Marvel has been toying with various stories from its Multiverse Saga for a while now. Parallel stories from different dimensions and universes have been laid out. It is clear that Multiverse Saga covers MCU Phases 4 and 6.
After Marvel revealed their Phase 5 plans at San Diego Comic-Con 2022, it became easy to join the dots. Though some Marvel fans have complained that Phase 4 seems jumbled, Multiverse Saga is where it all fits together.
The real exposure was that there are going to be inevitable Secret Wars between dimensions, versions and universes. Though all of the Phase 4 and Phase 5 stories may not still make sense from a larger perspective, some movies and films are definitely part of the Multiverse Saga. At such times, knowing what constitutes each phase is important.
What does Phase 4 of the Multiverse Saga have?
MCU Phase 4 has just concluded with a bunch of fascinating shows and movies. Some of them include:
- Spider-Man: No Way Home
- Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness
- Eternals
- WandaVision
- Thor: Love and Thunder
- Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
- Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
- Loki Season 1
The concept of the multiverse and its implications were not only introduced but hints and glimpses of different dimensions were presented in this phase. Examples also include Hawkeye and She-Hulk: Attorney at Law. All this, though giving diverse perspectives, must be confusing to bring into one saga.
What does Phase 5 offer?
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quatumania will kick off the MCU Phase 5 in February 2023. The concept of the Quantum Realm, introduced before, will be better explored here. The concept of Skrulls, also introduced before, will be explored in Secret Invasion, the Disney+ show starring Samuel Jackson.
Shows like Daredevil: Born Again, Loki Season 2, Echo and Agatha: Coven of Chaos will open up multidimensional views. A similar clarity will be presented by movies such as Guardians of The Galaxy Vol 3, The Marvels, Blade and Captain America: The New World Order.
Expect Phase 5 to conclude with Thunderbolts slated for the summer of 2024.
What to expect in Multiverse Saga Phase 6?
Fans can finally witness a new representation of the Fantastic Four in the winter of 2024. Reed Richards, who they have seen in Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness, will hit the screens with his entire team.
Avengers: The Kang Dynasty will see the beloved Avengers with Kang, another version of "He Who Remains". This movie has a story that is different from the comic book and may be a teaser for further explanations.
Avengers: Secret Wars, as announced by SDCC 2022, seems to be the culmination of the Multiverse Saga. The mighty superheroes will team up to face mighty villains in multiple dimensions and zones.
Marvel's Secret Wars was always going to be a mega battleground. The story in the comic book talks about one huge warzone called Battleworld. As of now, no sequel to this has been declared and Secret Wars may be the finale of the Saga.
MCU’s Multiverse explored
MCU’s Multiverse is a vast, endless universe with parallel dimensions and parallel worlds, often encouraging parallel existence. Two wise characters have explained this in two instances – the Ancient One in Doctor Strange and He Who Remains in Loki.
Doctor Strange gets a complete glimpse of many of these existences as he travels through different dimensions in his movies. Some of the dimensions explained through his movies are – the Astral dimension, the Mirror dimension and the Dark dimension.
The movie also introduces some more concepts. According to MCU, any hero dreaming is seeing the reality of their other version in another dimension. Since all MCU realities exist at the same time, they may collide, leading to partial or complete destruction. This is called an incursion.
In the MCU, heroes and villains can move from one reality to another using a secret portal named Waypoint. All the realities connect to a common dimension or nexus called the Gap junction. The doors of any world opening onto the Gap junction can offer a trip to any parallel dimension.
Multiverse Saga also explains various other terms used often such as the Void, Quantum Realm, Soulworld and Valhalla. These are different dimensions and must come together during the climax of the Multiverse Saga.