The MCU Movie Challenge 2019

[BeastieRunner]

Using a combination of Titan's, “Marvel Studios: The First 10 Years” ScreenRant’s, “Marvel Movie Timeline: A Complete History Of The MCU” and the films themselves as sources, I am watching one Marvel Cinematic Universe movie a day till the release of their 22nd film, “Avengers: Endgame.” Normally, I’m a release order type person but I thought I’d try something different. I will watch in the chronological order. I will also be posting a day behind so I have time to write my thoughts on each movie. Feel free to join in and watch in any order you like, even it it's well after Endgame's release.

SPOILERS AHEAD!

DAY ONE

1941-2011: Captain America: The First Avenger


Summary: It is 1941 and the world is in the throes of war. Steve Rogers wants to do his part like his best friend Bucky Barnes and join the army, but the military rejects him repeatedly due to his size. Finally, Steve gets his chance when he is accepted into an experimental program that turns him into a super soldier called Captain America. His strong heart and intelligence push him to the top of the talent pool for having the characteristics to be a good man. Joining forces with Howard Stark, Peggy Carter, and the Howling Commandos, Captain America leads the fight against the Nazi-backed Hydra organization led by the evil Red Skull. Thwarting Red Skull’s plan to use the exotic energy source, the Tesseract (later revealed to be the Space Stone, one of the six universal singularities called the Infinity Stones), to rule the world seemingly costs Captain America his life. He is later found frozen and alive in 2011, where he meets SHIELD Agent Nick Fury and joins his Avengers initiative.

Favorite Moment: When Steve uses his brain to take the flag down off the pole.

Notable Events That Happened Around The Movie: There’s a lot of ground to cover here but some important events include Hydra still sending sacrifices through the Monolith prior to allying with the Nazis, the Hand and the Chaste were still waging war over K’un Lun, the Asgardian warrior Thor was becoming a legend on Earth, and Howard Stark discovers vibranium.

Fun Film Fact: Wilson Bethel was originally cast and fitted for the Captain America costume. Before he was about to sign on for the multi-movie deal, Chris Evans finally agreed to play the part after saying no the previous 3 times. Bethel would later return to the MCU to play Bullseye in Netflix’s, “Daredevil.”

[BeastieRunner]

DAY TWO

1995: Captain Marvel


Summary: Vers is an amnesiac extraterrestrial Kree warrior who finds herself caught in the middle of an intergalactic battle between the Kree and the Skrulls. Her commander Yon-Rogg focuses on inhibiting and controlling Vers’ powers and memories with the help of the collective Kree worldmind, the Supreme Intelligence. Crashing on Earth in 1995 after being briefly captured by the Skrulls, she keeps having recurring memories of another life as the US Air Force pilot Carol Danvers. With help from Nick Fury, Phil Coulson, Maria & Monica Rambeau, and the Skrull Talos, Captain Marvel uncovers the secrets of her past in order to harness her full powers to stop the cleansing of Earth by Ronan the Accuser and prevent Yon-Rogg’s team from gaining the weapon that helped birth her powers.

Favorite Moment: When Yon-Rogg challenges a fully powered Carol to a fight shortly after she turns back the Accuser fleet single handily to finally prove herself, she blasts Rogg stating, “I don’t have to prove myself to anybody.”

Notable Events That Happened Around The Movie: Yondu abducts Ego’s son Peter Quill from Earth, Prince N'Jobu betrays King T'Chaka by selling vibranium to Klaue, Thanos destroys Gamora’s homeworld and begins training her as a Daughter of Thanos, Tony Stark’s parents die in an apparent car crash, Black Widow completed the Red Room program & is later brought to SHIELD by Hawkeye, Matt Murdock gains his abilities in an accident at the age of 9, Jessica Jones is adopted by her best-friend’s mom shortly after gaining her powers in an experiment to save her life, and a young Ghost is exposed to Quantum energy that renders her intangible & in constant pain.

Fun Film Fact: The security guard Captain Marvel speaks to at the Blockbuster store is the Marvel lot security director Barry Curtis.

