Not all Marvel superheroes are the same, whether it's due to their origins, their powers or lack thereof, or the people they choose to protect. In that scope the MCU now has a new crop of street-level will take center stage in Phase Five as no Avengers movies will take place until 2025’s The Kang Dynasty.
Regardless, just because this new crop of Marvel heroes are not as powerful as Captain Marvel, or they don’t have Iron Man’s billions and charisma, that doesn’t mean they’re not tied to some of the most captivating storylines in comic book history. With that said, although 2023’s MCU slate might be looking quite cosmic with Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Loki, Secret Invasion and The Marvels, down here on Earth-616 Marvel has already put together a dream lineup of crime fighters.
Daredevil
Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk’s introduction was arguably the most exciting event in all of Phase Four, and the announcement of Daredevil: Born Again surely had many fans of the Netflix show equally hyped. The MCU’s Daredevil has been seen rocking a new costume since then, as well as a fighting style that is more acrobatic than Charlie Cox’s rougher combat.
As of now, it appears Marvel Studios will make its Daredevil a reboot, though with the character still retaining much of the personality that made Cox’s portrayal so solved. No matter who else joins the MCU, Daredevil looks like he’ll be the main anchor tying many of these stories together as he has plenty of crossover potential with almost everyone else, with the latest rumors even pointing to Mike Colter’s Luke Cage showing up for a cameo.
Punisher
After Cox and Vincent D’Onofrio returned, it didn’t take long for Daredevil fans to start asking who else would make the jump, and though Matt’s friends Elden Henson and Deborah Ann Woll are seemingly out, Jon Bernthal’s Punisher will be back. Berthal’s casting makes perfect sense, as he had the most successful show after Daredevil, on top of the actor’s gritty performance being a perfect match for the iconic antihero.
Punisher has been rumored to make his debut earlier than expected, as both Bernthal and Cox could appear in Echo, whenever that series comes out considering Marvel’s new policies. In any case, Punisher brings to the table something different than every other MCU character, so the biggest question is how his moral compass will fit in with Disney's family-friendly superheroes.
Echo
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Certainly not as famous as the previous two, but what Maya Lopez lacks in name recognition she could more than make up for thanks to the strength of her source material. In Daredevil comics, Echo eventually shoots her uncle Kingpin, exactly the way it goes down in Hawkeye’s finale, and while Fisk won’t be left completely blind in the MCU the moment sets up a compelling revenge story between the two.
She may not among Marvel’s heavy hitters, which might explain Echo and Ironheart’s likely delay for 2024, yet the potential Daredevil crossover, Punisher’s first appearance, and more of D’Onofrio’s villain are compelling enough reasons to give Alaqua Cox's solo series a chance.
She-Hulk
Since Jennifer Walters already got her own series, the biggest question surrounding her is when She-Hulk will return to the MCU, and given her current romance with Matt Murdock, a Daredevil: Born Again cameo is almost guaranteed. However, the most puzzling aspect is how other writers will implement She-Hulk’s unique humor and fourth-wall antics into other stories, if at all.
Blade
Despite its ongoing production woes, Blade has plenty of potential because this is one of the few characters that managed to make a name for himself long before the MCU was even a thing. Mahershala Ali’s acting chops are beyond debate, but he even got a taste of the superhero genre in Luke Cage.
Technically, Blade’s first MCU appearance came in Eternals, however, this vampire hunter is at his best when fighting solo as he shares many of the qualities that make Punisher special. Sadly, it appears that Blade won’t be the R-rated movie many had hoped for, albeit the MCU really pushing that PG-13 label to its limits in recent times.
Kate Bishop
At the moment, Kate Bishop continues to come off as a Hawkeye intern as Marvel Studios has not revealed any Young Avengers plans, so her crossover potential is very limited. Nevertheless, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania did a lot to move Cassie Lang closer to her Stinger persona, so it’s clearly something that’s being kept for further down the line.
Moon Knight
Considering Marc Spector’s own mental health struggles, it’s not surprising to see that Moon Knight is more of a loner in the MCU. His series is the only one so far that lacks any type of obvious connections to any Marvel content, yet fellow Midnight Suns' member Blade could pose an interesting opportunity to bring back Oscar Isaac.
In any case, Moon Knight deserves his place in the MCU for the seer brutality he brings to action sequences, and that alone should makes him worth keeping around, even if the show doesn’t get a second season.
Spider-Man
Granted, the only reason Daredevil is the MCU’s current street-level superstar is due to the uncertainty surrounding Sony’s Spider-Man. No Way Home made it clear that Peter Parker is likely to fall back to his friendly neighborhood vigilante days, as he no longer has access to the bleeding-edge tech from Stark Industries.
Tom Holland will be back, and in a dream scenario he’d cross paths with Daredevil, Punisher, Blade, Moon Knight, Deadpool and the X-Men, with that sole premise being blockbuster material. Whether it’s in the MCU or finally fighting Venom, Holland’s Spidey is the biggest street-level superhero out there.