Every Way Phase 4 Is The Perfect Dark Mirror Of MCU’s Phase 1
Marvel Cinematic Universe Phase 4 is a dark mirror of Phase 1. After the Infinity Saga capped off by Avengers: Endgame, the franchise is currently in a transition period as it essentially rebuilds itself and sets up a brand new overarching narrative. At this point, it might be too early to tell what the future lies in the franchise, although projects like Loki and Spider-Man: No Way Home heavily suggest that the MCU is further exploring the multiverse.
As with previous Phases, Marvel Studios is being extremely cautious about giving away its long-term plans. Despite the multiverse being a clear focal point, especially as it was unleashed upon the death of He Who Remains (Jonathan Majors) at the end of Loki, there are still other narratives that are being told more subtly. That includes the potential full-blown Secret Wars adaptation hinted at by the upcoming Secret Invasion TV series, not to mention the presumed upcoming introduction of Dark Avengers as assembled by Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfuss) and Young Avengers.
While Marvel Studios' new overarching narrative is still uncertain, there are several elements in Phase 4 that feel familiar. Upon closer inspection, it's because they're essentially dark parallels of what was done in MCU Phase 1.
The MCU kickstarted the franchise with the introduction of the six original Avengers — Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner), and Captain America (Chris Evans). Since the first time they assembled in 2012's The Avengers, they'd become the faces of the universe until their run as a unit capped off in Avengers: Endgame, with half of the squad now retired from active duty. Throughout that time, they're presented as the ideal superheroes, and while they still possess flaws, the vast majority are beloved in-universe and in real life as moral bastions.
Things are a little bit more ambiguous in Phase 4. The introduction of characters such as John Walker (Russell Wyatt) and Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) muddies the established moral lines in the MCU. Before adopting the name U.S Agent, Walker briefly wielded the Captain America shield, but unlike Steve Rogers who was unwavering when it came to his principles, his predecessor is worldlier. He came with baggage and is more immune to making mistakes — including committing a brutal murder in broad daylight. This doesn't outright make him a villain, however. As revealed in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier finale, he's not pure evil; Walker can actually be redeemed. The same can be said for Yelena, who chooses to be a mercenary for Val as revealed in the Black Widow post-credits scene.
Aside from new faces, Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen), Bucky Barnes' (Sebastian Stan), and Loki (Tom Hiddleston) rose to prominence in the MCU further backs up this point. After being sided characters for years, they're finally getting their due as they headlined their projects, WandaVision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and Loki, respectively. Despite having different backgrounds, Loki, Wanda, and Bucky are susceptible to making wrong choices; they're also weighed down by their past as they were once dubbed villains. However, this doesn't make them inherently evil, as while each character has done bad things, they were motivated to do these deeds by other external factors, and not their own personal drive to do bad things.
With Tony Stark's involvement with the Avengers Initiative, issues about financing were never brought up in MCU Phase 1. Initially, SHIELD was funding the operations, but once it fell, Stark Industries swooped in and provided the necessary resources to keep the program running. By Avengers: Age of Ultron, he transformed Stark Towers to be Avengers Towers, with each member of the team given their own quarters. From there, they eventually moved upstate New York to a bigger facility. While the specifics about how much exactly Tony and his company spent for the Avengers are unclear, Marvel Studios was able to easily use him and his seemingly unlimited wealth to explain grounded issues like how his fellow heroes earn their incomes. However, now that Iron Man is dead, these real-world problems emerge and are needed to be tackled. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier revealed that even an Avenger like Sam Wilson/Falcon (Anthony Mackie) is dealing with personal financial difficulties. He couldn't even get a bank loan despite the fact that he risks his life regularly to protect Earth from various threats.
Upon their debut, each member of the original Avengers was quickly embraced by the public. Sure, there were some naysayers on the heels of the Battle of New York, and their popularity dipped quite a bit after a string of catastrophic incidents like the ones in Sokovia and Lagos, among others, still, they remain quite liked by the masses. Even Tony Stark, who profited from wars and had a dangerous meltdown in Iron Man 2 was still well-liked throughout his stint as a superhero. That's not the case in Phase 4, however, with various heroes dealing with public backlashes.
At the end of WandaVison, the residents of Westview were visibly irked with Wanda essentially using them to live her fantasy life with Vision (Paul Bettany). They have no sympathy for her whatsoever considering the psychological trauma she put them through. In The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Walker was fairly criticized for his meltdown in Europe, resulting in the government stripping him off the Captain America mantle. Although Sam hasn't encountered anyone who questions his legitimacy as the next Star-Spangled Avenger, he knows that sooner or later, he will be confronted by it. Peter Parker (Tom Holland) will also deal with something similar in Spider-Man: No Way Home after Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal) framed the hero for his death.
The war on who gets access to the Iron Man suit started all the way back in Marvel Cinematic Universe Phase 1 when Obadiah Stane (Jeffrey Bridges) attempted to replicate it with the Iron Monger. It became a more pressing issue in Iron Man 2 when even the government, in cahoots with Justin Hammer (Sam Rockwell) tried acquiring it. In both instances, they failed, mainly because of Tony Stark's defiance. As the inventor of the suit, he had the right to protect his property, but now that he's gone, it would be much trickier to keep his creation out of the wrong people's hands. Sure there's Stark Industries, Rhodey/War Machine (Don Cheadle), and even Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne) who creates her own version of the suit. But frankly, none of them have Tony's gall to defy anyone who will insist on the matter.