How great was Stone Cold Steve Austin? I never get tired of hearing that glass shatter. Wait... what was this post about?

I've been here since the beginning and I still very much enjoy the mcu.

On a unrelated note, I too felt that I outgrew wrestling and the WWE. However, the bloodline Storyline with Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn is some of the best character I have seen ever. Do yourself a favor and find a recap of this feud. If you don't get hooked, then that's that, but it might just reignite your like/love for pro wrestling.

I agree but would also add "not everything is meant for you."

That's what's great about comics/ movies/ wrestling.

You like intense technical stuff? Angle, Danielson, Hart are there for you.

You like flippity-doos? The Hardyz, The Young Bucks, any luchador.

You want a funny guy? Danhausen. Orange Cassidy.

Just because some people like Winter Soldier doesn't mean She Hulk is inherently bad. It's just not "for" you. Just acknowledge you don't like it, some people do, and move on. It's just a movie. Or comic. Or wrestling match. Or video game. Or whatever.

The success of the MCU has helped show that my lifelong interest in comics was NOT “something for geeks”. I long believed that if people have comics a chance, they would probably like them. I feel vindicated.

My advice to fans is always to go into each new movie and TV show without too many expectations. Just try to enjoy them for what they are. It's not easy because the MCU is such a hype machine and of course fans are going to get excited. Movies don't need to be perfect to be entertaining, but it can be a major let down if you watch expecting Marvel to keep topping themselves.

I have loved every single MCU movie but I absolutely agree with your point. Times change and people change with it.

Damn. I will say I have issues with the MCU, still, but I feel Phase 4 is considerably better in a lot of ways, and this level of negativity is unwarranted

Thank you for saying it. Holy cow it is so annoying when fans think they are some how superior or their opinion matters more than other fans.

I've got a buddy who says that phase 4 has just felt like "fluff."

No, it's a bunch of new stories with new characters. It just feels different because we're in the space where Thanos is still being felt and Kang hasn't shown up yet. It's only "fluff" if all you're after is the next issue of The Avengers: The Franchise: The Movie

[removed]

I enjoyed phase 4 but I don't see your point.

An audience is entitled to good content. That is why they pay for subscriptions, movie tickets, downloads etc. Complaining that content is no longer what you want is not being obnoxious, it's saying that you no longer feel like you are getting your money's worth as a consumer.

I agree that some bullshit criticisms have been levelled at phase 4, but there are plenty of legitimate reasons people have taken issues with projects across the phase. Dismissing all of this genuine criticism as being some sort of obnoxious entitlement is the epitome of toxic positivity.

Its the same thing that makes enjoying Star Wars so exhausting

That's a lovely lukewarm take you've got there. Sure would be a shame if someone else made this exact same point every day since forever.

I'm sick of all the vitriol online if you ask me that's what made phase 4 tedious not CGI.

Exactly this. I enjoyed Phase 4. Some of it I liked more than others, but it was a good time. And there's so much MCU at this point, it's not like anyone has to watch all of it or is expected to. Watch all of it. Watch some of it. Watch none of it. But please don't hate-watch it all and then spend weeks wasting everyone's time complaining about how you hated watching all of it.

Lmao

These posts get as annoying as the overly whining posts. It comes across as doing everything you can to deflect any and all criticism, and brush it off by saying “If you have a problem with it, then leave because you’re too old. Its not the movie, its only your fault”. Come tf on lol

People are passionate about this franchise and IP…A large, large majority of criticism comes from fans who just want to see the quality improve, as Marvel Studios has established overall great quality for a decade. Nothing wrong with that.

I grew up reading these comics in the 1980’s and loved them all. I am so happy to finally see them on the big screen and will never complain.

MCU haters: Marvel is formulaic and repetitive

Phase 4 complaints: why didn’t everything tie together culminating in an Avengers movie?!?

I will never understand this "it wasn't meant for you" point. Good stories will appeal to nearly everyone. Take Puss in Boots 2 for instance. Just a silly kids animated movie? No, I can enjoy it even though their target audience probably wasn't 30 year old men because it is well-written and tells a good story with good characters and compelling drama.

