With so much happening in the Marvel Cinematic Universe nowadays, a lot of fans have been struggling to pull together a single, cohesive timeline and lay out exactly what happens and when it happens. Believe it or not, it's actually a little tougher than you'd think to put this thing together. Even Marvel's officially released timeline got details wrong.
If you happen to be one of those fans trying to piece everything together, then not to worry! After piecing together what I believe to be the correct version of the X-Men Cinematic Universe timeline (which you can read here), I'm back to sort through all the movies, TV shows, and canon comic tie-ins to put together what I believe to be the correct Marvel Cinematic Universe timeline. I'll eventually be releasing a document version available for download on my website, so be sure to check back for that update!
*Please note: This timeline currently covers strictly the events in the films. I'm currently sorting through the Netflix shows, and they will be included in an update coming very soon. For now, I hope you enjoy what I've put together for the films!*
The Timeline
????: Before the Big Bang, there existed six singularities. After the event, these singularities were compressed into nuggets that were eventually known as Infinity Stones.
2986 BCE: Asgardian King Bor and his army stop Malekith and the Dark Elves from destroying the universe with the Aether.
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965 ACE: Asgardian and Jotun armies clash in Tonsberg, Norway. The Jotuns are defeated, and their weapon, the Casket of Ancient Winters, is taken from them. Odin, king of the Asgardians, also takes Loki, infant child of Jotun king Laufey.
1408: Odin leaves the Tesseract on Earth.
1916: James Buchanan “Bucky” Barnes is born.*
*The Bucky Barnes wing in the Captain America museum lists his birth year as 1916.
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1917: Howard Stark is born.*
*Howard’s S.H.I.E.L.D. file lists his birthday as August 15, 1917.
1918: Steve Rogers is born.*
*Rogers’ Certificate of Acceptability lists his birthday as July 4, 1918.
1919: Margaret “Peggy” Carter is born.*
*Peggy’s S.H.I.E.L.D. file lists her birthday as April 9, 1919.
1939: World War II begins.
1940: Stark Industries is founded by Howard Stark.
1941: The attack on Pearl Harbor occurs.
Steve Rogers attends a baseball game.
1942: Johann Schmidt and his men invade a church in Norway, seeking the mystical Tesseract. Schmidt eventually finds it, killing the Church Keeper responsible for guarding it in the process. He then orders the deaths of everyone in the nearby village.
1943: Steve Rogers is rejected from military service. After getting beat up in an alley, he finds out that his friend, Bucky Barnes, enlisted in the Army.
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Rogers and Barnes, take two girls on a date to the Stark Expo. Rogers leaves the date to attempt enlistment again, only to be confronted by Bucky on his way to the recruiter’s office. The resulting argument is heard by Dr. Abraham Erskine, who approves Rogers for the Super Soldier Program.
After proving his worth to the SSR, Rogers is physically transformed by Erskine’s procedure. Erskine is shot and killed by a HYDRA spy after Rogers’ transformation. Rogers chases down and captures the spy, who commits suicide via cyanide pill.
Schmidt, after being confronted by SS agents over HYDRA’s lack of progress on developing weapons, kills the agents and splits HYDRA from the Nazi party.
Being the sole individual transformed into a super soldier, Rogers is forced away from the battlefield. Instead, he volunteers to perform for USO (under the name Captain America) shows in the hopes of being able to eventually fight Nazis.
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1944: After learning of Bucky’s capture by the Nazi’s, Rogers breaks away from his USO group and sneaks across enemy lines to rescue him and his unit. Rogers finds Bucky in a HYDRA base being experimented on by scientist Dr. Arnim Zola and rescues him.
During the pair’s escape from the facility, Rogers is confronted by Schmidt. During their fight, Schmidt reveals that his head had transformed into a red, skull-like visage. Schmidt eventually retreats, allowing Bucky, Rogers, and the rest of the imprisoned 107th to escape.
Rogers and his Howling Commandos (Bucky, Dum Dum Dugan, Gabe Jones, Jim Morita, James Montgomery Falsworth, and Jacques Dernier) prove to be valuable on the warfront, capturing many HYDRA bases and defeating large groups of HYDRA forces.
