The MCU s lost its way. After Endgame the wheels fell off. These last couple of years have had no
focus. No direction. There s no crossovers, it s not building to anything, it s just a bunch
of random projects. Phase 4 is a mess. That s what you ve heard, at least. That s
probably what a lot of you think yourselves. In this video, I m g oing to do my best to convince
you that you re wrong. Because from where I m standing, phase 4 isn t the jumbled heap of
loose ends so many others are claiming. It has a focus. It has a direction. It s just less linear,
less plot-focused a direction than we ve maybe seen before with the franchise. In a word,
it s expansion. Expansion across genre, across form, across different realities and franchises,
into new mediums, and even into new cultures. The thing that unites phase 4, that characterises it,
that drives it, is this sense of innovation, across countless fronts. And if we just take a
look at all these new directions the MCU s taken since Endgame, I think you ll begin to see that
phase 4 does have a purpose, does have a focus. But just before I tell you about all the new
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The most common point people like to make about phase 4 s supposed lack of direction is that it
doesn t seem to be building up to anything in a tightly focused way, that no big team-up or
crossover s happened to tie together all these projects. And, well I m not so sure. First,
there s plenty of setup throughout Phase 4, new chapters, new mysteries being teed up the seeds
have been sewn for the Thunderbolts, primarily in Black Widow and the Falcon and the Winter Solider,
there s been a similar groundwork-laying for the Young Avengers across the Disney+ shows,
and you could probably make that same point, albeit in weaker terms,
about the West Coast Avengers. Second, though, and more importantly while there s been a
few different build-up strands beginning to coalesce, there is very clearly one central
thread that Phase 4 has been weaving, across multiple projects. The Kang / Multiverse stuff,
the stuff that looks to culminate in Phase 6 s two-part Avengers event. This focus was pretty
clear, even back toward the start of the phase. From teasing the idea of characters crossing
from one universe to another, to delving into the multiversal ramifications of time-travel in Loki,
then ramping up to introduce the puppetmaster of the Multiverse,
He Who Remains, and teasing fairly directly the imminent arrival of his more bloodthirsty variant.
At the same time, What If s first season comes out and really hammers home the vastness and danger
of these infinite parallel worlds, and shortly thereafter, Phase 4 starts to turn all this setup,
all these theoretical concerns, into concrete reality with the dimension-blending spectacle
of No Way Home a move Multiverse of Madness picked up and ran with a few months later.
There s not necessarily a direct causal link between all of these things, but there doesn t
really need to be an idea, a new conceit, has been floated, introduced, and developed across a number
of projects. To a greater or lesser extent, this central thread has been furthered in WandaVision,
Loki, What If, No Way Home, and Multiverse of Madness. While there is a lot going on in Phase 4,
across a great many locales and with a great many characters, this definitely feels like
the centrepiece of Phase 4 s spread. And I get it. Phase 4 is big. There s been a lot of stuff
that hasn t tied into this multiversal focus but.. there s also been quite a bit that has,
even relative to the franchise s earlier years. I wonder if there s some recency bias here while
phase 3 was a tad more connected, concerned as it was with getting all the pieces in place for
the big two-part finale, the MCU really wasn t laser-focused at all before this point. You
might make the point that Phase 1 led into the Avengers fairly directly, but I d disagree while,
sure, the majority of the team were introduced and fleshed out beforehand, there s a number of
moments in Phase 1 where we see the seams between the projects, inconsistencies, mini-retcons,
and recasts which reveal the fact that Phase 1 was far from some perfectly-planned beginning.
There s little touches here and there that make it feel like a connected world, sure,
but in terms of setup, in terms of actually building to the events of Avengers 1, there s
really not much in the solo films. It s really the avengers film that did the heavy lifting here. And
while it is true that Phase 4 is the first phase that hasn t culminated in an Avengers movie, a
big crossover event the fact that there s not been payoff yet doesn t mean there hasn t been set up,
planned, directed, focused setup. Sure, for the past 3 phases, the big event at the end has been
a sort of capstone for the phase but look at Age of Ultron. It s not exactly paying off phase 2,
is it? Very little of that film s plot, setting, cast, etcetera, had been teased or introduced in
that phase s slate, barring a pretty tacked-on post-credit scene. It s mostly just a sequel to
Avengers 1. There s really not much tying Age of Ultron in to phase 2 so while we ve always
had a big spectacle rounding out a phase, it s not as though phase 4 is the first to not tie
all its strands together with some big finish. So, partially because there isn t a big team-up
event to finish things up, it s hard to say precisely how much narrative-propelling setup
there s been in Phase 4, and how it s going to pay off. But it isn t hard to see that there has been
quite a bit already. We re just gonna have to wait a little longer for it to all come together.
