Image: Marvel/Disney

Before I begin My Marvel Diary, there are two main questions to address: why am I doing this? And why have I not watched them all already? We’ll start with the latter.

I have never been a big superhero fan. As a child I liked the Sam Raimi Spider-Man films, but my main movie loves were Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and Indiana Jones. So I was already behind when the Marvel Cinematic Universe hit full tilt with 2012’s The Avengers, and by this point in life I had already begun my transition into a ‘film guy’. I went through a phase of discovering the cinematic greats and only watching ‘proper’ films. By the time my pretentiousness had abated and I fancied getting into the MCU I was so far behind that I never did it. I don’t like to do things by halves, so joining in at Captain America: The Winter Soldier didn’t feel right. So until now I have been putting off watching the MCU films because of the enormity of the task ahead of me.

Why I am motivated to do this now has two fairly simple answers. Firstly, I thought it would be fun for me, regardless of whether anyone bothers reading it or not. Secondly, I still have some level of scepticism towards just how popular these films have become. Are they not all a bit repetitive? Unsubtle and lacking in complexity? Filled with too much bland explodey stuff? Well, maybe, and maybe not. My Marvel Diary is a challenge to both myself and the MCU, to see if my expectations are confirmed or shattered.

Finally, I have a few quick ‘disclaimers’. To start with, I have no knowledge of Marvel comics at all. If you’re looking for discussions of fidelity and comic book lore then I am afraid you’re in the wrong place. This is purely about the films. Furthermore, I have to acknowledge that my perspective will inevitably be different to those of a first-time cinema viewer. Going into this I have seen only one MCU film (The Avengers), but I read film magazines, listen to film podcasts, and go on Twitter. So I know who plays who, what film comes next, and some spoilers. Hopefully this won’t affect my enjoyment too much, but I thought that my level of Marvel knowledge should be declared sooner rather than later.

So with that in mind, I do hope you enjoy My Marvel Diary. Please do watch along with me and comment your thoughts on social media.

Andrew Young