There’s no denying that the Marvel Cinematic Universe has fallen upon difficult times in recent years, despite what dedicated fans may insist. Ever since the conclusion of the Infinity Saga, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has struggled to reclaim the same pop culture relevance they once ruled over. No matter what viewpoints hardcore fans may hold, there are some unfortunate truths plaguing recent MCU movies even the most pessimistic among them will try to refute.

That’s not to say that the MCU is coming apart at the seams or even actively dying. The franchise has managed to outlast its competitor, the DCEU, which ended unceremoniously before being rebooted altogether. But there’s a lot of criticism that could be leveled at the current state of Marvel Studios that could stand to make it better, even if it’s uncomfortable to hear. With these admissions, the MCU could be in a much healthier state.

10

Recasting Wolverine Is Basically Impossible

At This Point, The MCU Has Made It Clear Which Version They’ll go With

Many anticipate the upcoming Deadpool & Wolverine to “save” the MCU, using the repeated successful formula of the Deadpool movies to inject a welcome bit of chaos into the stagnant franchise. However, one unfortunate reality to this film is the presence of Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine. The implication that Jackman’s Wolverine will be crossing over into the MCU proper alongside Deadpool makes it incredibly unlikely that a Wolverine re-cast will happen for the franchise.

Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine is simply too iconic to include only to later be re-cast. If Wolverine was ever going to be played by someone else, it needed to have happened already, and including Jackman’s Wolverine at all essentially renders a new portrayal a moot point. It’s unlikely that Jackman will be willing to sign on for a whole new batch of films, meaning that his presence only undermines the possibility of a new take on the character.

9

Scarlet Witch Is Better Off Dead

Wanda Maximoff Was Too Dangerous To Be Left Alive

Scarlet Witch has had a tumultuous journey through the MCU. Going from villain to hero to villain again only to nobly sacrifice herself in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, her lengthy story was unquestionably one of tragedy. However, many fans criticized her sudden erasure from the story in the film’s climax, which felt like a last-minute heel turn.

While Wanda’s death certainly could’ve been handled better, the fact of the matter is that the MCU is simply better off with her dead. Scarlet Witch has become far too powerful to be left alive, warping reality at a whim and making her an ever-present character that could too easily solve any future conflict or commandeer any future story. Without the threat of her power looming over the narrative, the MCU can breathe a little easier.

8

Tony Stark Really Shouldn’t Return

Iron Man’s Send-Off Was Too Perfect To Undo

In the wake of Marvel’s recent critical and financial struggles, rumors of Tony Stark’s return have floated around fan circles. This has been met with apprehension, but mostly excitement, with the prospect of the return of Robert Downey Jr.’s iconic performance being too exciting a premise to ignore. However, it’s important to remember that Stark really would be better off staying dead, no matter the circumstances.

Tony Stark’s death was such a perfect, poignant part to go out on, and reviving him for cheap fan service and marquee value wouldn’t do the aging franchise any favors. Avengers: Endgame will forever be a win for the MCU, and the only thing that could take it away would be to retroactively ruin it by invalidating the bittersweet end of Tony Stark’s MCU journey. No matter how tempting it may be, Marvel Studios would be wise to let bygones be bygones.

7

There’ll Never Be A Better Crossover Than Avengers: Endgame

The MCU Has Certainly Peaked In Terms Of Crossovers

Speaking of Avengers: Endgame, the film warrants far more discussion as a shadow that forever hangs over the future of the MCU. The duology of Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame was simply too perfect of a tying-off point for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and managed to somehow satisfyingly pay off a story that had been set into motion for over a decade. This kind of cinematic achievement can’t be downplayed, but it also created an impossible standard for the series to live up to.

There’s no doubt that Marvel will forever be chasing the high of Avengers: Endgame, but with most of the mainline Avengers indisposed or dead, the perfect confluence of conditions for such a success to happen again will simply never manifest twice. No future crossover can hope to be as magical a storm as Avengers: Endgame, and the series would do well to recognize that. After all, there are some who maintain that the series should’ve simply ended with the movie, and for good reason.

6

The MCU Has Been Directionless Since Endgame

The Multiverse Saga Hasn’t Been As Compelling

With the looming threat of the Infinity Stones finally dealt with, the MCU has struggled to fill in the power vacuum left by Thanos and his six magical MacGuffins. The closest attempt has been with the start of the so-called Multiverse Saga, which focuses on the paralell-dimension aspects of various parts of the MCU. Unfortunately, this replacement meta-narrative hasn’t been nearly as engaging for several reasons.

