With nearly two dozen movies, eight upcoming television series, and $22.5 billion in box office revenue, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has reestablished superheroes as a mainstay in entertainment with its raw, action-packed, big-budget excitement.
Sure, every fan recognizes that the series has had its hits and misses — some fans can't seem to agree on which were hits and which were misses — but a good chunk of it holds up nonetheless. And even if fans can't agree on how to rank the Iron Man movies or whether Captain Marvel is better than Black Panther, there's a good chance that they'll agree there's something dubious about these unpopular MCU opinions found through Reddit.
Iron Man 3 Has A Good Twist
In Iron Man 3, it's revealed that the Mandarin — Iron Man's tyrannical arch-nemesis, who had been vaguely referenced in the MCU since its inception — is actually just an English actor named Trevor Slatterly, who was being used by the real villain as a decoy. A lot of fans were disappointed after this twist was revealed, as they believed did a complete disservice to the actual character the Mandarin was based on.
Thankfully, a "real version" of the Mandarin from the comics is set to appear in the upcoming Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, although that likely won't stop MCU fans from bemoaning the prior Mandarin. There are some who disagree with that general consensus, however: for instance, Reddit user u/mCahill389 thought the Mandarin twist actually made Iron Man 3 a better movie.
Endgame Is The Worst MCU Movie
While its stunning approval ratings and record gross might make you think the emotionally-satisfying Avengers: Endgame was the best entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, u/GregThePrettyGoodGuy is here to make you rethink that.
In their own words, "some of the Marvel movies lack direction, a voice to drive it", while others lack "aesthetic quality", but "only one lacks both. That’s Endgame."
Captain Marvel Ruined Nick Fury
Nick Fury's signature eye patch has always been one of the most intriguing parts of his character. The comics offer a few different explanations for how he lost vision in his left eye, such as being struck by a grenade during World War II, but the "MCU canon" reason why wasn't revealed until 2019's Captain Marvel, when Carol Danvers' cat-like alien pet, Goose, scratches it out.
While some fans were fine with this bit of comic relief, u/MicrowaveBurrito2568 argued that there was no reason to completely disgrace the character just for one joke which "[wasn't] funny."
Far From Home Is The Best Spider-Man Movie
Well, make that the "greatest live-action Spider-Man movie", according to a now-deleted user who's apparently also a Spider-Verse fanatic. This opinion is pretty unpopular — while Far from Home wasn't completely lambasted like The Amazing Spider-Man 2, it also was criticized for taking the Peter Parker character in a different direction from the comics.
In contrast, movies like Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man 2 and even Spider-Man: Homecoming were much better received by reviewers.
Thor: The Dark World Is Good
While Thor: The Dark World often appears on lists of the worst MCU movies for its mixed-messages storytelling and somewhat uneventful climax, u/hahayeslolXD (who accompanied their comment with a shrugging emoji) didn't get the hate, saying the movie just "isn't that bad."
Considering The Dark World has the lowest Metascore of any MCU entry, the majority of the fan base would likely beg to differ.
Thor: Ragnarok Is Bad
Critics and fans alike said that Taika Waititi's Thor: Ragnarok gave new life to the MCU's most polarizing franchise, and it's been consistently ranked as one of the franchise's most universally-acclaimed hits.
But that didn't stop Reddit users u/Shepard_Wrex14 and u/Hoplite825 from completely disliking the movie, with the latter ranking it as the worst MCU movie ever. Assumedly, Ragnarok's $800 million box office intake compensated for their criticisms.
Quicksilver Is Better In Age Of Ultron Than In The X-Men Movies
The X-Men version of Quicksilver is generally pretty well-liked: he's not the most three-dimensional character, but he gets to play a sizable part in the story near the end and stars in one of the franchise's best scenes (the kitchen sequence from Days of Future Past). The Age of Ultron version gets a decent introduction and an emotional goodbye, but that all happens across one movie — his character arc is rushed.
Not everyone prefers the X-Men franchise's Quicksilver to the MCU's, however: u/spiritofchokedout found the former "unbearable", while the latter was "fantastic."
Loki Is Overrated
Despite his on-again/off-again villain status, the ever-mischievous Loki has somehow landed himself a spot as one of the MCU's most beloved characters, appearing in six movies and his own Disney+ series (which currently has not one, but two seasons in the works).
Conversely, u/carroyo69 thinks that the dapper antihero is just "overrated", stating that they "liked him in Raganrok but never found him to be [their] favorite of the bunch."
Edward Norton Was A Better Hulk Than Mark Ruffalo
The Incredible Hulk is so forgotten in the annals of superhero-film history that, despite being in the MCU, a surprising number of dedicated fans haven't even heard of it. Edward Norton was met with mixed reviews for his performance as Bruce Banner, and the role was later filled by Mark Ruffalo.
u/aka_jr91 was among the few unhappy with Marvel's decision to recast the character, however, saying "Ruffalo is kind of boring" compared to the "better" Norton.
There Shouldn't Be A Spider-Man Crossover
With the unconfirmed rumors that the upcoming Spider-Man 3 could possibly include appearances from Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield's versions of the character, a lot of fans are excited to see what transpires.
u/UmbrusNightshade, on the other hand, argues the past should stay in the past: they "don't want J.K. Simmons, Tobey Maguire, or Andrew Garfield to make any appearances in the Spider-Man films... ever."