As the Marvel Cinematic Universe heads to its future, an event of Avengers: Endgame's impact may be increasingly difficult to repeat.
As the Marvel Cinematic Universe enters the bulk of Phase 4 with upcoming Thor and Doctor Strange films, it is likely that not even their hype will top the monumental reaction to the events of Avengers: Endgame. Marvel's upcoming lineup, while massive, doesn't seem to top the scale of the last Avengers film. While lightning has struck once for the studio, it might not strike twice in the same way.
Avengers: Endgame, originally billed as the second of a two-part film under the Infinity War name, had over a decade of stories and fan demands to pay off. For what felt like an eternity, fans wanted the Guardians of the Galaxy to meet The Avengers, Captain America to wield Mlöjnir, Thanos to live up to the villainous shadow he had cast over the MCU, and two iconic words to finally be uttered—"Avengers, Assemble." In addition, there were considerable theories and predictions as to the fate of many characters, and who would make it out of Endgame alive. Despite seemingly insurmountable expectations, Marvel and the filmmaking talent behind-the-scenes delivered big, creating a pair of masterworks that had something for everyone.
Much has changed since the record-breaking 2019 epic, however, both in the world of the MCU and in the film industry as a whole. With the COVID-19 pandemic, many studios have turned to streaming for future content and films even as the pandemic wanes from the general consciousness. For Marvel, this has meant creating more shows for Disney+ that tie into the films. Even then, this factor, coupled with the increasing amount of MCU releases per year, means that saturation of the Marvel brand is at an all time high. Without the more natural gaps and breathing room between releases provided in the first three phases (around 4 months to 1 year), the odds of a major event like Avengers: Endgame making a huge dent in the popular consciousness are slim.
In addition, the very fate of many of Avengers: Endgame's massive cast will make pulling off another moment of its caliber extremely hard to accomplish. As Tony and Cap’s story arcs both ended definitively in Avengers: Endgame, with one succumbing to their death upon using the Infinity Gauntlet to reduce Thanos' armies to dust and the latter retiring with Peggy Carter in the past, the connective tissue, muscle, and heart of the MCU are gone. Even if Thor, the Guardians of the Galaxy, and Spider-Man are still kicking, with Spider-Man: No Way Home being able to pay off more recent and unique demands brought upon by the multiverse, many stories are ending, such as the Guardians' upcoming Vol. 3. Any films that have come out with fresh characters to fill gaps have had mixed results, with Shang-Chi’s success arguably offset by the failure of the Eternals.
While this does not mean that the Marvel Cinematic Universe is done for, it does mean that whatever big event they're building up to may not have the same finesse or punch to it that the Snap and Blip did. Where the first three phases of the MCU (aka The Infinity Saga) had a must-see event in every phase or even every year, Phase 4 seems more like an epilogue picking up the pieces of The Infinity Saga and slowly setting up what comes next. For audiences now more used to instant forms of gratification, this new era of the MCU won't provide the must see energy that Avengers: Endgame had.
With the Marvel Cinematic Universe moving well beyond the aftermath of Avengers: Endgame, the interconnected superhero saga's Phase 4 may not reach the same heights that the climatic two-parter of The Infinity Saga had. While that may not be a bad thing, necessarily, it will make the cultural impact of the MCU's future difficult to interpret. If the MCU has another Endgame moment, though, it may take several years to see it happen again.
