// KOTAKU — GAMING
Spider-Man: Brand New Day And All 37 Other Marvel Cinematic Universe Movies, Ranked From Worst To Best
The Marvel Cinematic Universe is, as Deadpool said in Deadpool & Wolverine, “at a bit of a low point” heading into December’s Avengers: Doomsday. Its multiverse saga hasn’t panned out the way it was supposed to, several of its superhero movies haven’t been able to capture audiences like they did leading up to the climactic battle against Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War, and the push for Disney+ series has made the entire interconnected universe such a commitment to keep up with that a lot of more casual fans have either found themselves kind of lost watching the movies as they come to theaters or have just hopped off the train entirely. Spider-Man is still putting butts in theaters, but that’s because people love to watch Peter Parker be sad, even if they don’t care much about the MCU as a whole.
Looking back at Marvel’s nearly 20 years of superhero movies, what we see is a collection of high highs and some real bad lows. All in all, its trajectory from cultural powerhouse to middling, inconsistent, and confused package of movies that can barely form a coherent throughline is pretty fascinating. Let’s rank all the movies so far.
The second Thor flick has widely become the default selection for worst Marvel movie in series rankings. The first two Thor movies are sauceless but the pieces are there for something great, as Thor: Ragnarok would prove six years after the original. The Dark World, however, utterly lacks the personality and zest that future installments would find. Tom Hiddleston and Chris Hemsworth have great chemistry as Loki and Thor and sell some of the film’s heavier subject matter, but they can only carry it so far when it’s weighed down by some of the least interesting lore in the series and a villain I couldn’t identify in a line-up. — Kenneth Shepard
2021’s Eternals boasted a star-studded cast and an interesting premise following immortal superpowered aliens, but neither could elevate what was ultimately a wooden film that failed to adequately utilize its talent. Additionally, almost everything that happens in this movie has been rendered meaningless by subsequent plot developments, so all that’s left is the interpersonal drama of an ensemble cast that Marvel was quick to cast aside when the audience didn’t latch on. It’s a shame that Marvel had more incredible acting talent on screen than in any film since Endgame, and they just squandered it with a lifeless script. — Kenneth Shepard
The original Thor is better than The Dark World, generating some intrigue as it gradually reveals Marvel’s spin on Norse mythology, but that’s about it. Hiddleston is, once again, the standout in a cast that could have thrived with a better script, but Thor is mostly a dry fantasy film masquerading as a superhero romp. It’s got soap opera dramatics that make the most of some of its actors’ talents, but without the wit and humor of later films, it’s just a forgettable hero’s journey. — Kenneth Shepard
Kinda crazy that this movie was so disastrous, it played a part in derailing the MCU for a few years, huh? Quantumania isn’t solely responsible for Marvel’s years of course correction and pivoting away from Jonathan Majors’ Kang as the big bad, as the actor’s very public legal troubles resulted in him being plucked from the MCU altogether. But if the movie had gone over better, the company might have just recast the multiverse-bending villain instead of pretty much pretending he never existed. Paul Rudd is as likeable a lead as ever, and no one with any taste would ever say no to putting Michelle Pfeiffer on film, but sadly the end result is a chaotic mess of fake science, constant sensory overload, and jokes that go on just long enough to not land. At least Rudd is coming back for Doomsday and can hopefully get a palate cleanser. — Kenneth Shepard
The second movie in the MCU is often forgotten despite being a mostly serviceable origin story for the big green guy. The Incredible Hulk stars Edward Norton, who would be replace