Buzz
This Friday, Captain America: Civil War arrives in theaters across the US, marking the thirteenth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, a franchise worth nearly ten billion dollars. This movie is the climax of the ongoing battle between Iron Man and Captain America, a rivalry that's been unfolding over nearly a decade. Here's your chance to catch up before the ultimate confrontation.
The Path Leading to Civil War Through Film
The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is a vast and intricate world where every new movie builds on the ones before it. This interconnected approach allows for richer, more complex storytelling than typical superhero films. Civil War isn’t merely the third installment of Captain America’s saga; it’s the peak of a conflict that has unfolded across seven films, including a bitter feud between Tony Stark, the billionaire inventor, and Steve Rogers, the super soldier from World War II. This rivalry traces its roots all the way back to the first MCU film, Iron Man (2008), and you can even spot hints of their tension in The Avengers (2012).
Similar to how it does with the comics, Marvel constructs its cinematic universe around a collection of standalone franchises that occasionally unite for major events. In terms of continuity, the films are generally presented in the order they were released. For instance, the first Avengers movie from 2012 falls between Iron Man 2 (2010) and Iron Man 3 (2013). However, there is one key exception: Captain America: The First Avenger, which primarily takes place in a flashback but aligns with the larger franchise continuity by the film's conclusion. If you're ever unsure about the viewing order of Marvel films, it's best to follow their release dates.
Marvel also organizes the MCU into what it calls Phases, which can be compared to seasons of a TV series. Each Avengers film acts like the 'season finale' for its respective Phase (though Ant-Man was more of an epilogue for Phase 2). Below is a list of all twelve MCU films in their release order, which also serves as the recommended viewing sequence. If your goal is simply to catch up before Civil War, we’ve highlighted the films most relevant to that plotline:
Phase 1
Iron Man (2008)
The Incredible Hulk (2008)
Iron Man 2 (2010)
Thor (2011)
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
The Avengers (2012)
Phase 2
Iron Man 3 (2013)
Thor: The Dark World (2013)
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
Ant-Man (2015)
As you can see, you don’t have to watch the full MCU to prepare for Civil War. Thor, Hulk, and the Guardians of the Galaxy don’t make an appearance in the movie. While Ant-Man does show up, he’s not crucial to the plot. This really demonstrates the strength of the MCU's storytelling format: you can follow your favorite characters, skip the ones you're not into, and still enjoy a world that's far larger than any one character could carry on their own.
One major character you might have noticed is missing from this list: Spider-Man! While Sony owns the rights to all Spider-Man films made so far, much like how Fox owns the X-Men and Fantastic Four properties (which aren’t part of the MCU), the good news is you don’t need to watch the five previous Spider-Man movies (spanning two separate continuities) to catch up for Civil War. The Spider-Man featured in this movie is a brand-new version, as Sony and Marvel reached a deal to share the character. After his introduction in this film, he’ll star in his own solo movie, Spider-Man: Homecoming in 2017. Even better, now that he’s part of the MCU, this Spider-Man can interact with other MCU characters, including Tony Stark, who’ll appear in Homecoming next year.
The ABC and Netflix TV Shows
To keep us engaged between the major films, Marvel floods the market with a ton of TV shows. Curious about what happened to SHIELD after its collapse in Winter Soldier? Check out Agents of SHIELD. Want to see how New Yorkers coped after an alien invasion devastated the city? Daredevil and Jessica Jones dive deep into the aftermath of Hell’s Kitchen. These shows aren't essential for understanding the films, but they are perfect for dedicated fans who crave more of the Marvel world. Here’s a list of shows you can watch right now, in order of their initial release date:
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013): The first and longest-running Marvel show, Agents of SHIELD follows Agent Coulson and his team after the events of The Avengers. Of all the shows, this one has the most crossover with the films, though that’s not saying much. Most notably, it showed how SHIELD collapsed following the events of Captain America: The Winter Soldier. It also explores areas the movies have yet to touch on like the mutant-like society of the Inhumans. The show airs on ABC, the television network that Marvel’s parent company Disney also owns. You can check out the first two seasons on Netflix, or keep up with the most recent episodes on Hulu. While this show has its ups and downs (it’s still an ABC show after all) it’s gotten better over time and it’s a gold mine of lore for dedicated fans.
Agent Carter (January 2015): Each year, Agents of SHIELD takes a brief hiatus for a couple of months around the holidays. Agent Carter fills in that gap. For two seasons, the show has followed Captain America’s fellow soldier and almost-love interest Agent Peggy Carter after the events of World War II. The show takes place entirely in the 1940s, so you can safely watch it out of order without missing anything from the movies. Agents of SHIELD does occasionally borrow plot elements from the show, however, so if you like hunting down easter eggs and connections, these two go well together. You can watch both seasons of the show on ABC Go.
