The debut of WandaVision on Disney Plus in 2021 marked a brand new period for Marvel-branded TV collection: one the place Marvel Studios extra expressly began controlling and integrating these reveals into the overarching story of its motion pictures. It additionally marked an period the place Marvel Cinematic Universe reveals began enjoying precisely like MCU motion pictures, with the identical mix of humor, drama, and motion.
That’s a really completely different method from the pre-Disney Plus days, when Marvel Studios was nonetheless licensing its characters to different studios and networks, which all tried to crack the Marvel system in numerous methods. And it’s additionally a distinct method from the 2022 experiments in MCU “specials,” one-off tales that bend the Marvel system in way more director-driven, idiosyncratic methods. How do all these approaches evaluate? We put each installment of MCU-integrated TV on the identical scale to rank them and discover out.
[Ed. note: Shows are included on this list if they were MCU-compliant in their day, regardless of whether they’ve since been or will later be retconned out of existence. Not included on this list are pre-MCU Marvel shows like Blade, or never-MCU-canon Marvel shows like the excellent mind game Legion, the X-Men spinoff The Gifted, or the animated series Guardians of the Galaxy. Latest update: November 2022, to include The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, Werewolf by Night, and She-Hulk.]
22. Helstrom (2020)
2020’s Helstrom was the final of the live-action MCU reveals launched on Hulu earlier than the launch of Disney Plus, and it was canceled after one practically universally panned season. The present is borderline unwatchable, a dour procession of exorcist and paranormal tropes with solely the loosest connection to the comedian guide characters it’s based mostly on. Following a pair of siblings with demonic blood that offers them superpowers, it lacks likable characters, significant stakes, nuanced performances, and even spectacular particular results. For those who’re on the lookout for a spooky supernatural story about combating demons, try Evil on Paramount Plus. If you need superheroics, you’re higher off watching anything on this checklist. —Samantha Nelson
21. Inhumans (2017)
Initially deliberate as an MCU film and its personal MCU sub-franchise, Inhumans suffered partially from the identical factor that gave it a lot potential: It’s constructed round a complete society hidden from the remainder of the world, the place separatist superpowered folks reside in response to their very own legal guidelines. However a collection about supers who aren’t connected to human society has not one of the relatable features that make MCU characters fascinating. And the story, a few coup which may flip the Inhumans’ terrible, oppressive oligarchy into a distinct form of terrible, oppressive oligarchy, doesn’t have loads of stakes for the typical viewer.
When an alternate model of Inhumans’ Black Bolt (nonetheless performed by Anson Mount) finally turns up in Physician Unusual within the Multiverse of Insanity, that gave MCU followers much more rooting curiosity within the character. Nevertheless it nonetheless doesn’t make Inhumans any extra fascinating or watchable. The performing is stiff, the writing is clunky, unhealthy man Maximus (Iwan Rheon, well-known for enjoying Sport of Thrones sadist Ramsay Bolton) is ridiculously apparent in his clumsy evil, and even as soon as the motion strikes from the moon to Earth, the story by no means feels prefer it’s about precise folks. Technically, it’s all there within the collection title, so we are able to’t say we weren’t warned. —Tasha Robinson
20. The Guardians of the Galaxy Vacation Particular (2022)
James Gunn’s Christmas particular that includes his tackle Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy crew is consciously tacky, however the self-awareness doesn’t make it any much less grating. At function size, Gunn has way more area to veer between motion, foolish character bits, and sentiment, however the roughly 40-minute run time right here makes all these twists really feel rushed and clumsy, and the humor is especially compelled.
