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phantom-le6 · 2 months

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Ramble of the month February 2024: 90’s MCU phase 5 – transitioning from Secret Wars to Infinity Wars

Having spent much of last month and a fair bit of this one working on submissions to literary agencies for my autism book, this month’s ramble and the one for next month took a bit of a back seat, and as such I’ve still not been able to vary myself away from delving further into my hypothetical Marvel and DC film universes. Apologies to anyone who, like me, were hoping to vary things more. However, hopefully what we cover in this ramble and the next will make up for it, and as April will be Autism Awareness time, I can guarantee something different for then.

By this point, I’m sure readers don’t need as much of a recap on what these posts to do with my 90’s-based MCU are about. Long story short, I’ve done what the meme makers don’t; looked at the comic book and real-world history of Marvel from that era to create an actual 90’s based MCU instead of putting 90’s actors into a present-day MCU. However, as we’re into a fifth phase and well past the 1990’s, we should at least quickly review phases 1-4 first.

Phase 1:

1992: Fantastic Four, Hulk, Iron Man

1993: Thor, Spider-Man, Ant-Man & The Wasp

1994: Captain America: Fantastic Four 2, Iron Man 2

1995: X-Men, Avengers, Daredevil

Phase 2:

1996: Spider-Man 2, Thor: Land of Enchantment, Silver Surfer

1997: Hulk vs Wolverine, Fantastic Four: Doomsday, Iron Man 3

1998: Captain America: Society of Serpents, Daredevil 2, X-Men 2

1999: Avenger 2, Spider-Man 3, Doctor Strange

Phase 3:

2000: Fantastic Four: World War III, Thor: Ragnarök, Daredevil 3

2001: Hulk: Rise of the Leader, X-Men: Fall of the Mutants, Avengers: Under Siege

2002: Doctor Strange 2, The Captain, Spider-Man 4

2003: Captain Britain, Fantastic Four: Enter the Negative Zone, Ghost Rider

Phase 4:

2004: Black Panther, Captain Marvel, Secret Wars: Part I

2005: Excalibur, Defenders, Ghost Rider 2

2006: X-Factor, Secret Wars: Part II, Heroes For Hire

2007: Namor the Submariner, Doctor Strange 3, Iron Man: Enter The Mandarin

As discussed in previous rambles, phase 1 was all about establishing the MCU and its characters, phase 2 was about the expansion and development of the continuity, while phase 3 was mostly about many characters and teams losing, being put on the back foot and so on. Phase 4 then covered Secret Wars, which temporarily deprived Earth of some major MCU heroes to put them through a real alien war, and in the process also allowed some other heroes to come to the fore. Phase 5 then becomes about following on from some of those plot threads while beginning the set-up for this MCU’s version of the Infinity War. So, let’s quickly show you the phase 5 slate and then get right into the details of these would-be films.

Phase 5:

2008: Spider-Man 5, Fantastic Four: Unthinkable, Ms Marvel

2009: Elektra, Black Panther 2, Defenders 2

2010: X-Men: Proteus, Spider-Man 6, Ant-Man 2

2011: Silver Surfer 2, Avengers vs X-Men, Ghost Rider 3

Spider-Man 5 (2008) Directed by Matthew Vaughan

Peter Parker/Spider-Man = Wil Weaton

May Parker = Marg Helgenberger

Flash Thompson = Ben Affleck

J. Jonah Jameson = J.K. Simmons

Joseph "Robbie" Robertson = Denzel Washington

Betty Brant = Parker Posey

Ned Leeds = John Barrowman

Eddie Brock = Wentworth Miller

Randy Robertson = Taye Diggs

Harry Osborn = Ryan Phillipe

Mary-Jane Watson = Alison Hannigan

Herman Schultz/Shocker = Patrick Muldoon

Felicia Hardy/The Black Cat = Elisha Cuthbert

Roderick Kingsley/Hobgoblin = Michael Keaton

Quentin Beck/Mysterio = Nathan Fillion

Captain Jean DeWolff = Jessica Biel

Detective Stanley Carter/”Sin Eater” = James Marsden

In the first three Spider-Man films, we built up to Peter befriending the Osborns and dating Gwen, only for the Green Goblin/Death of Gwen story arcs to play out in Spider-Man 3. The fourth film then gave Peter a clash with the Sinister Six as he struggles to come to terms with Gwen’s death. Following Secret Wars, Peter now has the alien costume, and so film 5 is basically the alien costume story arc. Sounding a little too much like the Raimi/Maguire Spider-Man 3? Trust me, it’s not like that and for two key reasons. Firstly, I’m not trying to shoe-horn Venom in for the third act, just set him up for another film. Second, I’ve chosen Wentworth Miller of Prison Break and The Flash fame to play Eddie Brock, and that’s far from being our only change.

