The MCU Just Confirmed The Correct Order To Watch Phase 1

Warning: Spoilers for Marvel's What If...? episode 3, "What If...The World Lost Its Mightiest Heroes?"

Thanks to Marvel's What If...?, the correct way to view the MCU's Phase 1 has been confirmed. Largely inspired by the comic tie-in Fury's Big Week, "What If...The World Lost Its Mightiest Heroes?" provides an alternate retelling of the MCU's The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man 2, and Thor, which all take place during the same week, resulting in a very busy schedule for Samuel L. Jackson's Nick Fury and SHIELD. However, despite the alternate fates for the Avengers in episode 3 of What If...?, it does confirm how the original Phase 1 films should be watched in true chronological order.

Written as an MCU Phase 1 tie-in comic from Eric Pearson and Chris Yost, Fury's Big Week detailed director Nick Fury's attempts to manage several major events happening around the same time in Marvel's Phase 1. Not only was Iron Man nearing death while dealing with Ivan Vanko, but Mjolnir also fell to New Mexico in a prelude to the arrival of Thor. Not only that, but the mayhem of the Hulk at Culver University and the Battle of Harlem happened as well, ending with the discovery of Captain America frozen in ice, all of it occurring in the same week. Furthermore, the movies' third acts wrap up sequentially beginning with Iron Man 2, then Thor, and lastly The Incredible Hulk. While Fury's Big Week was largely accepted as a canonical key period of time in the MCU, Marvel Studios' President Kevin Feige did suggest at one point that the films instead take place during the respective years they were released before later walking those comments back to a more ambiguous place.

However, Marvel's What If...? episode 3 seems to reaffirm that Fury's Big Week is canon to the MCU. Despite featuring alternate events for each film that leads to the Avengers' murders in What If...?, apart from Captain America. The episode goes day by day through the week, beginning with Iron Man 2, which ends during the middle of the events of Thor and Incredible Hulk. Once the events of Thor are resolved, this leads into The Incredible Hulk's Battle of Harlem before Captain America is found by SHIELD. So, the correct viewing order for Marvel's Phase 1 in its entirety should be Captain America, Iron Man, Iron Man 2, Thor, Incredible Hulk, and finally The Avengers.

While this is not only the correct order to watch and view the Phase 1 films, it also makes certain elements, such as the post-credits scenes, flow better. By watching Incredible Hulk after Iron Man 2 and Thor, it makes much more sense for Tony Stark to approach General Ross about the Hulk, seeing as how he became a consultant for the Avengers Initiative after the events of his sequel film. Furthermore, the sequential and sometimes simultaneous nature of Fury's Big Week just makes sense. For example, Agent Coulson immediately leaves Stark's house in Malibu to head for New Mexico, investigating the hammer that fell from the sky.

While there are still some contradictory references in MCU Phase 1 that make it hard to pinpoint exactly when everything is happening on the MCU timeline, Fury's Big Week does seem like the best tool to inform how to watch Phase 1 as chronologically as possible. In any case, it's nice to see its canonical status confirmed thanks to Marvel's What If..?.

More: Every MCU Actor Replaced In What If Episode 3 (And Who Plays Who Now)

Marvel's What If...? releases new episodes Wednesdays on Disney+.