The Inevitable Re-Ranking of MCU Films

Doug: Now that the dust has settled from the release of Captain America: Civil War, the next conversation that - to be honest, probably happened immediately - is "Where does this film lay in your ranking of MCU films?" I know that I've mulled it over with my sons, and you've probably had the conversation, too.

Karen: It is a constant topic with my husband and I. And it gets harder with each new film, since I have pretty much liked them all, except Iron Man 3.

For those with faulty memories (raises hand), here are the 13 films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe that have been released to date, chronologically listed:

1. Iron Man
2. The Incredible Hulk
3. Iron Man 2
4. Thor
5. Captain America: The First Avenger
6. Marvel's The Avengers
7. Iron Man 3
8. Thor: The Dark World
9. Captain America: The Winter Soldier
10. Guardians of the Galaxy
11. Avengers: Age of Ultron
12. Ant-Man
13. Captain America: Civil War

Doug: Let's hear your rankings. I imagine that for many of us our top 5 will be pretty similar, although I'm sure there will be some surprises (heresies, even) along the way.

Doug: For me - and this could change tomorrow - I would rank the films as such:

1. Marvel's The Avengers
2. Captain America: The Winter Soldier
3. Iron Man
4. Avengers: Age of Ultron
5. Captain America: Civil War
6. Guardians of the Galaxy
7. Captain America: The First Avenger
8. Ant-Man
9. Thor
10. Iron Man 2
11. Thor: The Dark World
12. Iron Man 3
13. The Incredible Hulk (I've not ever seen this film all the way through, so maybe "N/A" is best)

Karen: I mentioned to Doug offline that my husband and I had made our own lists of the (then 12) films at Christmas and compared them, but since then I had tossed out that list. My first two answers haven't changed, and neither have my final three. But I think the middle has moved around a lot. The thing is, with the exception of Iron Man 3, I actually like all the films! So deciding where to put them is really difficult, as in many cases, it's a matter of perhaps characters winning out more than quality -that's why Thor ranks higher for me than Ant-Man.

1. Captain America: The Winter Soldier
2. Marvel's The Avengers
3. Avengers: Age of Ultron
4. Captain America: Civil War
5. Iron Man
6. Iron Man 2
7. Thor
8. Captain America: The First Avenger
9. Guardians of the Galaxy
10. Ant-Man
11. Thor: The Dark World
12. The Incredible Hulk
13. Iron Man 3

Doug: For further consideration, and after you've done your MCU rankings, think about non-MCU comic book flicks and where you'd slide those in. With that in mind, here's a revised Top 10 for me (again, this changes with the wind and I hope I'm not forgetting anything):

1. Marvel's The Avengers
2. Captain America: The Winter Soldier
3. Spider-Man 2
4. Superman 2
5. Iron Man
6. Avengers: Age of Ultron
7. Batman (1966)
8. Captain America: Civil War
9. Batman (1989)
10. X-Men: First Class

Karen: I've had some time to think about this, and I'm not sure anything else breaks into that Marvel top ten. I have a sentimental love of Superman and Superman 2 but I'm not sure they slip past Ant-Man or Guardians. Maybe. The X-Men films, particularly X2 and First Class, are strong contenders. Spider-Man 2 is another solid one. But I can't honestly say any of them beat this current crop of Marvel films for me. Part of it may be, they are all so much part of a piece. Sure, stylistically they are all the same -but that is part of the appeal, at least to me. So no second list for me -I'll stand pat on this one.

Discuss: Captain America: Civil War- SPOILER-FREE EDITION!!

Karen: OK, it's here. Please share your general reactions and thoughts, SPOILER FREE, kids - that means avoiding major plot points and not ruining the film for those who won't be seeing it opening weekend. In a week we'll post the "fully spoiled" edition.

Karen: Along with your comments, I'd like you to answer two questions: Whose side were you on before you saw Civil War -and whose side were you on after you saw it?

Why Can't We Be Friends? A Look at Past Civil Wars

Doug: Today's the day! Well, the way they do things in movie releases, Captain America: Civil War actually landed last night. But it's not as catchy to say "Last night was the night!" Nevermind...

Doug: Over the years Karen and I, as well as our team of guest writers, have reviewed many superhero tussles. In fact, when laying out today's post I was amazed at just how many! And while I am certain we didn't catch all of them, we would like to present 39 (!) of our greatest hits in this genre. Each cover below represents a review of the issue, and clicking on the cover should take you to the original post. The "Avengers/Defenders War" is featured in the attached Avengers covers -- the first four chapters are included in two posts that are linked.

NOTE: This post was updated and refreshed over April 17 and 20, 2020. Five more reviews were added here (bringing you 44 links) - in some cases, posts that were written after this was originally published.

Doug: Have a great time spelunking through BAB "Civil War" history (if you find a broken or misdirecting link, please let me know and I'll try to get it fixed ASAP). And as always, please leave a praise or pan in the comments section.