No one has done more research into the Marvel Universe than these three authors. This book will appeal to business students and fans of the movie franchise alike. It covers the fascinating cast of characters, including businesspeople, writers, actors, directors, and, of course, the superheroes themselves. Not a short book, but worth it!

As a fan of the MCU movies, I wasn't sure if this book would just reiterate a lot of the history and stories I already knew. This was not the case! This is a really in depth history of the history of the MCU, with an "inside baseball" level of detail into the Hollywood mechanics of this franchise. I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to any Marvel/MCU fan.

DNF @ Page 100

This book relies heavily on quotes, but that did help me learn why my teachers in school always told me not to overuse quotes in my essays.

This book was tedious to get through, I wasn't having fun and it sucked all the joy out of learning about the MCU.

I've been a fan of the MCU for a long long time. I vividly remember being amazed when I saw the first Iron Man and it's been a wild ride from there. Lately, I've been underwhelmed by most of the Disney+ shows and just haven't felt that need to go see every MCU movie in theaters like I used to. All that aside, I found this book super interesting and a well thought out anthology of the beginnings to so many new offerings in 2023.

If you are a Marvel fan, I highly recommend listening to Joanna Robinson on her podcast, House of R and ringerverse. She also has a podcast with co author Dave Gonzalez. Those podcasts are how I heard about this book. I was very excited to read and it did not disappoint. It was very informative which is not a surprise from Joanna.

Thanks to NetGalley and Liveright for providing me with an e-arc of this book.

In short, this is probably a must read for MCU fans. It is easy and engaging if unexceptional. As a work of nonfiction, it doesn't really stand out. That is, I think you have to have an existing passion for the topic to really get into it, as opposed to a book that can present a topic in such a way that would appeal to a larger audience.

Marvel, as an institution, mirrors the multifaceted nature of our society, adapting alongside societal changes and reflecting prevailing cultural themes. Simultaneously, it embodies the complexities and challenges inherent in our capitalistic framework, underscoring the economic aspects of societal evolution. I don't think you should need to be a fan of Marvel to find that conversation interesting. Unfortunately, I don't think this work really provides unique insight into those ideas. It limits itself to a raw history of events. This is its fatal flaw--a failure to reach its full potential.

Instead, we are left with a sadly more shallow accounting of events. It is still a fascinating read, at least to me as Marvel fan, but I cannot recommend this to other readers who aren't a fan of the property because it is unlikely to have much of substance for you to care about. Even in its review, that becomes more tenious as we reach closer to the present. As we get closer to now the information feels increasingly shallow with only the faintest of details about recent projects due to the roadblocks that likely exist around current events.

Ultimately, I think you'll know whether this is a book for you.

I really liked this (and think fans of the MCU will as well). The book does a good job of telling the factual story about Marvel, while making it an easy to follow narrative and providing fun facts (my favorite was that Michael Jackson wanted to be in the 2000 X-Men movie and play Professor X, and when he was told Professor X was white, said he could wear makeup). It has lots of details and insights, and isn't afraid of criticizing Marvel (this is truly an accounting and not a hagiography), and I especially liked how they handled Joss Whedon (acknowledging right away the later reveal of his abuse, while also addressing how he was viewed at the time). This is definitely a good read for fans of the MCU - not so much for people who aren't fans or interested in the topic.

I love the nitty gritty inner workings of how movies and television get made. It’s the reason why I listen to so many pop culture and Hollywood history podcasts. Podcasts are another reason I knew I was going to enjoy MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios. Two of its authors are podcasters that I have been listening to for the better part of a decade (Joanna Robinson and Dave Gonzales) and I trust them to be able to put together a narrative in a way that keeps me engaged and to do the work to bring a well-researched and nuanced take as they do in their various shows and articles.

MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios delivers on that trust. The four years of research, interviews, writing, and addition of a third author in Gavin Edwards created a narrative that brings into focus all of the unlikely things that had to happen for Marvel Studios to exist in the first place and the strategies, luck, and good timing that led to the truly impressive track record and cultural phenomenon that it has become. I’m not a big comic book fan, but I watched almost all of the MCU content that has been put out since 2008 (well, with a significant drop off in Phase 4 which as the book chronicles is not necessarily uncommon). This book goes a long way to explaining the whys and how's of fans like me and for fans like me. It even has its own version of a mid-credits' scene, which while silly is also indicative of the way in which this book was crafted.

