It's been more than a decade since the first Marvel Cinematic Universe film was released, with 2008's Iron Man launching the franchise with humour, charm and plenty of fight scenes.
Robert Downey Jr's Tony Stark got the ball rolling, but no-one could have guessed the immense success the Marvel franchise would go on to have. Over the course of more than 20 films, it has become a cinematic game-changer, and a combination of enormous star power, staggering earnings and some of the most imaginative and gripping blockbuster cinema in recent years have made the MCU a global institution.
Still, with so many films to choose from, and with each one littered with Easter eggs, knowing references and surprise cameos, it can be difficult to know where to start, especially if you've joined somewhere in the middle.
Viewers have two options to see the films in the best order – watching either by release date or in chronological order. Producer Kevin Feige intended fans to catch up on the films in the order they originally opened in cinemas, with the post credits scenes often explaining or introducing other films. This gives the franchise a sense of rhythm, but it doesn't tell the story in order of what's happening and when, with some of the films set in a different period to the one they were released in. 2011's Captain America: The First Avenger takes place at the end of the Second World War, for instance, while Captain Marvel, which came out at the beginning of March this year, is set in the mid-90s.
Marvel films and TV shows, in order of setting
This is a list of Marvel films and TV series shown in order of when they're set. As it happens, in most cases, the release date and the time period match up perfectly.
The films are in bold, while television shows and shorts are in italics.
Captain America: The First Avenger (set 1943 - 1945, released 2011, read our review)
Agent Carter one-shot, from Iron Man 3 DVD (set 1946, released 2013)
Agent Carter (seasons one and two, set 1946, released 2015)
Captain Marvel (set 1995, released 2019, read our review)
Iron Man (set 2010, released 2008)
Iron Man 2 (set 2011, released 2010. According to Marvel, Iron Man 2, The Incredible Hulk and Thor all take place within the same week, and there is a little overlap)
The Incredible Hulk (set 2011, released 2008.)
A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To Thor’s Hammer (one-shot — Captain America: First Avenger DVD) (set and released 2011)
Thor (set and released 2011)
The Consultant (one-shot — Thor DVD, released 2011, set 2011 post Thor)
Avengers (set and released 2012)
Item 47 (one-shot — Avengers DVD, released 2012 and set in the same year, just after the Avengers' Battle of New York)
Iron Man 3 (set late 2012 to early 2013, released 2013)
All Hail the King (one-shot – Thor: The Dark World) (set 2013, released 2014)
Agents of Shield (season one: episodes 1 — 7) (set late 2013, released 2013)
Thor: The Dark World (set and released 2013)
Agents of Shield (season one: episodes 8 — 16) (set late 2013, early 2014, released at the same time)
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (set and released 2014, read our review)
Agents of Shield (season one: episodes 17 — 22) (set late 2013, early 2014, released at the same time)
Guardians of the Galaxy (set and released 2014, read our review)
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (set in 2014, released in 2017, read our review. The flash back scene involving Young Ego and Peter Quill’s human mother is set in 1980)
Agents of Shield (season two: episodes 8 — 19) (set 2014, released 2014 - 2015)
Daredevil (season one) (set and released 2015)
Avengers: Age of Ultron (set and released 2015, read our review)
Ant-Man (2015, read our review. The prologue is set 1989, in which we see Michael Douglas’s Hank Pym reisgn from S.H.I.E.L.D)
Agents of Shield (season two: episodes 20 — 22) (set and released 2015)
Jessica Jones (season one) (set and released 2015)
Daredevil (season two) (set and released 2015)
Agents of Shield (season three: episodes 1 — 19) (set and released 2015)
Captain America: Civil War (set and released 2016, read our review. The flashback scene showing the death of Tony Stark's parents at the hands of Hydra is set in 1991)
Luke Cage (season one) (set and released 2016)
Agents of Shield (season three: episodes 20 — 22) (set and released 2016)
Doctor Strange (2016, read our review)
Black Panther (set in 2016, released in 2018. read our review)
Iron Fist (season one) (set and released 2017)
The Defenders (season one) (set and released 2017/2018)
Spider-Man: Homecoming (set in 2016, released in 2017, read our review. One of the time cards at the beginning of the movie says the events of Homecoming take place eight years after Avengers, which would mean it was set in 2020. However, it appears to be a mistake from Marvel, as the film takes place just shortly after the events of Civil War, which is set in 2016. It’s one of the few examples of discrepancy in the timeline.)
Agents of Shield (season four: episodes 1 — 8) (set and released 2016)
Agents of Shield: Slingshot (web series) (set and released 2016)
Agents of Shield (season four: episodes 9 — 22) (set and released 2017)
Thor: Ragnarok (set and released 2017, read our review)
Agents of Shield (season five, episodes 1 — 19) (set and released 2017)
Cloak and Dagger (season one) (set and released 2017)
Inhumans (season one) (set and released 2017)
The Punisher (season one) (set and released 2017)
Runaways (season one) (set and released 2017-18)
Jessica Jones (season two) (set and released 2018)
Luke Cage (season two) (set and released 2018)
Iron Fist (season two) (set and released 2018)
Daredevil (season 3) (set and released 2018)
Runaways (season 2) (set and released 2018)
Ant-Man and The Wasp (set and released 2018, read our review)
Avengers: Infinity War (set and released 2018, read our review)
Agents of Shield (season five, episodes 20 - 22, (set and released) (set and released 2018)
The Punisher (season 2) (set and released 2019)
Avengers: Endgame (set and released 2019, watch the trailer here)
