2016 is shaping up to be a pretty big year for Marvel fans. We know we say that every year, but this year seems to be extra jam-packed.
From the Marvel Cinematic Universe, to the Marvel television universe(s), to the All-New All-Different initiative happening on the comics side, there is so much going on in 2016 that we can’t possibly keep track of it all.
But we’re going to try.
These are just a few of the Marvel-ous (yes, we’re going to use that pun as much as possible) things to look forward to in 2016 from one of our all-time favorite pop culture powerhouses.
All of the Marvel movies
‘Captain America: Civil War’
We think it’s pretty obvious what Marvel’s biggest event in 2016 will be. After all, people (ourselves included) have been going crazy over the Civil War trailer and the Russos’ breakdown of it since it hit the interwebz. (So much so that it has shattered the record for trailer with the highest amount of views in just 24 hours.) Captain America: Civil War is going to be huge and life-changing. It’s such an emotional story and one that we didn’t even know we were waiting for. We just want this movie in our lives right now, even if it’s going to emotionally devastate us.
‘Doctor Strange’
Though the casting for this movie has us a bit concerned, we’re excited to welcome another property into the Marvel fold. Doctor Strange is especially intriguing because it deals with magic rather than just “normal” super powers. The MCU has slowly gone galactic and now Doctor Strange is adding a new layer to that with mystical powers. We can’t wait to see what kind of storytelling and depth the movie brings to the MCU as we know it.
Non-Marvel Studios Marvel movies
While other non-Marvel Studios Marvel movies have let us down (and broken our hearts) in the past (we’re looking at you, Fantastic Four and Amazing Spider-Man 2), we have high hopes for the flicks coming out in 2016. Let’s face it: Everything we’ve seen of Deadpool has been amazing so far, from the teasers to the trailer to all of the sexy promotional photos. And the current run of X-Men movies have been really great, so we really have no doubt that Apocalypse will continue that streak. We haven’t seen or heard much about it yet, but photos of the cast all look ah-mazing. Please don’t let us down, non-MCU movies!
All of the Marvel television shows
‘Agent Carter’ season 2
We got a season 2! We’re not embarrassed to admit that we sobbed for a good 10 minutes once the news broke. Our lives would have been so empty without Peggy Carter & Co. gracing our screens once more. Agent Carter is such a kick-ass, confidence-boosting, feel-good show that we want it to stay in our lives forever. It’s a huge bummer that the premiere is delayed two weeks because of Obama’s final State of the Union address (thanks, Obama), but that really doesn’t have any effect on our excitement at this point. Dear Peggy, we love you. Welcome back.
‘Marvel’s Luke Cage’
It’s no surprise that Mike Colter’s Luke Cage is a standout on Jessica Jones. Marvel really hit a home-run in casting him. His few appearances on Jessica Jones make us super jazzed to see how great he is as the center of his whole series. Other reasons we’re looking forward to Luke Cage? The return of Claire and (fingers and toes crossed) a few appearances by Krysten Ritter. Well, those things and the fact that Marvel’s Netflix shows have been some of the best television we’ve ever seen, so we’re anticipating the same with Luke Cage.
‘Daredevil’ season 2
Have we mentioned how much we love Marvel’s Netflix shows? Or Daredevil? Season 1 completely blew us away. It exceeded expectations, not only in terms of action and plot but also in terms of the relationships between the characters. (We seriously can’t get enough of the avocados at law.) With Punisher and Elektra joining the show for season 2, we can’t help but think it’s going to be bigger and better than the first season (although the first season is pretty hard to beat).
‘Marvel’s Iron Fist’ (maybe?)
Okay, so there haven’t been any announcements regarding Iron Fist aside from the one recently where it was confirmed the series is still happening. There haven’t even been any murmurings of who might be cast as Danny Rand. However, the original plan was to release Iron Fist in 2016. While it doesn’t seem very likely as of right now, we’re still going to hold out hope until we’re told otherwise.
‘Marvel’s Most Wanted’ (maybe)
This has been one of the most “will they, won’t they” Marvel shows, just in terms of production. The spinoff was announced and then it was cancelled. But now it’s back and a pilot episode has been ordered. Given Marvel’s storytelling prowess (and the fact that Bobbi and Hunter are two of the best parts of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. at the moment), we’d be surprised if Most Wanted wasn’t picked up. And, since it has gotten so much attention over the last eight or so months, we’d be even more surprised if it didn’t premiere sometime in 2016.
‘Marvel’s Damage Control’ (probably)
Back in October, we got word that Marvel was developing a sitcom based on the poor, underpaid souls who have to clean up after the superheroes and villains every time they go at it. So, basically, we’re expecting Marvel’s version of The Office. How could it not be hilarious? Like Marvel’s Most Wanted, ABC has so far only ordered a pilot of Damage Control. However, seeing as DC is developing a similar television comedy, we’d be surprised if Marvel let this one go. If it does get picked up, we definitely see it premiering in 2016 just because we don’t anticipate the production value having to be all that high.
