The Infinity Saga's conclusion in Avengers: Endgame wrapped up many character arcs and storylines in the span of roughly a decade, a feat that many comic book fans thought they'd never witness on the big screen. But what seemingly felt like the end after Endgame, which left many fans wondering where these stories could venture off to next, was only just the beginning. Now, the MCU has come roaring back with Phase four of their ongoing cinematic universe, which is branching off to new territories involving everything from deep space to the multiverse.
After the popular Disney Plus streaming service was created, Marvel Studios' president Kevin Feige opened many new doors to what the MCU could delve into in future projects and how they would go about doing it. In addition to the large budget films, series like WandaVision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and Loki introduced otherworldly locations, characters, and stories that have expanded the MCU in bold and exciting directions and will continue doing so.
With this, though, comes plenty of new faces and stories to intertwine in the overarching universe. Now with many more series and films slated to release in the coming months as well as continuing to head further down a cosmic path, it's crucial for the MCU to keep some of the formula from previous phases and implement it in upcoming projects such as Captain America 4.
An aspect that made the first three phases so great was the realistic, more grounded stories. Yes, great space adventure stories like Guardians of the Galaxy were able to succeed, but many times, the films that resonated the most with audiences were often the ones taking place on the ground rather than on other planets. A big reason why many MCU entries, particularly the recently released Eternals, can feel overwhelming and at times, messy, is largely due to their attempts to juggle many different characters and locations and explain too much history rather than telling a cohesive story. Trying to condense so many elements into a single film leaves little room for any character attachments. Whether it was the MCU focusing more on Peter Parker's personal life as he deals with the ramifications of being Spider-Man to Steve Rogers adjusting to a world that has moved on without him, those are the stories that feel more honest and memorable and make viewers care about what they're watching.
Speaking of Cap, perhaps the strongest example of the MCU telling grounded stories is Captain America: The Winter Soldier. The film remains one of the MCU's strongest, if not the strongest, due to the fact it manages to add a sense of believability by depicting more of the ground-level threats while also not shying away from connecting some of its story to everyday real-world issues. Instead of being solely a superhero film with a soulless CGI villain, it is a political thriller with the superhero aspect layered on top, as the film's real villains are in suits and hiding in plain sight that puts Cap's allies in question.
Of course, no comic book film is realistic, but the MCU has always been at its strongest when it attempts to focus more on the characters and themes of a story rather than the big battles or explosions that can quickly become repetitive. When spending a greater amount of time developing the characters and laying the groundwork for each ones' motivation, it ultimately creates a more compelling and interesting story. This then leads to the stakes feeling higher (which may not seem apparent at first) due to the audience actually caring about the people in the story and the struggles they have to endure.
That's why The Falcon and the Winter Soldier felt like a breath of fresh air after a series like WandaVision. Not that WandaVision was bad, it was great in fact, but the series got to tell a more personal, grounded story that focused heavily on its two titualar characters' dynamic and other weighty themes like legacy, race, oppression, and trauma which felt exciting and fresh again after spending much time across the galaxy with the infinity stones with other cosmic beings. It reminded fans of how deep and multi-layered an MCU story is willing to become.
With the official announcement that Anthony Mackie would continue his role as the new Captain America in Captain America 4, it's important for the MCU to continue to delve deeper into those hefty themes that were already explored in the series and develop the new Cap as a three-dimensional person to ensure viewers have a stronger relationship to the character. While it's exciting to have Sam take up the new shield as this leading Avenger, keeping the focus on his world and his relationship with Bucky and his family, him creating a new legacy for himself while still honoring Rogers, and also coming to terms with his newfound responsibility as this symbol of hope is where the real excitement lies.