In this film, Peter’s occupied trying to stop a series of illusion thefts being committed on behalf of a new “kingpin”, who turns out to be the Hobgoblin, while also having to track down a notorious serial killer called the “Sin Eater”. As the alien costume influences Peter ever more, the question becomes less will he stop all the criminals, but rather will he become one. Matters are further complicated when costume thief Black Cat begins seducing Spider-Man and the alien costume pushes Peter to accept this despite his relationship with Mary-Jane. The film culminates with a chance clash with the Shocker revealing the alien nature of Peter’s costume, forcing him to finally fight it off. Eddie Brock gaining the symbiote is then handled in a credit’s scene.

Direction-wise, I picked Matthew Vaughan as he’s a proven superhero film director due to his work on X-Men: First Class. He’s the fourth director to take a hand on Spider-Man solo film in this hypothetical MCU, with John Hughes having directed the first two, and 3 and 4 being handled by Frank Darabont and Martin Campbell, respectively.

Fantastic Four: Unthinkable (2008) Directed by Roland Emmerich

Reed Richards/Mr Fantastic = Tom Hanks

Susan Storm (Richards)/Invisible Woman = Meg Ryan

Johnny Storm/Human Torch = David Spade

Ben Grimm/Thing = Bryan Cranston

Alicia Masters = Heather Graham

Agatha Harkness = Angela Lansbury

Victor Von Doom/Doctor Doom = Goran Višnjić

Hauptmann = Ronald Guttman

Nick Fury = Tommy Lee Jones

Black Bolt = Pierce Brosnan

Medusa = Elizabeth Hurley

Crystal = Dina Meyer

Gorgon = J.G. Hertzler

Karnak = Alexander Siddig

Triton = Orlando Bloom

T'Challa/Black Panther = Chadwick Boseman

Namor McKenzie/The Submariner = Christian Bale

Barbara "Bobbi" Morse/Mockingbird = Rebecca Romijn-Stamos

Jericho Drumm/Brother Voodoo = Doug E. Doug

Having had the Fantastic Four directed by Leonard Nemoy (films 1-2), Steven Spielberg (films 3-4) and Ridley Scott (film 5), this MCU closes out their share of films under the stewardship of Roland Emmerich, notable for such films as Independence Day, White House Down and Midway. This film adapts the events of the storylines ‘Unthinkable’ and ‘Authoritative Action’, but leaves the events of ‘Hereafter’ to the comics and begins introducing the Infinity Stones. Since non-comics fans and fans who haven’t read those stories won’t get those references, let’s do a quick summary.

In the comics, Doctor Doom turned to magic for an attack on the Fantastic Four, which resulted in Reed and Sue’s son Franklin being taken to hell, and the team having to storm Latveria to get him back. During the incident, Doom scarred Reed before being dragged into hell. Afterwards, Reed seized control of Latveria to dismantle Doom’s arsenal and craft a permanent prison for Doom, one in which Reed would serve as warden. However, when the rest of the team tried to stop Reed, Doom somehow began to possess each in turn, ultimately forcing Reed to kill Ben Grimm just to stop Doom. The events of the Hereafter arc involved a trip into the afterlife to bring Ben back, in the process healing Reed’s scars.

