Marvel Cinematic Universe: Every One-Shot & Webseries Ranked Worst To Best

7. The Consultant

The One-Shot that started it all was released all the way back in September of 2011. With Thor and Captain America: The First Avenger behind it and The Avengers looming on the horizon, The Consultant helped piece together why Tony Stark approached General Ross in The Incredible Hulk.

Aside from giving us more of Agent Phil Coulson, the short also established Agent Sitwell's presence in the MCU a little more several years before the big HYDRA reveal, helped clear up what happened to Emil Blonsky following the events of The Incredible Hulk, and also teed up the existence of the World Security Council ahead of their debut in The Avengers.

Considering what the One-Shots would become a bit further down the road, The Consultant may seem like a mere curiosity for diehard MCU fans than an outright necessity at this point thanks to its brevity, but that doesn't mean it should be dismissed. Thanks to its success, it paved the way for the short films to keep widening their scope in terms of narrative ambition and length, as well as further cemented Coulson's status as a fan favorite - something that ultimately helped give rise to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. - and that's something worth acknowledging.