All of the Marvel comics
The return of the A-Force
A-Force made quite a splash when it premiered earlier this year. After the end of Secret Wars and the Battle World, some thought that A-Force might be done for. WRONG. It’s coming back and it’s going to be better than ever! Though we’ll really miss Marguerite Bennett as the writer, we’re excited to see what the amazing G. Willow Wilson brings to the table. We just can’t wait to see all the ladies!
‘Spider-Women’
Spider-Gwen, Spider-Woman, and Silk all in one series? Ummm, YES PLEASE. We can’t get enough of these spider ladies. They’re honestly some of our favorite characters in the whole Marvel universe (which is really saying something). We’re super excited to see them team up to fight evil. Just imagine the potential for sassy one-liners and banter! Plus, there will apparently be evil versions of Silk and Spider-Woman running around as well. We’re so into this idea. Spring 2016 can’t come soon enough.
A new Black Widow run
The best part about the end of Secret Wars and the beginning of the All-New All-Different comic book runs is that now is the best time for newbies to start reading comic books. All of the Marvel characters are basically starting over at square one and there are so many fresh takes on characters coming down the pipeline, including one about Natasha Romanoff! The new Black Widow run promises to be pretty great thanks to the fact that it’s being done by the team that just completed the most recent (and impressive) Daredevil run. This Black Widow series needs to kick off, like, now.
A new Captain Marvel run
Speaking of new comic runs, we’re getting more Captain Marvel (which will hopefully tide us over until Marvel Studios eventually releases Captain Marvel, although who knows when that will be). While the legendary Kelly Sue DeConnick (who pretty much made Carol the amazing character that she is) has stepped down, the new run is going to be written by the superstars behind Agent Carter! *squeals* We love what they’ve done with Peggy and honestly can’t wait to see what they do with Carol Danvers (and if that has any influence on the upcoming movie). It’s going to be great!
First ever on-going Mockingbird comic series
Can you believe that Mockingbird aka Bobbi Morse has never headlined her own comic? Sure, she’s been a supporting character in other titles and she had a pretty great one-shot during the run of the S.H.I.E.L.D. 50th Anniversary comics, but she’s never had a series to call her own. Until now. All of the details we have about the ongoing series right now is that it’s going to involve zombies and corgis, which sounds awesome. Add in Bobbi’s wit and this series sounds like it’ll be a memorable one.
‘Avengers: Standoff’ aka ‘Civil War part II’
Right before New York Comic Con, postcards and images were floating around that hinted toward a second Civil War event. It’s safe to say that people started mildly freaking out, and for good reason. The first Civil War event was so huge and ground-breaking that the idea of a second one… woo boy. We now know that what Marvel was teasing is a new event called Avengers: Standoff! While we’re intrigued by the idea of Civil War part two, we’re mostly excited about the fact that this event will heavily feature all of the past and current Captain Americas (Steve Rogers, Bucky Barnes, and Sam Wilson)!
All of the miscellaneous Marvel magic
All the Marvel YA novels
Remember the excitement surrounding the announcement and release of Black Widow: Forever Red? Quintuple that and you’ve got the right idea for how exciting 2016 is going to be in terms of Marvel YA novels. Not only are we getting a sequel to Forever Red, but we’re also getting novels about Captain Marvel, Squirrel Girl, Rocket & Groot, and the Tony Stark. We can’t wait to see what the authors of these novels have in store for us and where they’ll be taking some of our favorite characters. (We also can’t wait to see what other novels Marvel is going to give us after these ones do crazy well!)
‘Jessica Jones’ merch
Right now, for some reason, sites like Hot Topic have Luke Cage merch, but there’s no Jessica Jones. Even though she was the main character. But, whatever. The one thing you can count on is conventions and fan-geared merchandise sites starting to roll out Jessica Jones merch. Fingers crossed for something featuring Jessica and Trish! (Hopefully we won’t have to wait almost another year for Funkos like we did for Daredevil!)
Marvel’s playing nice in the sandbox
With the deal Marvel Studios struck with Sony earlier this year and a new television partnership between Marvel and Fox, we’re hopeful that Marvel will continue to play nice in the sandbox with the other studios that have rights to Marvel properties. Today, it’s Spider-Man in Civil War, tomorrow it’s X-Men or the Fantastic Four joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Sure, those deals seem a bit far-fetched at the moment, but no more than Spider-Man joining Civil War did a year ago. 2016 could be the year where everyone gets along. Imagine that!