In this film, Franklin is kidnapped and taken to a demon dimension, and Sue leads a rescue team comprised of her, Ben Grimm, Brother Voodoo and the Black Panther to save Franklin while Reed and Johnny attack Doom, aided by the Inhumans and Namor the Submariner. The attack seemingly defeats Doom, after which Reed leads the F4 to Latveria, seizing control of the nation. Fearing Doom is somehow influencing Reed, Nick Fury of SHIELD intervenes along with Mockingbird, Voodoo, Namor and T’Challa, only for the seemingly captured Doom to begin telepathically controlling the other F4 members. Ultimately, Reed manages to force a feedback that wipes Doom’s mind, but in the process, Ben Grimm dies as he does in the comics. With Ben’s death, the Fantastic Four decide to step back from hero work, becoming a think tank called the Future Foundation.

The bulk of the film’s cast is from past films, with the only new addition being mystical nanny Agatha Harkness, played by Angela Lansbury in better keeping with the comics version of the character. As for the Infinity Stone I mentioned, that would be the mind stone, which Doom uses to control the various F4 members until Reed works out Doom is channelling the stone’s power and creates the feedback.

Ms Marvel (2008) Directed by Gates McFadden

Carol Danvers/Ms Marvel = Melissa Joan Hart

Michael Barnett = Brian Krause

J. Jonah Jameson = J.K. Simmons

Frank Gianelli = Rory Cochrane

Tracey Burke = Kate Mulgrew

Tabitha Townsend = Kyla Pratt

Lynn Andersen = Amanda Seyfried

Mystique/Raven Darkholme = Connie Nielsen

Rogue = Anna Paquin

Avalanche = Alessandro Gassmann

Fred J Dukes/Blob = Vince Vaughan

Pyro = Hugh Jackman

Irene Adler/Destiny = Sally Field

When it comes to trying to tackle Carol Danvers in films, one story that’s yet to hit the big screen is the story of her downfall against the X-Man Rogue back when Rogue was part of Mystique’s Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Indeed, the 90’s animated series of the X-Men is the only adaptation to handle this, and they did it by neatly sidestepping some disturbing backstory. Long story short, there was a story arc in the Avengers comics around the late 70’s/early 80’s where Carol (then codenamed Ms Marvel) was mind-controlled and raped by an extra-dimensional being so he could be reborn in a body compatible with Earth, then after fast-growing to adulthood, his presence caused a bunch of time disruptions. When Carol then agreed to go with this being, the Avengers made no effort to prevent this.

When Chris Claremont wrote Rogue into Avengers Annual 10 and showed Rogue rocking Carol’s powers, the question that came to be asked was why Carol hadn’t sought out the Avengers upon returning to Earth, and the answer was made clear. The team hadn’t shown any real concern for Carol during her strange accelerated pregnancy, and then let her go off with a blatantly mind-controlling rapist from another dimension. As such, telling the story of Carol clashing with Rogue and the Brotherhood should never be an exact re-telling. Claremont’s story in Avengers Annual 10 was as much about correcting what the writer of the main comics at that time had written, and with film adaptations, you’re better off just taking a different path entirely.

In this case, we’re showing Carol working as an investigative journalist for a Daily Bugle-owned women’s magazine, who uses the Ms Marvel identity to tackle crime where needed. This is based on her original run in the comics, so we have Jameson borrowed from the Spider-Man films while using the magazine staff from the comics for supporting roles. As for the villains, roles from past films like Mystique and Pyro are combined with newly cast actors to give us our second MCU Brotherhood. The film draws in a mix of acting talent, with Melissa Joan Hart reprising the role of Carol Danvers, and Trek alumni Gates McFadden directing the film. McFadden has played the mutant Plague/Pestilence for three X-films before this and has some directing experience, making her a good choice for this project.

Elektra (2009) Directed by Roxann Dawson

Elektra Natchios = Leonor Varela

Stick = Scott Glenn

Stone = Sigourney Weaver

Kirigi = Daniel Henney

Frank Simpson/Nuke = John Cena

Matsu'o Tsurayaba = Hiroyuki Sanada

Kwannon = Kelly Hu

Turk Barrett = Gary Dourdan

The story of Elektra following her death in Daredevil is one Fox didn’t quite get right, in large part because they tried to incorporate plot elements and tropes that didn’t tonally fit with the character. Having used two Daredevil films to set her up before giving the character a one-shot solo film, I think the best thing is taking those bits out. Instead, we get the Hand going after the Chaste with Elektra in the middle, and when Elektra proves more than they can handle, they bring in the pill-popping assassin known as Nuke. It’s a straight-up martial arts action film initially, but then becomes a more Punisher-like action film when Nuke comes on the scene.

