BY MAX MCAULIFF, STAFF WRITER
The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is constantly expanding. The MCU has been around since the first Robert Downey Jr. led “Iron Man” movie released in 2008 and shows no signs of slowing down.
However, movies are not the only area that the MCU has seen massive success. Earlier this year, the MCU leaped from the big screen to television with the streaming release of the hit show “WandaVision” on Disney+. The show represented the first foray into what has been a very successful run for the MCU on Disney+.
While each MCU show has been immensely successful, which one is the best?
“WandaVision” kicked things off in January with what was one of the most mind-bending MCU productions to date. Each episode took inspiration from classic sitcoms such as “I Love Lucy,” “The Brady Bunch” and “Family Ties,” as each episode paid homage to a different decade of sitcoms. As the mystery begins to unravel, the viewer discovers that Wanda has been projecting a false reality based on sitcoms she used to watch as a child and that Vision is unfortunately still dead. “WandaVision” was a cultural phenomenon not seen since the days of “Game of Thrones” and puts the series towards the top of the list.
The next MCU show to debut on Disney+ was “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier”. While not as much of a cultural phenomenon as “WandaVision”, the show dealt with important social issues present in our world today. The show focuses on whether the world is ready for an African American Captain America in Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson. “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” was not as popular as “WandaVision,” but was one of the deepest and most important MCU stories to date due to the social issues it addressed.
“Loki” was the next show to debut and saw Tom Hiddleston reprise his role as the title character. “Loki” addressed another important societal topic as it confirmed Loki as a member of the LGBTQ+ community. “Loki” may end up being the most important MCU show going forward as it is believed to have opened the MCU’s version of the multiverse, a topic that will be heavily addressed in the upcoming “Spiderman: No Way Home”. “Loki” did a great job introducing quirky characters to the MCU and is only narrowly edged out in its mystery and cultural impact by “WandaVision”.
The next Marvel show to debut was an animated show titled “What If…?”, but as the connection to the MCU is still unknown “What If…?” will be skipped.
Finally, the last live-action show to debut on Disney+ is the currently running “Hawkeye”. While it is still too early to properly compare “Hawkeye” to the other shows as only four episodes have come out, so far it has lived up to its predecessors. The first MCU show to take place during Christmas “Hawkeye” is not holding back any holiday spirit. The show sees Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner) team up with archer Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld) to solve a mystery and get festive in the process.
Every MCU show on Disney+ has been praised by both fans and critics, but the order should go like this. “WandaVision” number one, “Loki” number two, “Hawkeye” number three and “The Falcon and Winter Soldier” number four. “WandaVision is simply too good to not be number
one. Not only was it the first Marvel content in a year and a half but it is some of the best Marvel content to exist. Every new episode blew up the internet in a way that the other shoes frankly haven’t done.
The MCU has dominated movie theaters for the past decade and if their Disney+ shows maintain their quality, they will dominate television for the decade to come.
