One of the biggest bugbears even longtime fans have with the increasing scope of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is the homework required to get the most out of a certain project, with The Marvels requiring basic knowledge of at least four titles covering screens both big and small.
To get the most out of it, you’ll need to be clued up on Captain Marvel, WandaVision, Ms. Marvel, and Secret Invasion, while Avengers: Endgame and Guardians of the Galaxy will factor into the narrative in less obvious – but still important – ways.
Director Nia DaCosta has a hell of a job on her hands trying to ensure her movie stands alone without reminding everyone of what came before, but as she admitted to Total Film, brushing up on MCU history isn’t a necessity regardless of how highly it comes recommended.
“They have a whole history before this. We have Ms. Marvel, the TV show, Captain Marvel, WandaVision, and it was kind of a constant negotiation to figure out, ‘Okay, how much information do people need? It was a real trial and error. We don’t want people to have to watch anything else but, of course, you also have to be honest and be like, ‘This is the [33rd] project in this universe. It’s sort of a sequel to five different things. So at a certain point, you have to just be like, ‘Okay, yeah, there are some things that we can’t get in here, but it’ll be fun.'”
It’s already being used as a negative ahead of The Marvels releasing, but the real litmus test would arguably be plopping a total MCU novice down in the theater and then asking them for their thoughts when the credits come up.