Marvel rounded up a lot of the GOTG regulars (aside from Zoe Saldaña as Gamora, for story-continuity causes) for this outing, however the story facilities on Mantis (Pom Klementieff) and Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista) making an attempt to present their buddy Peter “Star-Lord” Quill (Chris Pratt) a standard Earth Christmas by giving him a human current: his favourite film star, Kevin Bacon (Kevin Bacon). So the story instantly facilities the form of shallow “non-humans making an attempt to grasp human stuff” that’s often extra of a welcome facet be aware in GOTG tales, and the outcomes are fairly dire. All of the broad, flat conversations about The Which means of Christmas, meant as retro callbacks to an earlier period of vacation specials, are in all probability meant to really feel playful and nostalgic, however they aren’t intelligent sufficient to really feel like commentary as a substitute of copycatting. —TR
19. Runaways (2017-2019)
Frankly, Runaways would in all probability be a number of notches larger on this checklist if the titular runaways had run away earlier. Brian Ok. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona’s authentic comics collection, which launched in 2003, let the younger protagonists discover out early that their mother and father have been highly effective supervillains, and run off collectively out of concern and frustration, resulting in loads of plots concerning the difficulties going through homeless children coming to phrases with their powers and combating villains with out grownup help. However the 2017 TV adaptation spends its whole first season with the youngsters wheel-spinning about what to do after they see proof their mother and father are murderers. As they dither in uninteresting methods, the collection dilutes the deal with their characters additional by giving equal display screen time to their mother and father’ soap-operatic energy struggles and relationship dramas.
Subsequent seasons lastly put just a little extra deal with the younger heroes, however the present actually by no means overcomes the issue of its overcrowded forged, or its baffling try to make the mother and father personable and sympathetic, at the same time as they’re systematically exploiting and murdering younger folks. And its deal with short-term, shortly resolved subplots, like a trying-to-be-current plot about thoughts management unfold by cell telephones, prevented the present from build up collection stakes or significant power. —TR
18. Cloak & Dagger (2018-2019)
The Freeform present Cloak & Dagger began off sturdy, pushed by the highly effective chemistry between Tandy Bowen, aka Dagger (Olivia Holt) and Tyrone Johnson, aka Cloak (Aubrey Joseph), youngsters making an attempt to grasp their new powers and the character of the accident that sparked them. As a result of the writers have been specializing in extraordinarily minor Marvel characters, they didn’t want to stick to comics canon — they have been free to ship a mixture of heady marvel and romance, mixed with sharp examinations of police brutality, habit, and company malfeasance.
That early appeal wore away because the present’s stakes elevated and the comics tropes piled up. A twist on fridging meant to be edgy nonetheless got here off as unnecessarily brutal, the writers tried to make the present’s least fascinating character work by giving her an evil persona, and each seasons led to near-apocalyptic conflicts. It isn’t a horrible YA journey, nevertheless it’s a textbook case of diminishing returns. —SN
17. Iron Fist (2017-2018)
The primary season of Iron Fist was rightly maligned for its wealthy, white man-child hero Danny Rand (Finn Jones) utilizing his Chosen One powers to indicate up the folks of coloration who are supposed to be his loyal mates. However when Raven Metzner took over as showrunner for season 2, he oversaw a exceptional course-correction by shifting the main target away from Danny and build up the supporting forged.
Sacha Dhawan does a exceptional job as Danny’s brother-in-arms-turned-bitter-rival Davos, and Luke Cage cop Misty Knight (Simone Missick) is simply as dismissive of Danny’s skills as a vigilante as she works to provide you with higher options to Chinatown’s issues. The writers nonetheless didn’t appear to know what to do with among the supporting forged, and the present continued to undergo from having too many subplots and villains, nevertheless it led to an odd and shocking place in comparison with the place it started. It’s nearly unhappy that there wasn’t a 3rd season or spinoff that might have actually embraced the potential to discover the MCU’s deep properly of mystic kung-fu weirdness. —SN
16. Brokers of SHIELD (2013-2020)
ABC’s Brokers of SHIELD was the present most carefully tied to the MCU earlier than Disney Plus got here alongside. It stars recurring MCU movie character Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg), who’s mysteriously resurrected after being killed by Loki in The Avengers, then tasked with main a gaggle of brokers investigating every part from rogue Asgardians to cyborgs. The present’s first season was written to enrich the Captain America: The Winter Soldier revelation that SHIELD had been infiltrated by Hydra, which supplies the story a superb twist as a number of predominant characters present their true loyalties.
