Disney Plus offered the first glimpses of several upcoming live-action Marvel superhero series today, as part of its “Disney Plus Day” event. The new clips appear in the second half of an extended trailer which is currently viewable on the streaming service.
The first half recaps the MCU/D+ series which have already debuted in 2021, including WandaVision, Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Loki, and What If…? Then there’s a substantial look at Hawkeye (premiering November 24), followed by very brief but tantalizing snippets from the three highly-anticipated new shows, and a quantum-sized bit of Secret Invasion. Here’s a description of the highlights (just yell loudly if I miss something, and then yell louder if I SPOIL something):
HAWKEYE
– Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) and Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld) sit in a diner, discussing Kate’s superheroic vigilante ambitions. Kate wants to team up with Hawkeye, and asks him to pick up the check for breakfast. I believe Kate Bishop is supposed to be rich, but it’s a good gag.
– A longer look at the car chase sequence glimpsed in earlier trailers, with the two Hawkeyes debating which car to steal, and Kate delving into the trick-arrow quiver while under fire from the “Tracksuit Draculas.”
– Fun Fan Fact! A sign language exchange hints at Clint’s hearing impairment; with Hawkeye, Makkari of the Eternals, and the just-announced Echo show, Marvel’s ASL Avengers roster is rapidly solidifying.
MOON KNIGHT
– A creepy narrating voice hints at Marc Spector/Moon Knight’s divergent mental state. There is a distinct vibe of psychological horror, a subgenre Marvel hasn’t strongly embraced since, I’d say, Jessica Jones.
– We see the white cape! From behind, not the full costume. And! A strappy hand!
– Fun Fan Fact! “Moon Knight” is one of those Marvel names that’s tricky to say out loud — I mean, not because it’s a made-up word, like “Psylocke,” but the colliding N’s will certainly have people thinking he’s the lunar crusader known as Moo Night. Ten bucks says they don’t say his code-name in the series until the final episode.
SHE-HULK
– Mark Ruffalo advises Jennifer Walters (played by Tatiana Maslany) about being Hulky.
– Jennifer says the classic line, “You wouldn’t like me when I’m angry,” originated in the (arguably immortal) Incredible Hulk TV series from the 1970s-80s, in what might be a commercial for her law practice?
– Classic purple outfit, green muscled limbs, not a full-body reveal. Fun Fan Fact! Of recent, comics She-Hulk has been drawn more monstrously bulked-up, an evolution from her original design, which is statuesque but roughly proportionate to a really tall fit human. This partial shot suggests the classic “leaner” look, although, given Gamma-irradiated morphing body types, it’s hardly conclusive.
MS. MARVEL
– “It’s not really the brown girls from Jersey City who save the world,” says Kamala Khan, the Pakistani American polymorphic protagonist who idolizes Captain Marvel/Carol Danvers.
– From conception, the character is a young fan-nerd for all the other (New York-based) superheroes, hence the cosplay with various Captain Marvel costumes, which presumably leads to her obtaining her own distinctive outfit.
– Contentious Fan Facts! There’s been talk about whether Ms. Marvel will have her comics-accurate stretchy powers (shapeshifting/polymorphic, like Mr. Fantastic) or cosmic-energy-shape-making powers (sparkly/vaguely-defined, like the Eternals and all of Shang-Chi’s movie rings). I’m not gonna get into it because the topic is as expansive as it is nerdy… and it is, on several levels, important… I’m just gonna note, that one shot of a crowd looking up at Ms. Marvel as she traverses buildings overhead and is seen in reflection? That shot doesn’t disallow the stretchy powers, nor does it commit to them. She usually stretches out her legs for springing jumps, right, she doesn’t fly; Carol Danvers does the flying with the glowing contrails. And Danvers streaks by, she doesn’t lope, so maybe… okay, now I can’t talk about the powers anymore.
SECRET INVASION
– In the final furious montage closing out this “special look” trailer, we see Nick Fury, scarred and bearded, giving the evil eye as only Mr. L. Jackson can. Unless he’s a Skrull. Or a Life Model Duplicate. Or Sprite. Or, y’know what, I’ll stop pretending anything can be gleaned from this.
– Also, what looks like the Skrull Empress stepping out of a limo? Or is that She-Hulk again?
– Fun Fan Fact! Is it a coincidence that the Marvel Cinematic Universe has become more impossible to follow since they re-acquired the X-Men? Methinks nay. And also, at some point, long ago, we were promised Dazzler.
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