The arc has definitely been light. Most of the first three phases the focus seemed to increasingly be focused on making the characters spend more time together. Thanos has a brief cameo at the end of Avengers and if it weren't for Guardians and Gamora he would only really enter the frame with Infinity War. It's the out of film speculation about the infinity stones etc that fed a lot of the build up as even in the plot of the films Thanos arrives without almost anyone having a clue who he is or what he's after.
I think that's part of the trouble Marvel has at the moment, that a lot of people are invested in the arc narrative and speculation because Infinity War and Endgame really made that central to the experience. Marvel seem to be retreating back to a Phase One sensibility, trying to make audiences invest in new ideas and characters which is wise as many have definitely also experienced a sense of closure with Endgame and they need to maintain interest going forward.
The 'arc' of Phase Four seems pretty obvious now - It's a cool down stage initially that leads into Loki/No Way Home/Multiverse of Madness, introducing the Multiverse and also changing the existing universe's state of reality. It opens them up to the alternate stuff and also is letting them formally bring the Sony made films like Venom and Morbius into the primary canon in a much closer way along with the Garfield and Raimi era Spider-Man characters.
If I were a betting man I'd guess that Phase 5 will be the longest phase and continue to introduce new characters and sequels but with an increasing focus on the multiverse, several of the films teasing Kang before we eventually get Avengers 5 which would be something akin to the first one where all these new heroes get brought together against a common threat and that being around the time X-Men get brought in to the fold. They've already established Kang will be the new Thanos but I'm betting the 'Endgame' equivalent Avengers sequel doesn't happen till around the end of Phase Seven. Basically:
Infinity Saga
Phases 1-3
Arc Bridge
Phase 4
Multiverse Saga
Phases 5-7
If that was the case the Endgame scale events would be around 12-15 years apart so not overdone
It's almost ironic that at the moment the Sony led entries are the most interesting ones on a speculation level. The eggs hidden in the Morbius trailer have sent tongues wagging again.
I think that's part of the trouble Marvel has at the moment, that a lot of people are invested in the arc narrative and speculation because Infinity War and Endgame really made that central to the experience. Marvel seem to be retreating back to a Phase One sensibility, trying to make audiences invest in new ideas and characters which is wise as many have definitely also experienced a sense of closure with Endgame and they need to maintain interest going forward.
The 'arc' of Phase Four seems pretty obvious now - It's a cool down stage initially that leads into Loki/No Way Home/Multiverse of Madness, introducing the Multiverse and also changing the existing universe's state of reality. It opens them up to the alternate stuff and also is letting them formally bring the Sony made films like Venom and Morbius into the primary canon in a much closer way along with the Garfield and Raimi era Spider-Man characters.
If I were a betting man I'd guess that Phase 5 will be the longest phase and continue to introduce new characters and sequels but with an increasing focus on the multiverse, several of the films teasing Kang before we eventually get Avengers 5 which would be something akin to the first one where all these new heroes get brought together against a common threat and that being around the time X-Men get brought in to the fold. They've already established Kang will be the new Thanos but I'm betting the 'Endgame' equivalent Avengers sequel doesn't happen till around the end of Phase Seven. Basically:
Infinity Saga
Phases 1-3
Arc Bridge
Phase 4
Multiverse Saga
Phases 5-7
If that was the case the Endgame scale events would be around 12-15 years apart so not overdone
It's almost ironic that at the moment the Sony led entries are the most interesting ones on a speculation level. The eggs hidden in the Morbius trailer have sent tongues wagging again.
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