After Iron Man premiered in 2008, the Marvel Cinematic Universe expanded into a more prominent franchise than anyone could have expected. The MCU wrapped up Phase 4 in 2022, is currently in Phase 5, and has plans to extend into at least Phase 6. The MCU has inarguably changed cinema through its 31 movies and 12 series. Regardless of its influence on the movie industry, the MCU has had many questionable elements — especially in its earlier projects.

From cringe-worthy jokes to poor characterization, Phase 1 of the MCU feels like an experiment. It's hard to look back and notice how different everyone's favorite characters were or how poorly the scripts have aged. Fans are glad the MCU has improved, but some of its elements truly aged poorly.

Updated by Robert Vaux on January 22, 2024: This list has been updated to include more information regarding the MCU's weaker elements. It's also been updated to reflect CBR's current publishing style.

21 Phase One's Romances Trend Towards the Toxic

Phase One of the MCU hit the mark in several areas, but romance wasn't one of them. Although the first few films kick off some of the best couples in the MCU, most romances before Iron Man 3 barely develop properly or are deeply immature. Some of these characters formed beautiful couples in later phases, but they were either initially toxic, or invariably reduced the women to supportive sidekicks.

Notably, women in Phase One often served as rehab centers for men. Pepper Potts was useful for Tony Stark at his lowest lows, and Betty Ross dealt with Bruce Banner's self-destructive habits until she simply disappeared from the franchise. The big exception is Peggy Carter, who gained her own series and even became a superhero in What If...? Even then, however, she's left to pine for Steve rather than define love and romance on her own terms. The other women in Phase One have it considerably worse.

20 Cast Changes Can Be Disruptive

Most franchises take a hit whenever they have to recast, and the MCU isn't an exception. Marvel's cinematic universe has recast a fair share of characters. Starting in Phase One, Terrence Howard abandoned Iron Man due to a salary conflict. Then Don Cheadle took over Rhodey's character.

Fans also remember Mark Ruffalo becoming Bruce Banner after Edward Norton abandoned the project following The Incredible Hulk. As of now, fans love Ruffalo and Cheadle in the MCU films, but looking back, these recasts made it very obvious that Phase One was an experimental stage. Seeing the original actors can be a shock in retrospect.

19 Thor's Wig Looks Silly and False

When the MCU finally announced Thor would join the franchise in 2011, fans rejoiced. Unfortunately, they couldn't help but cringe when they saw his hair. Chris Hemsworth did a great job portraying the God of Thunder with his old English dialect and imperious temper, but his pale blond hair and bleached eyebrows stick out like a sore thumb.

Marvel was trying to emulate the Norse god look, but the lousy wig has aged especially badly. Fortunately, Thor has since evolved as a character and his physical appearance changed. For Thor: Ragnarok, Hemsworth got a shorter haircut and stuck to his natural hair color.

18 Hawkeye's Early Neglect Is Unfair to the Character

Since Phase 1 focused on introducing the Avengers, it's impossible not to notice how little the MCU cared about Hawkeye. In fact, it wasn't until Avengers: Age of Ultron in Phase 2 that Clint was given a background when the Avengers met his family.

Fortunately, Avengers: Endgame and Hawkeye did a much better job of exploring his role as an Avenger, a father, and the misguided antihero, Ronin. Phase 1's Clint Barton is essentially a supporting character compared to other members, except maybe Black Widow.

17 Jane Foster's "Plain" Status Does Her a Disservice

Natalie Portman first joined the MCU as Dr. Jane Foster, an expert astrophysicist who found Thor when he was banished to Earth. She soon became his love interest. Unfortunately, Jane was remarkably plain as a character. This changed when Taika Waititi reimagined her as The Mighty Thor in Thor: Love and Thunder.

Now that Jane has officially entered Valhalla — having sacrificed herself to defeat Gorr and save all the universe's gods — Thor and Thor: The Dark World are just hard to watch. Both films completely wasted Portman's talent and potential, especially compared to Jane Foster in the comics.

