The Marvel Cinematic Universe has been the largest and most popular film franchise of the last decade and that is no small accomplishment; they have managed to create a very wide and yet cohesive universe where many of their more celebrated comic book characters have come to life in the best possible manner. There is a sense of relevance and magic in many of these movies that have appealed to very different demographics and nowadays they are as popular as they have ever been.
So it’s only natural that people want to be updated with their favorite characters as much as possible and that is something that Marvel seems to understand given that they have released a series of comics strictly linked to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which is a way to expand on many things that happened or are currently happening.
By and large, these comics are referred to as the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) tie-in comic books which serve as a series of one-shots that are happening between many of the films. There have been many discussions about whether these comics are canon or not, but that is mainly because Marvel also has some MCU-inspired comics that are merely based on the films but not a part of the same continuity.
So, the tie-in comics thar are all part of the canon of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, include the following:
- Iron Man: I Am Iron Man!
- Iron Man 2: Public Identity
- Iron Man 2: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
- Captain America: First Vengeance
- Marvel’s The Avengers Prelude: Fury’s Big Week
- Marvel’s The Avengers: Black Widow Strikes
- Marvel’s Iron Man 2
- Marvel’s Iron Man 3 Prelude
- Marvel’s Thor
- Marvel’s Thor: The Dark World Prelude
- Marvel’s Captain America: The First Avenger
- Marvel’s Captain America: The Winter Soldier Infinite Comic
- Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy Infinite Comic – Dangerous Prey
- Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy Prelude
- Marvel’s The Avengers
- Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron Prelude – This Scepter’d Isle
- Marvel’s Ant-Man Prelude
- Marvel’s Ant-Man – Scott Lang: Small Time
- Marvel’s Jessica Jones
- Marvel’s Captain America: Civil War Prelude
- Marvel’s Captain America: Civil War Prelude Infinite Comic
- Marvel’s Doctor Strange Prelude
- Marvel’s Doctor Strange Prelude Infinite Comic – The Zealot
- Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 Prelude
- Spider-Man: Homecoming Prelude
- Marvel’s Thor: Ragnarok Prelude
- Marvel’s Black Panther Prelude
- Marvel’s Avengers: Infinity War Prelude
- Marvel’s Ant-Man and the Wasp Prelude
- Marvel’s Captain Marvel Prelude
- Marvel’s Avengers: Endgame Prelude
- Spider-Man: Far From Home Prelude
- Marvel’s Black Widow Prelude
All of these comics are part of the plots and movies that you have seen in the MCU, expanding on many different things that perhaps you, as a viewer, felt that were a little off and needed more time to be developed in a much more organic manner. Some of these comics were written by some of Marvel Comics’ top writers and artists at the time, so we recommend you to give them a read because it shows the characters that you love in the best possible manner.
Overall, the Marvel Cinematic Universe is a lot more than just a series of films; they are a wonderful experience about the hero’s journey with many of the best superhero characters in the history of comics done in their absolute best, which is something that has transcended through pop culture and become icons for a whole generation.
These comics are a wonderful way to understand the MCU a lot better and to keep enjoying these characters a lot more, which is something that fans of the comics can enjoy and perhaps even have as a starting point in the comic book industry.