However that connective tissue wore skinny over time, and later seasons noticed the characters despatched to area or completely completely different timelines so they might keep away from intersecting with the MCU movies. When the present is firing on all cylinders, Brokers of SHIELD is among the many high Marvel collection, embracing the genre-bending sensibilities of comedian guide tales and a heavy dose of meta humor. Sadly, it spends loads of time foundering, taking a number of seasons to develop into a real ensemble present, and even then, combating separated characters and a rotating forged of various high quality. —SN
15. The Punisher (2017-2019)
Jon Bernthal’s gruff, fierce portrayal of Marine-turned-vigilante Frank Citadel is the true spotlight of Daredevil season 2, and the primary season of The Punisher is among the many finest tales within the Netflix MCU. Whereas the character’s legacy is extremely problematic, showrunner Steve Lightfoot manages to maintain the present from being only a brutal revenge fantasy by delivering plots that look at PTSD, the army industrial advanced, and moral hacking. The present can be buoyed by a incredible supporting forged, with Ben Barnes enjoying an all-too-charming villain, and Citadel’s sidekick, Micro (Ebon Moss-Bachrach), giving the collection some desperately wanted levity.
The second season fails to recapture that magic, although, with Micro’s absence keenly felt and DHS agent Dinah Madani (Amber Rose Revah) going from fierce foil to sufferer. That season’s plot additionally looks like a retread of the identical conflicts offered in season 1, with little new to say. Many of the Netflix MCU reveals skilled a high quality dip after their first season, however The Punisher’s second and closing outing was the worst offender. —SN
14. The Defenders (2017)
Netflix’s single-season crossover collection tried to be a form of miniature TV model of The Avengers, one-upping Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist by bringing all of the heroes collectively in a single massive plot line. It lacks Avengers’ impression or scope, nevertheless it does share a few of its strengths: Bringing these 4 heroes collectively in numerous mixtures lets the writers discover their personalities and skills in new contexts. As they banter and snark at one another, they spotlight among the particular person faults that bugged followers of their solo reveals. And as they be taught to work collectively, the methods their skills and personalities synergize injects some recent power into their particular person tales. The overplot right here is disappointing, however the characters themselves are usually each funnier and extra thrilling than they have been on their very own. —TR
13. Werewolf by Night time (2022)
Cheeky in the identical manner as The Guardians of the Galaxy Vacation Particular however much more nuanced in its sense of play, the one-off (thus far) Halloween particular Werewolf by Night time leans closely on basic Hollywood horror and Hammer Movie Productions motion pictures for its specific model of self-aware cheese. Nevertheless it additionally tells a stable (although abbreviated) story about misfits going through off and teaming as much as handle an influence shift in a household of monster-hunters. It doesn’t really feel like part of MCU continuity — the tone and look are radically completely different from any earlier MCU story, which is a breath of recent air — however longtime Disney composer turned director Michael Giacchino confirms that it’s a part of the MCU narrative, which raises a ton of enjoyable questions concerning the implication of this bizarre, gleefully ghoulish little facet story. —TR
12. Luke Cage (2016-2018)
The primary half of the primary season of Luke Cage is almost excellent, with Mike Colter’s titular hero with unbreakable pores and skin nonetheless struggling to make an actual distinction when combating in opposition to the formidable mixture of legal and political energy wielded by Mahershala Ali’s Cornell “Cottonmouth” Stokes. But the collection takes a tough flip when Stokes is changed by the generic psychopath Diamondback (Erik LaRay Harvey), and it turns into borderline unwatchable. Season 2 is extra constant, although it by no means actually reaches the highs of season 1.
