Ranked: The Marvel Cinematic Universe

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is arguably the greatest cinematic universe currently running. Though not all the films are great, the fact that the universe has created nearly 40 movies and TV shows to give us an expanded universe with individual stories that all connect is more than impressive. With that said, here is my personal ranking of all the MCU movies and shows that have been released.  The list has fluctuated over the years, but this is my current ranking

 

38. THE INCREDIBLE HULK (Louis Leterrier, 2008)

• An utterly dull mess that everyone, including the MCU, wishes they forgot existed.

 

37. CAPTAIN MARVEL (Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck, 2019)

• An incoherent film that is more of an Endgame stepping stone than an actual Captain Marvel movie.

 

36. MOON KNIGHT (Dough Moench, 2022)

• Moon Knight is very confusing, a tonal nightmare, and uninteresting. Oscar Isaac’s performance is all over the place and show wastes the fantastic performance by Ethan Hawke. This might have benefited from a couple more episodes, but even then, it still wouldn’t have been great.

35. THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER (Taika Waititi, 2022)

• Taika Waititi’s second effort in the Thor franchise felt like a half-assed attempt to recreate the fun of Thor: Ragnarok. it’s a lame, unfunny, ugly-looking movie that wastes the great performance of Christian Bale as the menacing God killer, Gorr.

 

34. THE FALCON AND THE WINTER SOLDIER (Malcolm Spellman, 2021)

• The second MCU TV series was a real disappointment. Running only six episodes, the series was so over-stuffed with different subplots that it was never able to make any of them interesting. Wyatt Russell was great as John Walker, though.

 

33. IRON MAN 2 (Jon Favreau, 2010)

• Though it has some good ideas (I really liked Justin Hammer and Sam Rockwell’s performance), Iron Man 2 lacks excitement and fails to replicate the greatness of the first film.

 

32. BLACK WIDOW (Cate Shortland, 2021)

• One of the first Avengers had to wait until after her character was dead to get her own movie, which I find rather disrespectful. This is a movie that came nearly a decade too late, which is a shame because they could have done so much with this character. This was a waster of a film and felt like a consolation prize.

 

31.  THOR: THE DARK WORLD (Alan Taylor, 2013)

• Thor: The Dark World is a mildly entertaining but ultimately forgettable movie that’s only purpose is as a vessel for the Reality Stone.

 

30. SHE-HULK: ATTORNEY AT LAW (Jessica Gao, 2022)

• Not all of She-Hulk worked for me and the overall focus of the show seemed a little blurry. But this is easily the most unique and fun show the MCU has come out with so far. Tatiana Maslany’s performance is delightful and the meta-awareness was a really different direction for the universe.

 

29. CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR (Anthony and Joe Russo, 2016)

• Civil War has some really great moments, like Spider-Man’s intro and everything involving Black Panther, but at the end of the day, the movie doesn’t really matter and is a plot device for Infinity War.

 

28. ANT-MAN AND THE WASP: QUANTUMANIA (Peyton Reed, 2023)

• Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is a big silly sci-fi adventure and is an incredible intro for the MCU’s new main villain, Kang (Jonathan Majors, an absolute menace). But the film barely cares about Ant-Man or Wasp as characters and gives neither of them any sort of arc or emotional depth.

 

27. THOR (Kenneth Branagh, 2011)

• Director Kenneth Branagh’s interesting take on the Norse God is a relatively safe, run-of-the-mill intro movie with some cool visuals that are elevated by a star-making turn from Chris Hemsworth.

 

26. MS. MARVEL (Bisha K. Ali, 2022)

• Probably the most surprising of the MCU-Disney+ shows, Ms. Marvel is a delightfully fun coming-of-age story that smartly establishes our new hero (Iman Vellani) while also showcasing the character’s Pakistani roots and culture.

 

25. HAWKEYE (Jonathan Igla, 2021)

• I don’t know that anyone was asking for a Hawkeye show, but we got one and it was a great time. A very enjoyable show that finds Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) teaming up with young archer Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld) as they run around New York City during Christmas. Renner and Bishop have perfect chemistry and this made for a fun Christmas buddy comedy.

 

24. WANDAVISION (Jac Schaeffer, 2021)

• The first MCU TV show is an interesting and fun look at the trauma Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch (a terrific Elizabeth Olsen) is dealing with following the death of Vision (an equally great Paul Bettany). The show starts off really strong but felt rushed toward the finale. Luckily, Kathryn Hahn gives an iconic performance to keep the show afloat when it get loses steam.

