11 Best Things The MCU Did Differently To The Comics

How to make Civil War genuinely interesting? Add some depth.

by Ewan Paterson
Marvel Studios

Since being introduced in 2008, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (or MCU for short) has been adapting storylines from the pages of Marvel Comics, some famous, others not so much. Either way, like most adaptations things have to change, and while it's fair to say that not every change has worked for the better, some undoubtedly have - so much so that they've even gone on to influence the comics themselves.

With alterations to key storylines, costumes, and even characters themselves, it's fair to say that, while the MCU owes a great debt to Marvel Comics, it has also managed to build a lore all of its own, taking into account dozens of different interpretations to impart a definitive image of the House of Ideas in a way no other adaptation really has.

Its achievements go without saying, really, and though nothing can truly compare with the source material itself, it's worth pointing out those occasions where the MCU managed to genuinely innovate on a premise, character, or something else entirely.

They may have gone unnoticed at first, but when you look back on over ten years worth of cinematic history, it’s easy to find examples of where the MCU changed comics for the better.

Advertisement
Content Producer/Presenter

WhatCulture's very own resident movie guy, Ewan has been working in the content creation biz for over 10 years now, having started as a freelance contributor to WhatCulture Gaming all the way back in 2015. After graduating with a First-Class Honours in History from Northumbria University in 2017 (where he won a prize for a totally killer dissertation on the Watergate years), Ewan took on the role of Comics Editor at WhatCulture and quickly developed WhatCulture Comics into one of the biggest superhero-focused channels on YouTube. He followed this with a brief hiatus at Screen Rant in 2021, where he worked across the Gaming and Film sections as a writer and editor, before returning to WhatCulture as a Senior Content Producer / Presenter in 2023. He started his own podcast, We Love Dad Movies, in 2022, and has contributed several written pieces to the Eisner-nominated comics website Shelfdust as well. In his current role, Ewan incorporates his love of cinema, comic books, and history into written pieces and video essays for WhatCulture's Film & TV channel, as well as WhatCulture Gaming and WhatCulture Horror, with a particular focus on nineties-era Dad Movies, old school Westerns, and Golden Age Hollywood Noir. John Carpenter is his fave, and he thinks Batman Beyond should never have been cancelled. If that's your vibe, you'll probably like his stuff.