Welcome to Marvel's "Darkest" Hour

Written by John Edward Betancourt

I have to say that this week's episode of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. stuck with me long after I had watched it and written about it, something that is rare to say the least. It wasn't that the episode was any less earth shattering than say the midseason finale, it's just that...something about the tone of it and the design of it took me off guard. 

Truly, it was one of the darkest episodes of the show to date, dealing with one heavy thing after another, and as I had time to ponder on all the things that went down, my thoughts began to wander to other parts of the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a grand concept began to work its way into my mind, the fact that we may be looking at some of the darkest and deepest stories that the MCU has had to offer to date.  

I mean, think about it. Nothing has been the same since Captain America: The Winter Soldier with the incredible revelations it brought to the table by way of Hydra. While the film is amazing, and one of my favorites in the MCU it's clear Marvel is moving to a darker tone. We see it on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and judging from the three epic trailers for Avengers: Age of Ultron our intrepid heroes are in for one hell of a scary ride that will undoubtedly beat them to their knees. 

I also think it's a foregone conclusion that the events in Age of Ultron will change Tony Stark, which of course leads us to Captain America: Civil War which it's safe to say will equally be a heavy handed film in its themes and what the characters go through. The irony is that while DC films are often criticized for being too dark, Marvel is quickly surprising us all with some heavy stories and more on the horizon. Now of course the big question is, is this a bad thing? The answer is an absolute no. This is the kind of era for the MCU that will undoubtedly bring forth the best possible stories we have ever seen from Marvel. After all, who isn't excited to see what happens next come May.

The bottom line is, I think we have entered a phase of extremely dark and heavy stories from the biggest movie franchise out there simply because, those stories captivate us and draw us in and we crave it quite frankly. Think back to your favorite comic book storyline and how it put your hero through absolute hell. The difference for Marvel is that they keep the fun going regardless of how incredible the odds are for the characters and while I have no doubt once we get through this ugly patch the stories will lighten up a little bit, there will always be those heavy moments to give our characters something to overcome and keep all of us talking long after the screen has faded to black. 

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