The final episode of Marvel Television’s Ironheart brings to a close one of the most polarizing eras of the Marvel Cinematic Universe since the franchise began. Ironheart released in two batches of three episodes on June 24 and July 1, 2025, respectively, bringing Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne) back to the MCU and pitting her against Parker Robbin’s Hood (Anthony Ramos). Ironheart hit Disney+ as the final project in the MCU’s Phase 5, which has been one of the franchise’s most divisive chapters since 2023’s Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.
The MCU’s Phase 5 has been an era of ups and downs for Marvel Studios, delivering some well-received projects such as Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Loki season 2, Deadpool & Wolverine, Agatha All Along, and, most recently, Thunderbolts*. However, Phase 5 also produced some lackluster and low-rated instalments, notably Quantumania, The Marvels, and Secret Invasion. Even so, part-way through Phase 5, there was a noticeable shift in the quality of Marvel’s projects, which spells good news for the MCU in years to come.
| MCU Phase 5 Movie or TV Show | Release Date |
| Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania | February 17, 2023 |
| Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 | May 5, 2023 |
| Secret Invasion | June 21 – July 26, 2023 |
| Loki Season 2 | October 5 – November 9, 2023 |
| The Marvels | November 10, 2023 |
| What If…? Season 2 | December 22 – December 30, 2023 |
| Echo | January 9, 2024 |
| Deadpool & Wolverine | July 26, 2024 |
| Agatha All Along | September 18 – October 30, 2024 |
| What If…? Season 3 | December 22 – December 29, 2024 |
| Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man | January 29 – February 19, 2025 |
| Captain America: Brave New World | February 14, 2025 |
| Daredevil: Born Again Season 1 | March 4 – April 15, 2025 |
| Thunderbolts* | May 2, 2025 |
| Ironheart | June 24 – July 1, 2025 |
Following 2023’s WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, Marvel Studios went through significant behind the scenes changes that altered the production of its TV shows, while also putting more focus on the quality of its theatrical releases. These alterations were clear in Agatha All Along, Thunderbolts*, Daredevil: Born Again, and more releases in the latter half of Phase 5, including Ironheart itself, which has achieved an 86% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, despite early review bombing. The quality of these movies and shows was much-improved compared to the Phase’s earlier half, and it seems this will continue.
The MCU’s Phase 6 will be kicking off very soon with the release of The Fantastic Four: First Steps on July 25, 2025. Beyond First Steps, Eyes of Wakanda, Wonder Man, Marvel Zombies, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, and the Russo brothers’ upcoming Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars are all highly-anticipated and expected to excel. A second season of Daredevil: Born Again, the next WandaVision spinoff, Vision Quest, and a Special Presentation starring Jon Bernthal as the Punisher will all also flesh out Phase 6, setting up one of the MCU’s most exciting chapters yet.
It’s been great to see Marvel Studios adapt to criticism and evolve in recent years. In the wake of Avengers: Endgame and the Infinity Saga’s conclusion, Phases 4 and 5 produced some of the MCU’s most-hated and lowest-rated instalments, but this has been turned into a positive learning curve for the studio, rather than a reputation-destroyer. Ironheart marked a strong end to the MCU’s Phase 5, so, now, our eyes can turn to the much-anticipated projects of Phase 6 and the mutant-centric storylines beyond that.
What did you think of the MCU’s Phase 5? Let us know in the comments!
The post The Marvel Cinematic Universe Just Ended a Divisive Era After Two Years appeared first on ComicBook.com.