Marvel Celebrates 85th Anniversary With Top 85 Moments in the MCU

Find out if your favorite MCU moments made the list.

By Timothy Adams

Journey back in time through the Marvel Cinematic Universe to experience all of its greatest moments again. This year marks the 85th anniversary of Marvel, the brand that began as a comic book publisher and now dominates at the theatrical box office, while also entertaining fans in the comfort of their homes. The MCU began with 2008's Iron Man, catapulting Robert Downey Jr. back into stardom and kickstarting the revival of a shared universe on screen. There have been some monumental moments throughout the MCU, and if you ever wondered what the top moments are, you can rest easy by tuning into a special playlist that breaks them all down.

The Marvel Entertainment YouTube channel released an almost hour-long video featuring "85 Iconic MCU Moments." The description gives some extra context for what this all encompasses: "In celebration of Marvel's 85th anniversary, follow the Marvel Cinematic Universe timeline from Captain America: The First Avenger to Loki Season 2 in 85 unforgettable moments — all of which can be found streaming on Disney+." The first scene comes from Captain America: The First Avenger and moves to Captain Marvel, taking a timeline approach to the Top 85 compared to when each movie was released in theaters. The often overlooked The Incredible Hulk even makes an appearance.

The MCU reveals its Top 85 moments

Taking a look at the 52 minutes, 14 second video highlights just how many unforgettable moments have already taken place in the MCU. What makes the compilation extra special is the theme music for each film also plays during the footage. An example is Henry Jackman's soundtrack to Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and the iconic Avengers tune that debuted in the 2012 movie.

Some of the biggest moments come around the halfway point in the video, with Earth's Mightiest Heroes falling to Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War and making a comeback in Avengers: Endgame. The latter movie finally delivered the infamous "Avengers Assemble" line from Captain America, something Marvel fans had been waiting over a decade for. Unfortunately, it also saw Iron Man sacrifice his life to stop the Mad Titan.

What's up next for the MCU?

With only Deadpool & Wolverine as the lone Marvel movie released in 2024, next year is shaping up to be a big rebound year for the MCU. 2025 sees the release of The Fantastic Four: First Steps, which officially welcomes the FF into the MCU after Disney acquired 20th Century Fox. There's also Captain America: Brave New World and Thunderbolts*, with Marvel going back to releasing three movies in theaters.

Mahershala Ali's Blade is also tentatively on the docket, though the film has seen a number of delays and changes in directors and direction behind the scenes. On the Disney+ side of things, we have Daredevil: Born Again and Ironheart.

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