In which order should one watch all the marvel movies (and TV shows) in order to understand the timeline well?
To understand the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) timeline comprehensively, you can choose between two primary methods: watching the movies and shows in release order or in chronological order.
Watching in Release Order
This method allows you to follow the story as it was originally presented in theaters and on streaming platforms. Here’s a breakdown of the MCU phases in release order:
-
Phase 1:
-
Phase 2:
-
Phase 3:
- Captain America: Civil War (2016)
- Doctor Strange (2016)
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)
- Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
- Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
- Black Panther (2018)
- Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
- Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)
- Captain Marvel (2019)
- Avengers: Endgame (2019)
- Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)145.
-
Phase 4:
- Black Widow (2021)
- Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)
- Eternals (2021)
- Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
- Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)
- Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)
- Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022)
- Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023)
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023)
- The Marvels (2023)145.
-
Phase 5:
- Includes upcoming projects like Secret Invasion, Loki season 2, Echo, Agatha All Along, and more1.
Watching in Chronological Order
This method aligns the events of the MCU in the order they occur within the universe's timeline. Here’s a simplified list:
- Captain America: The First Avenger (set during WWII)
- Captain Marvel (set in 1995)
- Iron Man (set in 2010)
- The Incredible Hulk (set in 2011)
- Iron Man 2 (set in 2011)
- Thor (set in 2011)
- The Avengers (set in 2012)
- Iron Man 3 (set in 2012)
- Thor: The Dark World (set in 2013)
- Captain America: The Winter Soldier (set in 2014)
- Guardians of the Galaxy (set in 2014)
- Avengers: Age of Ultron (set in 2015)
- Ant-Man (set in 2015)
- Captain America: Civil War (set in 2016)
- Black Widow (set in 2016, excluding post-credits scene)
- Doctor Strange (set in 2016-2017)
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (set in 2017)
- Spider-Man: Homecoming (set in 2017)
- Thor: Ragnarok (set in 2017)
- Black Panther (set in 2017)
- Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame (spanning from 2017 to 2022)
- Ant-Man and the Wasp (set in 2018)
- Captain Marvel (mid-credits scene set after Infinity War)
- Spider-Man: Far From Home (set in 2023)
- Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (set in 2023)
- Eternals (set in 2023, excluding flashbacks)
- Spider-Man: No Way Home (set in 2024)
- Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (set in 2025)
- Thor: Love and Thunder (set in 2026)
- Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (set in 2026)
- Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (set in 2026)
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (set in 2026)
- The Marvels (set in 2026)245.
Including TV Shows
If you want to include the TV shows, here are some key points:
- Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Watch episodes in conjunction with the movies, as they often tie into film events34.
- Netflix Shows: These shows, such as Daredevil, Jessica Jones, and Luke Cage, are now considered part of the MCU canon. Watch them after the corresponding movies in the release order timeline15.
- Disney+ Shows: Shows like WandaVision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Loki, and others should be watched after the events of Avengers: Endgame, as they continue the story from that point14.
Choosing between these methods depends on whether you prefer to follow the original release sequence or the chronological order of events within the MCU. Both methods have their advantages, with release order preserving the original storytelling intent and chronological order aligning the events in a linear timeline.