With the newfound emphasis placed on character development instead of overarching themes in the MCU, delivering in terms of action has taken on a much less significant role in favor of giving protagonists a chance to cope with the issues of their past. Beloved characters Bucky Barnes, Wanda Maximoff, and Loki Laufeyson have all been put through incredibly trying times, in which their emotional stability wasn’t a priority. Thanks to the new format of Marvel projects on Disney Plus, all three of these complicated heroes are learning to heal now that some of the Infinity Saga chaos has died down.
Despite the differences in tone, each series uses dealing with trauma as a main focal point of storytelling, while preparing the characters for the upcoming Phase 4. So far, fans have seen a lot of change in the way characters are flushed out on screen, all thanks to Marvel’s decision to make self-growth a large component of their Disney Plus takeover.
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During WandaVision, Wanda is finally seen confronting her grief, and despite becoming a sort of antagonist as the plot unfolds, her natural response to protect herself from emotional suffering is very humanizing. Aside from a few brief moments during Age of Ultron and Infinity War, Wanda was never given the chance to properly say goodbye to her brother and her lover, but she needed to in order to move on from the past.
Using her grief and exploring the ways in which she handled loss was appealing to fans throughout WandaVision, because it required her to take a deeper look at herself and her powers, setting her up to be one of the strongest heroes Marvel has ever seen. Although she learned her lesson the hard way, WandaVision establishes that she cannot use her magic as a tool to reanimate loved ones, and ignoring the pain of reality by fabricating her own universe does much more harm than good. Moving forward, Wanda will have to deal with the knowledge that she hurt a lot of people during her time in Westview, but will undoubtedly use her newfound respect for living in the present as a way to make up for her indiscretions.
Bucky Barnes is arguably one of the most traumatized characters in the MCU, having lost everything he once knew and loved, including himself. As he struggles with his self-image and coming to terms with his history as The Winter Soldier, fans were excited to see Bucky attending therapy sessions in which he can finally become the best version of himself.
Like Wanda, Bucky’s identity issues prove that he’s like everyone else, with feelings and desires to find happiness in a world that’s treated him so poorly. Bucky’s journey in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier was mostly geared towards letting go of the person he was forced to be, and now that the Dora Milaje has freed him completely from Hydra’s influence, he was able to come to terms with the fact that he needs to change in order to survive in the 21st century.
His bond with Sam was also an important component of his healing process, as it proved that he is capable of making amends with people as Bucky Barnes, even if he once wronged them as The Winter Soldier. It seems as if Bucky has finally realized himself to be as much of a victim as the people he was made to kill, which fans have been saying all along.
Loki has also become much more relatable, and fans watched him cry over his mother’s death, as well as his revelation that Odin still viewed him as a son, despite all the chaos he’s caused in the past. Loki also came to see for the first time that Thor has always viewed him as an equal, not the shadow other people of Asgard believed him to be, all of which was revealed during the first episode of Loki.
Additionally, Loki was actually hurt when he learned that Ragnarok destroyed his home and left a lot of his people dead. Although it’s only two episodes in, and his escape with the mysterious new variant suggests Loki is going back to his mischievous ways (for the time being), it’s glaringly obvious that the 2012 God of Mischief in Loki is much different than the 2012 God of Mischief in The Avengers.
The main takeaway from this is that the mental health and wellbeing of Marvel’s characters is now just as important as all the action-packed butt-kicking the heroes do when fighting evil. The MCU has briefly touched on the effects being a hero can have on its characters in the past, like when they showed fans that Tony was struggling with PTSD, but the heroes’ character development has never been as important as it is now. What was once a subplot overshadowed by the importance of saving the world is now a crucial factor in shaping Marvel’s tone as it moves forward.
Given the success WandaVision, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, and Loki have seen since being released on Disney Plus, it’s safe to say fans are loving the new approach Marvel is taking as Phase 4 begins.
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