Thor: Love and Thunder‘ is the latest addition to Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and also the fourth Thor movie. It is Oscar-winner Taika Waititi’s second film featuring the God of Thunder and has left critics and audiences divided. The film has received a B+ as per CinemaScore, which ties it with ‘Thor’ and ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness‘ as the second-worst in the history of MCU. 

CinemaScore ratings are based on an average, collected from moviegoers straight out of theatres, making the score strongly rooted in initial reactions. 

Only Chloe Zhao’s ‘Eternals’ is rated lower, and if the film starring Chris Hemsworth is compared to other Thor movies, ‘Love and Thunder’ ranks below ‘Ragnarok’ which received an A and ‘Dark World’, which landed an A-. 

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The Critic Rating study, which analyzes scores from Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic and IMDb has also categorized MCU Phase 4 as the worst-rated, with Phase 3 being the most loved, followed by phases 2 and 1. Three of the MCU’s lowest-ranking films are also from the fourth phase, but does this mean fans are falling out of love with the MCU? 

Life after Endgame 

Phase 4 of the MCU turns a new chapter and starts with the ‘Black Widow‘ backstory after Scarlett Johansson’s character died in ‘Avengers: Endgame’. The big conclusion to Phase 3 ended with a mega-brawl between the earth’s mightiest heroes and Thanos’ army. 

All of the third phase built towards this moment – the saga of the Infinity Stones, collecting them, with viewers gradually realizing its powers, until Phase 3 revealed Thanos in all his intimidating glory. 

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The battle with the titan occurred across two films, ‘Infinity War’ and ‘Endgame’, both transcending the boundaries of cinema to become pop-culturally iconic moments – one merely needed to be present in a movie hall when Captain America wields Mjolnir in ‘Endgame’, to realize the truth of this statement. 

Since then, Phase 4 hasn’t quite revealed what its endgame is, as of now. Although a Thanos-level villain has been teased by the end of Phase 4, the post-Infinity Stones saga has naturally slumped because the films cannot match up to the audience anticipation that came towards the end of the Phase 3 movies. 

How much content does a fan require

A Marvel release was cause for anticipation and a promise of a cultural event in the previous phases, with Disney coming out with two-three movies a year. There were only a handful of shows being made by Marvel TV at the time. 

However, the House of Mouse is currently churning out nearly four movies and five Disney+ Marvel shows, meaning fans have a lot of content to catch up on. Moreover, the gap between releases is nonexistent, making fans much more critical of the new phase. 

One fan noted that Phase 4 felt a bit “rushed”. 

Another pointed to audiences being “fatigued” with the franchise and not caring after the high stakes in ‘Endgame’. 

Theme parks shouldn’t be theatres 

A common critique the MCU has had to deal with, despite its box-office success and love among fans, is that it is not serious cinema. Directors like Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola have made their stands clear, with the former comparing Marvel films to theme parks. 

In Phase 4, there is an attempt to break away from the formulaic content and let the directors make the kind of movies they want. Marvel Studios has stood behind its directorial choices, be it the acclaimed Zhao, who failed to deliver, or horror icon Sam Raimi, whose ‘Doctor Strange’ didn’t impress much beyond visuals. 

Even Waititi found it hard to recreate or live up to the magic he created coming into ‘Ragnarok’, as fan reactions suggest. 

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One fan defended the new direction Phase 4 is moving in, saying, “It’s funny how Phase 4 has mostly been more director-driven, creative & unique, Breaking away from a formula & template Phases 1 – 3 followed and now the MCU is being criticised for doing what YOU ALL WANTED them to do?” 

However, another noted that Marvel isn’t focusing as much on the superhero roots. This opens a different discussion of their move towards inclusivity and greater representation. It began from Phase 3 with films like ‘Black Panther‘ leading to discussions on Afrofuturism and postcolonial dialogues and ‘Ragnarok’ capturing the refugee crisis quite well. 

The trend has carried on in Phase 4 with Marvel having its first Asian superhero in Shang-Chi and the first Muslim hero in Ms Marvel. The latter also shows quirks of Asian parenting and has a scene depicting a traditional Pakistani wedding. Amid all this, the superhero aspect of these characters feels “hurried” for some fans. 

One viewer noted, “Wandavision, Moon Knight, Ms Marvel are all most interesting when they aren’t a superhero show, and thats fine but then they suddenly remember they are Marvel and rush the superhero stuff”. 

The highs and lows 

MCU Phase 4 has seen its share of highs and lows, and if one were to include ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home‘ as a Marvel film, rather than a Sony-Marvel outing, then the 8.8 out of 10 is impressive. 

However, ‘Eternals’ has only landed 5.7 out of 10, bringing down the average, the Critic Rating study showed. It also depicts Phase 4 seeing a 22% drop in ratings, as compared to Phase 3. 

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While the current audience trend indicates that the MCU has to be wary of soon dealing with declining ticket sales, there is a chance that the upcoming ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ could turn the tide in favour of the content juggernaut, especially considering Chadwick Boseman’s death has left questions about who’ll wear the helm of the Black Panther, and the curiosity should be enough to draw moviegoers.

The previous ‘Black Panther’ movie was wholly unique and blended superhero action with minute details, representing African culture and costumes, thanks to the team put together. The second ‘Black Panther’ movie will be looking to recreate the magic and might be a chance for MCU Phase 4 to finally step into the spotlight.