[BeastieRunner]

DAY THREE

2010: Iron Man


Summary: Billionaire playboy, tech pioneer, industrialist, genius inventor, and weapons manufacturer Tony Stark ends up being abducted during an assassination attempt while conducting weapons tests overseas. Stark is mortally wounded by shrapnel but a renowned surgeon saves his life by building an electromagnet inside his chest. Tony builds a miniaturized Arc Reactor to power the magnet. The terrorist organization the 10 Rings then force him to build a devastating new weapons system. Instead, Stark builds an armored suit to escape from his captors, powered by the Arc Reactor in his chest. Returning to America, Stark refines the suit, uses it to combat crime & terrorism, and stops longtime rival/partner Obadiah Stane from using his stolen Iron Monger suit as a weapon to unbalance world powers.

Favorite Moment: It’s a toss up between the test of the flight stabilizers at 10% power and the final line of the movie.

Notable Events That Happened Around The Movie: The Pride is formed, the Hulk is created, Prince T’Challa becomes the new Black Panther, SHIELD greenlights both the Triskellion and the Avengers Initiative, the Inhumans begin a new phase of Terrigenesis, Fury begins work on Project TAHITI, and Ivan Vanko begins work on his first Arc Reactor after finding out his father co-created the tech with Howard Stark.

Fun Film Fact: This is the last film special effects guru Stan Winston completed before his death.

[BeastieRunner]

DAY FOUR

2011: Iron Man 2 (Fury’s Big Week Part 1)


Summary: With the world now aware that he is Iron Man, billionaire weapons inventor turned philanthropist and super hero, Tony Stark faces pressure from all sides to share his technology with the military. He is reluctant to divulge the secrets of his armored suit, fearing the information will fall into the wrong hands. Meanwhile, Ivan Vanko has created his first Arc Reactor and exosuit to confront Tony. With the world now reeling that other people with powered suits exist, the pressure for Tony to turn his tech over mounts. Combined with the fact that he is also dying from exposure to the chest piece that keeps him alive, Tony turns to his old vices to cope. With Pepper Potts as CEO of Stark Enterprises and Col. James "Rhodey" Rhodes dawning the War Machine armor to try to help Tony forge new alliances with SHIELD and the double agent Black Widow, Stark tries to finish a new power source that will save his life. With the new vibranium powered suit, War Machine, and Black Widow, Tony confronts the powerful combined front of Ivan Vanko and wannabe weapons industrialist Justin Hammer’s newly upgraded Hammer Drones.

Favorite Moment: Seeing the Silver Centurion armor on screen when it came out of the suitcase. That was the Iron Man suit I grew up with and made me feel like a kid reading comics in my sister’s bedroom. Plus, it was a cool suiting up sequence.

Notable Events That Happened Around The Movie: SHIELD successfully recovers and revives Steve Rogers, Fury has his first breakthrough using the recovered Kree tech from the events of “Captain Marvel” & moves Project TAHITI ahead, and Stark begins consulting with SHIELD on a full-time basis.

Fun Film Fact(s): Ivan Vanko’s character is an amalgamation of the Iron Man villains Whiplash and Crimson Dynamo. This movie is also part of the trilogy, “Fury’s Big Week” that ties Iron Man 2, The Incredible Hulk, & Thor together as happening simultaneously and intersecting at different times throughout the three films.

[BeastieRunner]

DAY FIVE

2011: The Incredible Hulk (Fury’s Big Week Part 2)


Summary: Scientist Bruce Banner is desperately seeking a cure for the gamma radiation that contaminated his cells during a super soldier experiment gone wrong. The result was it turned him into the giant rage monster, the Hulk, whenever he is angry or stressed out. Cut off from his true love and fellow scientist Betty Ross, Bruce is forced to go on the run from his nemesis, General Thunderbolt Ross. Banner soon comes face-to-face with a new threat, the supremely powerful enemy known as the Abomination created by the latest super solider experiment by General Thunderbolt.

Favorite Moment: “HULK SMASH!”

Notable Events That Happened Around The Movie: Banner flees Canada for Calcutta, Banner learns to control the changes after an attempted suicide, and the Abomination is transferred to SHIELD.

Fun Film Fact(s): After the Hulk appears at Culver University, two students are interviewed in the news, named Jack McGee and Jim Wilson. Jack McGee was a tabloid reporter who attempted to track down the Hulk in the 1970s Incredible Hulk television series. Jim Wilson was a young orphan who befriended the Hulk in the comics. This movie is also part of the trilogy, “Fury’s Big Week” that ties Iron Man 2, The Incredible Hulk, & Thor together as happening simultaneously and intersecting at different times throughout the three films.

