All 33 movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, ranked worst to best
28. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022)
I will start off by saying that I found this movie underwhelming, but I give it a huge pass because of the circumstances under which it was made. It had to be entirely rewritten after the unfortunate passing of Chadwick Boseman, who brought the Black Panther to life. The grief you see on screen isn’t acting; It’s real.
That said, Wakanda Forever comes up short in some key areas. I didn’t much care for the new villainous civilization, and having Agent Ross in the movie felt kind of pointless, unless it’s supposed to set up something else. The after-credits scene touched my heart and made me reach for my tissue box. A compromised movie with moments of excellence.
27. Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)
This one is bittersweet; I’ve ranked it pretty low, but it has my favorite MCU villain.
I absolutely love the Thor movies. I also really enjoy movies directed by Taika Waititi, but this one felt a little…off. Waititi’s last Thor movie, Ragnarok, had really good humor and a big helping of charisma. But in Love and Thunder, the line between plot and comic relief becomes blurred, especially for the first hour and 16 minutes. It missed the mark a bit, and it pains me to put the movie so low in my rankings.
However, I have to say that I have watched it a few times and I always end it with a smile on my face, which says a lot about how much I loved the ending. I’d also like to point out that Christian Bale looked absolutely amazing as Gorr, and I feel like the movie should have centered more on him and his awesome powers instead of constantly trying to elicit chuckles from the audience. Bale’s performance literally make the film for me. For what it’s worth, the last 43 minutes actually feet like a Thor movie.
26. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)
Though the plot is not bad, Guardians of the Galaxy 2 isn’t as good as the first movie. It’s still fun and has a great soundtrack, but it was a bit too over-the-top for me.
Yondu and Rocket bonding and finding out how similar they are is wholesome and paves the way for Youndu’s sacrifice at the end, a touching moment. Nothing against Kurt Russell, but I wasn’t a big fan of the villain Ego. The whole thing just felt a little forced, like Marvel Studios wanted a sequel just because the first movie was a big hit.
25. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023)
The introduction of Kang the Conqueror and his variants to the MCU was epic. Paul Rudd is everything. His performance in this movie was one of his best yet, and I was actually freaking out over the thought of Kang beating him to death. Which, surprisingly, doesn’t happen.
Scott, Hope, Hank, Janet, and Cassie all get sucked into the Quantum Realm and meet Kang, Janet’s friend who she forgot to mention existed. Oh, he’s just a world-destroying villain who’s obsessed with winning and gets exiled to the Quantum Realm by his own variants.
This movie is funny, intense, and entertaining. Bill Murray makes a surprise appearance, we see M.O.D.O.K., we see what’s in the Quantum Realm… but the movie’s flaws stick out too much to ignore. Michelle Pfeiffer’s acting is as cold and forced as my 6-year-old’s tears when I won’t let her have ice cream. The CGI is hit or miss. The humor that does not slap (I’m looking at you, you weird blob of a transparent alien with no holes). Most importantly, Janet. I do not like Janet. Her character is badly written and I feel the Ant-Man franchise would actually be a lot better if Janet wasn’t in it.
24. Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
This is a cute first movie for Tom Holland’s take on Spider-Man. Holland is perfect as a younger Peter Parker; he’s charismatic, funny, smart, and kind of awkward. We see how Peter starts getting involving in crime fighting and how he really wants to be part of the Avengers, only to be told to stand down.
I didn’t like how involved Iron Man was in the movie, influenced the movie, or that he was Adrian Toomes’ motivation for becoming a criminal. But overall, this was a nice little introduction to the new friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.
23. Iron Man 3 (2013)
Better than Iron Man 2 but nowhere near as good as Iron Man, Iron Man 3 disappointed me with the bait-and-switch regarding the Mandarin and had Pepper Potts be the one who saved the day. Tony destroys all his suits, which felt…unnecessary. This movie felt like a little misstep, especially with it coming out right after the first Avengers movie. Not impressed.