For one, audiences may begin to feel burnt-out on multiverse stories, with other properties like Invincible and The Flash getting in on the multiverse action. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse did parallel realities arguably better than the MCU could ever hope for, and it’s clear that the concept has been taking far too long to manifest over time. As if that weren’t enough, the loss of Jonathan Majors as a major villain has taken away the next “Thanos” from the MCU, leaving the franchise ever the more rudderless.

5

Less-Popular Characters Simply Don’t Make Money

It’s Fair For Disney To Adopt A More Spotlight-Centric Strategy

In recent years, Disney has read the room on the string of Marvel failures under their watch since the beginning of Phase 4. With too many projects that felt like homework for audiences to keep up with, Disney has publicly vowed to scale back Marvel productions, focusing mostly on popular franchises like Spider-Man and the X-Men. This announcement was met with vitriol by some fans, who were nervous at the loss of more obscure character representation.

However, it’s hard to fault Disney for adopting this strategy. The Marvels was one of the series’ biggest flops ever, and the nebulous metric of Disney+ series’ success wasn’t helped by the obscure status of most of their characters. The fact of the matter is that obscure characters are less popular for a reason — They’re harder to write for, and even harder to make money off of. It’s no wonder Disney wants to stick to the household names going forward after experimenting with more hipster picks.

4

The MCU Is Taking Too Long To Bring Characters Back

Many New Introductions Haven’t Been Heard From In A While

If there’s one alarming change Marvel has made in the years since Avengers: Endgame, it’s the avalanche of new characters who are introduced only to never appear again. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings has now gone three years without even a murmur of a sequel, and the massive ending of The Eternals has gone utterly unaddressed by new projects since. It’s clear that the MCU isn’t building upon itself as much as it once did.

The problem with this approach is that with so many new characters introduced, it becomes harder to keep track of them all, and justify their meeting for a new cross-over film. As of late, the MCU is in a strange middle ground of utilizing characters from Phases 1 through 3, such as the cast of Thunderbolts*, and following up on the new-gen characters. As a result, the breadcrumbs tying together films left in the past have completely dried up, making the MCU feel like a loose anthology of unrelated stories.

3

Blade Probably Won’t Be Good

Few Films With So Many Re-writes Are

If there’s one upcoming MCU film fans have gotten excited for, it’s the re-boot of Blade starring Mahershala Ali. Unfortunately, the film has also suffered one of the most alarming development cycles ever seen in an MCU project. Delayed multiple times and fraught with multiple instances of creative overhauling, complete with the loss of several writers and directors, and the fate of Blade remains incredibly uncertain.

The sad truth is that Blade is now incredibly unlikely to be good when it finally does release. The simple fact is, few films that undergo as many dramatic revisions as Blade have turned out to be quality stories, with the mess of re-writes, changing of hands, and unsure direction being clearly stamped on the final product. See films like Justice League, Suicide Squad, and X-Men Origins: Wolverine for examples of comic book movies whose uneven production cycles turned out to be ill omens of quality.

2

The Fox Characters Are Coming Too Late

The Merger May As Well Have Not Happened

One of the most exciting things on the horizon to look forward to with the MCU is the addition of the X-Men and Fantastic Four. Previously, these characters were locked behind Fox Studios’ ownership of the rights, but with Disney’s merger with Fox, the MCU is now finally free to use some of Marvel’s most prolific comic book superhero teams. Unfortunately, it very well may be too little, too late for the addition of mutants and the like to the franchise.

The fact of the matter is that the X-Men and Fantastic Four will never share the screen with Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man or Chris Evans’ Captain America. Even the Guardians of the Galaxy seem to have exited the MCU as of their most recent film, which felt very much like a definitive ending. By now, the X-Men and Fantastic Four aren’t getting much of a benefit from joining the MCU, only able to legally interact with less exciting characters that remain in the franchise.

1

Street-Level Stories Won’t Save The MCU

It’s Hard To Pivot Back To Low-Stakes After Saving The Universe

One strategy the MCU seems to be relying on is the return to more street-level stories. Gone are the days of well-funded Avengers with nigh-limitless resources fighting all-powerful gods and aliens. Instead, the Marvel Cinematic Universe might be better off trying to squeeze drama out of traditional superheroes with secret identities that aren’t so powerful, leaving the space-trotting, multiverse-spanning adventures of previous films behind.

However, there’s no guarantee that this strategy will “save” the MCU. If anything, after the fate of the entire universe was at stake in Avengers: Endgame, it might be all the harder to come back down to Earth for lower-stakes stories. As great as Vincent D’Onofrio’s Kingpin is, he’s no Thanos when it comes to influence or power, meaning the MCU is still searching for a driving force that can match it’s earlier successes.