[BeastieRunner]

DAY SIX

2011: Thor (Fury’s Big Week Part 3)


Summary: As the son of Odin, king of the Norse gods, Thor will soon inherit the throne of Asgard from his aging father. However, on the day that he is to be crowned, Thor reacts with brutality when the Asgardian enemies, the Frost Giants, enter the palace in violation of their treaty. As punishment, Odin banishes Thor to Earth and enchants Mjölnir to grant the powers of Thor to whomever is worthy. While Loki, Thor's brother, plots mischief in Asgard, Thor, now stripped of his powers, faces his greatest threat, Loki using the Destroyer on Earth.

Favorite Moment: Sif and the Warriors Three coming to Thor’s aid.

Notable Events That Happened Around The Movie: In response to the New Mexico incident, Fury ramps up testing & production of Tesseract-powered weapons, Thanos takes notice of Earth & rescues Loki to make him his agent, and Thanos gifts Loki the Mind Stone housed in a spectre-like control mechanism to control his first wave forces, the Chitauri.

Fun Film Fact(s): The final choice for the role of Thor came down to brothers Chris Hemsworth and Liam Hemsworth. This movie is also part of the trilogy, “Fury’s Big Week” that ties Iron Man 2, The Incredible Hulk, & Thor together as happening simultaneously and intersecting at different times throughout the three films.

[Midvillian1322]

DAY SIX

2011: Thor (Fury’s Big Week Part 3)


Summary: As the son of Odin, king of the Norse gods, Thor will soon inherit the throne of Asgard from his aging father. However, on the day that he is to be crowned, Thor reacts with brutality when the Asgardian enemies, the Frost Giants, enter the palace in violation of their treaty. As punishment, Odin banishes Thor to Earth and enchants Mjölnir to grant the powers of Thor to whomever is worthy. While Loki, Thor's brother, plots mischief in Asgard, Thor, now stripped of his powers, faces his greatest threat, Loki using the Destroyer on Earth.

Favorite Moment: Sif and the Warriors Three coming to Thor’s aid.

Notable Events That Happened Around The Movie: In response to the New Mexico incident, Fury ramps up testing & production of Tesseract-powered weapons, Thanos takes notice of Earth & rescues Loki to make him his agent, and Thanos gifts Loki the Mind Stone housed in a spectre-like control mechanism to control his first wave forces, the Chitauri.

Fun Film Fact(s): The final choice for the role of Thor came down to brothers Chris Hemsworth and Liam Hemsworth, the latter of which had a cameo playing Thor in a stage performance about the events of The Dark World during Ragnarok. This movie is also part of the trilogy, “Fury’s Big Week” that ties Iron Man 2, The Incredible Hulk, & Thor together as happening simultaneously and intersecting at different times throughout the three films.

Luke was Thor in the play not liam. Still a Hemsworth though

[BeastieRunner]

Luke was Thor in the play not liam. Still a Hemsworth though

MY bad! Fixed.

[BeastieRunner]

DAY SEVEN

2012: The Avengers


Summary: Thor's brother, Loki gains access to the unlimited power of the Tesseract on a mission to bring Thanos the Space Stone housed inside. Nick Fury, director of SHIELD, starts the Avengers Initiative to defeat the unparalleled threat to Earth. Joining Fury's team are Iron Man, Captain America, the Hulk, Thor, Black Widow and Hawkeye. Using the power of the scepter to take control of SHIELD agents and Avengers alike to bring down the might of Thanos’ First Wave forces, the Chitauri, the Avengers attempt to save New York and the whole world.

Favorite Moment: The beginning of the “strongest Avenger” feud between Hulk and Thor.

Notable Events That Happened Around The Movie: Hyrda makes their first bold move since WWII & steals the scepter to perform human experiments in Slovakia, Fury reluctantly has Coulson resurrected using Project TAHITI, the Vulture loses a company cleanup contract to Stark’s Damage Control, and the US begins to use War Machine to intervene abroad, which emboldens the 10 Rings.

Fun Film Fact: Robert Downey, Jr. kept food hidden all over the lab set, and apparently nobody could find where it was, so they just let him continue doing it. In the movie, that's his actual food he's offering, and when he was eating, it wasn't scripted, he was just hungry.