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1945: The Howling Commandos are lured into a trap on a train by HYDRA, using Zola as bait. Rogers and the Howling Commandos are able to defeat the surprise attack and capture Zola, although Bucky seemingly dies after he falls from the train.
Information extracted from Zola leads the team to the final HYDRA base. Rogers discovers Schmidt’s final plan: to fly across the ocean and bomb major American cities. The two fight, accidentally damaging the aircraft and releasing the onboard Tesseract. Schmidt, grabbing the Tesseract, is teleported to a (currently) unknown location. He is presumed dead.
Rogers crashes Red Skull’s aircraft into the Arctic ice to prevent mass deaths. He is presumed dead. During undersea missions searching for his body, Howard Stark locates the Tesseract.
World War II ends.
1946: Agent Peggy Carter, now a member of the SSR, is relegated to code breaking and compiling data by her sexist boss, Agent John Flynn.
Carter eventually receives a phone call informing her of the location of the mysterious Zodiac and decides to investigate by herself. Despite some difficulties, Carter is able to retrieve the Zodiac (a serum).
Carter is berated by Agent Flynn the next day, only to be saved from punishment at the last minute by Howard Stark, who calls Flynn and announces that Carter will co-head the new spy organization S.H.I.E.L.D.
Howard Stark and Dum Dum Dugan admire the newly created bikini.
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1947: The Soviet Union annexes a number of smaller countries. The Cold War begins.
1953: Peggy Carter gives an interview about Captain America’s exploits in a particular mission. The interview is later used as part of the Captain America museum.
1955: The Vietnam War begins.
1961: A Stark Expo is held.
1963: Anton Vanko defects to the United States.
1964: A young Trevor Slattery and his mother are photographed for the Liverpool Echo.
1967: Howard Stark has Anton Vanko deported to Russia. Vanko’s Russian contacts, angry that he cannot deliver an arc reactor, force him to Siberia.
1968: Bruce Banner is born.*
*Banner’s Culver University ID lists his birthday as December 18, 1968.
1970: Tony Stark is born.*
*Tony’s S.H.I.E.L.D. file lists his birthday as May 29, 1970.
1972: Arnim Zola receives a terminal diagnosis. His brain patterns are saved on a series of super computers.
1973: Howard Stark records a new Stark Expo introduction. He also leaves a heartfelt message to Tony about the Stark Expo being his life’s work (hinting at it being the map of an atom for a previously unknown element).
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Jasper Sitwell is born.*
*Agent Sitwell’s S.H.I.E.L.D. file lists his birthday as December 4, 1973.
1974: A Stark Expo is held. This proves to be the last one until 2009.
1975: The Vietnam War ends.
1984: Natasha Romanoff is born.
1986: Trevor Slattery’s mother dies. Slattery was not present at her death; instead, he was in America, filming the TV pilot Caged Heat.
1987: Tony Stark’s friend, Lt. James Rhodes, has an “interesting” spring break (according to Stark).
A 17-year-old Stark graduates summa cum laude from MIT.
1988: Young Peter Quill’s mother dies in the hospital from cancer. Upset, Quill rushes outside, only to be abducted by the space faring Yondu and his group, the Ravagers.
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1989: Hank Pym angrily confronts Howard Stark, Peggy Carter, and Mitchell Carson over S.H.I.E.L.D.’s attempt to replicate his Pym Particle. Believing the technology to be too dangerous in anyone else’s hands, Pym resigns from the spy organization.
1990: The Hubble Space Telescope is launched into low Earth orbit.
1991: Howard Stark and his wife Maria die in a car crash orchestrated by HYDRA.
The Cold War ends.
1992: Tony Stark becomes the CEO of Stark Industries.
1993: Ivan Vanko is convicted of, and jailed for, selling weapons grade plutonium to Pakistan.
1999: A drunken Tony Stark gives a lecture on integrated circuits in Bern, Switzerland. He meets Maya Hansen (inventor of Extremis), Ho Yinsen, and disabled scientist Aldrich Killian. Stark humiliates Killian after not supporting his organization, Advanced Idea Mechanics (A.I.M.).