 

23. SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME (Jon Watts, 2017)

• The Spider-Man stuff isn’t very interesting and the action sequences are okay, but Spider-Man: Far From Home offers up a solid watch because of Tom Holland, his chemistry with Zendaya, and his portrayal of a kid who just lost his hero and is now taking over the mantel.

 

22. CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLIDER (Anthony and Joe Russo, 2014)

• This is two-thirds a great movie, and one-third a dud.  I really liked the first two acts. The Winter Soldier storyline and the emotional battle Captain America faces are compelling. I hated the final act where H.Y.D.R.A takes over S.H.I.E.L.D. Most people have this one higher on their lists, but the third act really falls flat for me.

 

21. LOKI (Michael Waldron, 2021)

• Despite retconning Loki’s emotional death in Avengers: Infinity War, Loki is easily the best MCU show. The story is big, but never gets too confusing and only gets more interesting as the show progresses. Tom Hiddleston is great as the mischievous Lokie and Jonathon Majors is spellbinding in the series finale. This one felt like it had real MCU stakes.

 

20. SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS (Destin Daniel Cretton, 2021)

• The film’s finale features two mythical dragons fighting each other, which is awesome. But Shang-Chi is really a tightly constructed family drama with some killer martial arts and tons of comedy.

 

19. SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING (Jon Watts, 2017)

• Despite five previous Spider-Man films, Marvel still found a way to give us a fresh take on our favorite web-slinger. Tom Holland is the best Peter Parker we’ve ever had and the film sees Michael Keaton giving one of the best villain performances in the MCU as Adrian Tooms/Vulture. The Spider-Man stuff is good, but the Peter Parker stuff is even better.

 

18.  ANT-MAN AND THE WASP (Peyton Reed, 2018)

• Keeping the same fun energy as the first film, Ant-Man and the Wasp offers up excellent action sequences, a smart story, and a great cast led by the hilarious Paul Rudd.

 

17. DOCTOR STRANGE (Scott Derrickson, 2016)

• Doctor Strange still remains the MCU’s weirdest film to date, yet is one of the most visually ambitious films they have made and was a perfect intro movie to our wizardly hero.

 

16. ANT-MAN (Peyton Reed, 2015)

• What I like most about this movie is how small in scale it is. A lot of the MCU movies before Ant-Man were as epic as The Avengers and they were only focusing on one character, which made the movies bigger than necessary. Ant-Man kept it contained and focused on the world of Scott Lang (a wonderful Paul Rudd). Add some great performances by Michael Douglas, Corey Stoll, and the scene-stealing Michael Peña, and you have one of the most surprisingly fun movies in the MCU.

 

15. SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME (Jon Watts, 2021)

• The best film in the MCU Spider-Man series, Spider-Man: No Way Home finally gives Tom Holland the chance to succeed as Spider-Man, and Holland takes the opportunity and runs with it, giving the best performance of his career. The multiverse stuff is cool and it was great to see Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield back in the red and blue tights, but it did all lean hard on fan service and ultimately wasn’t necessary for the overall story.

 

14. THE AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON (Joss Whedon, 2015)

• Avengers: Age of Ultron is one of the more divisive movies in the MCU and also when the universe started to turn in a different direction. Though The Avengers was huge in scale, everything in Age of Ultron is bigger. We get more characters, bigger and crazier action sequences, and even deeper thematic debates about humanity. It does get a little messy at spots, but I loved James Spader voicing Ultron and the boldness of the whole film.

 

13. ETERNALS (Chloé Zhao, 2021)

• Eternals is one of the quieter entries in MCU, but it’s also a great one. Director Chloé Zhao, fresh off a Best Director win for Nomadland, crafted a beautiful, somber film about a group of intergalactic heroes trying to find their place in the world. The ensemble is exceptional and Zhao proves she can direct action well too. Don’t let the low Rotten Tomatoes score fool you, this one is great.

 

12. THOR: RAGNAROK (Taika Waititi, 2017)

• After the first two Thor films were a bit flat and underwhelming, director Taika Waititi got behind the camera and gave us a bright and lively film and gave us Thor in a way we had never seen him before. This movie is one of the most rewatchable in the series and features great performances from Cate Blanchett and Tessa Thompson.