Trek alumni Roxann Dawson takes the helm because she’s one of the few women I know of that would be directing anything back around this time. Considering that films with female leads are often better handled by female directors, it makes sense to try and make this the case wherever possible. The cast is either retained from past films of picked to be more comic-accurate. Case-in-point, picking American actor Scott Glenn to play Stick rather than English actor Terrence Stamp.

Black Panther 2 (2009) Directed by Tim Burton

T'Challa/Black Panther = Chadwick Boseman

Shuri = Tatyana Ali

Ramonda = Alfre Woodard

T'Chaka = Courtney B. Vance

W'Kabi = Chiwetel Ejiofor

Okoye = Nia Long

Zuri = Joseph Marcell

M'Baku = Idris Elba

Nakia = Lupita Nyong'o

Monica Lynne = Kerry Washington

Baron Macabre = Sterling K Brown

Jerome Beechman/Mandrill = Joaquin Phoenix

Nekra Sinclair = Toks Olagundoye

Kevin Plundarr/Ka-Zar = Chris Hemsworth

Shanna O'Hara = Scarlett Johansson

Zaladane = Jolene Blalock

Everett Ross = Martin Freeman

In Black Panther 2, T’Challa becomes allied with Ka-Zar of the Savage Land when it turns out his hidden jungle in Antarctica houses a cache of Vibranium to rival Wakanda’s. Most would-be Vibranium hunters baulk at trying to gain the Antarctic variety due to the dinosaurs, but soon both nations are threatened when the woman-controlling mutant Mandrill, his adoptive sister Nekra, the Savage Land priestess Zaladane and Wakandan criminal Baron Macabre team up. Due to the inclusion of some of these villains, I opted to switch from Tim Story to Tim Burton from a directing stand-point. This film also features a change of role for a couple of real-world MCU alumni.

Defenders 2 (2009) Directed by Stephen Sommers

Dr Stephen Strange = Johnny Depp

Namor McKenzie/The Submariner = Christian Bale

Bruce Banner/Hulk = John Cusack

Silver Surfer = David Wenham

Valkyrie = Diane Kruger

Kyle Richmond/Nighthawk = Josh Duhamel

Patsy Walker/Hellcat = Mena Suvari

Wong = Will Yun Lee

Clea = Keira Knightley

Jericho Drumm/Brother Voodoo = Doug E. Doug

Dr Anthony Druid = Mark Strong

Daimon Hellstrom = James Van Der Beek

Dr Tania Belinsky (Belinskaya)/Red Guardian = Beatrice Rosen

Dr Arthur Nagan = Julian McMahon

Dr Jerold "Jerry" Morgan = Stellan Skarsgård

Ruby Thursday = Alyssa Milano

Harvey Schlemerman/Chondu the Mystic = Stanley Tucci

Shuma-Gorath = Geoffrey Rush

The Defenders, Marvel’s superhero non-team, return for a second instalment at this point, and I’ve picked Stephen Sommers as director based on him directing a live-action GI Joe film around the same time. In this film, the few routinely active Defenders learn via immigrant Russian doctor and superhero Red Guardian that a team of scientists called the Headmen have stolen the Reality Stone from AIM in an effort to seize world power for themselves. Allying with Namor the Sub-Mariner, the Defenders seek to stop the Headmen while Clea joins with Brother Voodoo, Dr Druid and Daimon Hellstrom to try and bring back Doctor Strange from the extra-dimensional limbo he sacrificed himself to in Doctor Strange 3. At the same time, the Silver Surfer seeks the Hulk. The whole team then comes together when the Headmen open a portal for Shuma-Gorath, in the process transforming into their strange comic-style appearances.

Everyone from Dr Druid on down in the cast list is new. As for why we’re skipping over the original male Red Guardian and focusing on the second female iteration for this MCU, there’s two reasons. First, the second female iteration served as a Defender in the original comics, and second, these MCU rambles are focused on the main film continuity, which in this version of the MCU is strictly cinematic. TV shows, while allowed as tie-ins, are optional content, and while I’d happily allow a TV show to dive in on Black Widow and some other characters, I think a film was and is a bit much for a character with so little solo comics content.