2004: An accident at Culver University turns Bruce Banner into the rampaging Hulk.
Bruce Banner is spotted by military surveillance while on the run.
2006: While on the run, Bruce Banner attempts to contact Betty Ross. The message is intercepted by the United States Army.
Banner is spotted in Canada. The resulting transformation into the Hulk kills two Canadian hunters.
Banner travels to Rome, Italy. Interpol manages to photograph him in the area, although he is able to escape.
Banner travels to the Arctic to commit suicide. The attempt fails, as Banner transforms into the Hulk and leaves the area.
Banner disappears from military pursuit for five months.
2007: Banner, now in Brazil, works at a local soda-bottling factory. An incident involving his blood leads the Army right to him.
A strike team led by Emil Blonsky is called in to capture Banner, although the stress causes him to transform into the Hulk and escape. He wakes up in Guatemala and works for over a year to gather enough resources to get home.
2008: Tony Stark presents his newest weapon, the Jericho missile, to the United States Army while in Afghanistan.
Stark’s military escort is attacked by the terrorist group known as the Ten Rings. Tony’s heart is injured by shrapnel from a missile created by his company.
Stark creates the Mark I Iron Man armor and escapes the Ten Rings. His friend in captivity, Yinsen, dies during the escape.
2008 (3 months later): Stark shuts down the weapons division of his company, Stark Industries.
Stark develops the Mark II armor, learns from reporter Christine Everhart that the Jericho missile is now in the hands of the Ten Rings. He develops the Mark III and uses it to defeat a Ten Rings cell in Afghanistan.
Stark’s business partner, Obadiah Stane, visits the Ten Rings cell that captured Stark. He steals the pieces of the Mark I Stark left behind during his escape, using them to design his own suit.
2008 (5 months later): Stane attacks Stark, stealing the arc reactor from Stark’s chest and revealing that he paid the Ten Rings to kidnap Stark. Stane uses the arc reactor to power his Iron Monger suit.
Using his old arc reactor, Stark battles Stane on top of Stark Industries. Stark’s assistant, Pepper Potts, is ordered to destroy the building’s arc reactor, killing Stane.
Stark admits on live television that he is Iron Man.
In Russia, Ivan Vanko watches Stark’s announcement on TV. His father, Anton Vanko, dies. Ivan immediately begins work on an arc reactor.
Stark is visited at his home by Nick Fury, director of S.H.I.E.L.D. Fury reveals that he wants to speak to Stark about the “Avenger Initiative.”
2009 (6 months later): Tony Stark, in his Iron Man armor, arrives at Flushing, New York to announce the return of the Stark Expo. The Expo is expected to run for an entire year. Blood tests show Tony’s arc reactor is slowly poisoning him.
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Tony receives a subpoena summoning him to attend a Senate Armed Forces Committee in Washington DC. The case, led by Senator Stern, attempts to use quotes from Stark Industries rival Justin Hammer and Lt. James Rhodes to force Tony to give up the Iron Man technology to the United States government. Tony declines, claiming that arc reactor technology from other companies/countries is still 5-10 years away.
Ivan Vanko continues working on his technology, adding a pair of arc reactor powered whips to his arsenal. Meanwhile, Tony, after speaking with J.A.R.V.I.S. on the problems with his arc reactor core, makes Pepper the new CEO of Stark Industries. The signing of all the legal papers is overseen by Natalie Rushman.
Stark is attacked by Ivan Vanko on the racetrack at the Monaco Grand Prix. Despite Ivan’s best attempts, Stark manages to defeat him with his briefcase armor, destroying Ivan’s arc reactor in the process.*
*The 2009 Monaco Grand Prix was held on May 24. This fits with the idea that Stark’s birthday is relatively soon after the Grand Prix, since it takes place on May 29.
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Ivan, with the help of Justin Hammer, escapes from his French imprisonment. Hammer immediately recruits him to help develop more advanced Iron Man-esque suits.
