After wrapping up Phase Three the MCU heads into new territory, one that will surely make way for more time travel and wilder dimension-twisting realities that are already a common occurrence in Marvel comics lore. However, as in real life, there is a price to pay to accomplish anything of great meaning, and that might mean getting rid of some of the best MCU villains.
Over 23 films, the MCU has seen its fair share of intergalactic threats and superpowered antagonists, yet for all of Loki’s worth and Thanos’ might, these godlike beings lack a certain something when compared to the seemingly average Joe or corporate executive gone haywire. Despite the former group’s mortality, the premise of having villains with no superpowers instead forces the plot to develop from a psychological or sociological standpoint that threatens the hero more personally.
Although the larger scope of Marvel becoming one of the planet’s biggest pop culture phenomena wasn’t there at the time, Iron Man kicked things off in a fantastic way by having Obadiah Stane try to kill Tony Stark from the boardroom. While Iron Man’s main goal may have been to introduce Stark as the Avengers’ team leader, Stane’s goal is not exactly world domination in the evil ruler kind of way, but instead that of the corrupt big tech arms dealer.
What justifies Stane’s presence in his Stark life in the first place is his relationship with Howard Stark and that alone gains him Iron Man’s trust, proving that in some cases perhaps it’s best not to keep one’s enemies too close. The corporate tussle trend follows Stark into Iron Man 2 when facing his direct competitor Justin Hammer, who pretty much monopolizes the bad guy charisma industry not leaving an ounce to spare for Whiplash.
Hammer is an over the top comic relief CEO who is pretty much pound for pound Tony Stark’s peer, but he doesn’t want to rule the world, his aims are to oust Stark Industries from the top of the weapon manufacturing business and his working relationship with Mickey Rourke’s Ivan Vanko is more akin to a severe antitrust case that turns into terrorism. The divisive Iron Man 3 would bring an end to Stark Industries’ success being the cause for bad guys to go completely berserk as Aldrich Killian falls into the genius scientist gone mad mold, but Captain America wouldn’t dodge the next suit and tie bad guy.
Bringing in Robert Redford to play Alexander Pierce could have been a masterstroke, unfortunately, his talents were a bit wasted in Captain America: The Winter Soldier as the film has to attend its obligations of turning Bucky Barnes into the Marvel mainstay he’s become by now.
Nevertheless, Alexander Pierce trying to infiltrate the highest echelons of US security agencies on behalf of Hydra allowed for the framing of an even bigger plot point: government surveillance in the 21st century. It’s hardly a coincidence Captain America: The Winter Soldier was developed and premiered around the time when prominent anti-establishment figures like Julian Assange and Edward Snowden were on the tip of everyone’s tongue.
This is just the outcome of human villains without any superpowers being able convey real-world talking points and issues in a way that a comic book devil like Mephisto would never be able to do, because they’re meant to echo real villains from our world. On that same note, Bucky Barnes’ own personal struggles are relatable because he’s no longer a brainwashed war machine, he’s gaining back his humanity.
Spider-Man: Far From Home left fans on a huge cliffhanger as the young Peter Parker will have to deal with the fallout of having his cover blown by crafty con man Mysterio in a way he could have never foreseen.
Much like Michael Keaton’s Vulture, this Mysterio lacks any superpowers resulting in both of Tom Holland’s opponents being more grounded villains who are average men that just happen to find themselves in extraordinary circumstances that grant them menacing power. All in all, these types of villains are arguably more fitting with the high school theme that surrounds Tom Holland’s Spider-Man that will only start to make room for the grandiose Marvel spectacle in Spider-Man: No Way Home.
There is simply no better scene that encapsulates this as well having the Vulture drive Spider-Man to his homecoming dance on a date with his daughter, a car ride in which they temporarily leave their other identities behind to become Adrian Toomes and Peter Parker, thus making for one of the tensest MCU moments to this date.
Captain America: Civil War was a crossing point in character evolution for both Tony Stark and Steve Rogers, as Iron Man’s tendencies to go rogue and do pretty much what he pleased started to give in to the more mature Stark becoming used to the burdens and responsibilities he carried on his shoulders; meanwhile, a Captain America now more shaped by the events in The Winter Soldier is driven by his friendship with Bucky Barnes and his growing disappointment with the very same authorities that exalted him to superhero status.
This crucial shift in each character’s arc is exploited brilliantly by Helmut Zemo, yet another very “normal” type villains who’s driven by the desire to avenge the death of his family which he blames on the proliferation of individuals that in his eyes are above the laws that govern regular folks. Marvel Studios producers always had bigger plans for the Sokovian colonel and in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier Zemo could finally blossom into a bigger villain.
While his true role behind the scenes won’t be revealed just yet, Zemo lacks eccentricities and powers, he’s simply a terrorist who abides to the principle that superheroes don’t belong in the kind of world he believes in. Like in Civil War, he can’t force his will through sheer power because he has none. Instead, he can only scheme his way to get an overblown online chat room like the Flag-Smashers to do his dirty work or maybe infiltrate the US Government and handpicking the new Captain America he needed. Either way, prepare to be surprised by Zemo’s trickery, rather than his skills in hand-to-hand combat.
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