Disney Plus continues to be random with its official Marvel Cinematic Universe timeline, as proven by the recent addition of Quantumania to its catalog. The streamer, which hosts a special section for those who wish to watch the MCU in order, placed the Paul Rudd-led quantum epic at the very end of the timeline, after The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special and we have several questions.
The streamer seems to be torn between simply sticking to release order and creating any semblance of timeline continuity among the several films and shows that make up the MCU’s fourth and fifth phases. While Quantumania‘s spot on the timeline is the last of several errors, it was also easily avoidable. Allow us to set the scene.
When Black Panther: Wakanda Forever hit the streamer in February, it was more or less correctly placed before She-Hulk. A lot of the Phase Four outings happen at the start of 2025, about a year and a few months after the Avengers beat Thanos and everyone rose from the ashes in Avengers: Endgame. We know for a fact Hawkeye wrapped up 2024 on the timeline, and that She-Hulk happens in the summer of 2025. Between those sits Wakanda Forever, but also Thor: Love and Thunder, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Moon Knight, and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. We have broken down exactly how that is possible in the past, based on the few clues each movie and show presented us with.
As for Quantumania, our safest bet is that it happens concurrently with, or just after She-Hulk – and definitely not after Christmas of 2025 (when the Guardians Holiday Special takes place). We say that because, during Wakanda Forever, we see a news clip reporting on Scott’s book tour for his autobiography. In Quantumania, he is just fresh from that same tour, which means the movie is set not long after the Black Panther sequel (unless, of course, Scott was on tour for all of 2025, which we doubt).
The reason Disney decided to place Quantumania after the Holiday Special is that the latter officially concluded Phase Four of the MCU and the former officially opened Phase Five. However, this isn’t the first time a movie has been released during one phase and chronologically set during another, with Black Widow already setting that precedent.
Still, with how messy the timeline has become after Endgame, it’s not surprising that even Disney can’t really keep up. We’re basing our timeline on very small details, many of which might not have even been intentional on Marvel’s side, but for fans, the timeline has always been a major selling point in the MCU. Hopefully, after the Avengers double-bill that’s coming up in 2025, we’ll be able to start rebuilding it all from a clean slate.
Published: May 17, 2023 10:30 am