MCU Movie Ranking (Phase 3, Part 1)

MCU (Phase 3, Part 1) Movie Ranking

Here's the next part of the MCU ranking; part 1 of the phase 3 ranking. Like I said previously, I split phase 3 into two parts so that I explain my choices better, and not have the post be ridiculously long.

If you read my previous MCU rankings, then you should know the drill; action, story, and characters being the primary ranking factors, with visuals, music, and setting being secondary. And again, spoiler warning. This will have spoiler, so click out if you haven't watch the movie; if you did, or don't care, then enjoy.

5. Doctor Strange

Unfortunately, Doctor Strange will have to settle for last place. But it's not because it's bad, far from it; it's a pretty solid movie, with it's visuals being the highlight. The four other movies on this list are just better.

The best thing about this film is, like I said, the visuals. I know I said that visuals are a secondary factors for the ranking, but for this film, it just have to be mentioned and talked about in this extant.

They really go all out on it here, showing various amount of magic and a few dimensions. All of it range from stunning to trippy, very much showcasing how strange the world of Dr. Strange is. But even with the craziness, it still feels like there are limits set for the mystics on how much they can do.

Stephen's Strange story arc is probably just as good. He's a man who had everything, with his talent as a doctor; but one car crash later, with nerve damage to his hands, he lost everything. From there, his story goes from an arrogant doctor, looking out for himself, to a selfless sorcerer, willing to face death several times for the good of mankind.

The villain, however, was not as good. Kaecilius was barely shown in the movie, and what little we see of him barely have any substance. He's more like a high level grunt than anything, with little characterization. The boss, Dormammu, was somewhat better, though mainly because he was a part of the best scene in the movie.

The supporting cast was decent, though it was mainly the Ancient One, Wong, and Baron Mordo. The music was good as well, giving Strange a memorable theme. And the story, like the Guardians, is mainly a character driven one, with the Kaecilius and his forces being a secondary plot (Thankfully).

Overall, this is a solid film, with a great protagonist and arc, decent support cast, and amazing visuals. Unfortunately, the other movies are just better, especially when it comes to villains. So it will have to settle for 5th place.

4. Thor: Ragnarok

So, a lot of people regard Thor: Ragnarok as the best Thor movie out of the trilogy. And I do agree, that it's an improvement to the first Thor, and especially Dark World. But while it is a good edition to the movie franchise, it got a few flaws that brings it down.

Before we talk about it flaws though, let's start with what it does right. For one, Thor gets much more development than in his previous installment, the main thing being his constant wrestle with self doubt that has started in the first Thor movie. We see him lose his father and hammer, struggle with what he learns about his heritage, face someone that's much stronger than without his hammer, and overcome all of that to save his people.

The supporting cast were just as good, with Valkyrie, Hulk, and Loki being the main players. Those three each had a role to play and development of their own, and they all had great chemistry with Thor himself. We also see Handel once again, as well as some new characters, such as Korg and Meek; and they were all solidly played.

Hela is definitely one of the better villains on the MCU. She's intimidating, powerful, charismatic, and have a fair bit of complexity within her. She's definitely a physical threat to Thor, as well as a personal one, due to being his sister. Like Loki, she was full of life, and she stole the scene every time she was in the movie. So she's definitely a solid villain.

The action scenes pulled heavy punches whenever we get them, the music for the movie was solid, the visuals were colorful, and we get to see more of the wacky, cosmic universe of Marvel. So what are the few things that keeps it from getting higher on the list?

Well, one is the humor. It's not that a lot of it is cringy, it's just that there's so much of it. Too much. It takes away from some of the more heavy scenes in the film, and makes those scenes feel less emotionally investing.

That humor also affects many of the characters here, especially Thor himself. While it gives the character more life to him after Dark World and Ultron, the transition to the stoic and serious God of the Thunder to the lighthearted and goofy God of the Thunder was off-putting. While he wasn't always serious in the movies he's in, especially not in the first Thor, he wasn't that goofy.

So, while it great great character arcs, a charismatic villain, and some very colorful visuals, the humor was just a tad too much for the movie. So for that, it gets 4th place.

3. Spider-Man: Homecoming

I felt like Homecoming was a bit trickier to place on the ranking. Didn't know to rank it lower or higher to Thor: Ragnarok, due to it being a smaller scale movie like Ant-Man. In the end, I decided it's slightly better than Ragnarok.

Why that's? Well, let's first list off what it does as good as Thor. The hero, Spider-Man, was played really well and had a great arc. He's a kid who craves adventure, to do and be something more. He genuinely want to help as many people as he can, but he gets caught up in the big leagues and craves more of that, resulting in a few mistakes as the movie passes.

