Is the MCU Inaccessible for New Fans?

by Josh Ramos · Published January 12, 2022 · Updated January 12, 2022

One of the biggest film franchises in the history of cinema is the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but with over a decade of installments one must begin to question: is the MCU inaccessible for new fans?

There isn’t anything quite like the MCU; whether it is in the modern landscape of the cinema, or in cinema history, there is no endeavor that matches the scale, ambition, and excellence in execution that Marvel has been able to achieve with its cinematic universe.

Photo: Disney+/ Marvel

There are over 26 feature films that explore a plethora of characters all engaged in their very own sagas, all while very much intertwined into the greater happenings of the Marvel Universe.

Some of the most popular comic book characters like Spider-Man in the history of the medium are explored on the same level as some of Marvel Comic’s (previously) most overlooked characters like Rocket Raccoon, creating a world that honors its source material quite unlike any other.

Source: Marvel

For every Marvel fan who has been present since 2008 and watching the unimpeded growth of the MCU, there are those who have yet to fully embrace the entirety of its collective universe. Is it too late for them? Is the MCU inaccessible for new fans?

Source: Marvel Studios

It has been the great battle of the comic book industry for decades: how do they help prospective readers overlook the incredible breadth of content that sits before them?

Amazing Fantasy #15 by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. Photo: Marvel Comics

How do you instill a level of comfort for those who desperately want to get into comic books, but just have no idea where to start? With whole universes established since the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and so forth, there is no easy answer.

Is the MCU doomed to the same fate? No.

Shang-Chi (Simu Liu) in Marvel Studios' SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS

Take another incredibly popular piece of the cultural zeitgeist, Doctor Who, a television franchise that has been ongoing almost as long as Spider-Man has existed, first debuting in 1963 (while Spidey debuted just a year earlier, in August 1962’s Amazing Fantasy #15).

With decades worth of seasons, what makes Doctor Who still as relevant as series today? The answer is are the seasons lack of dependency on one another.

Ikaris (Richard Madden) in Marvel Studios’ ETERNALS. Photo: Sophie Mutevelian/Marvel Studios.

And this is the answer that will ensure Marvel’s ability to continue to gain viewership. Is the MCU an interconnected universe of films all building toward a joint narrative? Yes. Does the enjoyment of one particular film rely on the complete understanding of that joint narrative? Not at all.

Marvel has the benefit of rewarding viewers who have committed to the MCU, while not punishing those who don’t: every film is an enjoyable ride, an experience that gives its audience anything they could hope for in a cinematic experience.

Photo: Marvel Studios.

Thus, if the viewer wants to engage more with the overall happenings of the greater joint narrative, it is always present and waiting for them to catch up, but the beauty of the individual excellence of Marvel’s stories is that new fans can embrace one film, and get something immense out of it.

Photo: Marvel Studios

So, is the MCU inaccessible to new fans? Not really, because the beauty of the MCU is that it allows the freedom of the viewer to dictate their own experience and find the stories that mean the most to them.

Because the most beautiful aspect of the MCU is that it always feels as though it was made for us.