Everything You Need To Remember To Enjoy The Marvels

Three Marvels? In this economy? "The Marvels" (read /Film's review here) is technically a sequel to 2019's "Captain Marvel," a film which rewound the clock to 1995 — a mythical time when Blockbuster stores adorned every other street corner and nobody had ever heard of that Iron Man fellow — for a fairly standalone story revealing how Carol Danvers (Brie Larson) got her superpowers. But at the same time, it's also the 33rd (!) movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and is arriving on the heels of no less than eight live-action Disney+ MCU shows, one animated series, and even a pair of holiday-themed streaming specials (that and, for all my fellow MCU sickos out there, those "I Am Groot" animated shorts).

That's a whole lot of continuity to account for, so much so that even the creatives behind the MCU have found it increasingly difficult to keep track of everything lately while at the same time making sure every new installment is a satisfying viewing experience unto itself. And while the House of Ideas is looking to open things up with future projects that don't require several hours of homework to appreciate, that's not the case with "The Marvels." In fact, its final trailer frames the movie as being nothing less than an "Avengers"-level event overflowing with cameos and Easter eggs. A bold strategy or a last-ditch effort to ensure a bigger turnout than this year's box office disappointment, "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania?" Your call, folks.

While Carol and her allies might have their hands full dealing with a dangerous threat to the very fabric of the multiverse, we're here to make the task of preparing for "The Marvels" just a little bit simpler. Here's a spoiler-free guide to everything you need to know to enjoy the film.

"WandaVision" was Marvel Studios' first attempt at a TV series following its restructuring in 2019 and, as such, is the first show to explore the aftermath of Thanos' snap and The Blip that returned half of all life in the universe to its previous state. It does a pretty nice job of using the history of TV sitcoms to tell a story about grief, too, at least under its emotional yet clunky finale. But for all the ways "WandaVision" is about Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) dealing with all the pain and loss in her life, it's also one about Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris), the now-grown daughter of Carol's best friend and fellow Air Force pilot Maria Rambeau (Lashana Lynch) from "Captain Marvel," doing the same thing.

Monica, as we learn, was waiting for her mother to undergo surgery related to her cancer when she was snapped away by Thanos, only to return five years later and learn that Maria died while she was gone. After throwing herself head-first into work at the Sentient Weapon Observation and Response Division, or S.W.O.R.D. (the agency founded by her mother), Monica is swift to act when a grieving Wanda creates an alternate reality in Westview, New Jersey, which she encloses with a cosmic field dubbed "the Hex." Upon trying and failing to successfully infiltrate Wanda's make-believe world, Monica attempts to re-enter the Hex, which leads to her cells being altered on a genetic level and granting her super-abilities similar to Carol's.

Speaking of which, with everything else going on in "WandaVision," the show has little time to spare for exploring Monica's feelings about her mom's BFF. However, what little we do get makes it clear that Monica has some issues she'll need to work through upon reuniting with "Aunt Carol" in "The Marvels."

Remember earlier when I mentioned "Captain Marvel" isn't so great at political allegory? Well, that extends to the MCU as a whole, especially "Secret Invasion." Apparently, a lot of people skipped out on the Disney+ series completely, which is only fair, seeing as it's generally agreed to be one of the franchise's weakest entries yet (not to mention the most muddled in terms of its sociopolitical subtext). With that being said, I'll step off my soapbox now and get you up to speed on what went down in what should've been Nick Fury's long-awaited hour of triumph.

Most of "Secret Invasion" focuses on Fury and Talos trying to foil a Skrull faction led by Gravik (Kingsley Ben-Adir), a Skrull who has tired of Fury's failed attempts to find his kind a new homeworld and has initiated a plan to basically start WWIII, so as to allow the Skrulls to claim Earth as their own while humanity wipes itself out. Also entangled in this cloak-and-dagger game are G'iah (Emilia Clarke), Talos' disillusioned daughter (whom we briefly met as a child in "Captain Marvel"), and Varra (Charlayne Woodard), Fury's wife and a Skrull who's been passing herself off as Dr. Priscilla Davis (a human who granted Varra permission to pretend to be her prior to her death). And while Gravik is ultimately defeated, Talos is killed along the way, with the Skrulls' existence becoming public knowledge and plunging Earth into a paranoia-fueled state of disarray.

As for Fury? By the end of the series, he and Varra are headed off to outer space to negotiate a peace deal between the Skrulls and Kree and, hopefully, bring all this bloodshed to an end. We'll see how that plan is working out for them when "The Marvels" arrives on November 10, 2023.