“Avengers: Infinity War” is rolling into theaters tomorrow night, and you can win passes all day tomorrow on 101 WKQX. As we get ready for the next phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, I thought I’d look back and rank the 18 movies that led us to this moment (and yes, opinions are my own).
18. Iron Man 3 – The big plot twist was a colossal disappointment. And Iron Man teaming up with a 10-year-old boy? Nope.
17. Iron Man 2 – At least it gave us Black Widow.
16. The Incredible Hulk – The best said about it is that it’s better than Ang Lee’s Hulk movie. Ed Norton was a solid choice for Bruce Banner.
15. Guardians of the Galaxy 2 – Fun, gorgeous to look at, and, wow, what a soundtrack. It’s also kinda boring, and none of the “bad guys” (living planet Ego included) connected. Love the cavalcade of mid- and post-credits scenes, though.
14. Thor: The Dark World – Not a great movie, but Tom Hiddleston-as-Loki makes everything better.
13. Thor – The Destroyer scene was pretty awesome, and it was fun to see characters like Loki and the Warriors Three on the big screen.
12. Avengers: Age of Ultron – Bigger, louder and more of a mess than its predecessor, “Ultron” felt emptier than the first Avengers flick. Case in point: Quicksilver’s death was met with a collective yawn.
11. Thor: Ragnarok- Yes, it was a fun movie to watch. But a Thor comedy… ?
10. Ant-Man – Better than it had a right to be. Paul Rudd was fantastic, and Michael Douglas was perfect as the aging Hank Pym.
9. Doctor Strange – Loved it when I first saw it, and was bored to tears when I tried to watch it again. Sticking with my initial reaction.
8. Captain America: The First Avenger – Fun period piece and intro to Cap.
7. Black Panther – Visually stunning with a flawless cast.
6. The Avengers – I’ll never forget the excitement I felt when I first saw Iron Man, Thor, Hulk, Captain America and Black Widow together in the same movie. For two hours, I was 10-years-old again.
5. Spider-Man: Homecoming – As pitch-perfect as Tom Holland’s Spidey is, that Michael Keaton/Vulture performance practically stole the movie. That drive to the Homecoming dance… holy crap.
4. Guardians of the Galaxy – Joyful, ridiculous and endearing.
3. Iron Man – It’s easy to forget just how big of a deal this one was. Robert Downey, Jr. was born to play Tony Stark. And that post-credits scene is legendary.
2. Captain America: Civil War – “Avengers 3” upped the stakes in every way, and somehow managed to utilize every player in its bloated cast.
1. Captain America: The Winter Soldier – Just the best. Hydra’s infiltration of S.H.I.E.L.D. made for a great story device, and this movie contains two of the MCU’s most memorable scenes (the Batroc/hostage rescue and the “elevator scene”).
