Marvel Cinematic Universe Research Articles

Avengers, Disassemble!

Popular culture both reflects and shapes the audiences’ beliefs. Content Analysis of blockbusting movies can teach us about public attitudes. This study examined underlying themes pertaining to personality types, as they are reflected in movies produced by the largest franchise in history, Marvel Cinematic Universe. Twenty-seven Marvel characters were assessed for their personality traits and received a rating for each of the big five personality aspects. To test which personality type was endorsed by the Marvel narratives, each character’s success was measured by examining the outcomes for that character. Successful outcomes were defined by levels of goal achievement in two categories, somatic goals and reproductive goals. The hypothesis was that being a commercial art-product of Western culture, Marvel storylines will follow neoliberal ideas, and award success to characters that align with the entrepreneurial personality type. That is, characters that exhibit high levels of openness, stability, extraversion, and conscientiousness, but not high levels of agreeableness. Results showed that the strongest predictor for success was openness to experience. It was followed by a second predictor, emotional stability. No correlation was found between extraversion or conscientiousness and success. Agreeableness was found to be moderately correlated to somatic success. The hypothesis was partially supported, indicating there might be some influence of neoliberal values on the Marvel character depiction.

Superman, superwoman, or superhero? A thematic analysis of Reddit user discussions of female superheroes

ABSTRACT The superhero film genre has both hypersexualized women and offered potentially empowering social and cultural narratives. Drawing on feminist media studies and critical discourse analysis, this study analyzes themes in online Reddit discussions surrounding female superheroes in Black Widow to better understand how conversations about media representations maintain and subvert dominant gendered discourses. Throughout her portrayal in multiple movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Black Widow’s transformation highlights the shift from a hypersexualized female superhero to a complex character that breaks away from gendered stereotypes. Mirroring an incrementalist approach to social change, Redditors discursively constructed and invoked “realism” as a heuristic for their evaluations of diversified media representations. First, Reddit users centered White, Western women’s experiences in their posts about the film, confronting the trope that women exist as objects to be saved and sexualized by men. However, as they assumed that White, Western women’s struggles are universal, they ignored the intersectional relationship to oppression. Second, Redditors engaged in the male gaze to understand, perpetuate, and disrupt Black Widow’s historic sexualization. The study supports the claims that gender is performative and seemingly mundane conversations can function politically. We conclude with implications for theorizing future post-feminist discourse and methodological implications for researchers using Reddit data.

Marvel Movie Recommendation System Using Hybrid Item-Based and Content-Based Filtering Methods

Currently, there are so many movie genres available to the general public, making it difficult for viewers to choose a movie. One of the most popular movies is the “Marvel Movies” or MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe), which has become the highest grossing franchise of all time with 90 movies released. The large number of movie titles makes it difficult for people to choose which movie to watch. Therefore, a Marvel movie recommendation system is needed using a hybrid item-based and content-based filtering method. The content-based method calculates the similarity between movies by identifying similar Marvel movies based on content such as genre, actor, director, and synopsis. Meanwhile, item-based completes content-based recommendations by considering user preferences. The reason for using the hybrid item-based and content-based filtering method is to be able to produce more accurate recommendations than a single method. The types and sources of data used are secondary data from journals and the internet (Imdb and Movielens), as well as datasets about Marvel movies. From the results of testing the hybrid model, the precision value is 0.8 or 80% which indicates that the model is accurate. In item-based filtering testing, the similarity result of 0.68 shows good item similarity. In the content-based filtering test, the highest similarity is 0.14 and the lowest similarity is 0.10 which shows that the similarity between the searched content and the generated content is relevant.

Flouting norms, forging identities: Queering of hypermasculinity in Marvel Cinematic Universe’s posthuman superhero pantheon

This research explores the convergence and intersection of posthumanism and the queering of hypermasculinity as represented in the superhero bodies of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It examines how the super-bodies of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, specifically Ironman, Captain America, Hulk, and Vision, can be read in light of the intersection between posthumanism and queer theory. By drawing upon posthumanist theory and queer theory, it challenges normative notions regarding hypermasculinity by queering the corporeal forms of superheroes who have experienced technological (like Ironman and Vision) or biological (Captain America and Hulk) enhancement. These posthuman super-bodies stand at the juncture of the ongoing tension between historically evolving heterosexual norms and queer interpretations and can exist as a highly significant site for the representation of heightened masculinity in superhero movies. Thus, this study will attempt to show how posthumanism queers hypermasculine bodies, upending norms by rejecting uniformity and universal definitions. The bodies of these superheroes, which have originated from the human form, move beyond what makes them so and are characterized by constant movement, fluidity, and renewal, which is reminiscent of queer ambiguity.