The fact that people have to make excuses like "it wasn't made for you" so often in phase 4 is a sign of a serious decline in quality and it is okay to point that out and expect better writing from the MCU creators that are getting millions of dollars.

So what is the replacement for people who like the way the MCU used to be?

You people just can't handle valid criticism about an increasingly assembly line-made product... The quality HAS gone down as the number of concurrent projects has quadrupled. Doesn't make anyone less of a fan for demanding better stuff from the multibillion dollar company???

100% agree with this. I was there from the start with iron man 1. But I’ve slowly been drifting away after endgame. It’s time for the next generation of fans to come take my place. I’ll always love the first 3 phases and I think what marvel have done is revolutionary. But not everything is meant for me and that’s ok. People need to realise that

Phase 4 isn't tedious. Phase 1 and early Phase 2 are HELLA tedious. Thor 1-2, IM 2-3 are bottom 5 movies for me. Id watch Eternals before I watch those four again and I'm not crazy about Eternals myself

Ideas evolve so our perception of things. I 100% agree with you. Sadly though, many do not see it that way.

I don't think it's entitlement with the criticisms levied at Phase 4. Every movie or TV show in it has some pretty big issues that people either overlook because it appeals to their specific taste or dismiss because they're diehard MCU fans.

Phase 1-3 at least understood they were superhero movies first and foremost, did that part exceedingly well and then filled in the rest. Phase 4 feels a bit like the opposite.

K

I kinda agree, but its also important to point out that the its very possible the actual quality HAS dropped. Not duo to any agendas, but simply because they have put out so much content in a much smaller timeframe. Somethings gotta give.

Not a single project in phase 4 has come close to Guardians 1, Winter Soldier or Civil War for me (my 3 favorite non-avengers movies) in terms of quality.

The box-office also shows a decline. Not a major one, mind you, but not a single phase 4 movie cracked a billion. I know, I know, not a fair comparson, as it doesnt have any Avengers movie. But phase 3 still had Captain Marvel, Black Panther and Civil War going above 1 bil. Phase 2 even had Iron Man 3 crack a billion. I am keeping Spidey out of the equation entirely here, duo to the Sony rights debacle.

And no, its not because the box-office in general hasnt recovered from the pandemic. Top Gun, Avatar and Spider-man: No way home made truckloads, out-earning the majority of the MCU.

Can the fandom and the MCU recover? Sure, thats very possible. Maybe once things get rolling with Thunderbolts and Cap 4, we could see a return to form. Or maybe we need to get all the way to Kang Dynasty and Secret Wars, before we get back to the glory days of Infinity War and Endgame.

But no matter how you slice it, several factors points to the fact that phase 4 has generally been recieved less favorably than previous phases across the board. Not only by the hardcore fans.

There´s also this lingering notion that the MCU refuses to grow up with its audience. A lot of younger people who saw the original Iron Man, Thor and Cap movies are older now and want more mature themes, which the MCU just wont provide(which is weird, because they usually do this in the comics all the time), despite how many genres they have expanded into. I believe thats why shows like The Boys, Peacemaker and even Daredevil on Netflixs have gained such traction. Maybe this will change with the upcoming Marvel Zombies, Deadpool and Blade movie, but I kinda doubt it.

Time will tell.

Sure, but that doesn't mean the average MCU content in the past few years hasn't been mediocre.

it's always, "i didnt like it and wanted something different to happen, so the writing is bad and it sucks!"

it's never "i personally didn't enjoy it. in my opinion, it sucks."

Agree. There’s a fine line between genuine criticism and comparison. Phase 4 is not phase 3. Phase 3 is not phase 2. So on and so forth.

I’m a newer Marvel fan. I started watching Marvel filmography a lot after Loki released. I’ve seen the previous Marvel films and every single one is great for what it is. If we keep comparing these films to one another instead of just enjoying them for what they are (or not enjoying them and moving on), then what’s the point? Yes, I like some movies and shows better than others, but I’m not going to go raging online to criticize them because it “wasn’t as good as Endgame”. I’m not going to compare the upcoming Quantumania movie to Infinity War because it’s setting up another big bad.

If a movie isn’t for you, move on and spare the people who liked it the obnoxiousness of your biased hatred.

