Did you see the Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness trailer just recently? When it comes to the newest Marvel movies and Disney Plus shows, don’t you just feel lost? There may be a straightforward solution.
If you don’t know what’s going on in the Marvel Universe before watching the latest film, there are 27 films and 11 television shows (not including the ABC Marvel series), check this helpful guide of ours to keep yourself up to date.
Marvel Phase 4: What to watch before seeing Doctor Strange 2?
If you’ve missed any of Marvel’s “Phase Four” movies and Disney Plus TV shows, check out this handy list to see which ones have aired. It turns out that it isn’t required to view everything in chronological (not release) order because of Phase Four’s study of many dimensions. That could just make matters worse.
WandaVision
Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen), known as the Scarlet Witch, and Vision (Paul Bettany) live in Westview, a suburb of New York City. There’s everything in this show from dark magic to funny dialogues. The direct introduction of Doctor Strange 2 ensures that WandaVision is at the top of this list.
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
In a tale to stop a global terrorist group known as the Flag Smashers, The Falcon (Anthony Mackie) and the Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan) become partners in a buddy-action series for Disney Plus.
Loki
Loki, the Disney Plus series starring Tom Hiddleston is just a must-watch. With his sharp intellect and a sly grin, the trickster god Loki will go to great lengths to explain the multiverse. It also has an excellent original soundtrack.
Black Widow
The long-awaited Black Widow origin story, which digs into Natasha Romanoff’s (Scarlet Johansson) backstory, has little bearing on Phase Four’s multiverse-related events. You don’t have to watch this one in order to understand everything, but it is still a good show for sure. Look for Florence Pugh’s performance as assassin Yelena Belova.
What If…?
The What If…? series of Disney Plus is an attempt to explore the multiverse concept with each episode. The episode (No. 4) introduces Marvel’s evil Doctor Strange.
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
The first third of the film is dominated by martial arts concepts, which may not be a big deal in the multiverse, but it does provide for some fantastic fight scenes. It also introduces one of Marvel’s finest characters, Shang-Chi (Simu Liu), to the Avengers.
Eternals
Marvel’s most divisive film, which debuted on Disney Plus in January, offers no excuse not to watch it. If you already have a Disney Plus subscription, give it a go. However, it won’t make understanding Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness any easier for you so you can skip this one too.
Hawkeye
Hawkeye debuted on the small screen, bringing Jeremy Renner’s Clint Barton (Hawkeye) to life. It’s essentially a Christmas TV series with numerous buddy partnerships and a dog named Pizza Dog. You don’t have to watch it to understand the multiverse, but all of those features sound appealing in their own way.
Spider-Man: No Way Home
Loki (and Sony’s 2018 blockbuster Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse) can thank No Way Home for popularizing the notion of the multiverse. While it is a must-see, note that it may also entail some homework viewing of prior Spider-Man movies.
In a nutshell, the following are the must-see films before Doctor Strange 2: Loki, WandaVision, and Spider-Man: No Way Home.
