As a general rule of thumb, fans of major franchises tend to be a fairly defeatist bunch at the best of times, but it’s easy to figure out why the muted response to Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania has already created concerns for a movie that’s years away.
Having utilized no less than nine writers across its first two installments – with leading man Paul Rudd the only scribe to be credited on both – Peyton Reed’s threequel was penned by a solitary screenwriter. Rick and Morty alum Jeff Loveness has also been tasked to hammer Avengers: The Kang Dynasty into shape, leading many to begin panicking that the next assemblage of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes is destined to underwhelm.
Not to even try and compare Sony’s attempt at a shared mythology to Kevin Feige’s dominant Marvel Cinematic Universe, but for the sake of comparison, Madame Web immediately springs to mind. When a rumored plot synopsis offered that the impending web-slinging blockbuster was poised to be a multiversal spin on The Terminator that saw a myriad of superheroes convene in New York City to safeguard the birth of a certain Peter Parker, there was genuine excitement… until it was revealed the duo behind Morbius were on writing duties.
Not quite as severe, though, but if Loveness’ first crack at whipping an MCU project into shape has instantly become one of the franchise’s worst-reviewed features of all-time, then there’s at least one justifiable reason for The Kang Dynasty to immediately be tempered with lessened expectations.