"And the smartest man alive... Reed Richards."
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00:00Comic book movies have always played up to the fan service angle, offering something to audiences for
00:04the sheer benefit of putting a smile on their faces. These things don't necessarily impact the
00:08movie. They aren't always integral to the story, but they are often a cheap way of trying to win
00:13the audience around. Sometimes this works a lot better than others. And so with that in mind,
00:17I'm Ellie with WhatCulture here with the 10 biggest fan service moments in comic book movies.
00:23Number 10, the classic theme in Spider-Man Homecoming.
00:26Is there any superhero across any comic book brand or property that can compete with Spider-Man for
00:31sheer popularity? The character's longevity and continued success with kids and adults alike
00:35suggest that there isn't. Even after both Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield brought Peter Parker
00:40to life in five movies over 12 years, Spidey's introduction to the MCU left audiences with the
00:45kind of excitement few others could generate. He broke the internet when he appeared in the trailer
00:49for Civil War, and in 2017, finally headlined his own MCU movie. Anticipation for Spider-Man Homecoming
00:55was already through the roof, and audiences flocked to cinemas to see Tom Holland in action.
01:00There wasn't much director John Watts could have done to get fans any more pumped, but he managed
01:04it before the movie ever properly began. Instead of the typical Marvel fanfare, over the opening
01:09montage played an orchestral version of the classic Spider-Man theme song that would be recognized by
01:14anyone, anywhere. Did it improve the movie at all? Not really, but was there anyone watching who
01:18didn't get goosebumps from the score? Absolutely not.
01:20Number 9. The Joker in Zack Snyder's Justice League
01:24Batman's rogues gallery is as impressive as any other superhero in comic book history,
01:28and can really only be rivaled by Spider-Man. However, in spite of names like The Riddler,
01:32Two-Face, Bane, and many more, The Joker will always be his greatest ever rival. As such,
01:37there was excitement and intrigue surrounding Jared Leto's turn as the Clown Prince of Crime in 2016's
01:43Suicide Squad. As we now know, the less said about it, the better. Leto barely had any screen time,
01:48and what he did have, he didn't exactly set the world alight, until Zack Snyder gave the
01:52character a second chance. In the Snyder Cut, after the Justice League defeated Steppenwolf
01:56and Darkseid, there was a bizarre apocalyptic future dream sequence. Along with Cyborg,
02:01The Flash, Deathstroke, and Mirror, Batman sought to take down Superman. There was one more member
02:06of this random team, namely, The Joker. This version was much darker, the aesthetic was
02:10immediately stronger, and even through incredibly jarring dialogue, he managed to convince many fans
02:15watching that he could have been something better if used properly. This scene ultimately led nowhere,
02:20and the movie wouldn't have suffered for The Joker's admission. He was literally just included
02:23for the fans.
02:24Number 8. Logan's Facial Hair in Logan
02:27For the most part, James Mangold's Logan managed to avoid the kind of fan service you might expect
02:32to see in a movie based around such a popular character, particularly one who was supposed to
02:36be giving his final performance, though at the time there was no way of knowing about Deadpool 3's
02:40plans. Instead of cheap callbacks and references, Wolverine's third solo movie was a powerful,
02:44character-driven piece that served as a truly epic send-off. That being said, even a movie such as
02:49this wasn't immune to bowing to fan service completely. If there was to be one critique
02:53of Wolverine as a character throughout the Fox movies, it's that his appearance was never
02:57strictly comic-accurate. Hugh Jackman was too tall compared to his comic counterpart, and though it was
03:02teased, there was never the classic comic-accurate X-Men suit. In Logan, however, Mangold threw fans
03:07a bone with the character's facial hair. While asleep at Eden, the kids decided to shave Logan's beard
03:11into the iconic look from the comics. This was, of course, something that infuriated Logan within
03:16the realms of the story, but put smiles on the faces of comic book fans in cinemas everywhere.
03:21Number 7. Wolverine's cameos in X-Men First Class and X-Men Apocalypse.
03:26After the poorly received X-Men The Last Stand, Fox gave its superhero franchise a soft reboot.
03:31Turning to younger versions of Professor X and Magneto had the desired refreshing effect,
03:35and while the focus stayed on two of the central characters, it strayed from its best.