Daredevil (April 2015): After the events of The Avengers when aliens invaded, New York City was half destroyed, leaving a lot of chaos in its wake. Marvel used this as a stage for its street-level heroes in Hell’s Kitchen. This Netflix show chronicles blind lawyer Matt Murdock’s rise as Daredevil, a crime-fighting vigilante who’s trying to help rebuild his town and fight the corruption that’s capitalized on the city’s misfortune. Since it’s on Netflix, the show takes on a much more adult-oriented theme than the movies or the ABC shows, featuring more extreme violence, sexual content, and topics. So far, there are two seasons of the show, both available in their entirety on Netflix.
Jessica Jones (November 2015): Like Daredevil, this Netflix show features street-level superhuman and private investigator Jessica Jones as she tries to uncover and stop a mind-controlling threat from her past. While it hasn’t yet crossed over with any other Marvel property—in fact, it might be one of the most isolated stories in the MCU so far—both Jessica Jones and Daredevil are leading towards an Avengers-style crossover event called The Defenders. This will also incorporate upcoming Netflix shows Luke Cage and Iron Fist, both of which are due out this year.
The MCU television shows can become overwhelming pretty quickly, especially with all the content that’s being produced. In addition to the shows listed here, Marvel is also exploring an Agents of SHIELD spinoff titled Marvel’s Most Wanted, a series based on Cloak and Dagger from Freeform (formerly ABC Family), and they’ve ordered a Punisher spinoff from Daredevil, which might tie into the larger Netflix Defenders crossover.
If all of that seems like too much to follow just to enjoy a movie, don’t worry. The films almost never reference the TV shows, so if you skip them entirely, you’ll still be able to follow the movies just fine.
You can enjoy each individual show on its own—for example, watching Daredevil isn’t necessary to understand Jessica Jones—but shows that share the same network, like ABC or Netflix, tend to have crossovers that are fun to explore if you decide to dive deep into the MCU.
The Future of the MCU
We've covered a lot of the content already out, but part of the fun of the MCU lies in anticipating the future. Marvel excels at teasing upcoming events. Even though Civil War hasn’t been released yet, you can already catch previews for this Fall’s Doctor Strange and Luke Cage, along with set photos for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (possible spoilers) and Iron Fist. To really get into the excitement, it helps to have a roadmap for the direction the Marvel universe is headed.
Captain America: Civil War will officially kick off Marvel’s Phase 3, but we already know which movies are slated for release in the coming years, including but not limited to:
Phase 3
Captain America: Civil War (May 2016)
Doctor Strange (November 2016)
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (May 2017)
Spider-Man: Homecoming (July 2017)
Thor: Ragnarok (November 2017)
Black Panther (February 2018)
Avengers: Infinity War Part I (May 2018)
Ant-Man and The Wasp (July 2018)
Captain Marvel (March 2018)
Avengers: Infinity War Part II (May 2019)
Along with these movies, expect fresh seasons of existing TV shows like Agents of SHIELD, as well as new Netflix series like Luke Cage and Iron Fist, plus a slew of tie-in comics and other content. The depth of the MCU universe is as vast as you want it to be. If you're mainly interested in the movies, just catch a trailer and watch the releases as they come. But if you're keen on obsessing over every detail in between films, Marvel will surely fuel your addiction. And don't forget—stay after the credits.
The Marvel One Shots and Tie-In Comics
If you’re someone who only cares about the movies (and maybe a bit of TV), you can stop reading here. What’s next dives deeper into MCU lore that might not be necessary for casual fans. However, if you enjoy getting more out of the Marvel universe, then you’ll appreciate the additional content Marvel creates for its audience. The Marvel One Shots are short films—usually around ten minutes long—that are included as bonus features in DVD releases of Marvel movies. These films either explore minor gaps in the story or showcase other parts of the MCU. There are currently five Marvel One Shots:
The Consultant (2011)
A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to Thor’s Hammer (2011)
Item 47 (2012)
Agent Carter (2013)
All Hail the King (2014)
While the One Shots have become less frequent over time, they’re still enjoyable little gems for hardcore fans. In addition, Marvel releases tie-in comics for every movie prior to their release. These comics are separate from the main comic book universe, but they are considered canon within the MCU. Tie-in comics come in two types: prologues and adaptations. Prologues fill in smaller story details or set the stage for the movie, while adaptations retell the film’s story in comic form. Neither type is absolutely necessary to understand the plot, but they help clarify elements that are only hinted at in the movies.
For instance, the comic Captain America: Civil War Prelude adapts both Iron Man 3 and Captain America: Winter Soldier into a more condensed version. It’s a great option for those who haven’t seen the films yet but want to catch up before the next movie or for fans who prefer the comic medium. You can also check out Marvel’s Captain America: Civil War Prelude Infinite Comic, which—despite its overly long and complex name—provides additional details on what the characters have been up to in the gap between Age of Ultron and Civil War.
