'Black Panther' and 'Captain Marvel' sequels could set up MCU's cosmic future by introducing the Ultimates
Over the course of its first three phases, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has established a pantheon of great Earth-based heroes. The Avengers have defended the Earth from alien invasions, maniacal robots, and even avenged the deaths of half the universe by defeating Thanos. Now it’s time for the MCU to take things to a whole new level.
With Marvel reportedly moving its focus to a more cosmic scale, it’s only a matter of time before we see the MCU debut of Galactus, Devourer of Worlds. The first steps have already been taken for the MCU’s cosmic expansion with the introduction of Captain Marvel and she may be the key to introducing a new team of cosmic heavy-hitters as well.
While Galactus is most commonly associated with the Fantastic Four, there is another team with ties to the cosmic entity that would fit perfectly into the MCU: the Ultimates. Formed by Captain Marvel as a sort of cosmic Avengers team, the Ultimates deal with threats that are too big for normal Earth-based heroes to handle.
Consisting of Captain Marvel herself alongside Black Panther, Spectrum (Monica Rambeau), Blue Marvel, and the reality-hopping hero Ms. America, the Ultimates are a team of Earth’s biggest powerhouses. In their first mission, the Ultimates neutralized the threat of Galactus by transforming him into a Lifebringer, giving him a new mission to heal the worlds he once consumed.
The best part is that most of the Ultimates have already been introduced into the MCU in the previous phases. Brie Larson’s Captain Marvel and Chadwick Boseman’s Black Panther are already familiar to MCU fans while a child version of Monica Rambeau was introduced in ‘Captain Marvel’.
We will be seeing an adult version of Monica played by 'Chi-Raq' star Teyonah Parris on the upcoming Disney+ series ‘WandaVision’. That just leaves Blue Marvel, who in the comics is a veteran hero with vast powers who was active in the ’50s and ’60s before being forced to retire because the America of his time was not ready to accept an African-American superhero.
Not only does he have nearly limitless power at his disposal, but Blue Marvel (whose real name is Adam Brashear) is also a brilliant scientist with an unparalleled understanding of the workings of the multiverse. Ms. America originates from a universe that exists outside of time and space.
She has a wide range of abilities, the most useful of which is that she can open portals to practically anywhere in the multiverse. Hopefully, we will be seeing these two characters introduced into the MCU sometime in Phase 4.
All the signs point to the Ultimates making their debut as Earth’s new cosmic defenders. We could potentially be looking at a scenario where the Ultimates serve as the MCU’s premiere cosmic team while a different team (possibly the Young Avengers or even a new version of the Defenders) serves as Earth’s more local protectors.
Marvel’s Phase 4 will kick off with ‘Black Widow’, releasing on May 1, 2020. ‘Captain Marvel’ and ‘Black Panther’ both have sequels coming up in Marvel’s Phase 5. Fans can catch the grown-up Monica Rambeau on ‘WandaVision’ when the show makes its debut on Disney+ in early 2021.