During Tony’s drunken escapades at his birthday party, Rhodey takes the Mark II armor to force his friend to calm down. The two fight, causing huge amounts of damage to Tony’s home, before Rhodey flies to Edwards Air Force Base in Mojave, California.
Thor causes an incident with the Frost Giants on their planet, Jotunheim and starts a war. As punishment, he is cast out of Asgard and lands on Earth, in New Mexico. He is almost immediately incapacitated by Darcy, Jane Foster’s assistant, and is driven to the hospital.
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Nick Fury and Natalie Rushman, revealed to be Natasha Romanoff, deliver a large amount of Howard Stark’s old belongings to Tony’s home. Tony, spurred on by his father’s recorded encouragement, attempts to find a cure for his poisoning through his father’s research.
S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Phil Coulson stops a robbery at a gas station on the way to Mjolnir’s crash site in New Mexico.
Tony rediscovers a new element, based on Howard Stark’s research. The element can successfully replace his old arc reactor core, curing him of his poisoning.
A local man finds Mjolnir’s crash site and attempts to lift the hammer. The site soon turns into a hangout spot for the men of the small town. Agent Coulson arrives and secures the location for S.H.I.E.L.D. use.
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On Asgard, Loki discovers the truth of his heritage. His rage at Odin causes the All- Father to fall into the Odinsleep. Due to Thor’s absence from Asgard, Loki is named king.
Banner arrives in America once again, searching for information that could help cure him. He eventually meets up with Betty Ross again, who resolves to help him avoid the Army.
Blonsky receives a dose of the Super Soldier Serum. He becomes a Super Soldier.
After learning of Mjolnir’s location, Thor has Jane drive him to the site. He battles many of the agents and is nearly shot by a watchful Clint Barton/Hawkeye before reaching Mjolnir. He is dismayed to find out he cannot lift the hammer, allowing himself to be captured by S.H.I.E.L.D.
Loki arrives, telling Thor that Odin has recently died, and that he cannot come home. S.H.I.E.L.D. eventually releases Thor when Jane’s friend, Dr. Erik Selvig, arrives with falsified data to get him out. Thor and Jane spend time talking about the “Nine Realms” later that night.
After hearing Ivan Vanko threatening to attack the Stark Expo, Tony rushes over in his new Iron Man armor. Ivan then takes over all of Hammer’s technology, including his drones and Rhodey’s Mark II (now dubbed War Machine) suit.
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While Tony, Rhodey, and the Hammer Drones fight, Justin Hammer is arrested for his role in Ivan Vanko’s attack. He is sent to Seagate Prison.
Tony and Natasha are able to shut down and reboot Rhodey’s War Machine suit. Now in control, Rhodey and Tony destroy all of the attacking Hammer drones.
Ivan Vanko arrives in an Iron Man-esque suit of his own. After a hard fight, Tony and Rhodey are able to shut down Ivan’s suit. Refusing to accept defeat, Ivan remote detonates his suit, as well as all of the Hammer drones. Tony rescues Pepper from the explosions all around the Stark Expo. On a nearby rooftop, Tony and Pepper cement their romantic relationship, while Rhodey takes the War Machine suit as his own.
Thor’s friends, Lady Sif and the Warriors Three (Fandrall, Hogun, and Volstagg) arrive to bring Thor home. They reveal that Loki has been manipulating events the entire time.
Loki sends the Destroyer to New Mexico to kill Thor. Thor is able to regain his power and defeat the mystical armor. He then arrives back in Asgard, where he battles Loki over control of the Bifrost. Thor destroys the Bifrost, stopping the destruction of Jotunheim. Loki disappears inside a wormhole. The Asgardians are now unable to travel to other worlds.
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As the Hulk, Banner engages in a huge battle against the military on Culver University’s campus, with Blonsky suffering heavy injuries. The fight ends only after Hulk takes Betty and flees the area.
Tony and Nick Fury meet to discuss Iron Man’s role in the Avenger Initiative, based on the report Natasha Romanoff wrote. Although the Iron Man suit is designated as acceptable, Tony’s personality rejects him as an active candidate. Instead, Fury hires him as a consultant.
Tony and Rhodey are awarded medals for their service, as presented by Senator Stern.