This is an excellent behind-the-scenes peek into the world of the MCU. Lots of great stuff about the making of some of my favorite movies. Many of the anecdotes and bits of information have already been covered in other books, most notably the Marvel First Ten Years book; however, THAT book was clearly sanitized by Marvel and left out all the juicy bits, while THIS book has some information that you won't find anywhere else. If you like the MCU and want to know how the sausage is made, this is the book for you.

Thanks to W. W. Norton & Company and NetGalley for the advance copy.

A very in-depth look into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The book is broken up into phases just like the MCU. It was a lot more technical than I was expecting but still interesting. I think movie buffs and those who like the behind the scenes will enjoy this a lot!

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I didn’t get really into the Marvel Universe movies until watching Captain America: Civil War and realized how massive and interconnected it all was. This book has some great behind-the-scenes snapshots and interviews. If you don’t like the whole Marvel Universe, you probably won’t get into this void, but for fans it is great. I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley.

An incredible deep dive into the history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, this book started well before the creation of the first Iron Man film and brings the history about as current as possible given publishing lead times. I learned so much about this series of films and know now that it wasn't always super smooth sailing to create them. There have been plenty of bumps along the road, but it is a franchise that is always iterating and growing with every project. A must read for any MCU fan.

It’s impossible to talk about the ever-changing Hollywood landscape of the past 23 years without talking about comic book movies, specifically the Marvel Cinematic Universe. There used to be a time when the average moviegoer didn’t know who the CEO of Disney was, which company had the rights to which superhero, or what went into an actor’s contract for a series of films. Marvel changed all of that.

MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios, out now, is a 528-page tome that recounts the history of the MCU, from Toy Biz and bankruptcy to Kevin Feige and Disney+. Entertainment journalists Joanna Robinson, Dave Gonzalez and Gavin Edwards leave no infinity stone unturned. This book is a comprehensive portrait of how a small comic book company made an indie film and then grew to the global behemoth it is today.

However, those looking for analysis on whether or not the MCU is good for the film industry, or any insights as to what comes next for Marvel, will be sorely disappointed. This is a book of reporting, combining original interviews with nearly two decade’s worth of source material. Disney, Marvel’s parent company, told people not to give interviews for this book, although many did (or previously did) anyway.

There are tidbits and juicy gossip about behind-the-scenes clashes and boardroom conflicts that will be new to even the most ardent MCU fan. Basically, if you love the MCU, this book is for you. If you fall on the Martin Scorsese side of the fence, there might be enough gossip to entice you, but this is a book by and for clear MCU fans.

All of the “almosts” detailed in the book are fascinating, and conjure up a multiverse’s worth of alternative films: James Cameron’s Spider-Man. Edgar Wright’s Ant-Man. Guillermo del Toro’s Thor. Tom Cruise as Iron Man. Matthew McConaughey as Ego.

The most interesting information comes from earlier phases of the MCU, specifically the independent film attitude on the Iron Man set, the screenwriting dispute with Edward Norton on The Incredible Hulk, and Joss Whedon’s clashes with Marvel czar Kevin Feige on Age of Ultron. And while nobody says it outright, the book heavily implies that several deaths in Avengers: Endgame (most notably Tony Stark’s) occurred partly for thematic reasons, and partly because the actors’ contracts got too expensive.

Every time I thought “I wonder if they’ll bring that up,” the authors delivered. It mentions almost every issue the MCU has faced: Workout routines and accusations of doping; #MeToo and #OscarsSoWhite; corporate mergers; Chinese censorship and box office numbers; James Gunn’s “cancellation”; Disney+’s pandemic “premium access” tier; the labor conditions and churn that led to the unionization of Marvel’s VFX workers; Scarlett Johannson’s salary lawsuit over Black Widow; and the lack of payment to comic-book writers.

The only thing it doesn’t mention is Jonathan Majors’ assault charges, which happened after they sent the book to the printers, it seems. Maybe that will be another chapter of the paperback.

Once the book gets to current events, it rushes a bit and the pacing peters out toward the end (kind of like the actual MCU). Not all of the films get equal chapter length — The MCU does contain 32 films and 21 shows, after all.

