The first reactions for Marvel movie of 2025.

As a result, the cast of Thunderbolts* was highlighted in many of the film's social media reactions, proving that the film is fixing a six-year-old MCU issue.

Thunderbolts* First Reactions Are Praising The Team’s Dynamic

Team-Up Movies Are Back In The MCU

The aspect of Thunderbolts* cast that is receiving a lot of focus in the first reactions is the team-up dynamic of the film. The last true team-up movie in the MCU was 2019's Avengers: Endgame, with Thunderbolts* finally scratching that itch for fans. Based on the film's reactions, it is clear that team-up movies have been desired by many, given that such a big focus has been placed on how well Thunderbolts* various characters work together and how strong the team aspect of the story is.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 and Eternals were not team-up movies in the traditional MCU sense, as disparate characters from different franchises were not brought together like in Thunderbolts* or The Avengers.

BeanzGotGamez, Brandon Norwood, and Jacob Fisher are just a few of the reactors who praise Thunderbolts* cast and how well they work together as a team. Although many are highlighting Florence Pugh's Yelena Belova as the standout character of the film, more reactions have come in that indicate the team dynamic fills the six-year void left by the Avengers' MCU absence. Cameron Howe, Neil Vagg, and clubfeige only echo these sentiments, proving that Thunderbolts* is providing the MCU with a strong team-up movie for the first time in a while.

Marvel’s Future Proves How Much The MCU Has Missed Team-Up Stories

Several Are On The Horizon

If the reactions to Thunderbolts* did not already make this abundantly clear, the future of the MCU proves how much the franchise has missed team-up stories. Thunderbolts* is only the first, with The Fantastic Four: First Steps then releasing in July 2025 - only three months later - to provide another team dynamic. The movies of 2026 and 2027 further prove how Marvel is moving away from solo stories for a while.

The story of Avengers: Doomsday is set to release a year after Thunderbolts* in May 2026, combining these two titular teams with The Fantastic Four and the X-Men. Avengers: Secret Wars will then be very similar. On the TV side of things, Daredevil: Born Again season 2 will include an army going up against Kingpin. All of this just proves how much the MCU has missed team-up stories given that so many are in production, with Thunderbolts* kickstarting this wave.