03:38The story of how Charles and Eric met, and the inception of the X-Men, was a phenomenal story,
03:43but had no place for Wolverine. However, the creators did manage to cram everyone's favourite
03:48mutant into the movie, with one of the greatest Marvel cameos of all time. I mean, who doesn't
03:52love seeing Logan tell Charles and Eric to go f*** themselves? Fast forward five years,
03:56and the X-Men franchise was a tired one, and had more than outstayed its welcome. Apocalypse
03:59was supposed to compete with both Civil War and Dawn of Justice in 2016, but instead disappointed
04:04on every level. Even the Wolverine cameo. While in First Class, Hugh Jackman's appearance had been
04:09a joyous moment, seeing those famous claws in Apocalypse felt a little more transparent. There was
04:13literally no reason to bring him in other than fanservice, and this wasn't just one scene.
04:18It was an entire sequence seemingly put together just to shoehorn him in. These are two very
04:22different ends of the spectrum of how well fanservice can be received.
04:26Number 6. The A-Force in Avengers Endgame.
04:29The Marvel Cinematic Universe has grown to be so extensive that there are superheroes inhabiting
04:34the franchise that have never crossed paths. However, plenty have been thrown together to
04:38face a common enemy, never on a bigger scale than Avengers Endgame. This was the conclusion of the
04:43Infinity Saga, and almost every live hero was on the battlefield. This allowed for team-ups and
04:48crossovers like never before. One such idea that the Russo brothers implemented was that of an MCU
04:52A-Force, namely taking every female hero and putting them into the same scene whether it made sense or not.
04:58The idea of the coming together on paper was excellent, and had it been executed better could
05:03have been one of the greatest moments of the entire movie. Instead, bringing them all together
05:06seemingly just because was supposed to be a great bit of fanservice, but instead came off more as
05:11pandering. It took far too long for the MCU to boast a female-led movie, and the complaints were loud
05:16and numerous. Unfortunately, instead of genuinely compelling stories with female characters at the
05:21forefront, this seemed like a quick fix that for most fans missed the mark. Hopefully the team can be
05:25brought together properly in the future. Number 5, a live-action Spider-Verse in Spider-Man No Way Home.
05:32As we mentioned earlier, Spider-Man is arguably the most popular superhero of all time. Even within
05:36the realms of the MCU, after the two previous iterations didn't exactly end as planned, Tom
05:41Holland's Warcrawler has enjoyed huge success under the Marvel Studios banner. Both Homecoming and Far
05:45From Home were critical and box office successes, and naturally the third in the trilogy was highly
05:50anticipated. However, nothing could have possibly beaten bringing both Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield
05:55back into what was essentially a live-action Spider-Verse. Into the Spider-Verse is one of the best
05:59Spider-Man movies ever, and No Way Home took that and brought it to life with all three live-action
06:04Spider-Men. This was the kind of thing comic book and mainstream movie fans dreamed of. It almost didn't
06:09matter what the story was when Tobey and Andrew stepped through Ned's portals. Needless to say, the movie was a
06:13huge success, because why wouldn't it be? It could have been underwhelming in literally every other
06:18department, but with the three Spider-Men on screen together at last, not too long after it seemed
06:22that even one appearing in the MCU was impossible. It was guaranteed success. If we're being totally
06:27honest, this entire premise was one big load of fan service, and it worked. Number 4, The X-Men in
06:34Deadpool 2. Everyone knows Deadpool's schtick by now. Until Jennifer Walters burst onto the MCU scene,
06:40he was the only comic book character who could truly get away with breaking the fourth wall, and the
06:44Merc with the Mouth certainly pushed these boundaries. He actively asked which version of
06:48Professor X Colossus was taking him to, whether it was McAvoy or Stewart, as the timelines were too
06:53confusing. He spoke to the audience whenever possible, and made multiple jokes about why there
06:57were never any other X-Men on the screen. This last one, after in the first movie Deadpool suggested the
07:02studio wouldn't pay for any more characters to appear, enjoyed a huge payoff in the sequel. With Wade
07:07rolling around the mansion in Xavier's wheelchair, berating both Colossus and the studio for not giving the
07:11movie even one other member of the team, they all appeared in the background for a matter of two
07:16seconds. Professor X, Beast, Quicksilver, Nightcrawler, Storm, and Cyclops showed their faces in a scene
07:21that in the timeline made absolutely no sense, and realistically had no place there, but was one of
07:26the best cameos in comic book movie history. Number 3, Cap lifting Mjolnir in Avengers Endgame.