The Franchise Devouring Itself: A Critical Analysis of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Reflexive Turn

This article proposes that a "reflexive turn," which is particularly visible in some of the MCU's new streaming series, has taken place with the beginning of the franchise's Phase Four, the first phase of the new Multiverse Saga. Taking the first seasons of She-Hulk, What If...?, WandaVision and Loki as illustrations, my analytic focus falls on the reflexive devices and the narrative structures of these four series, which together seem to have established the grounds for a recurring metafictional allegory whereby the diegetic multiverse is made analogous to the franchise's own "multiverse" of complexly interrelated narratives. Thus seen, my interpretation of each of the series pays special attention to how reflexivity has allowed the MCU to speak about itself in this transitional moment, in a way that ambivalently reflects not only about the franchise's continuing dominance within the contemporary culture industry, but also about fears and concerns that the franchise's power may not last very long if it loses its narrative coherence along the way. It is in this sense that the Marvel Cinematic Universe seems to have started devouring itself, turning into a kind of "narcissistic" and "autophagic" narrative precisely at the time when it is beginning to generate a sense of exhaustion and saturation among its fans and followers. Although the reflexive elements of these four series acknowledge this sentiment in ways that approximate self-parody and self-critique, in the end they all arrive at the cynical and/or conformist conclusion that, for better or for worse, there is no alternative to the franchise's planned continuation.

Digitalization of cultural industries: Evidence from the official Spider-Man movie TikTok account

The digitalization of culture and creative industries has presented both challenges and opportunities. To effectively engage audiences and ensure their constant interest, these industries must continually adapt their circulation strategies. The objectives of this study are threefold: 1) analyze the strategies employed by the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) to engage with the fan community; 2) examine the interplay between fiction and reality based on the relationships between characters and actors, as shown in social network posts; and 3) determine how the discourse in the film ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ is reconstructed on TikTok, leveraging its particular ‘affordances’ (Gibson, 1979). A mixed methodology approach was utilized, combining the use of Analisa.io software to provide a comprehensive view of the Spider-Man official account’s activities and user engagement with a detailed analysis of the thematic, multimodal, and discursive aspects of TikTok videos published by the account. The findings reveal that the MCU employs TikTok as a marketing tool for the new movie, utilizing three main strategies that align with the characteristics of transmedia storytelling and enhanced audience engagement: 1) strategic selection of publication moments for the growth of follower engagement; 2) extensive use of teasers; and 3) leveraging the presence of actors as a key element to facilitate fan identification.

Marveling Religion: Critical Discourses, Religion, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Marveling Religion: Critical Discourses, Religion, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Teaching science through inquiry from the perspective of the Marvel cinematic universe

This work proposed to understand investigative problems that are based on the interests and cultural repertoire of students. As music, series and films are cultural media of interest to children and teenagers in contemporary times, the possibility of incorporating them into the classroom was studied. In this way, seeking engagement and motivation in the teaching of science and mathematics, great enthusiasm was observed for the productions of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), as teenagers identify with characters that reflect their own characteristics. To this end, a case study was carried out with three high school students, using the fictional universe of WandaVision. The data indicate that by allowing students to share their interests with the teacher, in order to expand scientific knowledge based on these interests, it is possible to enrich the socio-scientific repertoire and connect content with values and ideals represented by students' favorite heroes and villains, which can promote a favorable predisposition to develop meaningful learning within the Investigative Teaching approach.

Using Content Analysis to Analyze Issues in the Development of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Their Impacts

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has become one of the most successful and popular franchises worldwide due to its continuous development. Therefore, this essay employs content analysis to investigate the worldbuilding and character develop issues in the Marvel Cinematic Universe productions. The findings reveal that the dense interconnections within the productions of the franchise makes it challenging for new audiences to enter. The repetition and declined quality of the plot of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s productions after Avengers: Endgame (2019) has also made old fans begin to lose interest. The imbalance between old and new characters leads the franchise to an awkward situation. To address these problems, Marvel can slow down the pace of new releases, so that the new audiences will be given more time to know the fictional world by catching up previous productions. Besides, Marvel Studios can have more time to improve the quality of their works to maintain the attraction to old audiences. Furthermore, they should focus on balancing the development of both old and new characters to better serve different audiences.

