieres in late 2022, so we’ll get a much better idea of how this character will fit into this highly anticipated movie when the Ms Marvel Disney+ series debuts later this year.
The details surrounding Black Panter: Wakanda Forever are a little bit more ambiguous. I’ve heard conflicting reports about what this movie is going to actually be. Very early on, Marvel announced that they didn’t intend to replace Chadwick Boseman in the role of T’Challa. They were going to move forward with Black Panther 2, presumably with someone from the existing cast, most likely either Shuri or Okoye, taking up the mantle of The Black Panther. With the greatest respect to Chadwick Boseman, I think that would be a big mistake. I think if you could ask him, he would probably agree that characters like Black Panther transcend the people who play them, just like with Heath Ledger and The Joker. So often you hear actors compare these superhero roles to Shakespeare characters like Hamlet, that are interpreted over and over again by different actors. With each new actor putting their own spin on it. T’Challa is just too important and cool a character to introduce into The MCU and then not be part of it as we move into this exciting new future. I always thought the best course of action would be to, put that sequel on hold for a respectful couple of years, re-cast, and just make Black Panther 2. For a good while it seemed like that was not the way they were going to go, they were going to move on seemingly without T’Challa as the lead character. If that ends up being the way they go, exactly how they will explain his absence from the film is complete mystery. However, if some recent reports are to be believed, then there is a possibility they may be re-casting the role, which honestly I would prefer. I don’t think it’s necessarily in bad taste. As I said before I’m sure if you could ask people like Heath ledger or Chad Boseman they would agree that these characters are larger than the people who play them. They’ve been here before us and they will be there long after. Of course we will update you as information comes to light, but for the time being I will say I love the title of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever !
If your regular visitor to the website, you know how much I love The Fantastic Four and how much I’ve been dying to see them make an appearance in The MCU. We were teased at the very end of this presentation that FF is essentially going to be the last film in Phase 4. Now if I had to pick which of of these projects I am most excited for, it wouldn’t be FF. We just don’t know enough about Fantastic Four yet for me to be super intrigued, because I don’t know what their approach is going to be. I know that Jon Watts the director of Spider-Man: Homecoming and Spider-Man: Far From Home will be directing FF, which I think is an excellent choice. But other than that nothing is known about the movie. I’m certain as more information comes out my excitement for FF will increase, but for now there are a lot of PHASE 4 projects highlighted here to get really excited for!
It’s important to remember that when Phase 3 of The MCU was announced, the slate of films that we got and what was announced have some major difference. Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 & 2 became Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. The Inhumans film was dropped from the slate completely and made into a TV miniseries. Two Spider-Man films, as well as Ant-Man and The Wasp were added to the lineup. Marvel is always willing to change and adapt when it’s appropriate, which is one of its strengths. To wrap things up, this is an extremely exciting and impressive look at things to come from one of pop-culture’s most exciting storytellers.
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