But while the introduction of the multiverse is clearly part of a narrative push towards Kang,
towards Avengers 5 and 6, that s not the only reason it represents a crucial part of Phase
4 s direction. No, it's also the first clue that points to this idea of expansion I brought up at
the video s start. Because it s a massive step forward in worldbuilding. All you have to do is
look at a film like No Way Home or Multiverse of Madness to see the effects of this thanks
to Phase 4 s introduction of the multiverse, its emphasis on this concept, characters new and old
can now enter the fray from alternate timelines and dimensions think the Spider-Men, think America
Chavez, think the Illuminati. And across phase 4, from the first time this idea was teased,
with the Quicksilver fakeout in WandaVision, to now? This idea this new dimension of the MCU s
worldbuilding has pretty much been normalised, to the point that yeah, someone like Deadpool
could make the journey over from the Fox films, and the audience probably wouldn t bat an eye.
It s not about Deadpool, though. It s not even just about pre-existing characters returning. It
s about the fact that introducing and developing the Multiverse throughout phase 4 has opened up
an unthinkably vast set of possibilities for the MCU s storytelling going forward. Any setting,
any character, even if they don t fit in with pre-established MCU canon or worldbuilding,
can now find their way into a story, if the writers want them all without breaking suspension
of disbelief or compromising the verisimilitude of this world, in a way that would have been
nearly inconceivable at the start of, say phase 3. And that can now happen forever, for as long
as this franchise lasts. Reaching this point? That s one part of this focus, this expansion, that I m
talking about. But it s far from the only part. Sticking with the idea of worldbuilding for a
moment, the idea of expanding which characters, which places, which stories are up for grabs,
there s a number of other adjustments Phase 4 has been making to this end. There s the gradual
canonizing or re-canonizing of elements from the Netflix shows, across No Way Home, Hawkeye, and
She-Hulk. And speaking of She-Hulk? Before that series dropped, I made a video suggesting that
the show s rapid and wide-reaching introduction of new superpowered characters heralded what I called
a quantum leap forward in worldbuilding a shift to a new approach where comic-booky, colourful,
weird characters could begin to appear in stories without having to be explained,
to be given semi-plausible backstories. And I think it s fair to say that prediction aged
like a damn cabernet. And, yeah. This leap forward in worldbuilding is sort of matched
by the way multiversal and dubiously-canonical characters can now enter stories with no heavy
introduction needed, and perhaps even by the way less realistic, more comic-booky locations
and settings have been gradually introduced throughout like Ta-Lo, the realm of Eternity,
or Omnipotent City. That isn t an accident. That s a shift that Phase 4 has consciously
been making toward expansion, toward future possibilities, toward the new. And if you re
still not sold, let s look beyond worldbuilding. For instance, look at the increased emphasis on
cultures and perspectives outside the established remit of Infinity Saga-era MCU. Sure, toward the
end of that we got Black Panther and Captain Marvel, films looking at this largely white,
largely male world from an African-American perspective and a female one but Phase 4 s
really dialled this type of thing up. If the African-American viewpoint is a relatively
scarce one in big-budget Hollywood franchises, the Muslim-American, Chinese-American, and Central
American perspectives are almost nonexistent. And would you ever have expected an Egyptian
superheroine to pop up in the MCU of previous years? Plus, depending on how you count it,
Phase 4 s had 3 to 5 projects with a primarily female POV, compared to the one of all previous
phases. Eternals, too, probably deserves a mention here in terms of casting and setting, it s the
most global project to date in this franchise. And look, with regard to representation,
some of this stuff is shallow, maybe people think this thing or that bit missed the mark,
and I m sure that is the case with a lot of this but I also know that this relatively more global,
more inclusive focus has made a lot of people really happy. Also, the point here isn t to
look at the specifics of what we ve seen in Phase 4, flawed or otherwise stuff like Phastos family,
Marc at the Shiva, or Kamala s home-life. Some of Phase 4 s comparatively intersectional bent may
be great some of it may be shallow and craven. The point I m trying to make is that it s increasing.
