If the Marvel introduction sequence doesn’t give you goosebumps, then do you really love Marvel?

Seems like it was just yesterday when the world was introduced to the very first live-action hit of Iron Man.  Robert Downey Jr. killed it by the way, according to many fans (and not just me). Though Marvel Comics have been around since the 1950’s, and their renditions of movies (as cringy and old as they might have been), it wasn’t until Downey first set the stage for the Marvel Cinematic Universe to come forth.

Without going into too much depth, which I often find myself doing sometimes, Marvel has said in various interviews and articles that its plan for the Avengers franchise was to divide them into phases, as in phase 1, phase 2, and so on.

It’s been kept a secret as to why they had planned it in this manner, but hey, it’s been working out pretty well.

Marvel’s plan was to release individual films for their main characters and then merge them together in a crossover film, hence having both phase 1 and 2 accomplished, phase 2 finishing right after the release of Ant-Man in 2015.

Captain America Civil War was the start of phase three…and unfortunately, probably the last phase for some of our great heroes. Before you panic, yes, there are more phases, maybe not specifically “phase 4” but an untitled phase, according to Marvel Studios, which has said to begin right after the fourth and final Avengers film, and before Spider-Man: Homecoming 2 (or whatever the title will be for it)

Marvel Studios executive Jeremy Latcham said in April, right before the “Age of Ultron” release, that he saw no end in sight for Iron Man and The Avengers. But now he’s reversed course, indicating “Infinity War” will conclude the “Avengers” series in its current form.

So maybe all the actors will stay since their contracts are up for renegotiation after “Infinity War”, but their heroes will have different roles; for example, Tony Stark becoming a mentor to young Riri Williams, a young African-American girl who becomes Iron Man after Stark hangs up the mantle.

That’s definitely something to look forward to. The Avengers as a team is also interchangeable, meaning it’s not just Captain America and Black Widow fighting forever. New heroes emerge, young new heroes sometimes, so creators and producers in Marvel Studios have in fact hinted that a new generation of Avengers will come forth, as the comics have shown over the past recent years.

So yes, perhaps we should shed a tear in remembrance, but also keep the faith that Marvel will continue to surprise us.

I for one, am extremely hyped that we’ll finally get a movie with almost every popular Marvel Cinematic character on screen. (Peter Quill, meet Peter Parker. Tony Stark? Yea, here’s your doppelgänger, Dr. Strange.)