In class, we’ve been reading a play called The Crucible. If you haven’t heard of it, which is unlikely, it’s a play about Salem during the time of the Salem Witch Trials. The Crucible had arguably gone down in history. It’s famous, and history has kept it that way. The Crucible was written in the 50’s, and yet is still popular today.

So, now we ask ourselves the question: What piece of media is going to outlive all of us and still be very recognizable? Boy do I have an answer for you.

The MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe) is definitely going to carry on into the future. It’s such a big part of the culture in 2018, and it’s going to keep on being that way. The MCU has produced 20 films since 2008, when the first Iron Man movie came out. It’s most recent, as of writing this, was Ant Man and the Wasp, which came out in 2018. The fact that it’s remained so popular throughout ten years is helped by the fact that there were comics before, but it’s mainly due to the fact that they’re good movies, unlike DC (I would say no shade but I’m ready to throw shade).

Speaking of DC, let’s do a comparison. Why have the many, many attempts to get Batman not the big screen failed, but the MCU remains strong? How has that happened when they’re both superheroes? Well, it’s because Marvel has better writers, better plots, and better characters. The Marvel writers know how to make a compelling story, they know how to make you laugh, make you scared, and make you sad. DC, on the other hand, hasn’t grasped that. I can only hear Christian Bale scream about Rachel for so long.

Carrying on: The plots of Marvel movies are also more interesting, and have important messages in them. Let’s take one of my favourites, Spider-Man: Homecoming. In it, a young 15-year-old Peter Parker is trying to balance being a teenager at school and working as Spider-Man. A villain, who goes by Vulture, is illegally selling weapons and it’s up to Spider-Man to save the day, while also keeping his identity secret from his classmates, Aunt, and best friend. At one point in the movie, he lets being Spider-Man completely take over his life. He winds up putting a ship full of people in danger, and almost gets them killed.

This pushes the message of not letting something consume consume your life. Of course, it’s not going to be life-threatening, but the message stands. Peter let his duties as Spider-Man take over his life, and he almost died and got other people killed. He didn’t, however, because Tony Stark (Iron Man) came in to help. After that happens, Stark takes away Peter’s suit, ensuing this fight:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=wE9ajn-lRr4

As you notice, there are some lines that really jump out. “I’m nothing without the suit” “If you’re noting without the suit then you shouldn’t have it at all.” Peter goes on to the end of the movie and defeats the Vulture without the suit. Another important message is shown there. Peter doesn’t need the suit to be Spider-Man, because he’s more than the suit. He can do everything he needs to without the suit and he still remains victorious.

Another important point is the characters. The characters in Marvel are so much more than just ‘here’s a strong guy, he’s a superhero.’ They’re people that are relatable and are realistic. They’ve got flaws, they go through hardships. Tony Stark, for example, is an example of a well rounded character. His character arc from the beginning of Iron Man, where he’s a billionaire who makes weapons, to the end of Infinity War is remarkable.

Tony Stark starts out with a very ‘holier than thou’ attitude. He thinks he’s better than everyone because he’s smart, he has money, and he sleeps with a lot of women. But even during the first movie his character realizes that making weapons isn’t what he wants to do, and he moves on to cut off all manufacturing of bombs at Stark Industries. But he doesn’t stop developing as a character there. He has his flaws, such as hiring a 14 year old to fight Captain America, but he realizes that he has flaws. He becomes a nicer person throughout all of the movies, and he can look back at his mistakes and see where he went wrong. He’s all around a good character with flaws and perks, like every normal human being.

So this is why I think the Marvel Cinematic Universe is going to keep on going for a while. It’s widely popular, and it has good writing, good plots, and good characters, like every long-lasting piece of fiction.

That’s all for now

Read you later,

Sincerely, Parker