Phase 4 has clearly shown an effort across TV and film to include more of these perspectives,
more of the experiences, more of the cultures, more of the lifeways that were pushed to the
margins throughout this franchise first ten or so years. And now? Standing on the threshold of Phase
5, the MCU has become a series where focusing on other, less-highlighted lived experiences is more
possible than ever before. This is another angle of what I mean by Phase 4 s focus on
expansion it s taking us toward a wider world, a deeper world, one which reflects the diversity
of the human experience just a little better. But this bearing toward newness isn t limited
to introducing new realities, new characters, new ways of bringing in characters, or even including
new cultures. On a meta level, on a generic level, on a formal level, Phase 4 has really
pushed the MCU forward. First of all shows! I know we re all at the point now of taking this side of
the franchise for granted, and yes, obviously the MCU didn t invent the television format,
but I do think that launching this different format of storytelling in a way that kind of folds
in seamlessly to this established blockbuster film franchise is a pretty considerable shake-up that
deserves, at the very least, our recognition. I know all of these small-screen projects have
their flaws, have their critics, but on a purely formal level this is a new side of the MCU that
phase 4 has introduced and normalised. And, going by the way Marvel Studios seems to be moving away
from the standard 6-episode template, or the way the She-Hulk team reformatted their show
s order to avoid the already-stale penultimate episode backstory dump , I think it s fair to
say that Phase 4 s been a teething process of sorts for the MCU s Disney+ branch a process
that s taken us from a purely cinematic MCU to one which now includes a whole second branch,
encompassing hyper-serialised dramas, more standalone adventures, honestly
kind of experimental projects, animation, and one-off events. That s an explosion of
possibilities for what genres, what forms MCU stories can adopt going forward an explosion
that seems to have passed a lot of people by. I mean, take Werewolf by Night. A lot of people
s reactions to Werewolf by Night were along the lines of, wow, this is good, this is different
this is what phase 4 should have been! , without seeming to realise that that was phase 4. Werewolf
by Night was a product of phase 4, of this wider, relatively experimental vision of the MCU. It
would never have been made in previous years partially because the release infrastructure
required for this so-called Marvel Special Presentation didn t exist during the Infinity
Saga, and partially because owing to this, the way the MCU s release strategy was dependent
on tentpole cinematic events, a back-and-white classic horror pastiche like this wouldn t have
been a safe enough bet to release widely. The fact that we re now in a place to get more different,
more unique stuff like Werewolf by Night isn t solely down to the Disney+ platform,
though. Even in the mainline cinematic releases, we re seeing a stronger emphasis on genre and
directorial style. The Doctor Strange sequel saw Sam Raimi really flexing his horror roots,
Eternals restless contemplation was unmistakably Chloe Zhao, and for better or for worse,
Love and Thunder went way harder on the improv comedy vibe and lighter on the drama than even
Ragnarok did. So I do think Werewolf by Night is fairly representative of Phase 4, or at least,
the direction of Phase 4 it s embracing a new form and a new genre in a way we ve seen a lot
as of late, in a way we couldn t, pre-Endgame. Generally I think it s inarguable that we ve
seen a sharper sense of directorial style and a bigger embrace of genre in Phase 4 than we ever
had before whether that s the horror pastiche we noted above, the off-kilter sci-fi of Loki,
or the postmodern nightmare sitcoms of WandaVision. Add to this the wide
variety of formal and storytelling opportunities offered by the burgeoning MCU animation branch,
these new Special Presentations, plus whatever the hell I am Groot was, and it s clear to see
that Phase 4 has really expanded just what the MCU is on a fundamental level not accidentally, not
incidentally, but consistently, and coherently. To sum up, then? Phase 4 is focused. It s just
not narratively focused to the same degree Phase 3 was a pretty impossible ask, really,
since that was the conclusion of a saga and this is the beginning of one but no,
while it is focused, that focus isn t solely expressed in its plotting. On the contrary,
Phase 4 is focused on re-defining what the MCU is, and I mean that in so many ways, all at once.
There s a new central narrative thread, being slowly teased out. There s a new wealth of worlds,
of characters, of stories made possible by the shift from one setting, one diegesis, to a whole
multiverse. Phase 4 s projects have redefined what constitutes canon in the MCU, redefined the sense
of realism underpinning this world, redefined which cultures, whose perspectives are drawn from,
redefined the very nature of the content which constitutes this cinematic universe. Phase 4 s
purpose wasn t to tell a story it was to explode outwards in every direction, to broaden utterly
the horizons for future MCU storytelling, to experiment with genre, tone, form, and medium.
As a result, while this phase may not have had the hype or big crossover events of previous years,
the way we understand the MCU now, what it can do, where it can go, at the tail end of 2022,
is a far cry indeed from the relatively limited vision of the franchise s future we
had following Endgame. It s easy to ignore or downplay all of these new moves individually,
but taken cumulatively? The MCU after phase 4 is unquestionably a richer and wider place, one that
in two short years has opened up countless new avenues for its future. Phase 4 had a focus. This
is that focus. Phase 4 marks a consistent, concerted effort to expand this franchise,
to push forward with what s possible, in terms of settings, characters, worldbuilding, visuals,
form, genre to a degree hitherto undreamt of. And that s why you re wrong about Phase 4.
As I m making this, Wakanda Forever hasn t yet released, but it looks set to continue this push
toward newness, to cap off this great period of transition, in a spectacular fashion. And I,
for one, am looking forward to seeing it and to seeing where Phase 4 goes next. So I ll wrap
up here, I think, cause this video s already pretty darn long. If you re new here, though,
I ve got plenty of other videos on Marvel, the MCU, and a whole bunch of other stuff besides,
so check that out. Thanks for watching, and hey, please do go ahead and share this around to any
mates you ve got who are being curmudgeonly about phase 4, and moaning about the lack of a
big team-up or something. And why not drop a like while you re down there sharing! I don t know, I m
not your dad. But as always the real superheroes are my Patreon supporters, so massive shoutout
to all the names onscreen now, especially Jonathan Francis Bond and Ztrangefolk.