7 Ways Marvel Has Learned From Its Mistakes

The character arcs of the Phase 1 films were fairly straightforward and (with the exception of Captain America: The First Avenger) concluded at the end of the film, with little room for further growth.

More recent Marvel characters are introduced with more complex character arcs. This means that a different aspect of the main character's philosophy and identity can be explored in the sequel. The Iron Man sequels couldn't work because Tony Stark’s character arc was fully complete - he’d changed from a man of destruction to a hero.

The sequels simply introduced relapses and tried to repeat this story. In contrast, Peter Quill’s first appearance explored his family dynamic with the other guardians, which then tests this relationship when Quill is introduced to his biological father.

This was even developed in Infinity War (spoilers), with Quill finding the maturity to kill Gamora, only to have Thanos take that development away from him using the Reality Stone. Not only does this improve the sequels by giving the characters room for growth without stumping their arcs in the first film, but it also addresses the criticism that there is very little emphasis on character development in ensembles, especially the Avengers films.

Complexity is crucial to keep the MCU ticking, and there is a tightrope to walk between characters that are too basic and arcs that are too convoluted. Marvel manages to introduce each character succinctly in sequels so that audiences unfamiliar with the first films can still enjoy the most recent instalments.