16 Joss Whedon's Scandals Have Tainted His Work

Since Joss Whedon directed The Avengers in 2012, his career has taken a turn for the worse, following multiple actors accusing him of abusive behavior, including several instances of misogyny. Whedon's prolific career went underwater, souring his role in closing out Phase One.

Not only has The Avengers' reception gotten more contentious with time, but Whedon put the franchise in the middle of his scandals. Given his conduct, the fandom also lost Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., which featured many beloved characters. Most fans likely wouldn't want to see Whedon play a role in the MCU again.

15 Dropped Storylines Are Distressingly Common

As a long-standing cinematic universe, the MCU takes pride in its continuity. Marvel Studios has created decade-long storylines that had fans enamored almost from the beginning. However, the MCU has also dropped some arcs, especially those that started in Phase One.

It would be impossible to return to every single detail in the films. This explains why Marvel Studios eventually let go of the Atlantis reference in Iron Man 2 and Tony's conflict with the government as they try to replicate his technology. However, when looking back, it's difficult not to wonder how these storylines would've panned out.

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14 Loki's Villainous Streak Is Tough to Watch in Light of the Hero He Becomes

When Loki first debuted in the MCU as the main antagonist in Thor, he was pretty similar to the earliest versions of his comic counterpart: Thor's resentful adoptive brother who wants to rule the world since he knows he will never have Asgard's throne. At the time, it was impossible to know he'd become one of the most beloved characters in the MCU.

Thanks to Tom Hiddleston's performance, the villain's dry but witty attitude, and Loki's great redemption arc, the God of Mischief became an absolute fan favorite. He earned fans' hearts and even got his own show. It's hard to watch Loki be a villain in Phase 1 while also knowing who he'll become in Loki.

13 Iron Man's Substance Abuse Is Never Really Confronted

After realizing he might die soon due to the palladium in his heart in Iron Man 2, Tony gets drunk at his birthday party. While Pepper and Rhodey look on, Tony puts on the suit, dances, DJs, and finally announces that he's relieving himself inside the suit.

Tony's spiraling after his terminal diagnosis draws a lot from the comics. He battles alcoholism in one of Marvel's darkest stories, but it's a poor adaptation and an even worse depiction of substance reliance. Marvel Studios took the jokes too far when they were ostensibly introducing a serious topic.

12 Black Widow's Objectification

The MCU introduced Natasha Romanoff as Natalie Rushman, a new assistant Tony hires after making Pepper the new CEO of Stark Industries. It wasn't until later that she revealed her identity as Black Widow.

Natasha was treated particularly poorly in Iron Man 2. She was constantly over-sexualized before the reveal, and Tony unsurprisingly hit on her. Black Widow was barely given a backstory until Phase 4. Becoming a three-dimensional character instead of the team's token woman was Natasha's biggest character arc in the MCU.

11 The Incredible Hulk Becomes Irrelevant

10 Starting with the obvious recasting of Edward Norton as the Hulk and the fact the rest of the cast all but disappeared from the MCU for a decade, The Incredible Hulk's place in the MCU has always felt spotty. When the film premiered in 2008, the MCU was still in its earliest stages, and the connective tissue wasn't as concrete. Robert Downey Jr. appears in a cameo as Tony Stark, but the movie's plot threads are all dropped.

Since then, Martin Starr was retroactively revealed as Roger Harrington from the Spider-Man films, Tim Roth has reprised his role as Emil Blonsky a couple of times, and Tim Blake Nelson will be the Leader in Captain America: New World Order. On a simple rewatch, The Incredible Hulk shows how little planning went into the MCU's foundations.

9 The Early MCU TV Shows Are Left in Limbo

When the MCU first debuted, it wasn't a monolith. Phase One set the ground for TV shows such as Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., which soon became a fan favorite. Unfortunately, Marvel Studios decided it needed a more concrete timeline, and this series lost its status as canon — a modification that had to do with Joss Whedon's scandals too.