X-Men: Proteus (2010) Directed by LeVar Burton

Storm/Ororo Monroe = Halle Berry

Polaris/Lorna Dane = Jeri Ryan

Wolverine/Logan = Tom Cruise

Peter Rasputin/Colossus = Henry Cavill

Remi LeBeau/Gambit = Zachary Levi

Cyclops/Scott Summers = Patrick Swayze

Jean Grey = Milla Jovovich

Warren Worthington III/Archangel = Neil Patrick Harris

Beast/Hank McCoy = Alec Baldwin

Robert Drake/Iceman = Michael Weatherley

Banshee/Sean Cassidy = Liam Neeson

Dr Moira Mactaggert = Olivia Williams

Mystique/Raven Darkholme = Connie Nielsen

Rogue = Anna Paquin

Avalanche = Alessandro Gassmann

Fred J Dukes/Blob = Vince Vaughan

Pyro = Hugh Jackman

Irene Adler/Destiny = Sally Field

Professor Charles Xavier = Patrick Stewart

Kevin Mactaggert/Proteus = Iain De Caestecker

Joseph Mactaggert = John Hannah

Rahne Sinclair/Wolfsbane = Bonnie Wright

Danielle Moonstar = Selena Gomez

Jubilee = Chloe Bennett

Everett Thomas/Synch = Christopher Massey

Douglas Ramsey/Cypher = Devon Bostick

With the third X-Men film Fall of the Mutants having split the X-Men up, and a combination of the Secret Wars duology, Excalibur and X-Factor films following events for the divided team, this fourth X-Men film is intended to reunite some of the scattered team into a new whole. It also gives Rogue her defection from the Brotherhood following the events of Ms Marvel. In this film, Moira Mactaggert’s son Proteus emerges as a dangerous mutant and begins a rampage across to Scotland. With Excalibur unavailable, X-Factor is summoned while the X-Men pursue Mystique’s Brotherhood to Scotland. The two teams meet up and reunite when they find Professor X is also with Moira, having been recuperating on Muir Island since being released from a SHIELD hospital (this is set-up over end-credit scenes for Fall of the Mutants and X-Factor).

Direction-wise, the X-Men have been handled initially by Jonathan Demme and then Jonathan Frakes in films bearing their team’s name, while Excalibur was helmed by Christopher Nolan and X-Factor by LeVar Burton. For this film, I’ve put Burton back in the director’s chair. Casting-wise, I imagine same fans will be perplexed by my choice of Chloe Bennett for Jubilee. This is because Bennett is of a mixed ancestry that includes having a Chinese mother, and while the ideal is always to try for exact representation from the comics, there aren’t many actresses active in Hollywood around the time of this film with even one parent of Chinese descent, let alone two.

As such, the question becomes which do you compromise; Jubilee’s racial background or her nationality? My choice, compromise slightly on racial background and bring in some plot threads relating to prejudice against people of mixed race. Quite honestly, characters of mixed race are among those groups under-represented in film and TV, so if I have to compromise, let me at least try and do so in a positive way.

Spider-Man 6 (2010) Directed by Matthew Vaughan

Peter Parker/Spider-Man = Wil Weaton

May Parker = Marg Helgenberger

J. Jonah Jameson = J.K. Simmons

Joseph "Robbie" Robertson = Denzel Washington

Betty Brant = Parker Posey

Ned Leeds = John Barrowman

Eddie Brock/Venom = Wentworth Miller

Randy Robertson = Taye Diggs

Mary-Jane Watson-Parker = Alison Hannigan

Flash Thompson = Ben Affleck

Felicia Hardy/The Black Cat = Elisha Cuthbert

Sha Shan Nguyen = Grace Park

Captain Jean DeWolff = Jessica Biel

Anne Weying = Michelle Williams

Principal Harrington = Viggo Mortensen

Lance Bannon = Hayden Christensen

Gloria "Glory" Grant = Candice Patton

In the sixth of our Spider-Man films, and the last to both start and end with Peter Parker wearing the webs, we showcase Peter and MJ preparing for their upcoming wedding, but the pair are stalked by Eddie Brock, who has now joined with the Venom symbiote and seeks to make Peter’s life hell. He attempts to manipulate the Black Cat into being his co-conspirator as well, preying on her jealousy after the symbiote-free Spider-Man resists her seduction. The story ultimately culminates in Venom trying to force Peter into a no-win situation where he has to choose who to save; Mary-Jane or Felicia. Matthew Vaughan returns to direct, and we get a few extra supporting cast members in lieu of the various villains of Spider-Man 5.