Nick Fury meets with Dr. Selvig (now controlled by Loki) and discusses the Tesseract.
Banner and Betty travel to the office of Dr. Samuel Sterns, Banner’s contact while he was in exile. The Army attacks the trio later that night.
Blonsky forces Sterns to give him a dose of the Hulk’s blood. Mixing with the Super Soldier Serum already in his veins, Blonsky transforms into a vicious creature (dubbed “Abomination”) and begins destroying Harlem. Sterns is injured and accidentally exposed to the Hulk’s blood, which begins mutating his brain.
Hulk and the Abomination square off in Harlem. After a vicious bout, Hulk manages to take down Abomination, fleeing from the city soon after.
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Coulson and Jasper Sitwell meet in a café, where Coulson reveals that the World Security Council wants Abomination on the Avengers. Per the WSC’s orders, an agent is to be sent to meet with General Ross and request Blonsky’s transfer into S.H.I.E.L.D.’s custody. Since Fury is against having Blonsky on the team, the new Avenger Initiative consultant (Tony Stark) is sent to speak with Ross at a local bar, in the hopes of messing up the deal.
The next day, Coulson reveals that the plan worked: Tony annoyed Ross so much, Ross tried having him removed from the bar. Tony responded in kind, purchasing the bar and scheduling it for demolition. Blonsky is to remain in prison.
2009 (1 month later): Bruce Banner, learning to control his rage, transforms into the Hulk.
While escorting a nuclear engineer out of Iran, Natasha Romanoff is attacked by the Winter Soldier.
2012: Scott Lang steals 4.4 million dollars from his employer, VistaCorp., and returns it to the people the company is overcharging. He is sentenced to five years in prison.
2013: Steve Rogers wakes up in modern day America. Confused, he fights his way out of a S.H.I.E.L.D. facility, eventually making his way into Times Square. Nick Fury arrives and explains the situation to Rogers.
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Loki strikes a deal with Thanos to retrieve the Tesseract in exchange for ruling Earth. He is given command of the Chitauri and a scepter with another Infinity Stone in it.
While S.H.I.E.L.D. is experimenting with the Tesseract, Loki uses it to create a wormhole and emerge from space. He immediately takes control of Dr. Selvig and Clint Barton, using them to help steal the Tesseract and escape. Nick Fury reactivates the “Avengers Initiative.”
Natasha Romanoff retrieves Bruce Banner in Calcutta, while at the same time, Agent Coulson speaks with Tony Stark about continuing Dr. Selvig’s research. Fury also goes to Steve Rogers, asking for any information on the Tesseract.
Rogers, Stark, and Romanoff confront and capture Loki in Stuttgart, Germany. On the trip back, Thor intervenes, confronting Loki about his ambition to rule Earth. Stark, Rogers, and Thor all briefly fight before taking Loki to the Helicarrier.
Loki’s forces attack and damage the Helicarrier, freeing Loki. Agent Coulson is killed during the attack, and Romanoff frees Clint Barton from his mind control.
Stark and Rogers realize that Loki wants to publicly humiliate the superhumans Fury assembled, and that he’s taken both Dr. Selvig and the Tesseract to Stark Tower. Arriving in a battle damaged armor, Stark talks with Loki before he’s thrown out of the window. The Mark VII follows him outside, allowing him to survive the fall.
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The Tesseract is activated by Dr. Selvig, allowing the Chitauri to pour through the wormhole. All of Fury’s chosen superhumans arrive at the scene, although the quickly realize that they are overwhelmed by sheer numbers.
The World Security Council decides to end things quickly, launching a nuclear missile at New York City to wipe out all of the Chitauri at once. Stark intercepts the missile and redirects it through the wormhole, destroying the Chitauri mothership. All of the aliens are wiped out at once.
The superhumans, now called “The Avengers,” decide to eat shwarma at a restaurant Stark noticed earlier.
Thor and Loki return to Asgard with the Tesseract, while the rest of the Avengers split up. Loki is sentenced to eternal imprisonment by Odin for his actions on Earth.
In space, Thanos plots to confront the Avengers again.
