After Phase Four proved to be the most polarizing stage of the Marvel Cinematic Universe by far, fans and detractors alike were hoping that Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania could right the shaky ship and ignite the Multiverse Saga in suitably spectacular fashion.
Unfortunately, that hasn’t proven to be the case. In fact, it’s beginning to look as though things could possibly be getting even worse before they get better. At the time of writing, Peyton Reed’s threequel is only the second of the MCU’s 31 feature-length installments so far to drop below the 60 percent Fresh threshold on Rotten Tomatoes, and it can’t be ruled out that it may yet sink lower than Eternals as more people get the chance to see it for themselves.
Even more concerning is that Quantumania is coming under fire for almost exactly the same things as the majority of Phase Four’s most divisive titles; an over-reliance on CGI and spectacle at the expense of story, constant exposition designed to drop breadcrumbs for what’s coming next, as well as lore that’s virtually impenetrable to those who haven’t devoured every movie and Disney Plus series so far, just to name a few.
We’ve been hearing for years that Marvel Studios fatigue was in real danger of setting in, and should Quantumania be the latest chapter to be deemed as an underwhelming box office performer to go along with its distinctly mediocre reviews, then Kevin Feige has arguably faces his biggest task yet to convince the naysayers that the MCU isn’t running out of steam.
Published: Feb 15, 2023 02:48 am