In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the way the franchise has treated women has changed greatly as the years have gone on. While the franchise’s lineup started out almost overwhelmingly male, diversity has slowly blossomed in the best of ways over time.
There are some female characters who have been treated well in the narrative and had great story arcs, but there are also many female characters with story arcs that didn’t give the character their due. Today, we’ll be checking out both sides of the coin. Scroll on to join us as we check out five female Marvel characters that had fantastic arcs in the MCU, alongside five that definitely deserved more.
Badass: Nebula
Nebula is one of the most abused characters in the entire franchise. Her entire life as Thanos’ daughter was truly dark and disturbing. She was abused by her father, literally physically tortured, and was little by little turned into a cyborg every time Gamora beat her in a fight. While she could have had an even better arc if she had been allowed to kill Thanos, seeing her leave Thanos and become close to her sister was one of the most rewarding things.
Deserved More: Sharon Carter
Sharon Carter’s arc in the MCU so far has not been handled very well. While Agent 13 could be a really cool character, she was given hardly any screen time at all. Instead, she was mostly just used as a love interest for Steve and put into an awkward storyline that didn’t feel natural for either character. Sharon is still going to appear in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier series, so hopefully, this show will give her a more complete arc and character development like she deserves.
Badass: The Wasp
One of the most badass characters in the MCU who gets a well-rounded storyline is The Wasp. While she might not be a mainline Avenger, she was given a good amount of screentime and development over the two Ant-Man movies, including the movie where she co-lead. Her romantic relationship with Ant-Man wasn’t forced like many others in the MCU, and this made it seem less like she was just his love interest and sidekick.
Deserved More: Gamora
Gamora is an interesting character in many ways, and she definitely is a badass fighter. However, the way her storyline was handled in the final two Avengers movies was kind of a shame.
Firstly, she was one of the few people to die for good when Thanos murdered her to get the stone on Vomir. While she does come back in a way, this is a version of Gamora from the past before she became close to the Guardians. This just sets her character arc back years and is kind of unfortunate to see.
Badass: Captain Marvel
Captain Marvel hasn’t been in the MCU for very long so far, but she is going to be in more movies in the future. In her solo movies, the first female-led movies in the MCU, her storyline and arc was handled really well. She is powerful physically as well as mentally, and she was given a fulfilling arc that revealed the kind of hero she was. While she hasn’t been featured much since then, it will be interesting and exciting to see what the future of the franchise holds for her.
Deserved More: Mantis
Mantis is one of the female characters who definitely deserved more than she was given. While in the comics she is extremely powerful, she was mostly made into a joke in the movies. It’s shown that she does have some powerful empathic abilities, but the way she was basically made a servant to Ego was uncomfortable. And even after joining the Guardians, they didn’t ever really seem to respect her.
Badass: Okoye
Okoye is another character who is relatively new to the MCU, but she’s made a big impact. While her arc was mostly only featured in Black Panther so far, her personality was made clear, and she seemed like a distinct, well-rounded character. She’s one of the most badass warriors of the franchise, and she’s also a loyal person and a good leader. It’s very exciting to know that she will be in more movies in the future because she’s one of many great female characters to come out of Black Panther.
Deserved More: Peggy Carter
Peggy Carter’s arc seemed to have a lot of promise in the beginning. While she was a great character in The First Avenger, she was mostly featured in the MCU after that movie on a small scale.
She did have her own spin-off show for two seasons that delved deeper into her character, and this was a great thing to see. However, the way her arc ended in the franchise is really unfortunate. She didn’t even speak in Avengers: Endgame, and she seemed to be there more as a love interest or prize for Steve to get in the end.
Badass: Valkyrie
Valkyrie is another female character who has been handled well so far. While she’s not done in the franchise yet, things have been directed well for her overall. Her character went on a journey from behind an apathetic drunk, to a hero in Thor: Ragnarok, to a Queen of Asgard in Endgame. While it would have been nice to see more of her in Endgame, there will hopefully be more of her in future films.
Deserved More: Black Widow
Given the fact that Black Widow was the first main female superhero in the MCU and the only one of the original six Avengers that was a woman, it’s shocking how her character arc was handled. The fact that she was the one to die on Virmire in Endgame instead of Hawkeye is disturbing. She also didn’t even get a very good send-off or even a funeral. Then, to add insult to injury, her solo film is only coming out after her death. It’s a shame that they killed her off, and also that she didn’t get a solo movie years ago.
