Superhero origin movies are usually the most conventional entries in the comic book adaptation genre because they tend to follow the same rigid structure and familiar beats seen in dozens of other superhero origin movies. The MCU is particularly guilty of this, often following its patented origin movie formula to the letter. Scott Derrickson’s Doctor Strange has some truly mind-boggling visual effects, but the movie is let down by its predictable narrative.
Faced with the daunting task of setting the stage for Avengers: Endgame, 2019’s Captain Marvel felt like a breath of fresh air, because it subverted a lot of the conventions of MCU origin movies.
Nonlinear Storytelling
Instead of starting at the beginning, Captain Marvel drops audiences right in the middle of Carol Danvers’ story. She’s introduced as “Vers,” a Kree Starforce soldier who journeys across the cosmos to vanquish some Skrulls with her commanding officer.
It’s only when the Skrulls capture her and start poking around in her memories that the movie starts to fill in Carol’s backstory. The audience is only given little details shrouded in mystery until deep into the second act.
No Love Interest
Every previous MCU solo movie had given the hero a love interest, like Pepper Potts or Jane Foster or Peggy Carter, but the filmmakers behind Captain Marvel didn’t feel Carol needed a romantic interest, so they didn’t give her one.
There is a love-based subplot in Captain Marvel, but it involves Carol’s love for her best friend and fellow pilot Maria Rambeau as opposed to a romantic partner.
‘90s Setting
Aside from Captain America: The First Avenger, which took place in the heart of World War II, MCU origin movies tend to take place in the present day in a more or less grounded, recognizable world.
Taking influence from classic actioners like Speed and Terminator 2, Captain Marvel is firmly rooted in its ‘90s setting. From Nine Inch Nails to Blockbuster, Captain Marvel is filled with nods and winks to its historical context.
Jump Right Into The Action
The problem with most superhero origin movies is that they take a while to get going because they begin with the hero living their mundane, regular life before they acquire superpowers and fight crime.
Since Captain Marvel begins with Carol living among the Kree and fighting for their intergalactic police force, the movie was able to jump right into the action.
The Skrull Twist
In the comics, the Skrulls are painted as bad guys. In Captain Marvel, up until the midpoint twist, they are also portrayed this way. However, Carol learns that most Skrulls are just harmless refugees and that she’s been brainwashed by Kree propaganda.
This surprising twist upends everything the audience has been told about which of the movie’s characters are Carol’s fellow heroes and which are the villains.
Carol’s Identity
Tony Stark and Steve Rogers and T’Challa and Stephen Strange all knew who they were at the beginning of their MCU origin movies, but Carol Danvers didn’t. As far as she knew, she was a born and raised Kree named “Vers.”
When the Skrulls took a peek in her memories, she had no idea why she could remember being a fighter pilot on Earth. Carol’s self-identity, or lack thereof, made her a different kind of MCU hero.
Easy Victory In The Final Battle
Most MCU heroes face insurmountable odds in the final battle of their first movie. Tony Stark finds himself outmatched by Obadiah Stane, Steve Rogers has to crash a plane into the ice to save the world, and the Sorcerer Supreme has to keep allowing himself to be killed to trap Dormammu in a time loop.
But in Captain Marvel’s final battle, thanks to her immense powers, Carol finds the bad guys pretty easy to defeat. She takes out Ronan’s fleet singlehandedly, then effortlessly beats her old mentor Yon-Rogg in hand-to-hand combat.
Superpowers Are Fun
When Carol defeats Yon-Rogg, he tells her yet again that if she uses her superpowers as a crutch, then she’s not really the victor. But she realizes that’s a crock and that if she has the powers, she might as well use them.
Countless superhero stories — including the MCU’s own origin movies — have warned audiences about the grave responsibility that comes along with such abilities. But Captain Marvel posits that people with superpowers can still have plenty of irresponsible fun.
Nick Fury’s Backstory
In addition to being Carol Danvers’ origin story, Captain Marvel is kind of an origin story for Nick Fury, too. A de-aged Samuel L. Jackson appears as a young, optimistic Fury early in his S.H.I.E.L.D. career.
Bringing in a second, more established character’s backstory to complement that of the titular hero made Captain Marvel an MCU origin movie like no other.
Female Hero
Ultimately, Captain Marvel’s biggest subversion of the MCU formula is its female hero. It took the franchise a decade to give a movie to a non-white superhero and even longer to give one to a female hero. With the release of 2017’s Wonder Woman, this is one of the few things that DC did first.
Female-led superhero movies had been considered risky by Hollywood studios since the double-whammy box office failure of Elektra and Catwoman, but Wonder Woman and Captain Marvel have proven that they can be successful.