10 Weirdest Details In MCU Phase 1 Marvel Movies

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Phase One of the Marvel Cinematic Universe has resulted in some weird moments that are easy to miss, becoming especially strange the more they"re thought about. As the earliest MCU movies, the films of Phase One could be awkward at times, the series still finding its footing and tone before growing into the theatrical box office empire its known as today. Along the way, these early films were released with more than a few odd details that remain puzzling to this day.
There are many factors that can make a small moment or beat in these early Marvel films stand out as a bit strange. Inconsistent plot elements are one throughline example, with the MCU retconning various developments first initiated in the early films. Other elements are simply downright weird due to their execution, feeling out of place in the larger context of the film franchise.
10 Thanos' "Courting Death" Line The Avengers

It"s quite remarkable just how early on the Marvel Cinematic Universe was able to seed the threat of Thanos into the series, with the Mad Titan getting a brief cameo at the end of The Avengers after manipulating Loki into starting the Battle of New York. Here, Thanos likens his audacious plans to "courting death", referencing the original comic origin of his desire to erase half of all life in existence out of a twisted sense of romantic love for Lady Death herself. Of course, the MCU"s Thanos ultimately ended up being motivated by overpopulation instead.
Now, thanks to the reveals of Agatha All Along, this small throwaway line has gotten even stranger. It turns out that Lady Death is, in fact, very real in the MCU, meaning the franchise could have kept Thanos" original motivations behind the Snap from the comic in the first place. This makes the inclusion of the line feel all the more out of place, drawing attention to a forgotten possibility for the series that could have been.
9 Tony Stark Recruiting General Ross Makes No Sense The Incredible Hulk

Phase One of the Marvel Cinematic Universe introduced the franchise"s long-stand tradition of post-credits scenes, always sowing the seeds of the next film in advance. Starting with Nick Fury"s unforgettable appearance in Iron Man, these small moments ended up being popular enough to be adopted by many other film series, hoping to replicate the success of the MCU. That being said, not every post-credits scene in Phase One makes the most sense.
In particular, Tony Stark"s recruitment of General Ross into the Avengers initiative makes no sense. Clearly, it"s the Hulk himself that Tony is after, yet the scene reads as if General Ross himself is the one being propositioned for induction into the superhero group. As fun as it is to see Tony interact with the film"s villain, this scene provides no real purpose other than for Iron Man to bask in Ross" failure.
8 Hulk's "Days Without Incident" Counter Makes An Inconsistent Assumption The Incredible Hulk

It isn"t just the post-credits scene of The Incredible Hulk that presents an odd little detail inconsistent with the major story of the series. Before the credits roll, the last shot in the film is of Edward Norton"s Bruce Banner before he was recast, meditating in an effort to maintain his emotional state. A "days without incident" counter is present on the screen keeping track of the last time Banner transformed into Hulk, only to reset to zero as Norton opens his now glowing green eyes.
This scene seems to imply that Dr. Bruce Banner is fully in control of his transformations as the gamma-powered monster by the end of The Incredible Hulk. Yet in The Avengers, Bruce Banner seems to be treated with extreme caution by S.H.I.E.L.D., not to mention being nervous to be around so many potential sources of stress himself. The famous "I"m always angry" line further complicates matters, making the exact level of control Banner has over the Hulk at this point in the story incredibly confusing.
7 Elon Musk's Cameo At Tony Stark's Party Feels Out Of Place Iron Man 2

Iron Man 2 is largely considered to be the worst film of Phase One by many, if not one of the worst MCU films in general. Much of this can be attributed to the lack of stakes, crude humor, and unimpressive villains. However, the inclusion of one of the most jarring celebrity cameos ever indulged by the franchise certainly doesn"t help its case.
Infamously, Iron Man 2 includes a party scene in which real-world billionaire Elon Musk pitches Tony Stark an idea for an electric jet. Once upon a time, Tony Stark may have actually been based off of Elon Musk, but his transition from being primarily known as an inventor and entrepreneur to a divisive figurehead of an American political party has aged the scene tremendously. It"s strange for the MCU"s most overt and excessive celebrity appearance to be this early on, and with such a controversial figure.
6 Captain America Becomes A Boy Scout When Written By Joss Whedon The Avengers