Superhero Film Geopolitics: Analyzing the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Uno de los fenómenos de la cultura popular más importantes del siglo xxi es el auge de las películas de superhéroes. De subgénero maldito a colección de éxitos de taquilla, estos films han resultado ser fundamentales para estudiar el impacto del cine en nuestra forma de ver el mundo e interpretar, a posteriori, eventos del mundo real. El universo cinematográfico Marvel es no solo la marca más reconocida a la hora de hablar de estas películas, sino el ejemplo más claro de franquicia transmedia exitosa. En este artículo queremos analizar el UCM dentro de los paráme - tros de la geopolítica de la cultura popular para averiguar cómo estos films representan y hablan de aspectos sociopolíticos que se transmiten al conjunto de la audiencia. Para ello, y a través de una metodología interdisciplinar, examinaremos cómo construyen un discurso de recreación de la realidad en el que, apoyándose en su carácter de narraciones fantásticas, reflexionan sobre el terrorismo, las relaciones internacionales o el cambio climático.

Thor Love & Thunder: Comic book evolution to the film

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has brought many of the best-known Marvel Comics stories to the big screen. But just because they use these stories it doesn’t mean they reproduce them faithfully. As it has been seen over the years, Marvel Studios’ film projects follow their own storylines that do not correspond to the main narrative of the comics. Starting from this premise, this research aims to study the evolution to Thor: Love and Thunder (Waititi, 2022) from the comic book series Thor: The Butcher of Gods (Aaron, 2018) on which it is based. Focusing both on what aspects they share and the differences that make Thor: Love and Thunder a standalone project.

When State-Endorsed Cinema Meets Marvel: A Study of Wolf Warrior II’s Global Superhero Vernacular

Chinese state-endorsed films have transformed in the past decade. These films make up the “new mainstream”, a genre defined by its ability to match strides with Hollywood commercial cinema. But, what exactly comprises Hollywood’s impact on official Chinese media? How does it manifest onscreen? Exploring the relationship between state-endorsed blockbusters and Hollywood, this article analyzes a pioneer of the “new mainstream”, Wolf Warrior II (2017). This film stands out as the inaugural collaboration between Chinese media conglomerates and Marvel Cinematic Universe directors. From this collaboration emerges the film’s protagonist, Leng Feng, an ex-soldier who saves civilians from rebel forces in Africa. As Leng enacts justice at home and abroad, however, affective portrayals of his feats foreground ambiguity over coherence and unresolvable impulses over a singular agendum. These melodramatic sites of contradiction, I argue, culminate in the film’s own “global superhero vernacular”. Such a vernacular aligns with transnationally circulating serial franchise logics, pushing the film’s connection with Marvel beyond local–global and state–market binaries. Ultimately, my analysis complicates the smooth thread that links together the superhuman individual, nationalist sovereign power, and international order, thereby re-evaluating state-endorsed cinema’s role within Chinese media cultures and social fields.

Twenty-First-Century Avengers: Exploration of War, Globalization, and Identity Politics

The economic and cultural impact of the four films forming the saga of The Avengers from 2012 to 2019 stands for the impressive accumulation of superhero fiction in the 21st century, with a remarkable resituation of the topic of war conflict into the popular imagination quite affected by the traumatic beginning of the era in the New York scenario on 9/11. This article intends to analyze the different plot elements in The Avengers (2012), The Avengers. Age of Ultron (2015), The Avengers. Infinity War (2018), and The Avengers. Endgame (2019) to find clues to explain how the Marvel Cinematic Universe accomplishes a complex exploration of the nature of war, and how the films offer new ways of deconstructing simplistic Manichean polarization between good vs. evil. With this objective in mind, the study pays attention to how this deconstruction also needs to concentrate on the decomposition of stereotypes related to identity politics.

