Doctor Strange 2 Reveals Whether Agents of SHIELD Was MCU Canon
The Marvel Cinematic Universe has been growing at a stupendous pace. We have been pushed into a position where we can see both the multiverse and the ends of our universe. Marvel’s two-pronged approach to expansion in phase 4 with the introduction of cosmic entities such as Celestials and Elder Gods like Chthon, and multiversal remnants such as variants shows that they are no longer afraid to embrace the absurd. Fans know that Marvel stories have always been more eccentric and colorful as compared to DC’s Grimm realities. MCU’s biggest advantage has always been its ironclad continuity and interconnectivity. The biggest blemish on their otherwise stellar record in this regard was their refusal to acknowledge Marvel TV shows including Agents of SHIELD. Thankfully, Multiverse of Madness finally revealed whether Agents of SHIELD was MCU canon or not.
Multiverse of Madness started off exactly where WandaVision left off, with Wanda in control of the Darkhold. The last time we saw this book, it was being used by Agatha Harkness to take control of Wanda’s life and have her control an entire town to simulate the life that she thought she wanted. This indicated that Wanda had not only had a psychotic break but now was also in a position where she no longer cared what happened to the innocent populace around her. This indicates that she is no longer a hero and no longer “deserves to be on a lunch box” as Strange puts it in the movie. Moreover, it is made abundantly clear that some of this behavior is because of the influence and the corruption of the Darkhold. The book seems to be affecting how Wanda thinks and what she needs.
Agents of SHIELD Was MCU Canon
The Darkhold clearly held immense power. It had also appeared previously in the MCU in other places. For example, it appeared in Agents of SHIELD when a couple of scientists were corrupted by it. Then someone used it to bolster their artificial reality whereby they trapped several members of the team in the said reality. This led to all kinds of problems, but the team was finally able to send the book back to the dark dimension with the help of Ghost Rider. Moreover, the book also appeared in Runaways, whereby it reappeared from the Dark Dimension and was yet again sent back there.
Then the book somehow ended up in the hands of Harkness, which was also never explained. So the MCU fans considered this one of the worst continuity issues in the MCU to date. But Multiverse of Madness explained the reasoning behind the problem in a way that solved all of these issues in one go. The movie told us that the Darkhold is a collection of spells that Chthon created himself. These spells have an original version that has been carved onto the side of Mount Wundagore. Every Darkhold that has ever existed has been transcribed from the said mountain.
This means that the Darkhold that appeared in Agents of SHIELD was clearly different from the one in Multiverse of Madness and WandaVision. It also signifies that both copies were somehow transcribed from Mount Wundagore even though it is very hard to actually make it up there, even for people with unlimited powers, such as Avengers or Sorcerers. This explanation by the movie solved almost all continuity issues and put fan speculation to rest.
The Future
It is also pertinent to mention here that the characters in the movie have still not referenced any events of Marvel TV but that is ok. The fact that Marvel Studios is taking the time to explain any and all inconsistencies in their own continuity means that they want to include these shows as canon and do not want to relegate them to another reality as fans previously feared. Moreover, there is a certain amount of respite in the fact that Marvel Studios is now focusing on creating complex storylines through the help of their OTT shows.
This shows that it is more than likely that the characters from old Marvel TV shows will return to the MCU. Whatever Marvel is doing now is in preparation for the said return.
Let us know what you think about this down in the comments and keep watching this space for everything Marvel, DC, and Hollywood. Excelsior!!!
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