Marvel Cinematic Universe: The Very Best of Marvel Phase Two

As with most kids I knew, one of my favorite things as a high school senior was voting for the [...]

By Charlie Ridgely - May 11, 2016 03:41 pm EDT

As with most kids I knew, one of my favorite things as a high school senior was voting for the senior superlatives. Everyone in my graduating class wanted to get on the action. Whether you were voted Class Clown, or picked to have the Best Smile, that page in the front of the yearbook held the highest esteem among your peers; and you'd do anything to try and get your face on it. As high school ended and everyone moved on to bigger and better things, it was nice to know you were one of the kids everyone was going to remember, for one reason or another. High school may be long gone for most of us, but another very important chapter in our lives begins this Friday.

With the release of Captain America: Civil War marking the start of the Marvel Cinematic Universe: Phase Three, this is the all-important stage of the universe every movie has been building toward, culminating in the all-important Avengers finale; Infinity Wars. Ever since the first Avengers film, and the introduction of the Infinity Stones, everyone has been biting their nails in preparation for Phase Three. This weekend means it's finally here, the moment we've all been waiting for. The best part? It kicks off in spectacular fashion with one of the most awaited comic book movies of all time, Civil War. While there is so much to look forward to with this phase of Marvel films, let's not forget how great Phase Two was to us. It brought us some of the best super hero movies to date, and expanded our dreams beyond anything we ever could have hoped for. So, while Phase Three is finally here, let's take a look back and recognize all of the incredible moments that Phase Two left us with.

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Best Actress - Gwyneth Paltrow: Iron Man 3

iron-man-3-pepper-potts-1 — (Photo: Marvel Studios)

Phase Two brought us some great female performances (Zoe Saldana, Karen Gillian, Scarlett Johansson, and Evangeline Lilly to name a few) but none stand out quite like Gwyneth Paltrow in Iron Man 3. Reprising her role as Pepper Potts for the fourth time, Paltrow but an unbelievable amount of depth to her performance. We've always loved her as Tony Stark's level-headed better half, but Iron Man 3 saw her take the character to a place of darkness and emotion we never thought we'd see. To top it off? She finally got to join in the action with an amazing fight scene in the film's third act. While there were many things about Iron Man 3 we'd like to forget, Pepper surely wasn't one of them.

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Best Actor - Chris Pratt: Guardians of the Galaxy

Heading into last August, there was a vast amount of mixed feelings awaiting the release of Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy. One of the biggest question marks? The chubby guy from Parks and Recreation taking over the lead role of Peter Quill. Thank God all of us doubters were totally wrong. Not only did Guardians turn out to be one of the MCU's strongest films to date, but Chris Pratt swooped in and stole all of our hearts in the process. He brought the lovable goofball attitude that we all loved on Parks, and molded it into a kick-ass space pirate. He found a way to balance the brilliance of his comedy with the intense action of a space opera. It was like watching a young Han Solo take over the Marvel universe with a talking rodent by his side.

Because of his performance (and the film's success) Chris Pratt has taken over Hollywood. In addition to reprising the role in two more Guardians films, as well as Infinity Wars, Chris is soon to be seen starring opposite Jennifer Lawrence in the sci-fi epic Passengers, fighting for the unlawful west with Denzel Washington in The Magnificent Seven, and furthering his raptor training career as the lead in the Jurassic World franchise. It's safe to say Pratt has become Hollywood's new "It Man". I'd be hard pressed to find anyone who thinks he doesn't deserve it.

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Best New Character - Ant-Man

antman-ants-Featured — (Photo: Marvel Studios)

Ant-Man is a pivotal part of The Avengers, so it made sense that he would eventually get his own movie. The tough part was finding an actor that was sure to bring the charisma and heart to Scott Lang that comic fans were used to. Thanks to Paul Rudd, that's something we no longer have to worry about. Bringing his lovable charm into the MCU, Rudd played Lang to perfection and gave as a character that we just couldn't wait to see fight alongside his fellow Avengers. Watching him banter back and forth with Falcon was enough of a treat to hold us over until he joined the team, and our dreams came true sooner than we thought. Instead of waiting until the next Avengers movie in 2018, Ant-Man will be fighting alongside Captain America in Civil War this weekend.