Couple Bennie and Claire find a leftover Chitauri weapon from the Battle of New York. The pair are investigated by S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Jasper Sitwell, who eventually recruits them into the organization for their potential usefulness.
2013 (6 months later): Tony Stark, now suffering from PTSD, develops an entire army of Iron Man suits.
The global terrorist known as the Mandarin causes yet another bombing, injuring Stark Industries head of security Happy Hogan.
Angered, Stark issues a challenge to the Mandarin, who quickly responds by attacking Stark’s home. Stark is able to escape to Tennessee, but the world believes him to be dead.
Stark teams up with 10 year old Harley and investigates the site of a Mandarin bombing, quickly realizing that the bombers were soldiers injected with Extremis, which sometimes causes massive explosions in the people injected with it. Stark fends off attacks from Mandarin allies Brandt and Savin before escaping the area with Harley.
Stark traces the Mandarin’s base of operations to Miami, where he discovers that the “Mandarin” is actually just a role, played by washed up actor Trevor Slattery.
Stark is captured by Aldrich Killian, now healed from his disability due to Extremis, and Maya Hansen. Killian also kidnaps Pepper Potts and injects her with Extremis to make Stark cooperate and help finish Extremis. Hansen is killed after she decides to stop Killian.
Killian kidnaps the President and incapacitates Rhodey, now rebranded as the Iron Patriot. Killian intends to kill the President and use the vice president as a puppet leader.
Stark and Rhodey attack Killian’s location with the entire army of Iron Man suits. Killian is eventually killed, and Stark blows up all of his Iron Man suits.
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Stark eventually fixes the problems with Extremis. He uses it to cure Pepper and to remove the shrapnel from his heart. No longer needing the arc reactor, Stark tosses it into the ocean.
Dr. Bruce Banner falls asleep listening to Stark retell the entire story.
Slattery grants a series of interviews with Jackson Noriss, a filmmaker trying to gather information on Slattery’s role as the Mandarin. During the final interview, Noriss reveals that he is actually an agent of the Ten Rings, and wishes to break Slattery out of prison so he can meet the real Mandarin.
2014: Thor, Sif, and the Warriors Three battle marauders on Vanaheim. It is the last battle following the destruction of the Bifrost sometime before.
In London, Jane Foster discovers a portal to another world, leading to her possession by the Aether, another of the Infinity Stones. Thor takes her to Asgard, where Odin tells her that its power will kill Jane and bring about a major catastrophe.
Malekith and his henchman Algrim attack Asgard, looking for the Aether. During the battle, Algrim is transformed into the ultra-powerful Kurse. Thor’s mother, Frigga, dies during the attack, and Malekith and Kurse are forced to flee.
Thor recruits Loki, and the pair (along with Jane) travel to Svartalfheim, home of the Dark Elves, to stop Malekith. Loki is able to trick Malekith into removing the Aether from Jane, but Thor is unable to destroy it. Loki and Kurse die after Loki manages to stop the monster. Malekith travels to Earth to unleash the power of the Aether during the Convergence, a time when all Nine Realms are aligned.
Thor returns to Earth and battles Malekith. The Dark Elf is eventually crushed by his own ship back on Svartalfheim.
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Speaking with Odin, Thor refuses to take the throne of Asgard and leaves. Odin transforms, revealing himself to be Loki in disguise.
Volstagg and Sif deliver the Aether to Tanaleer Tivan, the Collector.
Thor reunites with Jane on Earth, as a frost monster from Jotunheim, accidentally transported to Earth, continues to cause destruction.
A now adult Peter Quill locates the Orb on the planet Morag. He narrowly avoids capture at the hands of Korath, subordinate of the Kree Ronan, and escapes. Instead of turning over the Orb to Yondu, as planned, Quill strikes out on his own. Yondu places a bounty on his head.
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After the deal goes sour, Quill is ambushed by the assassin Gamora, who was tasked by Thanos to retrieve the item. The ambush goes wrong after bounty hunters Rocket and Groot attack the pair, leading to all of them being arrested by the Nova Corps.