Ant-Man 2 (2010) Directed by Peyton Reed

Hank Pym/Ant-Man = Michael Douglas

Scott Lang/Ant-Man II = Paul Rudd

Maggie Lang = Judy Greer

Cassie Lang = Joey King

William Cross/Crossfire = Ethan Hawke

Taskmaster = Jeffrey Dean Morgan

Alex Gentry/Porcupine = Nick Offerman

Janice Lincoln/Beetle = Naya Rivera

Having left Ant-Man alone in terms of solo films since phase 1, phase 2 marks a return for Hank Pym, who by this point has been out of action since a mental break-down forced him to retire. Now of sound mind again, he tries to deal with tech thief Crossfire, who steals the prototype for a new, more aggressive variant of the Ant-Man suit, the Yellowjacket. However, Hank’s old suit is not safe to use as it clashes with his neuro-chemistry, risking more mental break-down. Even worse, it’s been stolen. In tracking down the Ant-Man suit, Hank encounters desperate divorced father Scott Lang, who stole the suit to get money to cover his daughter’s medical treatment.

With this film, the aim is to pass the mantle of Ant-Man to Scott Lang in a more comics-accurate manner, while at the same time preserving certain casting that the MCU got right, hence why Pym, Scott and Maggie are all retained from the real MCU. In terms of Cassie, I switched to Joey King as she’s had a remarkably steady record of employment for a non-Disney child actress, and I think she’s a great choice to take up this role for the remainder of this hypothetical MCU. Direction-wise, I figured it best to stick with the choices of the real MCU and go for Peyton Reed, having had to go with Sam Raimi on the 90’s-made first Ant-Man of this MCU.

Silver Surfer 2 (2011) Directed by JJ Abrams

Silver Surfer = David Wenham

Thanos = Josh Brolin

Mentor = Michael McKean

Eros/Starfox = Joel McHale

Gamora = Zoe Saldana

Drax the Destroyer = Dean Cain

Adam Warlock = Chris Pine

Pip the Troll = Peter Dinklage

Nebula = Emma Stone

Mar-Vell/Captain Marvel = Jude Law

Following the events of Defenders 2, the Silver Surfer finds himself drawn into yet more Infinity Stone adventures when Kree hero Captain Marvel and the android Drax the Destroyer come to Earth with Adam Warlock, keeper of the Soul Gem. Hot on their heels are Thanos and Nebula, each of whom has begun to seek the Infinity Stones. Worse still, Mar-Vell is dying of cancer. The film is meant to advance the Infinity Stones plot while also adapting the death of Mar-Vell from the comics, not to mention setting up for the Guardians of the Galaxy to appear in the next phase.

For direction, I’ve picked JJ Abrams based on his Star Trek and Star Wars work making him a decent choice for a space-based hero like the Silver Surfer. In terms of casting, we have a few reprises from past films in this 90’s MCU and from the real MCU. However, some shifts have also occurred, most notably with Drax due to wanting to use his original comics origins over the revised MCU/later comics version. The would-be autistic representation of Bautista and Gunn’s Drax quickly become so much farce, so as an autistic person, I’d just as soon avoid that and go down the android route, thanks very much.

