Spider-Man: Far From Home premiered in July of 2019, marking the end of Phase 3 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. While Avengers: Endgame perfectly tied up with "The Infinity Saga," which spanned 22 films, Far From Home, served the important purpose of showing the aftermath of Phase 3 and setting up Phase 4. It did this in various ways, and all for the better.
Firstly, Far From Home showed the after effects of the events that took place in Endgame. The opening of the film is a clever way to exposit what happened to the world after the Snap, and it even led to coining the term "the Blip," which was the event that brought everyone back. While this doesn't answer every question about a post-Snap world, audiences did get to see some of the impact of Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame, including moments that developed this new world for the Marvel heroes.
In addition, the numerous memorials of Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) display the public’s admiration for Tony Stark and his legacy, as well as the longing for a replacement evidenced by the popularity of Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal). Mysterio’s motives also show how Tony’s sacrifice didn’t erase the bitter taste of his past for some, and his legacy is very much called into question. This further shows the effects of not only Endgame, but the entire filmography of the MCU, expanding on an established world while introducing new elements.
Lastly, the reveal of Spider-Man’s (Tom Holland) identity and the false impression left on the public that he is a villain via Mysterio's tape leads to a lot of ambiguity of what will happen next. In fact, the culmination of the events of Far From Home leads to a lot of uncertainty for where the MCU will go and not just for Spider-Man. The overall narrative of Phase 4 is up in the air, which is why Far From Home is the perfect send off as opposed to Endgame.
Endgame closed the book on a lot of storylines, so it didn’t set up anything new to come, aside from a few teasers about characters like Falcon and Thor. In contrast, Far From Home opened a new book that prompts a lot of questions begging to be answered, and the special part of this new book is that the direction of its narrative isn’t clear, at least not yet. There is a certain uniqueness to this new approach, a compelling nature to not knowing what will happen.
In addition, until Far From Home, while individual character’s storylines weren’t always obvious until they played out, the audience knew that each film would lead up to the heroes facing Thanos, who first appeared in The Avengers. Ever since then the ultimate endgame was known: defeat Thanos and his grand plan; how the MCU got there was the unknown variable that prompted excitement.
Now, with the open ending of Far From Home, fans have no clue where the MCU will go from here on out, despite knowing the movie line-up. It remains unclear if there will be a new villain to build up to, or if individual character journeys will take center-stage, with the variety of properties, as well as the inclusion of Disney+ shows, leaving the structure of the overarching narrative up in the air. This uncertainty is novel to the MCU, and it is for the better, keeping things fresh and new where the past films have all led up to a definitive ending.
Ending on a cliffhanger rather than a conclusion was a smart move, making Far From Home the perfect ending to Phase 3 and an even better set up to Phase 4. It set up the post-snap world the MCU protagonists now live in and left viewers with more questions than answers, which compels and excites audiences. With no new endgame in sight, the highly anticipated Phase 4 and its narrative are nothing but speculation, which is a unique approach for the MCU, and it is a sure fire way to keep new and old fans engaged and ready for more.