Say what you will about the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but its done quite a fine job of slotting many characters firmly into the hearts of moviegoers. Indeed, with a franchise as titanic as this, special connections born from the many fans of the series are abundant.
At the risk of sounding a tad cynical, where there’s love, there’s pain, and the MCU has put more than enough favorites through the wringer to elicit a particularly wet response from audiences over the years, and apparently, the folks over at r/marvelstudios have no time for jests when it comes to the saga’s most emotional moments.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever was a popular choice given its status as the latest tear-fest to come out of Marvel Studios; with the film’s heavy subject matter marked by one of the most heartbreaking real-life tragedies in the modern pop culture era, Wakanda Forever‘s power as a tribute piece can easily be measured in sobs.
The specific shade of finality that Spider-Man: No Way Home was brushed with was a surefire waterworks source as well; the MCU’s take on the brutality that so often plagues every waking hour of the web-slinger’s life, from his debilitating loneliness to the deaths of his loved ones, was on full display here. They even went the extra mile by bringing Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Man full circle in the most heart-wrenching way.
And, of course, a discussion about the MCU’s most emotional moments can never be had without Avengers: Endgame eventually taking center stage; especially with Tony’s death being perhaps the most impactful moment of all-time, this was one film that surely made cinemas consider flood-proofing their auditoriums.
After Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania made us all cry for very different reasons, it’s a bit disheartening to think that the MCU as we know it could be on its way out soon. Nevertheless, the cultural impact it’s left up to now can never be taken away from it or the fans that have fallen in love over the years, and all those tears are receipts for such a claim.