[BeastieRunner]

DAY EIGHT

2012: Iron Man 3


Summary: Worry, doubt, and insomnia dominate Tony Stark’s time since saving New York from destruction. Tony Stark is now more dependent on the suits that give him his Iron Man persona -- so much so that every aspect of his life is affected, including his relationship with Pepper. After the leader of the 10 Rings known as the Mandarin reduces his personal world to rubble, Stark finds himself tangled in a web of old personal demons linked to AIM’s bio-engineered Extremis program. After Aldrich Killian is revealed to be the true power behind the cover of Mandarin, Tony must rebuild himself to rescue Rhodey as the newly re-branded Iron Patriot, the President, and an Extremis-powered Pepper.

Favorite Moment: Pretty much any scene with Tony and Harley.

Notable Events That Happened Around The Movie: The HYDRA cell code-named Centipede stole samples of Extremis, and began using it in an attempt to create their own super-soldiers.

Fun Film Fact: The original post-credits scene was going to have Tony Stark blasting off into space to meet the Guardians of the Galaxy. Iron Man was going to have a cameo role in Guardians of the Galaxy during the prison scene. Downey was unsure about returning for more Iron Man appearances, so he requested a final scene with friend Mark Ruffalo. He had so much fun filming many alternate takes that he signed an agreement to appear in more films.

[BeastieRunner]

DAY NINE

2013: Thor: The Dark World


Summary: In ancient times, the gods of Asgard fought and won a war against an evil race known as the Dark Elves. The survivors were neutralized, and their ultimate weapon -- the Aether -- was buried in a secret location. Hundreds of years later, Jane Foster finds the Aether and becomes its host, forcing Thor to bring her to Asgard before the Dark Elf Malekith captures her and uses the weapon to destroy the Nine Realms, including Earth and Asgard, during the Convergence.

Favorite Moment: Thor and Loki tricking Malekith.

Notable Events That Happened Around The Movie: Asgard uses the Tesseract to repair the Bifrost, Coulson investigates the HYDRA cell Centipede, HYDRA begins activating sleeper agents which leads to the destruction of Project TAHITI, the Winter Solider program is brought back online by HYDRA, and Captain America becomes an active SHIELD asset, usually working alongside Crossbones and Black Widow.

Fun Film Fact: According to Natalie Portman, she was not available to film the post-credit scene where Thor and Jane Foster finally kiss. Instead it was shot with Chris Hemsworth's wife Elsa Pataky.

[BeastieRunner]

DAY TEN

2014: Captain America: The Winter Soldier


Summary: After the cataclysmic events in New York with his fellow Avengers, Steve Rogers begins living in Washington, DC as he tries to adjust to modern times. An attack on SHIELD Director Fury throws Rogers into a web of intrigue that places the whole world at risk from a new heli-carrier system called Project Insight. Joining forces with the Black Widow and a new ally, the Falcon, Rogers struggles to expose an ever-widening conspiracy involving HYDRA, but he and his team soon come up against an unexpected enemy, the ghost op legend Winter Solider.

Favorite Moment: Everyone pretty says the elevator fight but mine was seeing Falcon suit up and fly for the first time. Captain America was my first non-X-Men comic I got when I was a kid. Cap and Falcon teamed up with Black Panther in the Savage Land to stop Sauron and Terminus. The awesome aerial fight between Sauron and Falcon made me a Sam Wilson fan for life. This comic also introduced me to T’Challa and Black Panther became my second non-X-Men comic I collected.

Notable Events That Happened Around The Movie: After the events of the Winter Solider, both SHIELD & HYDRA are branded terrorist organizations, Baron Strucker resolved that other branches of HYDRA could be sacrificed in order to maintain the cover of their first super solider creations since the Red Skull, Quicksilver & the Scarlet Witch, and the millennia-old war between the Kree & Xandar finally comes to an end when Nova Prime & the Supreme Intelligence sign a peace treaty.

Fun Film Fact: The freighter Batroc hijacks in the beginning is named the "Lemurian Star". This is a reference to Lemuria, the sunken continent that was the home of the Deviants, a race of super-humans created by Jack Kirby. The Deviants are set to appear in The Eternals during the next phase of the MCU.