While in the prison Kyln, Gamora is attacked by Drax “the Destroyer,” in revenge for Ronan murdering his family some time prior. Quill saves her life.
Ronan is summoned to Thanos’ throne, where he is chastised by the Mad Titan for losing both the Orb and Gamora. Thanos orders him to take his other daughter, Nebula, and retrieve what he’s lost.
After a harrowing escape attempt, Quill, Rocket, Groot, Drax, and Gamora escape the Kyln. Gamora leads them to Knowhere and to a potential buyer for the Orb.
The buyer is revealed to be Taneleer Tivan, who reveals the Infinity Stone inside the Orb. Before the transaction can take place, his assistant grabs the stone, causing an explosion inside Tivan’s base of operations.
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Ronan arrives and takes the Infinity Stone, using it to amplify his power. He resolves to destroy the home of the Nova Corp, the planet Xandar.
Quill and his friends strike a deal with Yondu and the Ravagers in an effort to stop Ronan. The two groups work together, killing a great deal of Ronan’s soldiers and incapacitating Nebula, before killing Ronan himself. The Infinity Stone is left with the remnants of the Nova Corps.
Quill and his friends, now calling themselves the “Guardians of the Galaxy,” take off for parts unknown.
2015: Captain Steve Rogers races around the Reflecting Pool in Washington DC. He meets and talks with Sam Wilson before leaving with Natasha Romanoff to rescue the S.H.I.E.L.D. vessel Lemurian Star. Rogers defeats the mercenary Batroc, later finding out that Romanoff is recovering S.H.I.E.L.D. intel on Project: Insight.
Nick Fury attempts to decrypt the information Romanoff recovered, but is unable to. Concerned, he asks his friend, senior S.H.I.E.L.D. official Alexander Pierce, to delay the project.
On his way to meet Maria Hill, Fury is ambushed by the Winter Soldier and his men. Fury is injured, but manages to escape.
Arriving at Rogers’ apartment, Fury gives him the information on a flash drive before apparently being killed by the Winter Soldier. Rogers gives chase, but is unable to catch him.
Rogers later refuses to divulge information to Pierce. Pierce responds by labeling him a fugitive and ordering his capture. With help from Romanoff, Rogers is able to avoid detection.
Rogers and Romanoff use the flash drive to find a secret S.H.I.E.L.D. facility in New Jersey, uncovering the computerized brain of Arnim Zola. Zola reveals that HYDRA has taken over S.H.I.E.L.D. before being destroyed by Pierce.
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Rogers, Romanoff, and Wilson work together to capture Jasper Sitwell, revealed to be an agent of HYDRA. Sitwell reveals that Project: Insight is to be used to cement HYDRA’s power, and is later killed by the Winter Soldier.
During his fight with the Winter Soldier, Rogers discovers that his enemy is actually Bucky Barnes. Barnes escapes, while Rogers, Romanoff, and Wilson are extracted by a disguised Maria Hill.
The group meets up with Nick Fury, injured but still alive after faking his death. They formulate a plan to stop the Helicarriers involved with Project: Insight.
Rogers broadcasts HYDRA’s plan throughout the Triskelion, S.H.I.E.L.D.’s headquarters. S.H.I.E.L.D. and HYDRA agents battle as Rogers and his friends work to shut down the Helicarriers.
Rogers finds Barnes on the last Helicarrier. The two fight, as Rogers tries to break through Barnes’ programming.
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HYDRA’s plan is stopped, as the Triskelion is destroyed. HYDRA agent Brock Rumlow is injured in the event, and Barnes saves Rogers from drowning before disappearing.
At Nick Fury’s false grave, Fury announces that he will be heading to Eastern Europe to uncover the remaining HYDRA cells, while Rogers and Wilson resolve to find Barnes.
Barnes examines his own wing in the Captain America museum.
At a hidden HYDRA base, Baron Wolfgang von Strucker claims that the “Age of Miracles” has begun, while looking over Loki’s scepter and twins Pietro and Wanda Maximoff.
The Avengers reunite in Sokovia, attacking a HYDRA base housing Baron von Strucker. The Avengers eventually defeat him and escape with Loki’s scepter.
