Since Disney launched its own streaming service, Marvel Studios has launched eight original series set in the MCU. Some of them have brought back familiar faces from the movies, likeWandaVisionandThe Falcon and the Winter Soldier, while others have introduced exciting new characters, likeMoon KnightandShe-Hulk: Attorney at Law. Marvel fans have found these shows to be pretty hit-and-miss. For every hit likeLoki, there’s a miss likeWhat If…?. From the stylishMs. Marvelpilot to the action-packedHawkeyefinale, some episodes warrant more rewatches than others.
Ribbit And Rip It (She-Hulk: Attorney At Law, Episode 8)
Fromthe one with Madisynn and “Wongers”to the gloriously self-aware finale, the sitcom storytelling ofShe-Hulk: Attorney at Lawresulted in many great episodes combining lawyering, superhero-ing, and fourth-wall-breaking. But the best installment of the season – and the one that warrants the most rewatches – is the penultimate episode, “Ribbit and Rip It.” After his new golden mask was glimpsed a few weeks earlier, Charlie Cox finally made his long-awaited appearance in this episode, first as Matt Murdock fighting Jen Walters in court and later as Daredevil fighting She-Hulk on top of a parking garage – and the character’s return did not disappoint.
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Daredevil and She-Hulk made for a great superhero duo as they infiltrated Leap-Frog’s lair, the “Lilypad,” and took out dozens of goons while bickering about legal strategies the supervillain could use in court. Cox shared wonderful chemistry with Tatiana Maslany in what turned out to be the most action-packed episode ofShe-Hulk’s first season.
Asylum (Moon Knight, Episode 5)
The first few episodes ofMoon Knighthave some issues with structure and pacing, but the show takes a disturbing turn into full-blown psychological thriller in its fifth installment. “Asylum” picks up wherethe previous episode’s jaw-dropping cliffhangerleft off with the revelation that Marc is seemingly just a delusional mental patient in a psychiatric hospital who imagined all his superhero adventures, godly abilities, and supporting characters based on people and items dotted around the hospital.
Not only is “Asylum” a complex, visually stunning deep dive into Marc’s fractured psyche; it’s also the most dramatic episode of the series as it fills in Marc’s tragic backstory and the reason his mind created the Steven persona in the first place.
Generation Why (Ms. Marvel, Episode 1)
Adil El Arbi and Bilall FallahmadeMs. Marvela fan-favorite showright out of the gate. The pilot episode, “Generation Why,” doesn’t feel like a straightforward comic book action series; it’s a funny, emotional teen dramedy series that happens to include comic book elements. It has the storytelling style ofFreaks and Geekswith the visual style ofScott Pilgrim. Adil & Bilall brought plenty of cinematic flourishes to the table, from fast-paced montages to kineticGoodfellas-style camera movements to animation layered over the live-action footage.
While a lot of Marvel’s Disney+ shows feel stretched out with filler and adhere to a homogeneous house style, there isn’t a single dull moment in “Generation Why” and it has a style that’s entirely its own. This episode was a fantastic introduction to Kamala Khan – she’s not the confident, powerful lead of a superhero show; she’s the shy, awkward, painfully relatable lead of a high school show. Iman Vellani’s bubbly, enthusiastic performance matches the engaging energy of Adil & Bilall’s direction.Ms. Marveldidn’t maintain this fun, energetic visual stylethroughout its entire run, but the pilot episode got the series off to a terrific start.
Journey Into Mystery (Loki, Episode 5)
Whilethe underwhelming, talky season 1 finaleofLokiwas a let-down introducing “He Who Remains” as the diabolical big bad of the series, the penultimate episode offered all the climactic action that fans could’ve hoped for. After being stranded at the end of time by the TVA in the previous episode, “Journey Into Mystery” sees the trickster god trying to get back to his own universe while surrounded by discarded versions of himself. Following a string of disappointingly low-stakes procedural episodes,Lokifinally lived up to the chaotic promise of its multiversal premise in “Journey Into Mystery,” with a bunch of alternate Lokis teaming up to slay a giant cloud dragon called Alioth.
This action-packed installment introduced President Loki, Classic Loki, Kid Loki, and Alligator Loki. With its thrilling battle sequence and its tantalizing cliffhanger ending, “Journey Into Mystery” arguablywould’ve made a more satisfying finalethan the actual finale that followed.
So This Is Christmas? (Hawkeye, Episode 6)
After the first five episodes ofHawkeyedeveloped a heartfelt mentor-mentee relationshipbetween grizzled veteran Avenger Clint Barton and budding young archer Kate Bishop, director Rhys Thomas rounded out the series with an all-action finale. From start to finish, “So This Is Christmas?” is theDie Hard-style Christmas action thriller promised by the trailers, full of holiday-themed violence and McClane-style one-liners (“This is some Christmas”). Clint and Kate join forces to take on the entire Tracksuit Mafia, then split up so that Clint can singlehandedly fight Yelena Belova and Kate can singlehandedly fight the Kingpin.
TheHawkeyefinale is as moving as it is thrilling. Like all the best Marvel finales, as fun and exciting as the action sequences are, the storytelling is rooted in character development as Clint finally trusts Kate to hold her own as a crimefighter and invites her to spend the holidays with his family.
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