2014 was quite a big year for Marvel, possibly even moreso than any other year. Join us as we count down our favorite 2014 Marvel moments!
From on-screen surprises and twists to incredibly exciting upcoming movie announcements to new directions in trade comics, Marvel has made quite a splash this year. They’ve made their ever-expanding universe even more interesting and exciting, giving us some pretty amazing moments this year and truly solidifying their position as one of the best in the entertainment business today.
Below are our top 10 favorite Marvel moments from this past year. These are in no way the only Marvel moments that we loved, but they are the ones that excited, surprised, and pleased us the most.
Note: This list covers everything that happened this year, so if you’re not up to date on your Marvel moments, (including the season finale of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.) be warned that you may find spoilers.
#10: Thor is a woman!
This was, quite possibly, the coolest Marvel moment of the year. We remember being so surprised and taken off-guard by this announcement just because it was something we didn’t even have on our radar. We remember when the news first broke how we were all unsure how, if at all, this would affect the Marvel Cinematic Universe and joked about Chris Hemsworth’s hair being pretty enough for him to pull it off. But most of all, we were excited. Gender-bending like this is only something we’ve seen on Tumblr, so to have it be canon is really intriguing. It’s just a really awesome concept and we can’t wait to see where it goes.
(One of the best parts about this new development, though, is how Chris Hemsworth has reacted to it. Not only is he all for it, but he’s made some self-deprecating jokes during interviews that make him even more charming in our eyes.)
#9: ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ was actually FANTASTIC
Not that we’d ever actually doubt Marvel, but we were slightly unsure going into Guardians of the Galaxy. Sure, the trailers looked fun and hilarious (and we couldn’t get “Hooked on a Feeling” out of our heads for months). But Guardians was such an obscure property and it featured a gun-toting raccoon. And a talking tree. We didn’t know how it would fit into the Marvel cinematic universe that we knew and loved, and we certainly didn’t know if or how the S.H.I.E.L.D. meltdown would affect things.
But we never expected to love the movie as much as we do. Not in a million years. We also never expected the whole world to love it as well, non-Marvel fanatics included! It was one of the biggest movies of the year and Rocket and Groot are so popular now. Guardians‘ success was definitely a notable Marvel moment in 2014.
#8: The reveal that Grant Ward was a traitor all along
We should have seen this coming. After a re-watch, it’s easy to see that there were a ton of subtle hints and clues sprinkled throughout the season that hinted towards Ward’s dark side. But the way in which his allegiance was revealed was expertly done. Most of the time, we’re not ones to verbalize our feelings to our TVs, but the episode where he was outed made us gasp and yell at the screen. Multiple times.
Like the HYDRA reveal was significant to the entire universe, Ward’s HYDRA ties have greatly impacted the microcosm of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.. And people used to say that Ward’s character was boring and unnecessary. Woo, boy. He definitely made the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 1 finale an interesting and emotional one.
#7: Marvel’s Phase 3 reveal
We knew that Marvel’s special event in October would be special and exciting, but we had no idea to what degree. This one event made us so excited that we could barely breathe. Where to begin? First there was the announcement that Infinity War is not only coming in Phase 3, but it’s going to be two movies. Two! We’re always down for more Avengers!
However, the most exciting part of the event had to have been the announcement of the Captain Marvel and Black Panther movies that they’ve slated for Phase 3. We’ve been hoping for these characters (especially Captain Marvel) to get their own movies and now it’s finally happening! While we would’ve loved to have seen a movie starring Black Widow on the Phase 3 slate, we’re more than jazzed about all of these movies. Bring on Phase 3!
#6: The ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ trailer premieres
Avengers: Age of Ultron is, undoubtedly, one of the biggest events happening in 2015, so of course the release of its highly-anticipated trailer is one of our favorite Marvel moments of the year! While a select few incredibly lucky Marvel fans got to see the trailer in the presence of the Avengers themselves, the rest of us had to suffer for months until the trailer’s wide release.
But, we have to say: It was definitely worth the wait. It looks INCREDIBLE. Our favorite part has to be the creepy, slowed-down version of “I’ve Got No Strings.” Seriously though, we get chills every time we hear Ultron say “I’ve got no strings on me…” (which is frequent because we pretty much have the trailer on replay).
Continue on to page 2 to see which Marvel moment took our #1 spot!
#5: The announcement that RDJ will be in the third ‘Captain America’
This was a bigger moment than the actual reveal of the Captain America: Civil War title because it’s what pretty much told us that the third movie would be about Civil War. The internet went NUTS the night that the news about Robert Downey Jr. having a large part in the film came out.
There were long conversations happening everywhere we looked (including our personal Twitter streams and our article pages). The announcement sparked discussions over RDJ’s place in a Captain America (namely, Chris Evans’ last one) as well as Civil War‘s timing (and the fact that it’s a Captain America movie and not an Avengers movie). Who knew that one small casting rumor (that quickly turned into a casting announcement) could cause quite a stir in the Marvel community?
#4: The end of the ‘Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ mid-season finale
Ho. Ly. COW. The last few minutes of this fall’s mid-season finale were insane. We’ll be honest and say that we’ve been expecting the Inhumans/”Skye is going to get powers” storyline pretty much all season. We knew it was coming, but we had no idea that it was going to come like this. At the cost of one of our favorite former agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the grandson of a Howling Commando. It was so heart-wrenching to watch him disintegrate, especially when, moments earlier, we thought Mac was going to be the one to die.
And then Skye reaches her full potential and looks almost extraterrestrial in the way that she exhibits her powers… We got chills. It was such a powerful moment that made us feel both devastated and excited.
#3: The premiere (and success) of Ms. Marvel
To put it simply, the new Ms. Marvel series is absolutely wonderful. It’s refreshing and unlike anything we’ve ever read, not just other comics. We love Kamala’s personality and the rich culture that surrounds her, her family, and her friends. This comic has been one of the most talked about titles in 2014 and for good reason. In fact, it’s one of the most successful titles of the year! It’s just so well put together and we can’t wait to see where it goes. Thank you, 2014, for giving us this incarnation of Ms. Marvel.
#2: Dancing Baby Groot
The best part of Guardians of the Galaxy HAS to be the credits scene. Groot slowly won us over during the course of the movie but it was during his solo dancing scene that really made us fall in love with him. It’s quite possibly one of the most fun credits scenes that Marvel has ever done. In fact, it may be one of our favorite Marvel movie scenes of all time because of how unexpected and wonderful it is.
Now that we’ve seen it, we’ll never be able to listen to “I Want You Back” without flailing our arms and dancing. If there’s one thing we’ve taken away from 2014, it’s that “Groot-ing” is now a thing and we’re so happy about it.
#1: The HYDRA reveal and the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D.
The Captain America: The Winter Soldier filmmakers weren’t lying when they said that this movie would change the Marvel cinematic universe forever. Holy cow, what a fantastic twist. While it was in no way unfounded or random feeling, we honestly never saw it coming. But that’s probably what made it so awesome. It was an organic plot point that has allowed the universe to open up and create a new canon (not that the movies stayed 100% true to the comics before this point).
Plus, it was mind-boggling to find out which known MCU characters were actually HYDRA and to see everything play out on a “smaller” scale on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.. The reveal was a huge moment with a huge payoff. That’s what makes this the #1 Marvel moment of 2014 for us. It was, without a doubt, the biggest event of the year.