 

11. BLACK PANTHER: WAKANDA FOREVER (Ryan Coogler, 2022)

• Following the tragic death of Chadwick Boseman, it seemed like Ryan Coogler and the rest of the team behind the film had an impossible task of making a Black Panther sequel without Boseman. But Coogler and company created a stunning film, full of power, heart, and action that shows that Black Panther as a character, a franchise, and its place in the MCU is in a good place.

 

10. GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 2 (James Gunn, 2017)

• With its vibrant colors, stunning costumes, explosive action, and emotional center, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is nearly as good as the first film and one of the best-looking movies in the MCU.

 

9. DOCTOR STRANGE IN THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS (Sam Raimi, 2022)

• Sam Raimi returned to the comic book genre and made a weird, dark, exciting superhero horror movie. It dives even deeper into the multiverse while also dealing with Doctor Strange’s guilt about the events of Avengers: Endgame and coming to terms that he will never be able to be with the love of his life. This is unlike any movie in the MCU and has Raimi’s fingerprints all over it.

 

8. AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR (Anthony and Joe Russo, 2018)

• One of the darkest and most melancholy films in the MCU focuses on Thanos (a great mo-cap performance by Josh Brolin) as he plows through the universe trying to collect all the Infinity Stones. I find myself revisiting this one surprisingly often, mostly because Brolin’s performance is remarkable and it features some of the best moments in the entire MCU in the opening scene, Thor landing in Wakanda with Stormbreaker.

 

7. IRON MAN 3 (Shane Black, 2013)

• Robert Downey Jr. gives his best performance as Iron Man in Iron Man 3 as a man suffering from a near-death experience in New York who must get it together to stop the world from the Mandarin.  Shane Black’s script crackles, the action is unreal, and the movie brings up deeper themes in terms of America’s want for an enemy and PTSD.  This follow-up to The Avengers was a great one.

 

6. GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY (James Gunn, 2014)

• Just when we thought all Marvel movies were the same, out came Guardians of the Galaxy and changed everything. This is a fire-cracker of a movie that took us to space to meet a lovable bunch of a-holes who must learn to work together to help save the galaxy. This is the funniest movie in the MCU and features a killer soundtrack.

 

5. CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER (Joe Johnston, 2011)

• Captain America: The First Avenger is a rousing introduction to our star-spangled hero filled with a gorgeous old-school look and great action. Chris Evans became a movie star in the titular role and Hugo Weaving gives a top-notch villain performance in the MCU as Red Skull. Captain America: The First Avenger revitalized the MCU and is one of their best intro movies.

 

4. BLACK PANTHER (Ryan Coogler, 2018)

• With Black Panther, director Ryan Coogler created a world unlike any we had seen before, immersing us in Wakanda and allowing us to understand its politics while also rooting us in the culture with dazzling costumes and make-up.  Michael B. Jordan gives one of the best performances in the MCU as Killmonger and the late Chadwick Boseman gave an iconic performance as King T’Challa. Black Panther is a true game-changer.

 

3. AVENGERS: ENDGAME (Anthony and Joe Russo, 2019)

• After eleven years and twenty-one movies, the MCU had finally come to this: the finale of one of cinema’s greatest journeys and the conclusion of Thanos and his snap.  The result was sheer perfection.  A three-hour-long epic filled with dozens of characters, astounding visual effects, exciting action, and tons of emotion.  It is everything I wanted this film to be.  It’s the biggest movie of the MCU and arguably the biggest movie of the decade.

 

2. IRON MAN (Jon Favreau, 2008)

• The movie that started it all for the MCU is still one of the best.  Iron Man set the tone for all Marvel movies in terms of attitude, style, casting, and quality.  Robert Downey Jr. is simply perfect as Tony Stark with the combination of dry, snarky, and badass. The effects, story, and performances all hold up over a decade later, making Iron Man one of the greatest comic book intro movies ever made.

 

1. THE AVENGERS (Joss Whedon, 2012)

• The Avengers was the first time we had a movie like this. This was a movie that put together five movies and even more heroes on screen together and it worked better than anyone could have ever imagined.  Under the great direction of Joss Whedon, The Avengers balances the action, characters, and story masterfully. The film is epic and grand in scale but still tight and concise in its character development and plotting while giving us the most exciting action in the entire universe. The Avengers is one of the greatest comic book movies ever made and the best movie in the MCU.

 

 

 

 

Follow Kevflix on Twitter and Instagram, @kevflix, or on Facebook by searching Kevflix.