Marvelling at the MCU

Dave and Oli discuss the ninth movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. They get lost in Scarlett Johansson’s performance, Oli enjoys Thunderbirds launch sequences and Dave dives into the changes from comic stories (and characters) as his favourite story is turned into his favourite movie.

They also talk about creative partnerships, practical stunts and effects, and whether or not not Falcon should be allowed spandex. In a burst of film nerdery, Oli educates us on the Texas Switch and Chekov’s Gun (which are more interesting than they sound, we promise).

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Dave and Oli discuss the eighth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, including why Malekith was so disappointing as the Big Bad of the movie, how well the writers shaped the comedy in the story, and how weirdly easy it was for something buried “deep where no one will find it” gets discovered by accident by a random human.

You will also hear both men discuss being English and watching a film made in the UK, Oli compliment VFX (for once) and Dave go into great geekery about Thor characters, series and story arcs new and old.

Dave and Oli discuss the seventh film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the first film in Phase 2. They hit on confusing character dynamics, the surprising and high-risk choices around the use of The Mandarin and why the other "twists" in the film don't have the same impact.

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You can follow the show @MarvellingPod on all your favourite platforms and email us at [email protected] if you prefer long-form, old-school communication.

In Part Two of their special two-part look at Avengers Assemble Dave and Oli talk about unexpected stunt work, seamless VFX and how to make teamwork work. Picking up on tiny details, almost-invisible references and sharing stories of the making of the film, this is our most complete look at one of the MCU films yet.

If you enjoy our show, it makes a massive difference if you're willing to share your favourite ep with your friends, or rate and review us on your podcast app of choice.

You can follow the show @MarvellingPod on all your favourite platforms and email us at [email protected] if you prefer long-form, old-school communication.

Dave and Oli present the first in a special two-part look at the sixth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which contains so much cool stuff there was no way to fit it into a single regular-length episode.

In Part One they discuss how unique this film was when it was first released, why it may be Nick Fury's flick and the total lack of humour in DC films. Picking up on tiny details, spotting almost-invisible references and sharing stories of the making of the film, this is this podcast's most complete look at one of the MCU films yet.

If you enjoy our show, it would make a massive difference if you could share your favourite ep with your friends, or rate and review us on your podcast app of choice.

You can follow the show @MarvellingPod on all your favourite platforms and email us at [email protected] if you prefer long-form, old-school communication.

Dave and Oli discuss the fifth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Dave learns the depths of Oli's love for British character actors, Oli learns the depths of Dave's obsession with Tommy Lee Jones and they both agree it's safer not to bother visiting Tønsberg.

Bonus points in this episode if you can spot the point at which Dave was forced to turn down his excitement due to the incredibly late hour we were recording!

If you enjoy our show, we'd love you to consider sharing this episode (or your favourite ep of ours) with your friends on social media as it will help spread the word to like-minded folk who might enjoy the pod. If you're willing to rate and review us in your favourite podcast app, that would be amazing, too.

You can follow the show @MarvellingPod on all your favourite platforms or email us at [email protected] if you prefer long-form, old-school communication.

Dave and Oli dig into the oft-forgotten second film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe: The Incredible Hulk. In this episode we discuss our disappointment in the VFX, why Betty is such a confusing character and the frustration Tim Blake Nelson must feel at not being included in the rest of the MCU (yet).

Time stamps

00.00.00 Introduction.

00.02.00 The unique distribution deal.

00.04.39 Alignment with comic canon.

00.05.50 Film breakdown.

00.09.56 The heart rate monitor.

00.19.26 "Dude, we're so old."

00.21.35 Stan Lee!

00.28.14 The first Hulk out.

00.32.12 Bruce needs a T-shirt.

00.36.01 Spoiling the surprise of Betty.

00.39.35 Stanleys.

00.45.06 Flawed super soldier serum.

00.47.55 Swallowing USBs and Hulking out.

00.55.58 Dave's always over-thinking.

00.59.54 Broken Blonski.

01.05.55 Mr Blue and NYC.

01.09.16 Third and final Hulk out.

01.11.30 Creating an abomination.

01.19.20 Origins of cop car boxing.

01.23.17 Conveying emotion in animation.

01.29.04 Summary and end notes.

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Dave and Oli start in the same place the Marvel Cinematic Universe did with a breakdown of Iron Man. In this episode we discuss why director Jon Favreau and star Robert Downey Jr were brave choices by Marvel Studios, why the blend of both special and visual effects help the film hold up so well, and why Iron Man was the perfect choice to kick-start a long-term project for a bold new movie studio.

Timestamps:

00:00:00 Introduction

00:01:53 Thirty second reviews

00:03:41 Why was Marvel Studios created?

00:10:28 How does the film reflect the comics?

00:13:04 Iron Man movie breakdown

00:27:55 We're gonna need a montage

00:32:12 Blending costumes with outstanding VFX

00:36:44 S.H.I.E.L.D seems simple enough

00:41:37 Starting grounded matters

00:48:43 We all love Stan Lee

00:54:54 Why call signs excite Oli

01:00:08 The most unrealistic part

01:08:41 Iron Monger > ED-209

01:13:42 Who's that guy?

01:17:30 Final thoughts

If you want to watch along with us as we head down the rabbit hole of the MCU, next week we’ll be looking at The Incredible Hulk and discussing why it doesn’t hold up as well as Iron Man.

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