Marvel Cinematic Universe Overview

There are so many superhero fantasy shows out there now, it's hard to keep track of what's what. Most come from the two comic book giants Marvel and DC Comics. While DC owns several of the most recognized superheros in history (Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman), Marvel still dominates at the box office. See my DC review here

The MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe) is a machine that has churned out some 19 movies in the past ten years. Compare this to DC's release of 10 movies during the same time period. Marvel (currently owned by Disney) is in phase III of their plan for world domination. See full list of their movies below.

Marvel also rules when it comes to TV/streaming services. They have seven shows currently on NetFlix-- DareDevil, Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, Iron Fist, Defenders, Punisher and Legion. They also several other shows currently airing on TV including: "Agents Of SHIELD, the new "Runaways" on Hulu (kids battling evil supervillain parents), "The Gifted" on Fox (more mutants), and the tragically horrible "Inhumans" on ABC (dont even ask). And "Agent Carter" previously lasted two seasons on ABC.

Marvel movies (from most recent to oldest):

Black Panther (2018)- Just released this weekend, "Black Panther" is killing it at the box office.
Thor: Ragnarok (2017)- Directed by Taika Waititi.
Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)-
Guardians Of the Galaxy 2 (2017)-
Doctor Strange (2016)-
Captain America: Civil War (2016)- Black Panther is introduced.
Ant-Man (2015)- This film concludes Phase 2 of the MCU release plan.
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)- Directed by Joss Whedon.
Guardians Of The Galaxy (2014)
Captain American: The Winter Solder (2014)
Thor: The Dark World (2013)-
Iron Man 3 (2013)-
The Avengers (2012)- This film concluded Phase 1 of the MCU release plan. It was directed by Joss Whedon.
Captain American: The First Avenger (2011)-
Thor (2011)-
Iron Man 2 (2010)-
The Incredible Hulk (2008)-
Iron Man (2008)-
Punisher; War Zone (2008)-

Future Offerings:

Avengers: Infinity War (May 2018)-
Ant-Man and the Wash (July 2018)-
Captain Marvel (2019)-
Untitled Avengers film (2019)- This film concludes Phase 3 of the MCU release plan.
Next up is an untitled Spider-Man movie (2019) and Guardians Of The Galaxy 3 (2020)

The main characters in this expansive universe include:

Iron Man/Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr)-
Iron Patriot/War Machine/Rhodey Rhodes (Don Cheadle)-
Captain America/Steve Rogers (Chris Evans)-
Spider-Man/ Peter Parker- Tom Holland is introduced as the new Spider-Man in "Captain America: Civil War". Spider-Man is technically owned by Sony.
The Incredible Hulk/Bruce Banner (played by Edward Norton and Mark Ruffalo)- Hulk was originally played on TV in the 1980s by Lou Ferrigno.
Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and brother Loki (Tom Hiddelston)
Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson)-
Nick Fury (Samuel L Jackson)- Director of SHIELD, their original mission was to keep the world safe from Hydra and the Red Skull. See also tie-ins with the TV show "Agents Of SHIELD".
Hawkeye/Clint Barten (Jeremy Renner)- He's got a bow.
Scarlet Witch/ Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen)-
Black Panther/T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman)-
Guardians Of The Galaxy include: Peter Quill/Star Lord (Chris Pratt), Gamora, Groot, Rocket, Drax The Destroyer and Mantis.
Falcon/Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie)-
Ant-Man/ Scott Lang (Paul Rudd)-
Dr Strange/Steven Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch)- more mystical than other Marvel offerings.
Vision (Paul Bettany)- contains the AI Jarvis in a Virbranium android.
Cloak and Dagger/ Ty Johnson and Tandy Bowen- an upcoming movie has been hinted at.
Wasp/Hope van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly)
Blade (Wesley Snipes)- Blade is half vampire and half human. His story is set in a separate universe but as spanned three movies and a TV series.
Captain Marvel/ Carol Danvers (Brie Larson)- we've not seen much of her yet (except in the comics/animated series). She's due to have her own movie in 2019.
Ghost Rider- Ghosty has had two movies of his own and stops by occasionally on "Agents Of SHIELD". Like Spider-Man, Ghost Rider is technically a Sony property.
The X-Men- see my separate entry for 20th Century Fox properties.
Deadpool/Wade Wilson (Ryan Reynolds)- The "merc with a mouth" has one movie under his belt and is rumored for a second one. Deapool, like X-Men is technically a Fox property.
Fantastic Four- Fox property. The Fantasic Four are Mr Fantastic/ Reed Richards, The Invisible Woman/Susan Storm, Human Torch/Johnny Storm, Thing/Ben Grimm.
Electra- Fox property
Silver Surfer- Fox property