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Grooviest Soundtrack - Guardians of the Galaxy

This isn't much of a surprise to anyone. While Marvel films are known to have some of the best scores around, nothing can top the classic rock soundtrack to Guardians of the Galaxy. Director James Gunn paired some of the world's all-time rock favorites with stellar space action and witty dialogue to create the perfect space opera. As soon as I left the theater after watching Guardians, I rushed straight out to get the soundtrack. These were no longer my mom and dad's favorite high school jams; they now belonged to Star-Lord. I can't wait to see what Gunn has in store for the Awesome Mix Vol 2 next August.

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Most Improved - Captain America: The Winter Soldier

captain-america-winter-soldier-23-1500x1000 — (Photo: Marvel Studios)

Personally, I loved Captain America: The First Avenger, but I know it's one of many people's least favorite MCU films. When it was announced that newcomers Joe and Anthony Russo were going to helm the sequel, focusing on the Winter Soldier, everyone was pretty skeptical. Once the film was released, however, it became one of the most well-liked of the franchise. The Russo's took an okay film and made a sequel that comic and film fans alike will be talking about for years to come. Blending the fun of Marvel with the political thrills of Jason Bourne, The Winter Soldier became the new standard in the MCU, and it leads me perfectly into our next award.

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Best Director(s) - The Russo Brothers

Who doesn't love a good segue? Not only did fans love the precision and power that the Russo's brought to the table with The Winter Soldier, but Kevin Feige and the folks over at Marvel did too. So much so that the Russo Brothers have been handed the reigns to the entire future of the Avengers. Following the departure of Joss Whedon, and his enormously big shoes, the Russo's are poised to take the MCU to places it has never been before. If the reviews for Civil War are any indication, they're just the right guys for the job.

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Most Epic Fight Scene - Cap vs. The Elevator

screen-shot-2014-02-05-at-1-29-25-am — (Photo: Marvel Studios)

As I've mentioned, there's a ton of great moments in Captain America: The Winter Soldier. One that will continue to stand out as one of it's best, is the elevator fight scene in which Captain America finds himself up against an entire crew of men. The catch? He's stuck with them in a glass elevator. The next couple of minutes bring us the best fight scene to date in the MCU. Not to mention we got to see Frank Grillo in one of his best scenes. Sure, the Hulk Buster was epic, but nothing can beat the precision and choreography of the elevator.

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Best Bromance - Rocket and Groot: Guardians of the Galaxy

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One of the more popular dynamics in film today is that of the Bromance. It's easy for guys to connect with two friends who seem to have an unshakable bond that goes deeper than an average friendship. While Cap and Bucky have been through everything together, no partnership in the MCU (or even in film) encompasses a true bromance like Rocket and Groot. The most unlikely of friends, a taking Raccoon and a giant tree showed us all the kind of friendship that we'd one day like to have. Rocket's high strung attitude meshed perfectly with Groot's strong silent type and they showed us what it truly means to put your friends first. These two are the new standard in Bromantic relationships.

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Scene With All the Feels - "We Are Groot" Guardians of the Galaxy

There are plenty of moments in the MCU that brought tears to the eyes of nerds everywhere. Many a grown man teared up when Cap's plane is crashing into the arctic and he asks Agent Carter to save him a dance. Even in that moment, we were all able to hide our feelings as we walked out of the theater. However, there was one moment that his us all right in the feels, and left us with tears we didn't know we had. At the climax of Guardians of the Galaxy, all seems lost as the team of friends realizes that the ship is plummeting toward the ground and there's nothing else they can do about it. At the moment we all wonder how they will make it, the most lovable plant since The Giving Tree shows us exactly what it means to love someone else.

Groot reaches out his arms and builds a protective ball around his friends. Upon realizing what he's doing, his best buddy, Rocket Raccoon acknowledges he'll die if he does this. With a smile on his face, Groot comforts his furry pal with the three words that stuck with us all for weeks to come; "We are Groot." I'm tearing up just thinking about it. If you don't remember the scene that well, I'll leave it right here.

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