It’s too unhealthy that the Netflix MCU ended earlier than showrunner Cheo Hodari Coker may actually develop the examination of ethical compromises he was clearly establishing with Luke strolling dangerously near Stokes’ path by the tip of season 2. However despite these flaws, Luke Cage is a vibrant portrait of Harlem, with an impeccable soundtrack and incredible performances that decision on the numerous charisma of Colter, Ali, and Theo Rossi, who performs Stokes’ opportunistic underling Shades. Whereas the opposite Netflix MCU reveals largely deal with withdrawn, brooding heroes, Luke Cage revels in his powers and fame, which supplies the present a uniquely bombastic high quality. —SN
11. Hawkeye (2021)
It’s cheap that so most of the Marvel reveals following Avengers: Endgame take care of that film’s world-changing aftermath and the characters who’re mourning, coming to phrases with loss, and reflecting on their identities. However coming after a number of extra dynamic reveals coping with the identical points, Hawkeye feels unusually small and low-key, with minimal ambitions and a notable lack of authentic distinctive parts. It will get just a little borrowed power by bringing in a dangling plot thread from Black Widow and a villain from Netflix’s Daredevil, however largely it looks like an try to introduce a brand new hero (Hailee Steinfeld as Kate Bishop) and to MCU-ify another relative Marvel Comics obscurities. The present isn’t unhealthy, it simply isn’t a lot. —TR
10. Jessica Jones (2015-2019)
Jessica Jones had the blended blessing of a stellar first season with a near-unbeatable villain in Kilgrave (former Physician Who star David Tennant), whose voice is inescapably mesmeric, to the purpose the place folks kill one another or themselves at his informal verbal command. Krysten Ritter offers a persistently layered efficiency because the superhumanly highly effective title character, a detective making an attempt to disregard the deep traumas Kilgrave inflicted on her previously, whereas coping with his return. If the following two seasons had been as focused and intense as the primary one, this collection would in all probability high this checklist. As an alternative, Jessica Jones suffers from the best way its second and third seasons lose focus, pressure, and private stakes by comparability. Nonetheless, it’s properly price sitting all the way down to that first season, a street-level superhero collection, crime procedural, and private story about abuse and restoration all rolled into one. —TR
9. Moon Knight (2022)
Is Moon Knight a canon a part of the MCU? Government producer Grant Curtis says it’s, however aside from the tiniest references — a point out of Black Panther’s Ancestral Aircraft, one other of Madripoor — the hyperlinks are minimal, tenuous, and simply defined away, given Marvel Studios’ new deal with multiverses. Nonetheless, Disney Plus consists of the present on its “MCU in timeline order” checklist, putting it proper after Hawkeye.
However Moon Knight’s lack of seen MCU tie-ins additionally leaves it gentle on the same old burdens of forwarding a large franchise’s narrative agenda. That offers creator Jeremy Slater and his crew loads of room to inform their very own thrilling weird-adventure story, constructed closely across the thriller of what’s occurring with Steven Grant (Oscar Isaac), whose visions of a supernatural world typically coincide with blackouts that go away him with blood on his arms and a contemptuous voice in his ears. The ending is rushed per typical in an MCU collection, however most of what occurs on the best way there may be partaking, thrilling, and truly fairly bizarre and daring for an MCU present. It’s all boosted by Isaac’s clear enjoyment of his wild twin function, a relentless collection of unusual reveals, and motion that takes place each on a worldwide scale and a really private one. It’s one of many stronger MCU collection, marred largely by an inclination to zip previous essential plot factors with out letting them breathe and to spend an excessive amount of time on largely irrelevant purple herrings. —TR
8. She-Hulk (2022)
Jessica Gao’s collection She-Hulk has an entire lot occurring in its first season — an excessive amount of to completely cohere by the tip, although its week-to-week makes an attempt to steadiness a authorized drama, a fourth-wall-breaking comedy, and a wry operating commentary on societal sexism are nonetheless loads of enjoyable to observe. Because the title character, Jen Walters/She-Hulk, Tatiana Maslany carries loads of weight on her shoulders as she tries to maintain the present’s feelings relatable and real looking, even when she’s turning on to the digicam and mocking her present’s construction or the newest plot growth. The primary season fizzles out a bit by the ending, leaving Jen in a bizarre state of “Is something right here actual, and does any of it matter?”, however the journey to get there may be gentle, ethereal, and infrequently sharp as hell in its observations concerning the day-to-day flak skilled girls must navigate over their gender. —TR
