The Marvels is shaping up to be one of the cinematic highlights of 2022, bringing together multiple characters from the MCU for an intergalactic adventure that should set the tone for what’s coming across the rest of Phase 5. Brie Larson’s Captain Marvel, Iman Vellani’s Ms. Marvel, and Teyonah Parris’ Monica Rambeau are leading the film, with Samuel L. Jackson once more back as Nick Fury.
Not much is known about the plot, save that it’ll see the three heroines swapping places with one another every time they use their powers. Why that’s happening will be as much a mystery to us as them and it seems that figuring out who or what is responsible will be at the core of the story.
The film comes from Little Woods and Candyman (2021) director Nia DaCosta, who at 33 will be the youngest ever director of the MCU movie. In an interview with Inverse she set out her aims for the movie:
“My biggest thing going into it was making sure I approached these characters as human beings and not necessarily as superheroes. I want to know more about Captain Marvel. Who is she? What are her fears? What drives her? How do you actually deal with being the most powerful being in the universe? How does that weigh on you? That’s the sort of thing I want to explore.”
But, as with every Marvel Studios movie, The Marvels will benefit from knowing who these characters are going in. Now, you could argue that for a true understanding you need to go all the way back to 2008’s Iron Man and simply watch every movie and show from there. But with a full MCU watch-through now taking four and a half solid days of viewing, you’re forgiven for wanting to know the absolute essentials to understand the movie.
So, here are the movies and TV shows you need to watch to get yourself up to speed on these characters:
Captain Marvel
Brie Larson’s Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel was first teased in the post-credits scene of Avengers: Infinity War, going on to make her full debut in the 2019’s billion-dollar smash hit Captain Marvel. If you only have time to watch a single movie before The Marvels make it this one. Though The Marvels is an ensemble movie it’s also essentially Captain Marvel 2.
Captain Marvel shows Carol Danvers’ origin story. We meet her as Kree Empire Starforce member Vers, though we soon learn that she’s actually an American test pilot granted cosmic powers while testing an experimental light-speed engine. The film then shows her reconnecting with life on Earth, reuniting with her friend Maria Rambeau and her young daughter Monica, and finally harnessing the true potential of her powers.
Captain Marvel would go on to play a key role in Avengers: Endgame, pop up in the post-credits scene of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, and most recently appear at the very end of Disney Plus show Ms. Marvel.
Ms. Marvel
Kamala Khan exploded into the MCU in Disney Plus show Ms. Marvel earlier this year. This showed her gaining light energy powers from a mysterious bangle handed down from her grandmother and tangling with a team of interdimensional Djinn. It’s an extremely fun peek into a new corner of the MCU, introduced a bunch of fun characters, and Iman Vellani is an instant breakout star.
Sadly, despite critics praising it to high heaven, Ms. Marvel didn’t find as big an audience as other Disney Plus shows like Loki and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Even so, with the Ms. Marvel credits scene directly leading into The Marvels, it’s a no-brainer to watch before this summer blockbuster rolls around.
We suspect audiences will be given a quick introduction to who Kamala is at the beginning of the movie, but it’s safe to say you’ll appreciate The Marvels a lot more if you’ve watched her solo show.
Monica Rambeau
Monica Rambeau made her debut appearance as a child in Captain Marvel played by Akira Akbar, though Teyonah Parris will play the adult version of the character in The Marvels. Most of Monica’s story plays out in Disney Plus show WandaVision, where she portrays a S.W.O.R.D. agent investigating a missing person in the town of Westview. She’s then sucked into Wanda Maximoff’s alternative sitcom reality and becomes ‘Geraldine,’ though eventually sees through the illusion.
Towards the climax of the show, Monica winds up with superpowers of her own and is now able to perceive energy fields, absorb bullets and energy blasts and become intangible. We don’t know the true extent of her abilities, though in the comics she can also fly, move with superhuman speed, and boost other heroes’ powers by acting as a living battery.
Nick Fury
Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury is an MCU mainstay, having been introduced in Iron Man and playing a pivotal role throughout the first three phases. There’s a lot to catch up on here, though his relationship with Carol Danvers as seen in Captain Marvel will likely be the most relevant to The Marvels.
However, Jackson is also set to appear in a starring role as Fury in Disney Plus show Secret Invasion in Spring 2023. This will show him battling against Skrull shapeshifters that have infiltrated key positions to control life on Earth. With Skrulls playing a big role in Captain Marvel it’s all but certain Secret Invasion will somehow tie into The Marvels later in 2023, so if you want to know what’s new with Fury we’d strongly advise tuning in to check it out.
So, to conclude, to enjoy The Marvels to the fullest, check out Captain Marvel, Ms. Marvel, WandaVision, and Secret Invasion. All of them are great watches and all will to some degree help you understand what’s going on in Marvel’s newest interstellar adventure. All are available to stream on Disney Plus.
The Marvels will hit theaters on July 28, 2023.