Everything Marvel (SDCC Edition)

The Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Phase 4 has definitely been interesting so far. From WandaVision to Loki to Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, everything seems a little disconnected and confusing. However, 2022’s San Diego Comic-Con has certainly changed all of that. Keep reading to discover the Multiverse Saga of the MCU, stemming all the way into 2025: 

I Am Groot

Coming out on August 10th, 2022, I Am Groot will be a series of five animated shorts. Each short will follow Baby Groot as he grows up in the galaxy. It’ll be a fun and lighthearted series showcasing the adventures Groot has and the unusual characters he meets along the way. 

She-Hulk: Attorney at Law

She-Hulk is set to make her debut in the MCU on August 17, 2022. As a green six foot, seven inch attorney and cousin of Hulk, Jennifer Walters will learn how to navigate her complicated life  as a super powered Hulk and lawyer who specializes in superhero-oriented legal cases. In the most recent trailer, a brief clip of the Daredevil suit (red and yellow, instead of just red) was shown, so I think it’s safe to say that Matt Murdock will officially be a part of the MCU soon!

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

On November 11, 2022, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever will wrap up Phase 4 of the MCU. Wakanda will mourn king T’Challa (who was played by the late Chadwick Boseman) and will be fighting to protect its nation. What probably won’t be revealed until the movie is in theaters, is how T’Challa dies, “a moment that will set the stage for succession on the Wakandan throne” (The Washington Post).

Wakanda Forever will also introduce one of the brightest minds of Wakanda, Riri Williams, aka Ironheart. We see Shuri clasping hands with Riri in the trailer. In the Marvel Comics, Shuri assumed the mantle of the Black Panther in his absence, leading many to believe that Shuri was wearing the Black Panther suit that was shown in the trailer. It will be difficult to replace a legend, but if anyone can do it, it’s Shuri…or Nakia.

Ant Man & the Wasp: Quantumania

Kicking off Marvel’s Phase 5 on February 17, 2023, Ant Man & the Wasp: Quantumania will make its debut! Scott Lang has been hosting his podcast: Big Me Little Me (as we saw in Ms. Marvel) and after being “pleased with himself in his role with saving the universe…Scott’s been busy at work–ish. With a little book” says Paul Rudd at San Diego Comic Con (Variety Magazine).

In exclusive footage shown at ComicCon, a brief shot of MODOK, a big-headed cybernetic villain, and Kang the Conqueror were shown. It seems like Kang the Conqueror and MODOK could be some of the big villains of this Multiverse Saga!

Secret Invasion

Nick Fury is back and better than ever in Marvel’s Secret Invasion, coming out in Spring 2023! This series will mainly revolve around Fury and Talos, the Skrull from Captain Marvel. Additionally, Maria Hill will team up with both Fury and Talos to stop the Skrull invasion on Earth. 

In exclusive footage shown at ComicCon, Rhodey and Fury briefly appeared sitting down together, surrounded by men in black suits, while Fury said: “How much do you know about your security detail?” (Deadline).

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3, is set to be released May 6, 2023! Though the trailer hasn’t been released to the public yet, members at Comic-Con were able to see some exclusive footage. Variety Magazine stated: “In the trailer for ‘Vol. 3,’ Gamora no longer remembers her fellow Guardian crew members. The trailer also teases Rocket’s origin and an all-gold, super-buff Adam Warlock, played by MCU newcomer Will Poulter. Groot appears as a young adult.”

It has also been confirmed that this will be the end of the Guardians trilogy in the MCU. 

Echo

Marvel’s Hawkeye series introduced us to Maya Lopez, a deaf martial artist who can kick butt! After killing(?) Kingpin (Wilson Fisk) at the end of the series, Maya disappeared, and we haven’t seen her since. Echo, which will be released sometime in the summer of 2023, will feature characters such as Matt Murdock and Kingpin, and will most likely showcase Maya’s origin story and explain her eventual turn to heroism.

Season 2 of Loki

Set to release in the Summer of 2023, Season 2 of Loki, will have a new director who hopefully can really take Season 2 to the next level. We left off on Sylvie (a Loki variant) stabbing Kang the Conqueror, and Loki and the TVA being left in complete chaos. Though not much information about Season 2 has been released, it’s likely that Loki will try to fix the multiversal chaos from Season 1, but will probably not succeed in doing so since the upcoming Avengers movie will be focused around Kang the Conqueror. 

The Direct says: “It’s safe to say that Kang will be sticking around in the MCU for a while, and with the show kicking off his story in the MCU, it would only make sense for characters like Loki and Sylvie – who caused Kang’s Variants to materialize in the first place – to appear in the upcoming movies.”

The Marvels

Featuring Ms. Marvel, Captain Marvel, and Monica Rambeau, The Marvels is set to release on July 28, 2023. Based off of what happened in the Ms. Marvel series, The Marvels could explore the whereabouts of Kamala’s second bangle, possible Skrull conflicts in outer space, and more!