7. Loki (2021)
Loki appears more likely to climb the rating charts as soon as the collection finds its manner nearer to an precise conclusion. Score it after the closing of season 1 looks like ranking it in the midst of its story, given the cliffhanger ending that’s way more about establishing the subsequent wave of Marvel motion pictures than about really respecting the characters or themes on deck all through the present. Season 1 is a mind-bending whirl by a game-changing collection of reveals for the MCU, and particularly for Loki, who’s been by so many adjustments over the course of a decade within the motion pictures, even accounting for what number of of these adjustments have been retracted or reversed. Tom Hiddleston stays a standout within the MCU, an expressive, electrical presence who’d make this collection stand out it doesn’t matter what. However whereas Loki is artistic, colourful, and infrequently loads of enjoyable, season 1 perpetually feels prefer it’s been edited all the way down to the bone, with no time for the stronger character growth or emotional exploration of among the different reveals on this checklist. It’s Disney Plus’ most purely enjoyable MCU present thus far, however for the time being, it’s nonetheless a narrative half-told. —TR
6. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2021)
As a narrative about how former Winter Soldier Bucky Barnes offers together with his many MCU traumas and the way Sam Wilson decides to take up the Captain America mantle, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier is fairly rushed, and ultimately, clumsy. As a narrative a few community of secret super-soldiers who could possibly be labeled terrorists or freedom fighters, relying in your perspective, it’s well-meaning, however typically simply graceless. However as a narrative about two males making an attempt to individually take care of shedding their mentor and inspiration, every resenting the opposite for doing it fallacious till they lastly bond over what they discovered from him, it’s resonant and considerate in a manner MCU tales not often could be.
Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan, because the titular predominant characters, convey a significant mixture of heat and prickliness to their roles, which helps make their typically broadly drawn characters really feel susceptible, human, and interesting. At its best possible, this motion bromance is so good that it’s actively irritating when it blows a few of its narrative potential by zipping previous essential plot factors with a hand-wave or a stuffy speech. —TR
5. WandaVision (2021)
WandaVision takes fairly some time to disclose its agenda as one more post-Avengers: Endgame story about navigating grief and loss. It begins with its central character, Wanda Maximoff, in full denial, having created her personal cheery sitcom actuality with a re-creation of her useless love, Imaginative and prescient. The collection creators mess around with that fake actuality, leaping by a long time of sitcom types and customarily having extra enjoyable with design, course, and general model than any MCU present thus far.
That freedom to creatively discover her character whereas being outright bizarre is likely one of the two largest issues that makes WandaVision a standout. The opposite is the depth of the collection’ feelings, as Wanda navigates her personal rage, guilt, and selfishness on high of every part else. The collection wraps up messily, with loads of unfastened ends that it means to arrange future motion pictures, so it by no means looks like a totally self-contained story, nevertheless it actually is a wild journey whereas it lasts. —TR
4. What If…? (2021)
Nonetheless a lock for Most Underrated MCU Present, the What If…? collection might have been a sufferer of MCU fatigue, of prejudice in opposition to animation, or of followers’ feeling {that a} collection of speculative multiverse tales don’t actually matter to the general MCU continuity. A technique or one other, followers of the franchise don’t appear to have engaged with the present practically as a lot as they did with among the collection on this checklist. They’re lacking out. The nine-episode opening season begins out easy, in a universe the place Peggy Carter acquired the super-soldier remedy as a substitute of Steve Rogers, however occasions in any other case largely performed out in a well-known sample. However as soon as the AU coaching wheels are off, subsequent episodes escalate the stakes and the gap from acquainted canon, both heading in a lot darker and extra brutal instructions than the mainstream motion pictures ever may, or having way more enjoyable with the characters, as Black Panther’s T’Challa heads to area (and proves the universe is best off with out Peter Quill) or Thor throws a worldwide get together.