Robinson, Gonzalez and Edwards are clearly MCU fans, and write with enthusiasm about their chosen subject matter. (Midway through the “Notes” index at the end of the book, there is another chapter, just like a post-credits scene.) The trio posits that there are no bad Marvel films. But the very fact that a book is being written now implies that the MCU’s reign is almost up.

If the MCU’s reign is coming to a close, and the superhero film does go the way of the Western, this book is an interesting historical document.

The theatrical landscape used to be a mix of indies, adult dramas, comedies, genre fare and tentpoles. Now, thanks to Marvel, that real estate belongs almost exclusively to tentpoles, bolstered by fans trained to be loyal to brands and corporations instead of individual artists.

Everything must be scaleable and exponentially profitable — until it isn’t. It’s not enough to have a multimillion-dollar independent film like Iron Man. No, there must be an interconnected multiverse. And toys and action figures and comics and TV shows. But public interest in Secret Invasion, Marvel’s latest Disney+ show, was basically non-existent, and there has been significantly less hype for each new Marvel installment that comes out.

Marvel’s history mimics the stories it tells: A wild origin story. A few stumbling blocks out of the gate as it learns its powers. A lot of success amid insurmountable odds. A fall from grace before the big third-act turnaround.

Right now, it seems Marvel is in its fall-from-grace period. Perhaps it can use its powers for a third act (and Phase 5 and 6) comeback.

If not, it had a great reign. And MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios is a worthy, if sometimes stenographic, record of its time on the throne.

For more reviews and bookish posts please visit https://www.ManofLaBook.com

MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios by Joanna Robinson, Dave Gonzales, and Gavin Edwards is an unauthorized history of the franchise. The MCU, Marvel Cinematic Universe, as iconic as it is now, is one of the most unlikely success story ever told.

I really enjoyed this book, it’s a fast read and weaves a coherent narrative. The authors relied on hundreds of interviews with the stars, writers, producers, and other professionals who were a small part of this huge success story.

The history of the MCU is fraught, even though the revolutionize Hollywood not only with CGI, but bringing back the studio system. The studio system is more a business plan where studios control every aspect of a movie’s production, distribution, actors’ salaries for multiple projects, and more.

Unsurprisingly, the idea of movies was to sell more toys, as Avi Arad, a genius toy designer wanted. However, they became monsters of their own making not due to the executives, but due to the talented people making. John Favreau who slyly created an internet rumor for Robert Downey Jr. to be Iron Man, the grunts working day and night to finish CGI effects in record time, and more.

Especially enjoyable, to me, were the small trivia nuggets buried in the book for those who know where to look. Which actress was originally slated to play Black Widow, why is The Hulk not getting his own movie, why was The Winter Soldier got so little screen time in a movie he was pivotal in, why did it take so long to get a Marvel movie fronted by a woman, and many more.

The authors don’t shy away from criticizing Marvel and Disney, especially when it comes to creator rights. This is not a new issue as creators such as Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, Bob Kane, Siegel and Schuster, and Stan Lee among many others deserved better for their creations.

I find the behind-the-scenes information fascinating, it amazes me what it takes for a movie to come together. The narrative is entertaining as well as informative, a difficult book to put down especially if you’re a fan or familiar with the movies.

As a lifelong comic book collector and huge fan of the movies, this was a must read for me. I never take the time to watch extras on dvds. but this felt like it made up for that a bit. So much chaos and confusion over who gets to use which characters and a lot of behind the scenes with directors and producers are cleared up for me. I've already started rewatching some of the movies with new insight provided here.
Thanks to the authors for providing an early copy!

I loved this way more than I expected. It was quite a page turner. My takeaway from this book is just how hard it was to actually make something like the MCU and how Kevin Feige really deserves a lot of the credit for it. This book in general is pretty pro-Feige; for good reason - a large portion of the book sets up a conflict between the scrappy, entertainment-minded underdog Kevin Feige and billionaire toy-minded, petty Marvel CEO Ike Perlmutter who is basically a real life cartoon character.

The difference in philosophy between these two makes the behind the scenes drama really compelling, and made me really respect Feige as a conciliator with great patience and his eyes on the goal. Ike Perlmutter is the worst.