The villain, meanwhile, is both complex and intimidating. The Vulture is a white-collared criminal, selling alien technology to anyone looking to buy, all so he can put bread on the table for his wife and daughter. That makes a clear contrast with other MCU villains, most of which had big ambitions. And the mechanical wings, claws, and mask definitely makes him a intimidating and physical threat for Spider-Man.

The high school support cast was decent, though nothing remarkable; Aunt May and Happy were solid in their roles; and Tony was as great as ever, being something of a mentor for Peter Parker. He wasn't shown much in the movie, but each scene he was in counted.

The theme song for Homecoming was nice, being a blend of the original Spider-Man theme and their own music. Also, the action was fun to watch, from seeing how the web-head uses his webs, to the fights between him and Vulture.

And the thing that got it higher than Thor: Ragnarok? It's more consistent with it's tone. It does have plenty of humor, but it doesn't hurt the more emotional moments in the film, such as the confrontation between Tony and Peter, as well as web-head lifting the rubble off of him.

So for it consistent tone, as well as its hero, villain, theme song, and action, it gets 3rd place on this list.

2. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2

Vol 2 is just as good as it's predecessor, with a few things done better. Many of the Guardians have great development in their sequel, a few of the supporting cast gets their own development, the music and visuals are spot on, and the villain is much more multi-layered than Ronan the accuser ever was.

Let start off with the main cast, the Guardians of the Galaxy. Out of the five, Quill and Rocket had the most development. The former's arc is about realizing that he already have the family he yearned for, while the latter iss about accepting that family and seeing that they'll care for him no matter what he does. While the other Guardians don't nearly as much development, they do have moments of their own, and possibly helped the two develop.

Yondu and Nebula also had development of their own, becoming more complex than they were previously in Vol 1, as well as the former assisting in Rocket's development. Mantis and Kraglin were solid support characters as well, while the Sovereigns and Taserface's Ravager group served as decent secondary villains.

Ego, meanwhile, is a much more complex and charismatic villain than Ronan, as stated before. He really lives up to his name, craving for purpose and believing that purpose is to have himself be all over the galaxy. At the start, he seemed like a father wanting to make up for the lost years with his son, someone asking for a second chance...then we see the literal skeletons in his closet; the blood soaked in his hand; and what his true intentions really are.

The music is as great as in the previous film; the action was a fun blast to watch; the visuals were extremely colorful; and the funny moments gets your gut bursting, while the emotional moments hits you hard. So for those things, plus the characters and their development, it gets 2nd place on this list.

1. Captain America: Civil War

I think that the Captain America trilogy just gets progressively better and better with each film. The First Avenger is a solid film; the Winter Soldier is one of the best out of the MCU; and Civil War became a mini-Avengers movie. So I very much think that out of the five movies in this ranking, Civil War earns the number one spot.

Let start off with the main protagonist, Captain America. Like in his previous films, he's a fantastic character. While he doesn't go through any heavy changes, the world around him changes as he try to do what think is right. He has to deal with the accords, as well as keep his friend, Bucky, alive; yet through it all, he rarely, if ever, waver in his beliefs.

Many of the supporting characters are great as well. There were several major to minor characters, from Iron Man to Black Panther, and each ranged from solid to top-tier characters. Every hero in the conflict has a reason to be there, whether they're in support of Tony or Steve, and none of them feel like that they shouldn't be there.

The villain, Helmut Zemo, is just as good as the heroes. Unlike all of the other villains, he's not after power, or destroying the world, or even trying to change it for better or worse. All he wants, is vengeance; revenge against the Avengers, for being the indirect cause of his family's deaths. Best part? He doesn't even fight them himself. He knows that he's no match for them, so he does the only thing he can do; make them fight each other, and break the Avengers apart. And he wins, becoming one of the few villains to do so in the MCU.

The story is excellent as well. There were several plot threads happening, such as the conflict between Iron Man and Captain America about the Accords; Steve protecting Bucky after he was framed; and a few characters wanting revenge. The movie talks about different views, loyalty, and vengeance, and all of it is juggled wonderfully, leading to one bitter-sweet ending.

The action was top-notch, from the fight against Crossbones, to the airport civil war, to Bucky and Steve vs Tony. There was great choreography, a wide arrange of power usage, and a few emotional scenes mixed in. The airport battle was especially noteworthy, with each hero showing off their abilities in the fight. Also, the music fits very well with the film.

So, in conclusion, Civil War has top-tier characters, a very interesting villain, action-packed scenes, and great music, all of it pushed into a great story. Like it's prequel, a lot of the things in it are A to S tier, so for that, it gets 1st place on the list.

Conclusion

So, that is part 1 of the ranking. There's a lot of great things about each of these movies (Same with most of phase 1 and 2), but if I tried to dissect every part of each one, especially 1st and 2nd place, then this post would be ridiculously long. So I hope this will be satisfying.

Next up will be part 2 of phase 3, so be on the lookout for that. I hope you guys enjoyed this ranking. Until the next post, I'll see you guys later.