As of 2023, the MCU TV shows are in direct connection to the movies. However, fans can't forget that Phase One laid the foundations for Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and then Marvel Studios ignored it. This gray area is definitely a sore spot for the fandom, especially because viewers love the show and some of its characters.

8 The Lack of Female Heroes Is Concerning

One of the most notorious things about Phase 1 is the total focus on male superheroes. Iron Man, Hulk, Thor, and Captain America star in their own stories, while Black Widow only serves as a secondary character until The Avengers.

On top of this, Natasha is one of the few women in the whole saga who doesn't just exist as a love interest like Jane Foster, Betty Ross, or Pepper Potts. Fortunately, Marvel Studios has since introduced some of the best MCU female characters in the franchise.

7 Iron Man's Misogynistic & Transphobic Humor Leaves a Bad Taste

Fans have loved Robert Downey Jr. ever since he first became Tony Stark. Iron Man greatly differed from his comics version, but RDJ's portrayal became so iconic that the comics slowly changed Tony to match his performance.

Unfortunately, rewatching the Iron Man trilogy can be difficult, especially thanks to some of Tony's behavior. As a womanizer, Tony treated women in the worst way possible and constantly objectified them. Additionally, it's difficult to forget the Iron Man joke where Tony made fun of Rhodey for allegedly spending the night with a trans woman. Iron Man's never been perfect, but that scene wasn't there to point out anybody's flaws.

6 Thanos' First Design Looks Cartoonish

When Thanos first appeared in the post-credits scene of The Avengers, his presence immediately excited fans. Thanos' first design confirmed what many already assumed: the MCU's first main arc would be related to the Infinity Stones. Although this was an iconic introduction to the Infinity Saga, Thanos' physical appearance worried fans.

Fortunately for fans, Thanos' first appearance was completely modified for future projects. 10 years after this scene, audiences know that Marvel Studios was still working its way up to the effects quality it had reached by Avengers: Endgame.

5 The Villains Are Often By-The-Numbers

Phase 1 of the MCU didn't just introduce heroes — it gave fans the live-action versions of several iconic Marvel villains, from Loki to General Ross and Red Skull. Unfortunately, most early MCU villains are pretty underwhelming.

Phase 1 villains are particularly boring since they're basically just evil versions of the heroes, like Whiplash vs. Iron Man or Abomination vs. Hulk. Apart from Loki, who became one of the MCU's most beloved characters, none of these villains left a mark on the MCU, especially compared to the villains in MCU's later phases.

4 Thor's Change In Personality Is Notable

Thor has gone through a lot in the MCU. After four different movies, the God of Thunder lost his family, his hammer, and even his planet of origin. However, none of these tragedies can explain why he changed so much since Thor, where he was a more serious character.

Some fans love solemn Thor while others enjoy his more current sense of humor. However, when looking back, it feels as if they were two different characters. This lack of continuity hurts the God of Thunder's story in the movies and shows that Marvel Studios pre-planned very little for the future of the MCU during Phase One.

3 Captain Marvel Should Have Been Present Earlier

The Avengers gave the fandom a first glimpse of how crossovers would work in the MCU. The team's epic battle against the Chitauri was full of incredible action scenes and raise the stakes as high as possible. However, it paled a little after the release of Captain Marvel.

Since Fury already had a relationship with Carol Danvers, the fandom is still trying to make sense of the fact he didn't contact her as soon as the alien invasion became obvious. Whether it is because her presence would've outshined the Avengers or because Marvel Studios hadn't planned for this character, this was a bad call.

2 The Lack of Diversity Shows

The MCU has evolved in many ways over the course of 15 years. The franchise has expanded into multiple Earths, introduced new heroes and villains, and added plenty of diversity. Phase 1 of the MCU lacked a lot in this area.

As of Phase 4, the MCU includes heroes from several different backgrounds and has had its fair share of LGBTQ+ characters. As the franchise continues to expand, fans can only hope it will get more diverse as the MCU learns from its previous mistakes.