The MCU’s Key Phase 5 Problem Is The Perfect Villain Is Too Big

The MCU could use Marvel’s biggest villain for Phase 5, but that would bring huge narrative and logistical problems. The previous three Phases of the MCU built towards the Avengers’ final fight with Josh Brolin’s Thanos. More than a decade and dozens of villains later, the Infinity Saga’s conclusion managed to feel more satisfying than anything comic book fans had ever seen before. The success of both Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers Endgame rewarded the patience of loyal viewers, and Thanos quickly joined the pantheon of iconic film villains to prove it. Now that Thanos has been defeated, a bigger, scarier, and more powerful villain needs to be introduced for Phase 4 and onwards.

With Disney’s acquisition of Fox, Marvel’s character repertoire has been expanded considerably. Heroes and villains associated with the X-Men and the Fantastic Four can now join the MCU, and fans finally have the chance to see villains like Doctor Doom, Magneto, and Kang the Conqueror fighting Doctor Strange and co. With a new generation of heroes in Phase 4 ready to make their first appearance, the biggest question now is who will become the franchise’s next main villain. Speculations range from a supervillain team like the Thunderbolts to a multiversal threat led by Nightmare. But if Marvel wants to make sure the next villain will be a character who can easily beat Thanos, the most logical option would be to introduce Galactus.

Galactus is an entity beyond matter, good, and evil. Originated in a universe previous to 616 (Marvel’s main universe), Galactus travels across the vastness of space in search of energy, which he absorbs by consuming entire planets. The “Devourer of Worlds” has faced numerous heroes throughout the years, and has even chosen characters such as Silver Surfer and Thor as his heralds. It would take everyone in the MCU, including the Eternals, to stop Galactus. A fight of such scale would instantly top Avengers Endgame‘s final battle. However, Galactus’ gargantuan size and power would make the battle very difficult to understand with so many characters and VFX shots saturating the screen.

Another problem would be how little screentime each of the heroes could get when fighting him. A battle between one huge antagonist against hundreds of smaller heroes would feel very unbalanced. One way Marvel could avoid these issues is by taking some creative freedom with Galactus’ appearance, which always changes depending on who sees him. He could become small enough to make the battle more balanced and give the battleground a slightly bigger chance to not get obliterated during the first few minutes of a fight sequence. Galactus could also have more than one herald, just like Thanos had his Black Order.

Since Galactus is so closely tied to the multiverse, villains and heroes from other realities could join the fight, which already seems to be happening in Phase 5. Narratively, Galactus is too big a threat for the newest MCU heroes in Phase 5. It’s safe to say no other villain could ever top Galactus’ power level if he’s defeated so soon. However, villains like Kang the Conqueror, Doctor Doom, and a multiversal Sinister Six could set up Galactus beforehand, so the MCU can have the biggest possible antagonist for its eventual conclusion.

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