However what actually locks What If…?’s place on this checklist is the ultimate two episodes of the season, which combine all these earlier episodes in shocking methods, paying off some plot strains that didn’t look like they have been designed to be resolved. The present will get massive and cosmic in thrilling methods, nevertheless it’s additionally meticulous concerning the particulars, from in-jokes like a number of Howard the Duck cameos to the best way all of the seemingly stand-alone tales line up ultimately. The person episodes are uneven, however this season is extra concerning the built-in package deal and the place all of it leads ultimately. —TR
3. Ms. Marvel (2022)
In a world inundated with superhero properties (the 19 on this checklist are only a drop within the bucket of the broader slate), Ms. Marvel really managed to make an origin story really feel like a deal with. Credit score any variety of artistic selections, together with the present’s vibrant, Into the Spider-Verse-esque visible identification, or the best way it offers protagonist Kamala Khan an precise life past the bounds of superherodom. However some acclaim ought to actually be reserved for Iman Vellani, absolutely the star on the middle of all of it. She makes Kamala really feel alive whether or not she’s staring down an enormous unhealthy or an enormous crush.
In her arms, Ms. Marvel is the all-too-rare MCU property that feels prefer it has the engine to run for some time, even when it’s nonetheless checking out easy methods to deal with Ms. Marvel’s villains or cultural identification. At six episodes, its weakest hyperlink (hopefully) is that it’s solely simply getting began. —Zosha Millman
2. Agent Carter (2015-2016)
The place WandaVision explores what occurs when an immensely highly effective superhero loses the love of her life, Agent Carter flips the system by exploring the identical form of grief, however steeping it in powerlessness. After the occasions of Captain America: The First Avenger, Captain America’s “finest lady” Peggy Carter is mourning his supposed dying, but in addition making an attempt to hold on as a hero in an setting that more and more doesn’t need feminine heroes.
Mimicking the real-life societal shift that moved girls into conventional males’s work throughout World Conflict II then sidelined them once more when the troopers got here house, Agent Carter offers carefully with the sexism and condescension Peggy (performed fiercely by Hayley Atwell) faces on the job on the FBI-like Strategic Scientific Reserve. When her sexist fellow brokers contemptuously deal with her like a side-piece Captain America foolishly allowed just a little equality, she’s compelled to chase down America’s enemies on the sly alongside Howard Stark’s butler Jarvis (James D’Arcy). The collection is sharp, with significant battle, a satisfying Marvel-movie overplot, and a noir-movie idea of each the gender wars and the job of a non-public investigator. Atwell and D’Arcy make a terrific crew. And the present even appears spectacular, with a Technicolor-style sense for model. It’s unquestionably MCU-modern moderately than a interval piece, nevertheless it takes all probably the most beloved concepts about costuming, cinematography, humor, and storytelling from the interval it’s evoking. —TR
1. Daredevil (2015-2018)
The primary of the Netflix MCU reveals, Daredevil established the darker, street-level tone of the enterprise whereas nonetheless feeling very very similar to a superhero story, full with costumes, secret identities, and spectacular fights. The one-shot hallway combat scene proved that Marvel didn’t want a movie-sized price range to create epic set items, whereas the battle between Daredevil (Charlie Cox) and Bullseye (Wilson Bethel), which weaponizes each stray object present in a newsroom offers an odd mixture of excessive stakes and whimsy.
However much more astounding than the combats are the performances. Cox is completely plausible in his portrayal of a hero pushed by a mixture of rage and Catholic guilt as he tries to make the world higher, each as a lawyer and as a vigilante. Vincent D’Onofrio’s Kingpin is a research in easy methods to make a compelling villain. The present can be a launchpad for The Punisher, with Frank Citadel serving as an ideal cautionary story of what Matt Murdock may develop into if his mates don’t maintain him in examine. Daredevil isn’t excellent: The again half of the second season descends into an limitless onslaught of ninja to arrange The Defenders, and the writers by no means appeared to know what to do with among the supporting forged. However the present by no means didn’t be artistic and bold, and its finale supplied a satisfying and hopeful conclusion to a significant chapter in superhero tv. —SN