Beyond that, though, there was also just a lot of cool information about the various MCU projects; and the book offers a pretty compelling reason why Post-Endgame has not been working out very well for them. In fact, Robinson et al made me cautiously optimistic for upcoming MCU content for the first time in a little while due to how recent changes have affected Marvel. We'll see how it goes.

Overall, highly recommended for MCU fans, film fans, or just people who want to know about how Hollywood/the film industry etc works.

Though I never read comics, I have been a fan of the Marvel movies since the Iron Man days, and have long been fascinated by the rise of the MCU as well as its struggles and wide-ranging effects on the film industry and pop culture, so this book was really perfect for me. I'm a devoted listener of Joanna's podcasts, though I'm less familiar with Dave and Gavin, but even many, many hours of listening to her work and consuming a large amount of Marvel content couldn't prepare me for this 500+ pages of expertise. Their combined knowledge and reporting made for a really impressive work for the pop culture studies canon. Informative, entertaining, and surprising, MCU is a definitive work on the key eras of the MCU and Marvel studios amidst a changing industry with everything you would want to know.

MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios, by Joanna Robinson, Dave Gonzales, Gavin Edwards is an even-handed, highly readable, always interesting, sometimes fascinating history of Marvel movie-making, starting from their early days of licensing characters to formation of their own studio, to reclaiming some of their most popular characters, to merging their TV and films under one roof to their purchase by Disney up to their most recently released films and TV shows in 2022. If you have a casual (versus academic) interest in the Marvel world, and particularly their movies, this is the book for you.

The early section follows Marvel’s attempt to license its characters with a focus more on sales of toys than film profits. One of the more interesting tidbits is the idea that James Cameron wrote a half-screenplay/half-treatment for a Spider-Man film to star Leonardo DiCaprio as Peter Parker and Arnold Schwarzenegger as Doctor Octopus. These sort of “what if” scenarios pepper the entire work, with alternate directors, actors, writers, etc. And are some of more fascinating bits of trivia for fans who can spin off into speculation on films never made.

After the large success of Sony’s Spider-Man (directed by Sam Raimi) and Fox’s X-Men, David Maisel convinced the then-owner of Marvel, Ike Perlmutter, that the current head of Marvel Studio, Avi Arad, was leaving money on the table by licensing characters to other companies rather than making movies themselves. Arad eventually left Marvel, thinking the studio idea was bound to fail. He was of course wrong, but it was far from a sure thing. To get funding, Marvel put up nearly a dozen of its remaining unlicensed characters as collateral with Merrill Lynch — failure would mean losing all rights to those characters, which included Captain America, The Avengers, Nick Fury, Black Panther, Ant-Man, Doctor Strange, and Shang-Chi. Marvel needed a solid hit, and after some hemming and hawing over which character to launch their studio with, they went with Iron Man, mostly because the character tested best as a toy. From there, history was made.

The rest of the book works though each of the ensuing films and then, when they arrived, the various TV shows that appeared on Netflix, networks, and eventually Disney-Plus. This is not a critical examination of the films, though there is some casual analysis, but goes more into how they were developed, written, and cast, what obstacles were overcome, and how well they succeeded (or not). What the book does best here is humanize the films, giving us a sense of the people behind all of this, ranging from the eventual overseer of it all (Kevin Feige) to the directors and writers and actors to the costumers and casting directors, to the visual effects people, and even an occasional visitor on set or janitor who offered up a suggestion that was taken up.

While mostly positive, the authors don’t shy away from stories that are less so: egos getting in the way, arguments over writing (a lot) and directing (some) credits, the ridiculous workload of the visual effects people, the overly cheap policies of the companies (writers raiding other studios for food), poor treatment of original authors from the comics, potential steroid use by actors trying to look like demi-gods, conflicts over director freedom and studio control, and more. By far the worst of these are the stories of how Ike Perlmutter’s sexism and bigotry for years kept Marvel from pushing forward with non-white, non-male characters (sourced not just in anecdotes but with supporting emails/memos).

