It’s no secret that Marvel has fallen on hard times since the release of its first 3 highly regarded Disney Plus X Marvel shows. Since peaking in its early stages, Marvel has released a string of average to mediocre shows. So much so that many have lost faith and stopped watching these shows entirely.
But all is not lost! Between recent entries like Agatha All Along, Loki season 3 and X-Men ‘97, plus the commercial success of Deadpool & Wolverine, plus some big recent casting announcements & the looming introduction of mutants to the MCU, it does feel like Marvel is finally on the right track back to greatness.
However, before getting too carried away with hope, I wanted to do a full ranking of all the Marvel X Disney plus shows since agatha all along finished airing recently. Check out my ranking of these shows and be sure to share your own rankings with me in the comments!
Secret Invasion:
It’s major flaw is a very poorly written and poorly developed story.
Took away 2 pretty big & long-standing MCU characters, seemingly for no reason.
Used AI in the opening credits.
It had the ingredients for an engaging spy-thriller (something the MCU usually does well) with aliens & a badass villain, yet still ended up not only forgettable, but pretty shitty. Disappointing.
ms marvel
It’s really well-cast & I found myself really growing to love Kamala & her family, plus the Pakistani representation is really well-done.
It’s main problem is all the hero aspects of the show: poorly defined powers, terrible/poorly explained lore, weak-ass villains.
Almost as bad as Secret Invasion, but is less serious tonally, so it’s easier to forgive the unseriousness of the whole thing.
she-hulk
It frustrates me to put She-Hulk this low because A) I think the casting is perfect B) I actually enjoyed a lot of the show C) I’m a big hulk fan, but…
Arguably has the single worst ending of any MCU show. So, so poorly done. It didn’t even feel like a big creative swing, it just felt incredibly lazy.
The villains in this show are just the worst.
Again, I like the atmosphere of the show, making it a legal procedural is a fun creative approach, but it’s the writing/ending that totally lets this show down.
Desperate to see Tatiana Maslany in the role again, just being handled by a different creative team.
echo
Echo is decent. That’s pretty much all there is to it.
Cool to see some mainstream Native American representation.
Also explores an interesting side of Kingpin.
But overall felt a bit pointless, and outside of its cultural aspects, it felt very forgettable.
what if..?
What If is actually a really solid show, the concept is flawless!
Really struggled when deciding whether to rank it above or below agatha All Along, but I ranked it below because I think it’s harder to do one continuous story than it is to think of lots of little ones.
I like some eps more than others, but I’d say the overall quality is pretty consistent so I don’t really have anything too negative to say about this show.
agatha all along
There are lots of aspects of this show that I really enjoyed.
It’s women-led without being preachy or heavy-handed (diverse group too).
The magical/witchy aesthetic is strong, and it was heightened by the fact that it came out during spooky szn (points for planning that).
Strong characters and performances from the whole cast, but mainly Kathryn Hahn as Agatha, Joe Locke as Teen & Aubrey Plaza as Rio.
This will have a clear impact on the future of the MCU so it feels worth it at the end (but also enjoyable as you watch).
hawkeye
Can’t lie, I have no respect for Hawkeye as a hero, but I really enjoyed his show.
It definitely benefited from Haillee Steinfeld as Kate Bishop & Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova.
The Christmas theming of the coinciding with real christmas was also a beautiful touch, made it feel so festive.
There was a lot of solid hand-to-hand combat which is something I appreciate greatly.
Also, Florence pugh. I will not elaborate.
moon knight
Moon Knight was also cool as shit for various reasons.
Oscar Isaac is a high-profile and very talented actor, a great get for the MCU (and he brings his skills to this role which requires him to be multiple people!).
Love Egyptian culture and it’s really cool to see it explored like this (wish the show had more Egyptians in it though).
The action is sick and it feels more mature than a lot of other MCU shows.
Ends in a strong way that leaves you kinda desperate for a second season.
badass formidable villain (portrayed by another high-profile, extremely talented actor: Ethan Hawke).
Doesn’t feel very connected to the wider MCU though, and the end of the series seems a little rushed. Small complaints aside, I think it’s one of the MCU’s best.
x-men '97
This might seem high, but it’s here because it’s arguably the most perfect example of a reboot in modern history.
Incredibly faithful to the original animated series and the source material, absolutely sick action sequences, and mature, sophisticated storytelling that aged up with the audience for the original X-men animated series.
It’s rare in these divided days for something to be so universally beloved, but so many people loved this show it felt like a genuine community when it was being discussed, as opposed to the typical screaming matches one can find when discussing basically anything in the MCU these days.
Cyclops was the coolest I have ever seen him in my life in this series.
loki
Loki is a phenomenal character study of one of the MCU’s coolest and most beloved anti-heros that includes lots of character growth and development.
Owen Wilson is incredibly well-cast in his role as Loki’s co-lead, Mobius, and the two characters have the type of chemistry that gets you emotionally invested in their relationship.
It’s one of the few times where the MCU has actually done the whole mutli-verse/multiple timelines thing well.
Very interesting and unique story with lots of magic and magical visuals.
wandavision
As the first Disney+ MCU show, it was incredibly fresh and exciting.
As someone who loves TV, the way it explored TV throughout the ages was incredibly engaging and fun to watch.
High emotional stakes, themes of family, heartfelt writing & stellar performances made it incredibly emotionally engaging.
There were lots of Easter eggs and comic book references that led to lots of fun discussions and speculation which made it really fun and exciting to talk about.
the falcon & the winter soldier
Not a lot of people seem to rank this show highly which is honestly insane to me.
It has incredibly strong action sequences throughout.
It’s dripping in extremely poignant commentary, some of the rawest and realest lines in the MCU to date! It doesn’t shy away from politics, it dives into it (maybe that’s partly why it isn’t higher regarded)!
It is such an incredible depiction of Sam’s journey to becoming Captain America. Despite being handed the mantle, the show goes out of its way to show Sam really earning the shield & i think that’s really inspiring.
Sam & Bucky’s chemistry is unmatched! They’re easily one of my favourite duos in the MCU and I loved that this show gave us a chance to explore that dynamic.
The flag-smasher aspect could’ve used a little more work, but thanks to U.S.Agent, it didn’t feel like the series lacked a good antagonist.
The next Captain America is one of my most anticipated movies in the MCU because of this show! That’s exactly what these shows are supposed to do and in my opinion the falcon & the winter soldier did that the best.
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