I have compiled several options as far as what to watch in advance of Avengers: Endgame. You can read up on each list and figure out if one of them fits your needs. Keep in mind that these lists are generally NOT decided based on overall quality, but rather narrative importance to the overarching story of the MCU. For example, Black Panther is an excellent overall film that I would recommend anyone watch for their own edification, but it will not be included on several of these lists because it has a more self-contained narrative than most of these films and because T’Challa is introduced in Civil War.

The “I’ve Seen Every Movie, But I Want To Recap Before The Big Finale” List

-This list is designed to help you brush up on the most recent plot points and character arcs. It consists of the movies that lead directly into Infinity War, Infinity War itself, and the two movies that came after Infinity War but lead directly into Endgame. Age of Ultron is the one you probably could skip if you really wanted to (because while it technically IS the immediate predecessor to Infinity War the two are really separated by Civil War and Ragnarök), but I have a hunch that a couple things that last appeared in AoU might be important in Endgame. See my Re-View of Age of Ultron for more info on what those things might be.

Avengers: Age of Ultron

Captain America: Civil War

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

Thor: Ragnarök

Avengers: Infinity War

Ant-Man and the Wasp

Captain Marvel

The “I’ve Got Time, But I Don’t Want To Completely Waste It” List

-This list starts from the full list and cuts out the handful of movies that just aren’t good enough or relevant enough to justify their inclusion. It’s not a large percentage, but even a few make a big difference when each is two hours long. If you follow this list, you aren’t going to miss much of anything.

Iron Man

Thor

Captain America: The First Avenger

Marvel’s The Avengers

Iron Man 3

Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Guardians of the Galaxy

Avengers: Age of Ultron

Ant-Man

Captain America: Civil War

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

Spider-Man: Homecoming

Thor: Ragnarök

Black Panther

Avengers: Infinity War

Ant-Man and the Wasp

Captain Marvel

The “Prep Me For Endgame” List

-This list is going to hit all the high points of the MCU. It cuts a few extra films to give you a leaner cut of the franchise. This won’t cover absolutely everything, but it will take you through the overarching narrative of the franchise and make sure you understand all the major plot points and character dynamics.

Iron Man

Thor

Captain America: The First Avenger

Marvel’s The Avengers

Iron Man 3

Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Guardians of the Galaxy

Avengers: Age of Ultron

Captain America: Civil War

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

Thor: Ragnarök

Avengers: Infinity War

Ant-Man and the Wasp

Captain Marvel

The “Get Me Caught Up As Fast As Possible” List

-This is the list for when you desperately need a primer. You will be missing a LOT, but this will make sure you understand the gist of what’s going on. This is not the recommended way to experience the films. This is the bare minimum to introduce you to the Avengers.

Marvel’s The Avengers

Avengers: Age of Ultron

Captain America: Civil War

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

Thor: Ragnarök

Avengers: Infinity War

Full List with Recommendations and Justifications

Iron Man– RECOMMENDED

-The granddaddy of them all that spawned the MCU. The first appearance of Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark. Also the first appearance of James Rhodes, though he’s played by Terence Howard not Don Cheadle.

The Incredible Hulk– NOT RECOMMENDED

-Skippable. Hulk/Banner gets recast and no other major characters carry over except Thunderbolt Ross.

Iron Man 2– NOT RECOMMENDED

-Skippable. It does include the first appearance of Black Widow and of Don Cheadle as James Rhodes, but both characters are also shown better elsewhere.

Thor– RECOMMENDED

-It’s the first appearance of Thor and Loki. And also Hawkeye, though I doubt many people remember that.

Captain America: The First Avenger– RECOMMENDED

-It’s the first appearance of Captain America and of the Tesseract.

Marvel’s The Avengers– REQUIRED

-This is the film that really got the ball rolling. It’s the first critical step in establishing an ongoing meta-narrative.

Iron Man 3– RECOMMENDED

-The plot is not critical to the over-arching MCU experience, but the film has crucial character development of Tony Stark.

Thor: The Dark World– NOT RECOMMENDED

-I’m just gonna give away a spoiler as to my review and ranking of this film; this movie kinda sucks. It actually does include important details for a re-watch, but not enough to actually be worth watching again. Just..I dunno, read Wikipedia or something.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier– RECOMMENDED

-This leads directly into the second Avengers film and has major developments re: SHIELD. It also is the first appearance of the Falcon.

Guardians of the Galaxy– RECOMMENDED

-The first appearance of the Guardians, the Power Stone, and the first full appearance of Thanos.

Avengers: Age of Ultron– REQUIRED

-It’s an Avengers movie. It features the debuts of Scarlet Witch and the Vision.

Ant-Man– RECOMMENDED

-First appearance of Ant-Man and the Wasp. The Quantum Realm stuff may be important later.

Captain America: Civil War– REQUIRED

-Basically Avengers 2.5. Features the debuts of Spider-Man and Black Panther. Leads directly into Infinity War.

Doctor Strange– NOT RECOMMENDED

-It’s not a bad film, but it IS a thematic rehash of Iron Man. Strange is also better portrayed in both Ragnarök and Infinity War. Does not connect to other films except by the Time Stone.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2– REQUIRED

-Critical character development for several Guardians leading directly into Infinity War.

Spider-Man: Homecoming– RECOMMENDED

-There are important developments for both Spider-Man and Tony Stark.

Thor: Ragnarök– REQUIRED

-Leads the most directly into Infinity War, explains where Thor and Hulk were. Also introduces Valkyrie.

Black Panther– NOT RECOMMENDED

-This is an amazing film, but it’s almost entirely self-contained. May be bumped up to Recommended based on how much focus Okoye gets in Endgame, but impossible to tell now.

Avengers: Infinity War– REQUIRED

-This is literally Part 1 of the story for which Endgame is Part 2. They are directly connected.

Ant-Man and the Wasp– RECOMMENDED

-Appears to lead directly into Endgame.

Captain Marvel– RECOMMENDED

-Appears to lead directly into Endgame.

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