The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is continuously expanding, with over 50 movies and series to date. As this can be exhausting, especially if you’re trying to catch up before Avengers: Doomsday arrives (don’t worry, you still have a year), did you know you don’t have to watch everything to understand the highly anticipated crossover film?
Yup, you read that right. In fact, you only need to watch three Disney+ shows to avoid getting lost when you finally see Doomsday.
Sure, you’ll still want to watch a few key Multiverse Saga movies, such as Fantastic Four: First Steps, which includes major moments like Doom kidnapping Franklin Richards, but below are the essential MCU Disney+ series you need to watch before Doomsday.
WandaVision (2021)
Set after Avengers: Endgame (2019), WandaVision follows Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) as she tries to cope with Vision’s (Paul Bettany) death.
However, everything changes when she creates an alternate reality where Vision is still alive, trapping the townspeople inside her illusion styled after classic American sitcoms.
As the façade unravels, Wanda confronts her overwhelming grief, unleashes the true nature of her powers, called Chaos Magic, and ultimately becomes the Scarlet Witch, a being prophesied to reshape reality.
So, why does WandaVision matter to Doomsday? Wanda’s transformation into the Scarlet Witch reveals her reality-warping abilities, which can destabilize timelines and entire universes.
She’s also revealed to be a “Nexus Being,” someone whose existence is essential to the stability of the multiverse.
Additionally, the full extent of her powers foreshadows how other characters might break or rewrite reality in Doomsday, while her emotional journey continues to affect the Avengers, Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), and the entire magical side of the MCU.
Loki Seasons 1 & 2 (2021-2023)
After escaping with the Tesseract during Endgame, Loki (Tom Hiddleston) is arrested by the Time Variance Authority (TVA), the organization that manages the Sacred Timeline.
There, he encounters multiple variants of himself, uncovers lies about the TVA’s true origins, and eventually meets the figure responsible for creating the timeline.
In Season 2, the series expands its scope with the collapse of the multiverse, rapidly branching timelines, and the revelation of Loki’s unexpected final role, which places him at the very heart of the multiverse itself.
As the series explains how timelines branch, Loki establishes the MCU’s multiverse rules, including the nature of variants and why the multiverse grows unstable.
It also reveals the roots of the multiversal war and how different versions of characters can coexist, which helps viewers understand who might appear in Doomsday, clarifies the ongoing timeline crisis, and features a critical cosmic shift that directly influences the upcoming film.
What If…? (2021-2024)
Hosted by The Watcher, the animated anthology What If…? poses a single question: “What if major MCU events had gone differently?”
The show explores alternate universes, such as Peggy Carter becoming Captain Carter, Doctor Strange turning dark, or Ultron winning the Infinity War.
The second season expands this further with more interconnected realities, including episodes where timelines physically cross.
The series connects to Doomsday through its exploration of alternate versions of characters, normalizing the idea of variants and illustrating the multiverse’s instability by showing realities dying, merging, and colliding.
Because it also features The Watcher as a major cosmic figure, his presence may play a crucial role in how multiversal threats are framed in Doomsday.
Optional But Helpful Shows
For additional context, world-building, and character depth, consider watching Ms. Marvel, which introduces the young Avenger Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani). Secret Invasion provides insight into the political landscape of Earth-616.
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier establishes Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) as the new Captain America and leader of the next generation of Avengers. Finally, Moon Knight offers deeper exploration of the mystic and cosmic realms within the MCU.
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