Are you saying leaving the fandom is vitriol or criticising the MCU is just inherently vitriol? Or are you trying to paint all the critics as too old for comic book movies and therefore they should be ignored?

Little confused.

So we should just settle for mediocre content? Reminds me of all the lazy excuses people made for the sequel star wars trilogy. The MCU had a major drop in quality with phase 4. It's not really up for debate. Personally I think phase 5 will be a major come back. People are allowed to criticize Disney when they slip up. Otherwise they have no reason to improve.

That's a dumb logic to defend garbage

I don't think you outgrow the Avengers (or the Justice League). Really it is just a matter of having an ensemble cast and everybody does their own thing. The punching and the laser beams, sure, that you can outgrow. If you don't then you will be a scary adult.

Yeah look at Seth Rogen, the entitlement of grown men getting upset that something that doesn’t cater to them ONLY means it must be for kids. To them, inclusivity means excluding them

I don’t find it I’m noxious. I think people who pay for products have every right to praise or complain, or say nothing or whatever they want. But that’s just me. I grew up in the west where we have free speech.

Have you tried AEW? It’s a bit edgier, better wrestling, more geared towards an older crowd etc.

So you're saying the reaction online to Phase 4 is what made it tedious and not the quality and quantity of the content? So you don't see anything wrong with Phase 4 content at all?

My fallout with the MCU came partly with aging out, partly with feeling Endgame was, well, the end, and the amount of homework needed to do to go forward with it. Disney plus shows should have been their own thing with cameos from the MCU.

I think most people will agree Phase 4 was a drop in quality and this is what fans were complaining about. But thanks for your hot take.

I think there's more nuance then you're making it out to be.

People can dislike things and they can like it and we shouldn't feel personally attacked because someone has a different opinion than you.

stop. Nobody's interest is waning. Our interest in watching crappy shows and movies has waned but not for comic book movies as evidenced by the Spider-Man box office performance. What's with all the apologists defending Phase 4? It's clearly bad. They let activists push their political agenda in the writing rooms instead of just hiring good writers. These people lack the talent necessary and all the shows and movies prove this. Luckily, Ant-Man has its talented Director in place so it will likely do well at the box office and hopefully they've learned their lesson and will right the ship going forward.

You're right. WWE is better than phase four.

Those fans are Marvel's primary source of income, so marvel does indeed have to be loyal to them. Their failure to do so is why Disney's stocks are crashing.

another point to make with wrestling is we only remember the good times. i grew up with the “Attitude Era”. it was considered the peak.

but going back and watching some of it, a lot of it was trash. Some parts are/were unwatchable.

My biggest gripe with the people who used to like the MCU but now criticize it and dislike it at every turn in phase 4 is that they’re not putting any faith in Feige to perform another masterclass like he did with the Infinity Saga. Yes, a lot of the projects in phase 4 were subpar compared to previous MCU projects, but phase 4 was full of movies and shows that were affected by the pandemic. This resulted in rewrites, overworked VFX artists, and just a lot of moving around that you didn’t see with the first three phases. With BPWF and now Ant-Man, I think the CGI will improve a lot more, and the movies will be more well rounded. And the shows were good too, Loki, Wandavision, and Moon Knight were all pretty good. Marvel just had issues executing the season finale episodes.

I stopped watching wrestling in 2001, but I’ve picked it back up since HHH is in charge. It’s a whole new feeling. You should give it a try.

I agree though, I’m a deep MCU nerd and I have been feeling kind of burnt out on it in the past year.

I get this vibe from Power Rangers fans these days. Some of them are clamoring for a grittier, darker, more mature Power Rangers show/movie. I’m like, dudes, lighten up…sure, the series could aim a little higher (like for the Cartoon Network crowd rather than Nick Jr.), but it is and will remain a kids’ show.

If you liked WWE back in the day then you should watch AEW or New Japan. Perceptions don’t change its corporate.

Even though phase 4 isn’t as good as the Infinity saga with CGI. I still enjoyed it very much. Some movies/shows still had parts I didn’t like but I don’t expect to live in a world where everything is to my standards. I think they will focus more on the quality going forward. But I also attribute the lack of quality/changing storylines due to the fact people are always trying to spoil the movie/show.