[BeastieRunner]

DAY ELEVEN

2014: Guardians of the Galaxy


Summary: Foolhardy space pirate Peter Quill is on the run from his former associates, the Ravagers, while trying to make a name as the outlaw Star-Lord. Peter finds himself the target of bounty hunters and assassins after he steals an orb coveted by Ronan, an apostate Kree fundamentalist. To escape Ronan, Quill is forced into an uneasy alliance with four unlikely loners: the weapon, technological, & strategical genius Rocket, treelike-humanoid bodyguard Groot, mysterious assassin & Daughter of Thanos Gamora, and vengeance-driven Drax the Destroyer. But when he discovers the orb's true power as the housing agent for the Power Stone and the cosmic threat it poses, Quill must rally his motley crew to save the universe.

Favorite Moment: Pelvic sorcery for the win.

Notable Events That Happened Around The Movie: SHIELD's shadow war with HYDRA continues, with both groups seeking to explore the mysteries of the found Kree Obelisk, the schism inside SHIELD continues, the Inhumans take interest in Earth again, and Terrigen was dumped into the ocean, absorbed into the world's water supplies & into marine life, triggering Terrigenesis in anyone with Inhuman DNA.

Fun Film Fact: Chris Pratt’s performance for Star-Lord was based on his two favorite film heroes, Han Solo and Marty McFly.

[BeastieRunner]

DAY TWELVE

2014: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2


Summary: The Guardians are hired by a powerful alien race, known as the Sovereign, to protect their precious batteries from an inter-dimensional being. When it is discovered that Rocket has stolen the batteries they were sent to guard, Kismet dispatches their armada in search of vengeance. As the Guardians try to escape, the mystery of Peter's parentage is revealed when Ego saves the day promising answers. Rocket, Groot, Yondu, Drax, Gamora, and Peter go in separate directions to face their family issues. With the help of Mantis and Nebula, the Guardians begin to unravel Ego’s true intentions under the guise of The Expansion.

Favorite Moment: “I’m Mary Poppins y’all!”

Notable Events That Happened Around The Movie: Maria Hill begins work with Stark, Agent 13 aka Sharon Carter is hired by the CIA, Falcon & Cap continue to search for the Winter Solider, Kismet brings her perfect creation, Adam Warlock, to the Sovereign council, and War Machine resumes work with the US government.

Fun Film Fact: Baby Groot is actually the offspring of Groot, not the same character, as confirmed by James Gunn on Twitter on 28 February 2018 where he posted: "First Groot is dead. Baby Groot is his son."

[BeastieRunner]

DAY THIRTEEN

2015: Avengers: Age of Ultron


Summary: Shortly after the Avengers retrieve Loki’s scepter, Tony Stark kickstarts a dormant peacekeeping program that he and Dr. Banner created, but things go dreadfully wrong. The Avengers are forced to reassemble to undo what Stark has created. As the fate of Earth hangs in the balance, the team is put to the ultimate test as they battle Ultron, a technological terror hell-bent on human extinction. Along the way, they encounter two mysterious and powerful newcomers created by HYDRA, the twins Pietro and Wanda Maximoff, Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch. When it is revealed the scepter houses the Infinity Stone called the Mind Stone, Iron Man attempts to right his wrong by grafting the stone to a bio-engineered android body containing the AI JARVIS. With the help of Thor, Vision is created to help thwart Ultron’s ultimate endgame.

Favorite Moment: Hawkeye debating whether or not to kill Quicksilver.

Notable Events That Happened Around The Movie: The world’s governments begin work on what they called the "Sokovia Accords," to police and control superhumans due to the events in Sokovia, Captain America forms a new team of Avengers including the Scarlet Witch, Falcon, War Machine, & the Vision, Thor leaves Earth in pursuit of the Infinity Stones due to experiencing visions of galactic destruction, and Thanos commits himself to wielding the power of the Infinity Stones while Loki's hidden rule of Asgard fails to protect the Nine Realms, so Thanos attacks the legendary world of Nidavellir and forces the Dwarves to construct the Infinity Gauntlet.

Fun Film Fact: Several characters were cut from the final film. Thanos was considered to be the next villain but Joss Whedon wanted to keep the film more grounded and settled on the tandem of the Abomination and Ultron. After the Hulkbuster vs. Abomination scene was storyboarded and pre-visual wire model work began, they cut Abomination in favor of using a mind-controlled Hulk. Spider-Man and Captain Marvel were set to appear in the final sequence, but they were unable to due to timing issues.