Marvel Phase 2 saw the Marvel Cinematic Universe with its Avengers heroes established. However, while the main movies in this phase saw established heroes in the lead roles, there were two new introductions with Guardians of the Galaxy and Ant-Man. With that said, the main storyline in this phase was the heroes learning their place in the world and becoming better people.
In each of the Phase 2 movies with established characters, the heroes were in the middle of finding their stride, which would lead to a world-defining battle with Ultron. The new heroes also showed what the next generation would look like, bringing a little more fun into the MCU after the more serious debuts in Phase 1.
Tony Stark Facing Facts
"I Have A Lot Of Apologies To Make."
The first two Iron Man movies were in Phase 1 and his last came in the third phase. This was mostly the final part of the Iron Man trilogy and saw him finally come to terms with who he was and what he wanted to represent. In the first movie, it was all about finding his place as a superhero.
In the second, he hurt and walked over a lot of people who cared about him. The only way for Iron Man to become a true hero at the end of his solo stories was for Tony Stark to realize he had a lot to make up for and said it when he revealed "I have a lot of apologies to make."
Mandarin Making A Challenge
"Heroes? There Is No Such Thing."
Phase 1 of the MCU saw Iron Man come out and call himself a hero before he went on to prove that he might not be responsible enough to wear the armor. Thor showed up, but he ended up in the crosshairs of S.H.I.E.L.D. before he finally helped them beat Loki. Then aliens destroyed New York City.
When Mandarin showed up, or at least the fake Mandarin, he made a comment that might have rung through with the people in the world as these new superpowered beings showed up. Could they be trusted? As Mandarin said, "there is no such thing" as heroes.
Thor Dropping The Truth On Loki
"I Wish I Could Trust You."
The first Thor movie showed the God of Thunder betrayed by his own brother. It was Shakespearian in nature, with Loki the son who felt his father favored Thor over him. Things got worse when Loki ended up leading an attack on Earth in The Avengers.
The relationship between Thor and Loki played out strongly through those movies and it faced a huge turning point in Thor: The Dark World. The brothers had to work together, and Thor sadly said, "I wish I could trust you," perfectly encapsulating their relationship.
Odin Explaining The Asgardians
"We Are Not Gods. We Are Born. We Live. We Die."
There were questions from Phase 1 about the Asgardians' place in the world. Were they gods or were they aliens? While Thor told anyone who would listen that he was a god, and he and his fellow Asgardians had the powers of gods, heroes like Captain America refused to believe it.
There was a moment in Thor: The Dark World where that question was answered and the MCU emphasized that the Asgardians were not gods, as Odin said as much, revealing "We are born. We live. We die."
The Call To Action In Winter Soldier
"Hail Hydra"
While Phase 2 of the MCU led to Ultron, there was a huge stop in the middle. In Captain America: The Winter Soldier, S.H.I.E.L.D. collapsed. At this time, Captain America and the world learned that Hydra had infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D. since the start with the World War II villains even earning government positions.
It all fell apart with the first public "Hail, Hydra." Captain America went to war with his own government to save his nation. From the top-down, it was Cap teaming with Black Widow and Falcon to deal with the home-grown terrorists, and this played out even on television's Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Captain America Makes A Promise
"I'm With You 'Til The End Of The Line."
On top of fighting Hydra to save the United States, he also had to fight their main tool in The Winter Soldier. What Cap didn't know until they were face to face was that Winter Soldier was his best friend from World War II and the brainwashed Bucky Barnes.
In World War II, the two men were there for each other and that didn't stop here as Captain America swore he would do anything to save Bucky. "I'm with you 'til the end off the line," Cap said and this was something that not only defined Phase 2 but was a key part of Phase 3's action.
Star-Lord On The Guardians Of The Galaxy
"I Look Around At Us And You Know What I See? Losers."
Outside of Falcon, the first new heroes Phase 2 created were The Guardians of the Galaxy. This movie proved that Marvel could create new heroes, even if they were all names no one had ever heard of before. By the end of this movie, many Marvel fans had new favorites.
That was established thanks to one thing that Star-Lord said. "I look around at us and you know what I see? Losers." While this was a Peter Quill comment like no other, he meant that they all lost something and it was that sympathy that made the Guardians even more popular than the Avengers in Phase 2.
Gamora Reveals Her Dream
"I Would Be Grateful To Die Among My Friends."
Guardians of the Galaxy did something that The Avengers couldn't do. They became as much of a family as teammates. As Captain America: Civil War showed in Phase 3, The Avengers were different personalities that couldn't stay on the same page for longer than two phases.
Guardians of the Galaxy had people who all lived as outsiders who found something in each other. As Gamora said, "I would be grateful to die among my friends," which was something that showed why Guardians of the Galaxy was one of the best movies of MCU Phase 2.
Captain America's Motto
"You Get Hurt, Hurt 'Em Back. You Get Killed... Walk It Off."
Avengers: Age of Ultron was the least liked of the four Avengers movies, but it had its moments. The movie started with The Avengers cleaning up the Hydra cells that remained after Captain America: The Winter Soldier and then moved on to tell the story of Ultron trying to wipe out humanity.
Captain America once again delivered the line that helped define Phase 2. "You get hurt, hurt 'em back. You get killed ... walk it off." This was what the Avengers had to deal with in this phase as they all faced obstacles in their path, and Cap proved to be the one who never once gave up.
Hank Pym Gives Scott Lang A Chance
"Second Chances Don't Come Around All That Often."
The last movie in Phase 2 of MCU introduced a brand-new hero to the world with Ant-Man. Also showing up in this movie was the future Wasp and the original Ant-Man in Hank Pym. Making this the end of Phase 2 seemed an interesting choice, but it helped lead to a new era.
Hank Pym had the best quote in the movie when he was offering Scott Lang a chance to be the new Ant-Man and said that "second chances don't come around all that often." That was not only a great quote to define Phase 2, but was a quote that foreshadowed the trials and tribulations of the upcoming Phase 3.