For the most part, Steve Rogers maintains a consistent voice and sense of morality across his movie appearances in the MCU. Despite his name, Captain America is more than willing to step outside the authority of the U.S. government, proven as early on as Captain America: The First Avenger where he leads unsanctioned combat missions. Yet when written by Joss Whedon, Captain America morphs into a rule-following boy scout that adheres rigidly to the S.H.I.E.L.D. guidebook.
This is especially obvious in The Avengers, where Steve Rogers insists to his team "We have rules, we should follow them". On a surface level, it feels like this is a blatant misunderstanding of Captain America"s character, making him into a goody-two-shoes obedient soldier that he never was. This makes his next movie appearance in Captain America: The Winter Soldier feel like whiplash when he returns to his old rebellious self.
5 Loki Calls Black Widow An Offensive, But Obscure Term The Avengers

While Loki is more of a beloved anti-hero now thanks to his variant"s heroic arc in the Loki TV series, it"s easy to forget that he was once the biggest and baddest villain of the franchise. The Loki of The Avengers, who technically is far closer to the Loki of the trickster god"s self-titled show than the version of himself that died at the hands of Thanos, is far from a good person. Indeed, he"s callous, cruel, and power-hungry, willing to kill scores of people in the pursuit of power.
At one point, Loki maintains the more Shakespearean manner of speaking the Asgardians had in Phase One by calling Black Widow a "mewling quim". This is an obscure term, to be sure, but a shockingly offensive one for those in the know, far from something the PG-13 film could get away with if translated into common American English. It"s quite bizarre to see such an antiquated and offensive term in the MCU considering how the dialogue has evolved since.
4 Black Widow's Interrogation Scene Feels Shockingly Suggestive The Avengers

Yet another shocking beat in The Avengers revolving around Black Widow occurs at the very moment of her first on-screen introduction since Iron Man 2. Black Widow at first appears to be in captivity, tied to a chair and about to be tortured in order to extract some sensitive information she knows. It"s eventually revealed that Natasha herself is in control of the situation the entire time, but the scene lingers on some alarming imagery that likely wouldn"t fly in an MCU film made today.
Between her helpless position, low-cut dress, and the insidious sadism with which her captors speak to her, it"s hard not for this appearance of Black Widow to feel incredibly suggestive. This particular moment feels so odd in that it"s certainly a relic of the early MCU, something that might err a little to strongly on the border of PG-13 for the company to include in one of their major releases today. Whether that"s a good thing or a bad thing is certainly up for debate.
3 Tony Stark Being Immune To The Scepter Raises More Questions Than Answers The Avengers

Not all the small beats in The Avengers capable of bumping one out of a rewatch are a tonal issue. Being so early in the series, the Marvel Cinematic Universe"s first major crossover films added in some bold lore developments that would be difficult to explain later on. In particular, the interaction between Loki"s Scepter and Iron Man"s artificial heart becomes more puzzling the more thought one devotes to it.
It"s certainly a fun moment for Loki"s power to be useless against the Arc Reactor, but the later explanation that the Scepter ran off of the power of the Mind Stone makes the scene retroactively confusing. The idea of the Mind Stone needing a literal beating heart in order to control someone"s brain doesn"t make the most sense. Even if it did, there"s no way Tony Stark could know that he was immune to Loki"s magical wiles, making his gamble to face him one-on-one feel more clueless than tactical.
2 Jon Favreau Ogles Black Widow While In-Character Iron Man 2

As great as the filmography of Jon Favreau is, he certainly stumbled with Iron Man 2. One of the best parts of the original Iron Man was the inclusion of Favreau himself as Happy Hogan, Tony Stark"s steadfast bodyguard and chauffeur who would eventually become a staple of the MCU. However, Favreau uses his character quite questionably in Iron Man 2 when it comes to his interactions with Black Widow.
Suspiciously, Favreau included a scene in which Happy has to drive Black Widow to the action as she changes into her combat suit in the backseat. Of course, Happy can"t resist sneaking a few peeks in the rearview mirror, nearly crashing the car due to the distraction of ogling her. This bit of self-casting is right up there with Quentin Tarantino writing himself in From Dusk Till Dawn as a character who gets tequila funneled into his mouth via Salma Hayek"s feet.
1 Tom Morello Gets Killed By Iron Man In His First Appearance Iron Man

Elon Musk isn"t the only celebrity who received a bizarre cameo in Phase One of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Whereas Musk"s appearance at least addresses him, an even weirder celebrity cameo happens in the very first MCU film with Iron Man. Enter the appearance of one Tom Morello, songwriter and frontman of Rage Against The Machine fame.
Morello has a blink-and-you"ll-miss-it cameo as a Ten Rings terrorist who gets the honor of being laid waste to by Tony Stark in his initial rampage with the very first Iron Man armor cobbled together in a cave with a box of scraps. Seeing Morello"s face for a split-second before he"s engulfed in fire is such a jarring choice for the very first superhero outing of Iron Man. The early Marvel Cinematic Universe is full of strange little details like this.
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