Avengers: Doomsday Highlights MCU’s Power Level Shift
As Avengers: Doomsday approaches with a new major villain, the ongoing increase in power levels within the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has introduced significant challenges. The film needs to establish Doctor Doom as the MCU’s most powerful character, but the drastic rise in strength among heroes and villains over recent years complicates this goal.
Rising Power Levels in the MCU
Since Avengers: Endgame, the MCU has escalated characters’ power to outdo previous movies continuously. This trend, often called power creep, has reached such heights that introducing new threats now feels difficult.
Powerful Characters Introduced
- The Council of Kangs
- The Celestials
- Mephisto
- Galactus
Overpowered Heroes
- Carol Danvers, with immense strength, was kept off-world during Avengers: Infinity War to balance her power.
- Hulk became more intelligent, reducing his raw strength to avoid overpowering other heroes.
Challenges in Making Doctor Doom a Threat
The MCU's escalation means it is increasingly difficult to portray a character in armor like Doctor Doom as a serious threat after a decade of ever-more-powerful characters.
"Doctor Doom has to appear all-powerful, but the MCU has made it hard to make a man in armor seem any kind of threat after the past decade of movies."
Possible Solutions to Power Creep
Marvel could take several approaches to address the power creep issue, but with Avengers: Doomsday imminent, time may be too short to reset expectations.
Author’s Summary
The MCU’s continuous power escalation risks undermining new villains’ impact, making it challenging for Avengers: Doomsday to convincingly portray Doctor Doom as the ultimate threat.