Marvel made one huge mistake in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantum Mania, and the Multiverse Saga never recovered. Welcome back, Screen Crush. I'm Ryan Ary, and we just watched the Multiverse Saga fall apart and then get put back together in real time. Whether you loved or hated parts of the Multiverse Saga, you have to admit that over time, these projects devolved into basically all mid-level stories. I mean, it's kind of baffling. How did this once promising multiverse story with WandaVision and Loki end up bleeding away fans' faith in the MCU?
To understand what happened, I think we can look back to one major decision the studio made in Quantum Mania, which set up the saga to fail, prompting the return of the Russo brothers and the rise of Dr. Doom. But to understand the multiverse saga, we must first revisit its roots. As the studio was in production for Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame, they were already planning ahead. They knew they were going to lose three big stars, Scarlett Johansson, Chris Evans, and Robert Downey Jr., and they would have to find a new path forward. This coincided with Disney purchasing Fox, meaning the rights to the X-Men and the Fantastic Four would soon revert to Marvel Studios. This is probably when Kevin Feige and his team hatched the multiverse saga, presenting a unique opportunity for the original X-Men actors to cross over into the MCU.
The time travel story in Avengers: Endgame lent itself to setting up the multiverse, and the time-traveling villain Kang the Conqueror seemed like a natural next step to be the next big bad of the Avengers. Kang is one of the Avengers' deadliest enemies in the comics, and his ability to travel through time and other dimensions could have opened up new story possibilities. Jonathan Majors was cast as Kang in September 2020, marking a crucial step in formulating the overall arc of the saga. Tony Stark was the main character of the Infinity Saga, but phases four through six didn't have that marquee franchise star.
The early days of the multiverse saga featured various obstacles, including the COVID-19 pandemic, Chadwick Boseman's passing, and the firing of James Gunn, whose Guardians 3 was supposed to kick off this new era of Marvel. Marvel planned for the saga to be more than double the length of the Infinity Saga, which comprised about 50 hours. With the creation of TV shows for Disney Plus, the output and production schedule increased, making it logistically challenging to put an Avengers movie together.
Instead of each phase concluding with an Avengers film, Marvel needed to create a common villain uniting these films. Hence, Kang was introduced. However, this shift began to alienate many fans, leading to a decrease in enthusiasm for the MCU.
Despite Kang’s limited appearance in phase four, his presence was consistently felt through various items like the 10 rings and Ms. Marvel’s bangle. Phase four largely focused on grief and characters dealing with the fallout from Avengers: Endgame, which isn’t a sustainable foundation for a saga.
Enter the show Loki, which set up Kang as the saga's final boss effectively. But then, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantum Mania was supposed to launch phase five, setting the tone for the new trajectory toward Kang. However, the film has been criticized for its approach. Instead of making Kang a formidable antagonist, it placed more emphasis on Scott Lang, diminishing Kang's potential threat.
The climax saw Scott triumph over Kang, raising questions about Kang's menace. The decision not to kill off a major character, Scott, despite narrative potential, weakened the story’s impact. Kang's defeat didn’t demonstrate the caliber of villain he is supposed to represent in the saga.
In summary, essential mistakes were made in Quantum Mania that led to broader implications for the Multiverse Saga. The film’s heavy reliance on familiar characters over establishing Kang as a viable threat resulted in an unsatisfactory setup for the next phases of this expansive universe. As the saga continues, many fans are left wondering how different things would have been had the character dynamics been approached more thoughtfully.