Avengers vs X-Men (2011) Directed by Jonathan Frakes

Cyclops/Scott Summers = Patrick Swayze

Jean Grey = Milla Jovovich

Storm/Ororo Monroe = Halle Berry

Wolverine/Logan = Tom Cruise

Peter Rasputin/Colossus = Henry Cavill

Remi LeBeau/Gambit = Zachary Levi

Warren Worthington III/Archangel = Neil Patrick Harris

Rogue = Anna Paquin

Steve Rogers/Captain America = Brad Pitt

Thor = Dolph Lundgren

Janet Van Dyne/Wasp = Catherine Zeta Jones

Iron Man/Tony Stark = Tom Selleck

Jennifer Walters/She-Hulk = Lucy Lawless

T'Challa/Black Panther = Chadwick Boseman

Sam Wilson/Falcon = Will Smith

Peter Parker/Spider-Man = Wil Weaton

Professor Charles Xavier = Patrick Stewart

Carol Danvers = Melissa Joan Hart

Mystique/Raven Darkholme = Connie Nielsen

Avalanche = Alessandro Gassmann

Fred J Dukes/Blob = Vince Vaughan

Pyro = Hugh Jackman

Irene Adler/Destiny = Sally Field

Frank Bohannan/Crimson Commando = Harrison Ford

Louis Hamilton/Stonewall = James Brolin

Martin Fletcher/Super-Sabre = Peter Fonda

Dr Valerie Cooper = Malin Åkerman

Sebastian Gilbreti/Bastion = Bruce Greenwood

Congressman Rev. William Stryker = Eric Roberts

Forge = Jimmy Smits

There have been two occasions in Marvel comics where the X-Men and Avengers have been drawn into direct conflict, at least using multiple issues of a comic and to my knowledge. The first is the 1980’s mini-series X-Men versus Avengers, where the Avengers attempted to arrest Magneto to resume his trial before the world court, while the Soviet Super-Soldiers sought to arrest Magneto for his actions in X-Men #150. As Magneto was part of the X-Men at the time, this naturally put all three teams at odds with each other. The second occasion was the AvX storyline in which Cyclops, Emma Frost, Namor, Colossus and Magik became possessed by the Phoenix Force, something the Avengers tried to prevent and later combat.

While this film draws on the basic concept of both series, that something sets the Avengers and the X-Men at odds with each other, it’s not about arresting Magneto or issues with the Phoenix force. Instead, the issue is Rogue; her status as a mutant terrorist is used to convince the Avengers to apprehend the X-Men. This is bad timing, as the X-Men are working with Rogue to help restore the mind of Carol Danvers. The masterminds of the plot are rabid anti-mutant politician William Stryker and government advisor Sebastian, who in reality is a new form of sentinel in disguise. Luckily, government advisor and secret mutant Forge is suspicious of Bastion and convinces NSA director Dr Valerie Cooper to set up a contingency plan.

As a result, the film builds to a climax where, after the intervention of Spider-Man ends a major fight between the two teams, Bastion unleashes his prime sentinels. Enter Mystique’s expanded Brotherhood in their guise as community service government heroes Freedom Force, and the stage is set for a truly epic battle. Direction-wise, I opted for Jonathan Frakes to helm this entry, and while many actors are reprising roles from past films, everyone from Crimson Commando on down is new to the MCU as of this film.

Ghost Rider 3 (2011) Directed by Mark Steven Johnson

Johnny Blaze/Ghost Rider = Connor Trinneer

Roxanne Simpson = Jessica Alba

Eric Brooks/Blade = Jamie Foxx

Rachel Van Helsing = Cote De Pablo

Daimon Hellstrom = James Van Der Beek

Vlad Tepish/Dracula = Mads Mikkelsen

Lilith = Felicity Jones

Mephistopheles = Jeffery Combs

Phase 5 of our 90’s MCU closes out by bringing Johnny Blaze’s time as Ghost Rider to its conclusion, in a story where Johnny teams up with Blade, Rachel Van Helsing and Daimon Hellstrom against Dracula and his daughter Lilith, who are secretly in league with Mephistopheles. The film is partly an original plot and partly an adaptation of the end of the original Ghost Rider run of comics, though it’s far from being the last Ghost Rider film of this MCU. Just as the comics would have others take up the Ghost Rider curse after Blaze, so too will this MCU move onto those later riders in turn. Having used Tim Burton on the first two Ghost Rider films in this MCU, I’ve picked Mark Steven Johnson who handled the 2007 Nicholas Cage Ghost Rider film to take on this third instalment of 90’s MCU Ghost Rider.

This wraps up our look into phase 5 of this 90’s-based MCU; next month, we’ll cover phase 5 of our alternate DC movie universe. Until then, ta-ta for now.

#fancast #mcu

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