The Power of Chaos

The Power of Chaos

On continuity in comic book film adaptations and beyond

In 2019 Anthony and Joe Russo’s Avengers: Endgame became the highest grossing film of all time, solidifying the status of superhero comic book films as Hollywood’s leading genre. This article attributes part of the blockbuster’s success to its status as an adaptation. It discusses the economic gains of the transmedia storytelling format employed by superhero comic book filmmakers and the importance of continuity, cinematic universes, multiverses and corporate synergy in this genre of movies and beyond. Although these concepts all precede the inception of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, their current popularity could be attributed to that endeavour. The view that transmedia storytelling and adaptation are at odds is challenged. It is argued that the organization of superhero comic book storytelling into universes has become an adaptation norm and that a similar trend could be observed over the past few years in Hollywood cinema.

Dissociative identity disorder (did) of marc Spector in marvel cinematic universe’s show ‘moon knight’: a psycholinguistic analysis

<span lang="EN-US">This study examines a psychological disorder called dissociative identity disorder (DID) in the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s show <em>Moon Knight, </em>which premiered on March 30, 2022, and ran for six episodes. The aim of this study is to analyze the dissociative identity disorder (DID) that is being experience by Marc Spector, the main character of Marvel Cinematic Universe’s show, <em>Moon Knight</em>. This study has two objectives, (1) To find out what are the causes of dissociative identity disorder on Marc Spector in Marvel Cinematic Universe’s show <em>Moon Knight. </em>(2) To find out clinical features of dissociative identity disorder on Marc Spector in Marvel Cinematic Universe’s show <em>Moon Knight</em>. (3) To find out how dissociative identity disorder affects the way Marc Spector communicates. The method used in this study were qualitative method. The data of this study were obtained from a Marvel Cinematic Universe’s show <em>Moon Knight</em>. The techniques for collecting data were by watching every episode of the show, taking notes, classifying the data, doing interpretation, and drawing conclusion. The result of the analysis reveals Marc Spector is able to talk different accent and different language when he shifted to his alter ego.</span>

Setting the record ‘straight’: Captain America fanfiction, museums and queer narratives

Many of the largest and furthest-reaching media franchises today, such as the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), opt not to represent a range of queer identities and relationships but instead perpetuate heteronormativity. Alternatively, an extensive site of queer historical recovery can be found in the fanfiction that is written in response to these popular media franchises. This article explores how fanfiction set in museums challenges the version of history presented in the MCU’s Captain America films by re-introducing queerness into historical narratives. I argue that while popular media franchises often continue to replicate a narrow definition of sexuality, we can turn to other sites of prolific literary production for more optimistic and pluralistic queer imaginaries. However, fanfiction is not immune to the systemic biases that occur in contemporary culture and, while these texts are successful at re-inscribing queer narratives, they reveal the complexities of attending to intersections of identities, especially in terms of according the same recuperative attention to race.

"Reading Too Much into It": Affective Excess, Extrapolative Reading, and Queer Temporalities in MCU Fanfiction

abstract: This article engages José Esteban Muñoz's concept of queer utopian temporality through the heuristic of fanfiction. Beginning with a discussion of accusations of "excessive reading" as a normalizing disciplinary tactic of media viewership, I problematize representations of LGBT+ experience in mainstream television and cinema through Muñoz's figuration of "straight time." I then turn to close readings of several fannish texts created in conversation with the 2014 Marvel Cinematic Universe film Captain America: The Winter Soldier (Anthony Russo and Joe Russo) to demonstrate fanfiction's utility in imagining queer utopian temporalities through the practice of "reading too much into" extant narrative media texts.

Mr. Feige, I don’t feel so good … Copyright ownership, creators’ rights, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is the highest grossing franchise of all time. What happens when the creators of some of the characters that have made Earth’s Mightiest Heroes such an onscreen success attempt to reclaim their ownership of those characters? This article discusses the relationship of the MCU to copyright disputes in phases. First, the history of copyright contests over Marvel characters is discussed, starting with the licensing disputes surrounding the 1998 film Blade. Former attempts by creators to reclaim ownership of their comic book characters are then analysed and compared to the current claims for ownership of MCU characters. The article then speculates on the possible effects of character ownership becoming split in the MCU and suggests ways that the MCU might move forward by taking an approach to shared character ownership informed by past Marvel licensing and character agreements.

Narrative and Representational Ethics and Profit in the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Narrative and Representational Ethics and Profit in the Marvel Cinematic Universe