Marvel's Phase 4 announcements at SDCC 2019 leaves fans emotional and impressed: 'Talk about stepping up the game'
This year's San Diego Comic-Con saw a Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) panel of course. What year doesn't, right? And especially after the heartbreaking epic that 'Avengers: Endgame' was, this panel couldn't have been more duly timed. But what stood apart for this year's MCU panel was boss Kevin Fiege taking center stage to announce not one, not two, but a whole list of upcoming TV shows and movies which will be slotted as Marvel's Phase 4!
As Fiege took the stage, about seven thousand fans in Hall H where the SDCC panel was held, chanted in unison, praising and cheering for the incredible output the comic-book-to-screen franchise has done in the past. However, they weren't ready for all the new projects that Fiege were about to drop on them.
Starting with a third 'The Guardians of the Galaxy' film to a standalone project dedicated just to the deadly Russian spy 'Black Widow' — Marvel's universe is about to take us on a journey of fantasy and superheroes with representation, inclusivity, and diversity playing key roles in their progress.
Natalie Portman in 2013: i exit the MCU
— diana (@_diana87) July 21, 2019
Also Natalie Portman in 2019: surprise bitches, i'm the female Thor#MarvelSDCC #sdcc pic.twitter.com/t51PzJKpdb
Not only do we have a female Thor and an openly gay Valkyrie (who by the way just announced that her first task at hand would be to get herself a queen!), but we also have the likes of Asian Marvel comic characters making it to the screen, alongside a non-whitewashed, actually accurate avatar of the popular character 'Blade' which has been mostly stereotyped.
What's better? Oscar nominees and winners aside, Phase 4 of Marvel is also set to incorporate some of the greatest writing and directional talents in the form of directors like Chloé Zhao, Destin Daniel Cretton, and Cate Shortland.
Take a look at the list of Marvel shows and films coming out in the near future below:
Fans immediately took to social media and pretty much went nuts over the massive announcement which has been bigger than the ball drop on New Year's Eve. One fan tweeted, "Normal companies @ #SDCC: we have one/two movies coming. Marvel: MARVEL phase 4, 10 f**king things announced, Loki TV series, new 'Doctor Strange', 'Fantastic 4' and 'X-Men' confirmed for MCU, 'Taskmaster' confirmed for the 'Black Widow' movie, they are doing female Thor!!!"
Another one chimed in saying: "Ya'll we getting several movies from Marvel and 'Endgame' finally surpassed 'Avatar'. MCU Stans keep winning #MarvelSDCC."
Meanwhile, having nearly 10 movies coming out in the next two years is going to be an expensive affair, most fans pointed out. However, they are willing to invest that much and more, like one of them remarked: "Marvel is gonna take all my money in 2021 when I go to the theater every day and that’s ok #MarvelSDCC."
Fans also pointed out the most obvious takeaway from these announcements: just when we thought there was no more story to tell after Endgame, Marvel swept us right off our feet. "Damn, Marvel releasing seven bloody films in one year. Talk about stepping up the game!! #MarvelSDCC," tweeted another fan.
One of the biggest highlights of the Comic-Con panel was Tessa Thomspon revealing that as the new King of Asgard in the upcoming 'Thor' movie, her character Valkyrie's first order of business would be to get herself a queen! Now, this is a big leap indeed, in terms of how far Marvel has come with representation and inclusivity.
What fans are looking forward to is the prospect of our very own Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel (Brie Larson) becoming more than just friends with Valkyrie. "Tessa Thompson said since Valkyrie is 'The King of Asgard, she needs her Queen," enthused one fan on Twitter in all caps. "I Swear if we get Carol Danvers checking up on Asgard and befriending Valkyrie in 'Thor 4' I'm gonna lose my marbles #MarvelSDCC."