What, all of them? It’s been ten years since the release of Marvel’s game-changing Iron Man, and the inception of a cinematic universe which forever changed the face of superhero cinema… and cinematic universes. Eighteen films in, and with the nineteenth on the way, that’s a lot of Marvel to keep track of. And while this ultra-popcorn entertainment franchise is hardly Twin Peaks in its complexity, we’ll forgive you if you’re struggling to remember which Chris is which, and where Spider-Man fits into it all. Thankfully, Dorling Kindersley has got you covered. Mostly.
This colourful compendium covers, with one glaring exception, every MCU release from Iron Man to Black Panther, with a little teaser on Thanos and Infinity War at the end to get readers salivating. And when they say ‘all your questions answered’, they have a good crack at it, from the glaringly obvious (‘what is Marvel?’) to the fair (‘why did Thor go off on that weird, shoehorned-in quest in Age of Ultron?’ – paraphrasing there, of course). No question is too dumb, no answer too simplified. Marvel Studios for Dummies was presumably too on-the-nose.
And yet, there’s one burning question which goes unanswered. Where is Spidey? Aside from a few honourable mentions and a recap of his part in Civil War, the entirety of Homecoming is struck from the record, as though the film were never made. True Believers will realise that this is due to rights issues between Marvel and Sony, and hardly the book’s fault, but it’s a glaring omission all the same. The Incredible Hulk is swept under the carpet too, but not to such an extent as Homecoming, and perhaps because it’s simply not as good as the rest. Iron Man 2 still gets six pages to itself though.
As such, the focus remains on the fictional worlds presented rather than any behind-the-scenes drama. Where are the Fantastic Four and the X-Men? What happened to Ed Norton and Terrence Howard? Why did they get rid of Edgar Wright? When will we get a Black Widow movie? All these questions and more go unanswered by a book which, let’s face it, is for kids anyway, so stop being such a pedantic ass. Aside from pretty pictures, it doesn’t have much to offer the MCU’s adult fans, but it’s a nice collectable and a great refresher course for more casual cinemagoers in the lead up to Infinity War. It certainly beats forcing your friend/spouse/mum to sit through eighteen movies just because you want someone to watch Infinity War with.
All Your Questions Answered may not answer aaalll of your questions, but it comes close enough.
MARVEL STUDIOS: ALL YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED / AUTHOR: ADAM BRAY / PUBLISHER: DK CHILDREN / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