07:33Not only did Avengers Endgame bring together the Infinity Saga that stretched forward previous 22 movies,
07:37it was also the end of the road in the franchise for several major characters. One of the biggest,
07:42most important, and most popular characters in the history of the MCU is Captain America.
07:46There were some truly epic Cap moments in the movie, from standing as a one-man army against
07:50Thanos' entire forces, to finally uttering Avengers Assemble after so long. The latter could arguably
07:56have made it into this list on its own merit, but it just can't beat Steve Rogers proving himself
08:01worthy. As Thanos was kicking Thor all over the battlefield, about to pierce the God of Thunder's
08:05chest with Stormbreaker, Mjolnir began to move, cracking the Mad Titan on the jaw before zipping
08:10into Captain America's hand. The reaction of audiences across the world shows just how much
08:14this meant to fans of the franchise. Way back in Avengers Age of Ultron, Steve was able to make
08:19Mjolnir budge just a fraction of an inch, to the surprise of Thor. For the next four years,
08:23fans were convinced that he was worthy, and this moment proved it. It was a huge exclamation point
08:28on Cap's story, but it was as much for the fans as it was for the Star Spangled Man.
08:32Number 2. Superman's Black Suit in Zack Snyder's Justice League
08:36Let's kick off this entry with a statement any comic book movie fan knows all too well.
08:40Justice League, plain and simply, missed the mark. This was supposed to be DC's Avengers
08:45moment, but too many issues to go through here led to its ultimately disappointing failure.
08:49Four years later, the lobbying of Zack Snyder's fans paid off, as the Snyder Cut was released
08:53in all of its four-hour-long glory. Inherently an improvement on the theatrical version,
08:58though still severely flawed, the movie was received far better by audiences. In short,
09:02Snyder gave the fans what they wanted. In one particular scene, this revolved around
09:05Superman's appearance after his resurrection. The black suit was rumored and subsequently
09:09omitted from Joss Whedon's Justice League, but in the Snyder Cut, it was there for fans to rejoice at.
09:14In the comics, Superman wore the black suit to maximise regenerating his powers after coming
09:18back to life, and it signified something of a new beginning for the character. In the movie,
09:22none of this was truly ever explored, and no explanation for the changing clothes was given.
09:26Instead, Clark Kent donned the black suit seemingly just to give those fans, loyal to the director,
09:30a kick. Number 1. John Krasinski as Reed Richards in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
09:36In a conversation about fan service in comic book movies, there simply can't be any other place for
09:41Reed Richards' appearance in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness than at the very top.
09:46Kevin Feige himself admitted that this was done purely for the fans. The inclusion of the
09:50Illuminati and of Professor X was needlessly spoiled in the trailers for the Doctor Strange
09:54sequel, but the biggest reveal of them all was still kept quiet. After years of fan casting,
09:58John Krasinski finally brought to life Reed Richards, making MCU fans' dreams come true.
10:03This was easily the greatest moment in what was a disappointing movie, though actually seems
10:07ten times better by comparison after seeing Thor Love and Thunder. It was, however, a fleeting glimpse
10:12of Krasinski in the role every single Marvel fan wanted to see him in, as he was killed after
10:16only a few minutes of screen time, with the rumours being that he won't portray the Earth-616
10:21version of Richards in the upcoming Fantastic Four movie. Instead of Krasinski, Adam Driver's name
10:25is the latest to have been floated for the role, but no matter who brings Mr. Fantastic
10:29to life going forward, we'll always have those several minutes.
10:32And that concludes our list. If you think we missed any, then do let us know in the comments
10:35below, and while you're there, don't forget to like and subscribe, and tap that notification
10:39bell. Also head over to Twitter and follow us there, and I can be found across various social
10:42medias just by searching Ellie Littlechild. I've been Ellie with WhatCulture, I hope you have
10:46a magical day, and I'll see you real soon.