Blade

“The daywalker is daywalkin’ right into the Marvel Cinematic Universe” (Collider). Marvel’s Blade is set to release on November 3, 2023, acting almost like a reboot of the first three, which were released in the 2000s. Though there isn’t much information regarding the plot, we can assume that some of the story will come from his comic book origin. 

“Blade’s mother was attacked by a vampire when she was pregnant with him. After going into labor, the woman died [and] gave birth to a unique half-human half-vampire baby who was named Eric Brooks. Once he grew up, Eric took up the name “Blade” and began to use his abilities as a Daywalker to hunt down other vampires” (Collider). 

Ironheart

Making her first debut in the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever trailer, Riri Williams/Iron Heart will be like the next Tony Stark in the MCU (even though he’s irreplaceable). Ironheart is set to release in the Fall of 2023, and though we don’t know much about it, we can explore some of her origins from the comics.  

Similar to Ms. Marvel, Riri Williams absolutely loves Tony Stark. The teen genius who was offered a scholarship to MIT at just 11 years old, “steals materials from around campus and uses them to build an Iron Man-esque suit of armor” (CNET).

The name Ironheart is inspired by “the armor that Riri has been trying to build around herself ever since, both literally and figuratively,” Marvel says.

Agatha: Coven of Chaos

It’s been Agatha All Along! Agatha Harkness is coming back from WandaVision with her own show! Set to be released around the wintertime in 2023/2024, Agatha: Coven of Chaos (previously known as Agatha: House of Harkness), is speculated to explore Agatha’s origin stories (through flashbacks), and will most likely pick up her story where it left off in Wandavision when she was enchanted and trapped by Wanda.  

Daredevil: Born Again

Get ready for Daredevil’s official return! The last time we saw Daredevil was for a few brief moments in Spiderman: No Way Home. Though Daredevil had his own show on Netflix, he wasn’t really connected to the MCU. However now, it’s official that Matt Murdock has entered the MCU, and we’ll see his new series, featuring some of our favorite characters such as Karen Page, Foggy Nelson, and more around Spring 2024! 

Captain America: New World Order

Sam Wilson’s back! The last we saw of Sam was in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and now we’re going to see him in Marvel’s fourth Captain America movie. Captain America: New World Order is set to release on May 3, 2024. 

Though little information has been released concerning this movie, some speculations can be made. ScreenRant says: “The Falcon & The Winter Soldier episode 1 was titled “New World Order,” and …. [a]lthough the show had seemingly wrapped that up thanks to Sam’s impassioned speech, Captain America: New World Order’s title suggests it could be showing more of either that fallout, or further from an ever-changing world as the multiverse continues to open up.”  

This could also be a nod to the New World Order from Marvel Comics, which links back to a classic villain that we saw in the first Captain America movie: Red Skull. 

Thunderbolts

“Originally presented as a team of heroes banding together after the Avengers were declared dead, a twist revealed that they were actually a supervillain team in disguise, attempting to conquer the world” (Variety), Thunderbolts is expected to be released on July 26, 2024, ending Phase 5!

Many MCU characters have the potential to be a part of the Thunderbolts. Some include Yelena Belvoa, Ghost, Taskmaster, Baron Zemo, and even Hawkeye! 

Fantastic 4 

Kicking off Phase 6 strong, the reboot of Fantastic 4 will be released on November 8, 2024! Though there’s not much information about the plotline of Fantastic 4, there is speculation that Reed Richards (played by John Krasinski), who showed up in Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, could return in this movie.

Avengers: The Kang Dynasty

Avengers: The Kang Dynasty is expected to be released on May 5, 2025! We’ve seen Kang the Conqueror in Loki’s season 1, so it looks like the next big villain the potential Avengers will have to face will be him – or maybe more. In Loki, it was revealed that there are multiple variants of Kang, which means that a possible plot line for this movie could be that “Kang’s variants are rising in the background, no longer kept in check by He Who Remains and his sacred timeline, [and] eventually, their multiversal war could start up again, potentially pushing the Avengers to intervene” (RadioTimes). 

It hasn’t been confirmed who the Avengers team will comprise of, however, it’s speculated that most of the characters we meet along the way, such as Shang-Chi, She-Hulk, Daredevil, etc. will be part of this movie. 

Avengers: Secret Wars

Finishing off Phase 6 strong is Avengers: Secret Wars, set to be released on November 8, 2025. ScreenRant reports that “it was confirmed that Avengers: Secret Wars will be the culmination of every MCU film from Phase 4 onward”, meaning that this movie will be Marvel’s biggest movie to date. 

In the Marvel Comics, “Secret Wars” was a pretty simple premise. “A cosmic entity known as the Beyonder gathered up several of the biggest Marvel heroes and villains from Earth and placed them on “Battleworld” to fight for his entertainment (ScreenRant).” 

I am beyond ecstatic for the Multiverse Saga and the diversity in stories it will bring into the MCU. It’s a great time to be a Marvel superfan right now!