All of this is related in an easy-going, engaging, easy-to-follow manner that never becomes too informal, chatty, or gossipy. And if a lot of the material has probably been heard/seen before by fans who pay attention to this sort of stuff, there’s nothing like having it all thoroughly laid out in its totality in clear, chronological fashion and placed within a web of context: corporate politics, advanced in technology, even international relations. Considering the tight-lipped nature of Disney/Marvel, the uber-security around the inner workings, the NDAs, etc., the authors should be commended for the level of detail they’ve brought to a work that is as informative as it is fun. Highly recommended for any fan of Marvel or superhero films/pop culture.

Thank you to W. W. Norton & Company and NetGalley for the ARC of this book. I heard this existed from a ScreenCrush video where Ryan Arey had gotten a copy which told me that I needed to read this. There was so much information here that Marvel fans will love. Some of these stories I had already heard in the ether, like Tom Hiddleston auditioning for Thor, but there was so much more here. It does not encompass all that has occurred in 2023 but does have some, If you want a behind the scenes look at how this studio became what it is now and all of the history behind it, you should read this book.

My thanks to both NetGalley and the publisher W. W. Norton & Company for an advance copy of this advanced copy of this book on the creation of one of the most successful film studios in motion picture history, its many crisis that nearly ruined them, the Secret Wars behind the scenes, the X-termination agenda of many upper level people, and what the days of future past hold.

Being a long time comic reader I always wondered what big screen adventures of my favorite superheroes would be like. I knew Spider-Man from the PBS show Electric Company and a late 70's CBS show, and while thrilled at the time, really thought it couldn't get better. Superman and Batman gave me hope, but the fact that writers and directors thought they were directing campy material meant that initial highs, turned to anatomically correct Batsuits, and Quests for Peace. Spider-Man again changed my mind, Sam Rami had the chops, the love, and the budget, but knowing Marvel at the time, and the people running it, I knew it was only a matter of time before they screwed it up, Fantastic Four ala Roger Corman style. However other people were paying attention, people with a drive to make art, teaming with people who only had purple pens because they didn't want to spend money, and somehow the Marvel Cinematic Universe was born. MCU:The Reign of Marvel Studios by fans and journalists Joanna Robinson, Dave Gonzales and Gavin Edwards is a Official Handbook to the making of the Marvel Juggernaut, a Hulking series of movies that have won praise and and Blockbuster box office, and recently a little undercurrent of Civil War and a bit of Fear Itself in both investors and fans.

The book begins with Marvel on the ropes, following a lot of bad decisions losing a core team of artists to Image, and lots and lots of multiple covers that suddenly imploded. Add in a change in the direct market system, a series of owners who made longe term deals for short term dollars, and it is not wrong to say that Marvel was facing an Age of Apocalypse. The success for the Spider-Man movies was a mixed bag for the company. Sure it sold toys, but that is all Marvel really got none of the millions that Sony made. The X-Men movie was even worse, making money at the box office, but changing release dates, so toys were late to the market, costing Marvel money. And an idea was born. Sure Mavel had sold the rights, cheaply, the their heavy hitters, but their catalog of characters was still deep. Maybe something could be done with say Black Panther, or Captain America, or maybe even Iron Man. And an Age of Heroes began.

While reading this, my first thought was that one of the tree writers was using a pen name to hide that Uatu the Watcher was giving them notes. The book is packed with information, from board rooms, to desert set, to VX studios. Each page has information, quotes and even better gossip that really gives a deep understanding to what went on behind and in front of the scenes of Marvel. Some people come out looking good, Kevin Feige the Gamemaster of Marvel and quite a few don't. Some of the people who don't come out so good are surprising in a few ways, but as the story gets deeper, one can see why. This is not a hagiography, there is plenty of stories of rushed effects, chaos on sets, bad actors, and directors who threw up their hands and said Marvel Director no more. A very interesting read that starts a little slow, but really hits is stride just as the movies start being made. The stories of plots changing during filming, or of whole ideas cast out because of the overarching storyline from Marvel is amazing and incredible, and I am sure for the creators uncanny and frustrating. Some of the films are looked at in depth, a few get a mention and no more. I am sure the Mouse that controls all of fandom might have had something to do with that. One of the better books about movies and the industry that I have read.

For fans of the Marvel machine without a doubt. A mix of gossip, real information especially in casting and effects that are fascinating and new to me in a lot of ways. Also for people who life Hollywood books, comic movies, and how art is created.