The Marvel Studios recently released its final movie for Phase 4, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. While Wakanda Forever was quite well received by viewers, unfortunately, the same couldn’t be said for other movies in the same phase. Loyal fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe were quite furious with the studios for not paying more attention to the content they were producing.
Lazy writing, poor CGI, and overcrowding of stories were some of the problems fans are complaining about. Marvel’s Phase 4 consisted of a total of nineteen projects. Looking back, this might have been a bit too much and apparently, the people back at the studios seem to agree. Reportedly, the studios do not want the upcoming phases to face a similar path and thus are looking to create some changes, this time focusing on quality over quantity.
Marvel Might Take a Step Back
According to the sources of Cosmic Circus, Marvel Studios are currently re-evaluating the upcoming Phase 5 and Phase 6 as the recent Phase 4 was on the receiving end of unending criticism. This re-evaluation could result in Marvel slowing things down for a bit, just like back in the Infinity Saga. Comparing it to the nineteen projects in just two years, the Infinity Saga had produced twenty-three films in an extended span of eleven years.
It’s a common point of view among fans that Marvel’s mass production might’ve been the downfall of Phase 4. The studios are reportedly focusing on quality instead of quantity to give MCU its power back. Apparently, most of the focus of the re-evaluation is on projects still in the pre-production stages, whereas those who have reached post-production will not be touched. The ones in pre-production face the dangers of getting a delayed release date, a changed media format, or an outright cancellation of projects, although canceling projects might be unlikely.
Criticism Faced by Marvel’s Phase 4
With reports of focusing on quality over quantity reaching people, fans are furious that quantity was given more value in the first place. Fans took to Twitter to express their views about the whole situation. While some had their own opinions about which shows to cancel and which to not, others were happy to see Marvel planning to do something about the hole they dug themselves in.
I doubt it. They've written themselves into a corner. They can't just ignore what they've done with phase four. They've barely any actual heroes, just a bunch of selfish characters with their own motivations. That and Disney loathes its audience/fans. They'll double down.
— Brian (@Eighties_Brian) December 3, 2022
I’m fine with cutting back. They better not touch daredevil though!!
— Randall (@RCode44) December 3, 2022
They can cancel Agatha, vision, young avengers, and delay secret wars to release all the sequels before secret wars
— Raul G.S. (@Raul_Aztec) December 3, 2022
wow glad they've decided to focus on making their movies good. wonder why they didn't think of that before
— Emostradamus (@DiegeticMN) December 4, 2022
Praise the heavens!!!! Phase 4 was awful 0/10 for me. Bad stories, bad characters, bad acting, worse special effects. Change it up
— nick (@palmtreenick) December 4, 2022
Marvel’s Phase 4 introduced a plethora of new superheroes to the screens, including Shang-Chi and Ms. Marvel. However, fans were a bit disappointed that Phase 4 wasn’t exciting as the Infinity Saga, stating that the projects felt way too disconnected from each other and had completely different tones. While Kevin Feige backed Phase 4 stating that a “logo doesn’t promise a particular group of characters and a particular exact tone,” fans still couldn’t help but miss the MCU that was before Phase 4.
Another common complaint amongst fans about the recent projects was the unconvincing CGI. Whether it was Doctor Strange’s third in Multiverse of Madness or the entire She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, the studios have been receiving a lot of criticism for lackluster CGI. Many VFX artists have spoken up about their negative experiences working with the Marvel studios. Even director Taika Waititi made fun of the CGI in his own movie, Thor: Love and Thunder. With all the blunders the MCU saw in Phase 4, fans are now worried about how the two upcoming Avengers movies, The Kang Dynasty and Secret Wars will perform.
So while Phase 4 saw its ups and downs, it all comes down to how the heads of the studios plan to take an upward trajectory and make sure Phase 5 and Phase 6 are able to fix the mess that has been created. Phase 5 will kick off with Ant-Man and the Wasp Quantumania set to release on February 17, 2023.
Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars are part of Phase 6 and are set to release on May 02, 2025, and May 01, 2026, respectively
Source: Cosmic Circus
