Beyond Avengers: Secret Wars — Inside Marvel's Next Era

Marvel is ramping up to its next two massive swings, and the rollout has been... a choice. I think there is still a great MCU run waiting on the other side of all this, but getting there has been a ride.

The chair parade and the leak parade

Last year, Marvel tried something cute: an online cast reveal for 'Avengers: Doomsday' done as a timed rollout of empty chairs. A new seat with an actor's name popped up every 10–15 minutes. Watching it in real time felt like staring at a loading screen that kept almost finishing. The swooping camera from chair to chair did not add juice. Friends who had it on in the background said it was a pleasant little drip-feed. I wish it hit me that way.

'Chairs? Really, Marvel? Chairs?'

Then came the leaks. Teaser footage started popping up online ahead of schedule, and random accounts spoiled things Marvel would rather have revealed on their own stage. The returns of Steve Rogers, Thor, and others? Those surprises got burned early. If the plan was to generate an anticlimax, mission thoroughly accomplished.

And yet... the optimism snuck back in

I woke up two days ago actually feeling good about where the MCU could go. No epiphany to credit, just a switch that flipped. The idea of everyone rallying to take on Doctor Doom in 'Doomsday' is a strong hook, sure, but I am more into the horizon line after that.

Doom arrives, and he is a big swing

'Doomsday' introduces Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom. In the comics, Doom is tied closely to Reed Richards and Susan Storm, and he rules Latveria with a steel grip. The film likely aims for a world-domination play from Doom that forces the Avengers and a stack of superpowered allies into formation. Expect familiar heroes to re-enter the picture and the X-Men to step back into the MCU spotlight, with several beloved Fox-era actors reprising their roles as the Children of the Atom. That alone is a lot of heat for one movie.

Secret Wars: the reset button, if Marvel wants it

'Avengers: Secret Wars' brings in incursions, which in the comics are catastrophic collisions between universes that can collapse reality. No guarantee the film rewrites the event beat for beat, but the concept gives Marvel a clean chance to rearrange the chessboard. The question is how far they want to go.

So... where are the Young Avengers?

One easy way to capitalize post-'Secret Wars': commit to the new class. Marvel already set the table. In the mid-credits of 'The Marvels,' Kamala Khan reaches out to Kate Bishop about teaming up. Great, do exactly that. Let Kamala play point and build the squad from the characters you have introduced.

• Kamala Khan leading as the field-ready spark plug
• Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld)
• Cassie Lang, aka Stature (Kathryn Newton)
• Skaar (Will Deusner)
• Billy Maximoff (Joe Locke) via 'Agatha All Along'
• America Chavez (Xochitl Gomez)
• Kid Loki (Jack Veal)
• Ironheart (Dominique Thorne)
• Eli Bradley, aka Patriot (Elijah Richardson)
• Love from 'Thor: Love & Thunder' (India Rose Hemsworth)

And while we are at it, bring in live-action Miles Morales and Spider-Gwen. Yesterday would have been fine.

Mutants: all-in, or build the web?

On the X-Men side, does Marvel go straight into an era of full-tilt mutant mayhem, or carve out solo entries and smaller squads to seed the landscape? There are so many mutant corners worth exploring. Give us a 'Strange Academy' series and weave those characters into films. Bring back the bite of the New Mutants and finally let Magik shine. Commission a batch of micro-shorts in the spirit of 'I Am Groot,' but hand the mic to Doop and watch the fandom chaos. And maybe let Professor X sit one out while Quentin Quire stirs the pot.

Time to ride with the new guard

The post-'Secret Wars' MCU could thrive without leaning on legacy heroes as a crutch. Pay respect to Steve Rogers, Thor Odinson, and the founding crew, but put the weight on the characters who can carry the next decade. Audiences will show up when the studio shows conviction. Stop chasing four-times-multiplier wins as the only success metric. The loudest trolls in the comments do not program the future.

'Believe in the new guard and the audience will, too.'

'She-Hulk: Attorney at Law' and 'The Marvels' earned a better reception than they got. That is the tell: when Marvel champions its own bench, the shows and movies spark.

What I am queuing up while we wait

I am firing up more 'Agatha All Along,' keeping an eye on those glowing early reactions to 'Wonder Man,' and hoping Marvel Studios remembers what it loves about its own toys once the dust settles after 'Secret Wars.' What do you want the MCU to look like on the other side?