Marvel’s First Avengers: Doomsday Trailer Is A Quiet Admission the MCU Has Wasted the Last Six Years

Marvel Studios is taking a very unique approach with its latest marketing campaign. With Disney releasing a major blockbuster that’s sure to light up the box office in Avatar: Fire and Ash, Kevin Feige and Co. think it’s a good idea to attach a teaser for one of their upcoming releases, Avengers: Doomsday, to it. Well, not so much a teaser as four, as reports claim that each week a new clip will drop, providing additional insight into the story of the fifth Avengers film. With that strategy, one would think that Marvel Studios would come out of the gates swinging by revealing the first look at the Marvel Cinematic Universe‘s newest Big Bad, Doctor Doom, or confirming the Avengers’ lineup. However, that’s not what’s going on.

The first teaser for Doomsday opens with a man on a bike arriving home after what seems like a nice joy ride. He goes inside his house and picks up a familiar costume, revealing that he’s none other than Steve Rogers, aka Captain America. That’s right: Chris Evans is returning to the MCU and will seemingly play a key role in Doomsday. This news should be cause for celebration, since Evans’ Star-Spangled Man is beloved, but it’s not, as it’s proof that the world’s biggest franchise is throwing in the towel.

Captain America’s MCU Return Isn’t Happening Because It’s the Right Time

The end of Avengers: Endgame sees Earth’s Mightiest Heroes face off against Thanos and his army for the final time. Just when the Mad Titan believes he’s gaining the edge, Tony Stark pulls a fast one by grabbing the Infinity Stones out of the Nano Gauntlet and snapping his fingers. In a matter of seconds, Thanos and all of his lackeys are gone, leaving the Avengers standing victorious on the battlefield. They aren’t able to relax, though, as they quickly realize their win came at a cost: Tony’s life. After laying his friend to rest, Steve decides it’s time for him to walk away. He returns the Infinity Stones to their rightful spots and settles down with Peggy. Decades later in his life, he returns to the moment he left and hands his shield to Sam Wilson, seemingly ending his story.

Well, it’s no longer the end because Steve is going to play some part in the fight to save the multiverse. The teaser doesn’t reveal what pulls him back in, but with Robert Downey Jr. playing Doom, the safe bet is that Doomsday will pit those two against each other, with Steve wanting to protect his late friend’s legacy after a villain with his face shows up. That angle might work for some people, as all they want to see is heroes throwing punches at a villain. However, there’s a lot more to consider than that, especially since the MCU has spent the last six years trying to pass the baton to a new generation of characters.

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The pill would be easier to swallow if Doomsday had been marketed as a Captain America vs. Doom movie from the jump, but it wasn’t. The chair announcement video spent hours going through all the names that would be part of the production. While the actors playing the Fantastic Four and New Avengers heard their names called, they weren’t dominating the headlines because Fox’s original X-Men cast was also included. The prevailing theory was that they would have small parts and essentially serve as cannon fodder for Doom. However, the teaser paints a different picture, as the powers that be at Marvel Studios are clearly okay with pushing the characters from Phases Four and Five to the back burner.

Shang-Chi, who made his MCU debut only two years after the release of Endgame, has been waiting years for a second crack at it. He’s going to appear in Doomsday alongside Shuri, Namor, and other characters who have all been chomping at the bit for their next oppurtunity. They all have just as much potential as Steve and Tony did back in the MCU’s early phases, but now they have to watch them steal the spotlight after already having long, drawn-out arcs. Sure, it’s hard to blame the MCU for betting on guaranteed winners, but it’s doing that without even trying to figure out what else it has to offer.

Avengers: Doomsday hits theaters on December 18, 2026.

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