Some of the best movies on the market are the ones that seem to improve on a rewatch, and a second viewing feels like an entirely new experience. Movies within the Marvel Cinematic Universe are no exception. Some movies literally hit differently on a new watch.
It's easy to look at an MCU movie on its own merit, but because it is both adapted from a comic book source material and sits in the larger scheme of a cinematic universe, that leaves a lot of room for comparison. It's important to re-evaluate such a movie in terms of how it holds up next to its predecessors, or if a movie is better than it was originally perceived.
10 Iron Man 3 - Specifically The Mandarin Stuff
The biggest talking point of Iron Man 3 has always been in regards to Ben Kingsley's character ultimately being revealed as a fake Mandarin after the iconic comic villain was hyped up as the main antagonist. This was enough to make comic fans dismiss this, but outside of that twist, this is a pretty good movie.
Knowing the now-infamous twist for what it is now, it's very easy to now go into this movie and accept this as a fun stand-alone movie —especially since it's pretty inconsequential to the rest of the MCU franchise— as well as a satisfying end to a mostly satisfying trilogy.
9 Avengers: Age Of Ultron - Companion Piece To WandaVision
This was another movie that received lukewarm and underwhelming reviews mostly due to high expectations, specifically those set by its well-received predecessor. However, miraculously, Age of Ultron has gained a cult following recently.
It's easy to see why, particularly in regards to this serving as the onscreen debut for Wanda Maximoff, aka Scarlet Witch. Her sort-of self-titled television spinoff WandaVision often traces back to the events of Age of Ultron and in that regard alone, it's fun to see how Age of Ultron managed to affect future events in the MCU years after its release.
8 Captain America: The Winter Soldier - Catch The Clues On Rewatch
Captain America: The Winter Soldier thematically focuses more on being a political thriller than it does try to be an action movie. As such, much of the movie is basically a mystery with plenty of twists and turns.
While a first viewing sees a spectator typically sitting in shock and awe at each twist, a second viewing lets the viewer look for the clues to each twist and take note of every hint that foreshadows major moments that happen later in the movie. It makes for all the more of a rewarding rewatch.
7 Avengers: Infinity War - A Thanos Showcase
Going into it, most fans expected a fun romp comprised of every major hero from previous MCU movies. Like a standard Avengers movie compiling every Avenger for one epic battle. Instead, fans quickly realized that this was more of a showcase of Thanos than of the title characters.
With expectations out the window, fans can find it easier to appreciate Infinity War as much more of a villain-centric story starring Thanos with a deep understanding of his motivations, which somehow make the ending all the more tragic.
6 Avengers: Endgame - More Somber On A Rewatch
Avengers: Infinity War proved to be ranked highly among the MCU's most successful movies —financially and critically— to date, and expectations were high going into the sequel, but few expected it to be such an emotional rollercoaster. Most of the emotions stem from this marking Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans' final hurrahs in their respective roles as Tony Stark and Steve Rogers.
Suddenly, on rewatch, Endgame goes from being a highly anticipated blockbuster finale to a somber end of the franchise's biggest and most popular characters.
5 Black Panther - Higher Expectations As The Best Picture Nominee
The diverse cast was enough to generate hype for Black Panther when it first hit theaters, but by hitting the billion-dollar mark, it clearly exceeded those expectations. What followed then was a movie that garnered several Oscar nominations, including three that marked the first time that Marvel Studios would win an Academy Award.
Suddenly, on a rewatch, a movie with already high expectations feels even higher when stacked against movies hailed as the best of the year. It's worth rewatching to see if Black Panther holds up in that same regard.
4 Captain America: Civil War - Feels Bigger In The Grand Scheme Of Things
Captain America: Civil War, upon release at least, was probably easy for a lot of fans to dismiss right away. For comic book fans, it failed to properly and accurately adapt its source material of the same name. For casuals, on the surface, this huge event seems inconsequential to the larger scope of the MCU, especially when no one dies.
Comic book fans would be recommended to give this a second viewing because by taking out their biases, they can see a constant thrill ride that, while its Civil War comic isn't 100% adapted, the movie story works in how it fits its universe. Meanwhile, casual viewers can watch a sequel like Infinity War and see that The Avengers lost because they were so divided in the previous movie and weren't on the same page when they needed to be. This is one of the most important MCU movies of the franchise.
3 Captain America: The First Avenger - Start Of Steve Rogers' Arc
The beauty of the Captain America trilogy is that while a lot of movies in the MCU feature stand-alone stories that can be loosely connected to their predecessors at best, each movie in this trilogy feels connected to the last one. Much of the bigger moments in Steve Rogers' arc and character development start here.
Even the smaller moments like Steve's "I can do this all day" line that wound up recurring throughout the trilogy just hit different after seeing how and where it all began.
2 Iron Man - The Start Of Something Special
Sometimes, it's important to trace steps back to the beginning to truly appreciate where everything ended. This is the case with the first Iron Man movie, which simultaneously marks the first-ever MCU movie. Viewing it as a humble beginning for both the character and the franchise itself helps audiences appreciate both with a new pair of eyes.
Not only is it easier to appreciate Tony Stark's future character development and the scope of the franchise, but also his suits. In the first movie, he struggled to create the most basic Iron Man suit model in a cave, and by Infinity War, he can suit up in the blink of an eye. It also highlights just how far the CGI in these movies has come along since 2008.
1 The Avengers - Hits Different After Seeing Its Impact
It helps to rewatch the first Avengers movie to appreciate not only how far the Marvel Cinematic Universe has come, but how far the superhero movie genre as a whole has come. The superhero movie genre was still experiencing the early stages of a boom period post-Dark Knight and while there was renewed interest in the genre, it was still a niche genre.
That all changed when The Avengers made a billion dollars. So did The Dark Knight, but most of that movie's success was dismissed by many as fans wanting to honor the late Heath Ledger. There was no excuse made for why The Avengers became a mega-hit, and it entirely changed how Hollywood valued superhero movies.