A few weeks ago, a friend called me and asked me how I would rank all the MCU Disney+ shows. Yesterday, I watched some of my favorite people on YouTube, New Rockstars, do the exact same thing. It never crossed my mind to make a post until yesterday, so here goes.
I can’t do this list backwards because I get lost in what shows I feel are better than others, so I will go against the grain and start from the top.
Number 1: WandaVision
WandaVision took us on such a rollercoaster ride that we didn’t know we needed or were even on until we got there. From what I can recall, the trailers really never gave us any real hints as to what was really to come in this show. It hinged on that sitcom theme and stuck with that. Fast forward to us watching the show and something just feels off. It was subtle. We, the audience, are still trying to figure out how Vision is even here. Is this a dream? Did this happen in the past? Now, you all know my main issue with this wonderful show was the “It was Agatha All Along” bit, but other than that, this was a flawless start to the series of Disney+ shows that were to come. Wanda’s Vision and White Vision’s conversation about Theseus’ ship is still, hands down, one of my favorite moments from any of the shows. We got to the end of the series and I wanted another season. We deserve more from Wanda, Vision, and Monica. I want to see more magic tricks from Jimmy and we all love Darcy. I actually loved her more in this series than I did in the Thor movies.
Number 2: Loki
Wanda wasn’t the only one dealing with grief. Although Loki, thought, he found a way to escape his fate, he actually ended up on a journey of self-discovery. Wanda, who seems like a very emotional person, seemed to go through a lot of displayed trauma, if you will. She never hide her emotions and we saw that a lot throughout her series. With Loki, it was quiet emotion. He’s Loki, Odin son, God of Mischief….with no family or home. A lot was due to his own doing while a lot of it did actually happen to him. Low key, they took us on a journey, not to find the end of Time, but to really get to know who Loki was as a whole person and not a God. There was absolutely nothing I could find fault with in this show. I actually stayed up until 3 am EST to watch the final episode, almost died when Mrs. Minutes came out of nowhere, and SCREAMED when I saw Jonathan Majors because I knew what that meant and who he is in the MCU. The monologue he gave us, complete with him standing on his desk, was absolutely phenomenal. I was captivated by EACH AND EVERY WORD that came out of his mouth, and they left us just enough to go into season two. I cannot wait!
Number 3: Moon Knight
Oscar Isaacs. Dassit! That’s the reason we’re here. If we don’t give this man all his things, I will riot because the acting displayed in this SERIES was worth an Oscar and I know Oscars are just for movies. But and however, Isaacs took every season and went beyond the writers’ wildest dreams. I don’t think when they wrote this series that they thought that he would act that well. Ethan Hawke as Arthur Harrow and previous avatar to Khonsu….man, this deserved a movie. Based on the cinematography ALONE! I live in Ancient Egypt in my mind, so I felt right at home in this series. The real mystery of the show wasn’t even the real mystery, and that was what I loved about the show. The whole time we’re worried about Khonsu and didn’t even see the Steven/Marc complex coming. We got a new view of a different afterlife, which was so cool to see as a person who again lives in Ancient Egypt in my mind. Please give me a season two or something to follow this up with. I beg you! I want to note that these top three shows are the only shows on this list I have watched twice on purpose.
Number 4: What If…
I think Jeffrey Wright and James Spader’s voices are why this show is so high on my list. This is another example of a show that, in the trailers, seemed like we would just be exploring alternate universes. The real mystery was not the real mystery because somebody invited Ultron, and if we know anything about Ultron, we know that the fun to be had is only by him. Another favorite moment I had from all of these series, which is a post I might do, was when The Watcher is narrating and all of a sudden he realizes that Ultron can see him. It was then that Molly knew she was in danger. (IYKYK) I laughed so hard at that scene. It just played out so well, and the beauty of this show is that we can always have a season of this because there will always be questions of “what if?”
Number 5: She-Hulk
Before this series aired, I didn’t know a single thing about She-Hulk. Now that the series has ended, we still have no idea who She-Hulk is and that’s the point. We got to know who Jennifer Walters was and I like her. She’s cool. She’s not perfect and She-Hulk is not who she is but something that is apart of her. She’s not a different person when she’s She-Hulk, which is what I think people thought would happen. She’s just Jennifer…but green…and large….and really strong. It was the best show about nothing. Hated the CGI and we all said that as we continued to watch, but what I loved is that in that finale episode, they poked fun at that exact gripe from fans. Now, what we need to know is did you make this CGI bad on purpose for this joke or did you know that you didn’t have the resources you needed but still wanted to produce this show so you decided that you would write to that? I need the answer to this question because I am a stickler for cinematography and CGI. It bothers me when I don’t have both done right. But the show was great and I had a great time in group therapy with Jennifer. That actually was my favorite episode. Sorry, I didn’t watch Daredevil. Do not kill me!
Number 6: The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
I loved Sam and Bucky’s journeys. Sam trying to feel worthy enough to be Steve when he only needed to be Sam, and Bucky trying to be a good person even though there had been so much in his past that makes him feel and think otherwise. This was an underlying theme of the show. Fake Cap irritated my spirit to NO END. Do not bring me John Walker in nothing else. The actor was fabulous and did his job because every episode I was like, “OMG, he’s still here! Who picked him??!!” I am excited to see what Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ character Valentina, I cannot remember if we can call her Val, is doing lurking around recruiting the misfits. What you doing girl? What you need John and Yelena for? Tell us your plan? Are you creating the Thunderbolts? What is the reason?! I love that Sam has finally embraced himself as a hero and that Bucky believes in his goodness again. I can’t wait to see when I can see them next.
Number 7: Hawkeye
We got to explore more about Clint and I enjoyed that. Kate Bishop is hilarious. Reminded me of Spider-Man where he never knows what he’s doing but he knows he has to do whatever it takes to be a hero. That’s Kate’s mission. She is winging it and it’s bad. I loved the relationship between Clint and Kate. He already has kids and did not need a…fourth? Is that how many kids he has? Three? Let’s go with that. It was a good Christmas time series that wasn’t smack-you-in-the-face Christmas themed. It just happened to be snowing and around Christmas time in New York. Much like everyone else in these series, Clint got to go on a journey of self discovery. He got to be a little softer and the audience got to learn a little more about what Clint never wants to tell us about himself or the past. The series itself was cute and I think we get another season of Hawkeye. I think we need one and maybe be keep the theme of holidays. Make it jolly.
Number 8: Ms. Marvel
By no means does this mean that I disliked this show. It just was not a show that I actively watched. Hawkeye and Ms. Marvel were shows that I knew were happening but never made it my mission to make sure I was there on the day to watch the new episode. It was like, “Hey, there’s a new episode. Cool.” Dassit. I did love her parents. Minority parents are the worst! They mean well and they love their kids but it’s like ok! We get it but we are not going to shame the family or die by doing what we want to do. I related to that so much. Kamala was just great. She was another one that reminded me of Spider-Man, but in a different way. I don’t think Kamala ever doubted herself as a being a hero. She embraced it and immediately was like, “I’ve waited all my life for this. It’s go time!” I found myself not really caring about the overall plot of the show but wanting to spend more time with Kamala, her family, and her friends. That was where the heart was, and sure, it would have been the same hero trope as usual but it would have been within a culture of people we haven’t really seen before. That was refreshing to me.
This is my list and it don’t really see it changing. What’s your list? Watch New Rockstars below and compare your list.
BLACK WATCH 