Back at Avengers Tower, Tony Stark and Bruce Banner use the scepter to further their “Ultron” program. Ultron becomes self-aware and attacks J.A.R.V.I.S. before ambushing the Avengers. He is quickly subdued, but is able to escape with Loki’s scepter.
Ultron upgrades himself and travels to Sokovia, where he recruits Pietro and Wanda Maximoff. The group travel to Africa, where they begin making deals with Ulysses Klaue for Vibranium. Ultron chops off one of Klaue’s hands before the Avengers arrive.
During the chaos of the battle, Wanda is able to manipulate the minds of Captain America, Black Widow, Thor, and Bruce Banner. Banner, stressed enough to turn into a rampaging Hulk, fights Stark in his Hulkbuster suit. Banner is eventually subdued.
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Clint Barton takes the Avengers to his isolated home, where the team forms a plan to stop Ultron with a returning Nick Fury.
Ultron kidnaps Avengers ally Dr. Helen Cho, using Loki’s scepter to bring her under his control. She uses the Infinity Stone within the scepter, the vibranium Ultron acquired, and her own synthetic tissue technology, to begin crafting a new body for Ultron. Wanda and Pietro realize that Ultron means to destroy humanity, and flee in horror.
The Avengers eventually steal the body and upload J.A.R.V.I.S. into it, creating the Vision. The team, along with Wanda, Pietro, and Vision, travel to Sokovia to destroy Ultron.
Ultron plans to use Sokovia like a giant meteor and wipe out all life on Earth. Although the city is destroyed, the Avengers are able to stop Ultron and save the world. Pietro dies during the fight.
Stark, Barton, and Thor depart. Rogers and Romanoff, now in the new Avengers headquarters Stark provided, begin to train new Avengers James Rhodes, Wanda Maximoff, the Vision, and Sam Wilson.
In space, Thanos dons a gauntlet and swears to battle the Avengers himself.
2015 (X months later): Scott Lang is interviewed by Christine Everhart on the details of his VistaCorp. burglary.
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After serving only three years of his five-year sentence, Lang is released from prison. He is picked up by his friend, Luis, and moves into his apartment.
Former Hank Pym protégé Darren Cross, working with Pym’s daughter Hope van Dyne, announces that he is close to perfecting an Ant-Man-esque suit, which he dubs the “Yellowjacket.”
Lang is forced away from seeing his daughter, Cassie, by his ex-wife Maggie and her fiancé Paxton. Despondent, Lang resorts to burglary again to earn enough money to pay child support.
Lang breaks into the home of Hank Pym, acting on a tip given to Luis. He finds the Ant- Man suit in a vault in the basement and takes it home.
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Disturbed by the shrinking power of the suit, Lang attempts to return it, only to be caught by the police (called in by Hope). Hank visits him in jail and brings him the Ant- Man suit, helping Lang use it to escape prison.
Pym and Hope train Lang over the next few days to use the Ant-Man suit.
Hank reveals that Hope’s mother, once a costumed adventurer called “Wasp,” disappeared after shrinking to subatomic levels.
Fully trained, Lang breaks into the new Avengers headquarters to steal a piece of technology he needs to stop Cross. Lang ends up fighting Sam Wilson, who is in full Falcon gear, and wins.
Cross perfects the Yellowjacket suit and chooses to sell it to Mitchell Carson, now revealed as a HYDRA agent.
Lang destroys all of Cross’ Yellowjacket research and replicated Pym Particles before fighting Cross himself.
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Cross is later killed after Lang goes subatomic, destroying Cross’ Yellowjacket armor from within. Lang is able to return to normal size.
Steve Rogers and Sam Wilson have located Bucky. Unable to contact Tony Stark because of the “Sokovia Accords,” Wilson decides to look for Lang.
Luis reveals to Lang that Wilson is looking for him.
Hank reveals to his daughter that he has an upgraded Wasp suit.
This timeline will continue to develop and expand as more films and material is released. In the meantime though, what do you think about this version of the Marvel Cinematic Universe timeline? Let me know in the comments below, or through Twitter at @comicsvsworld. While you’re at it, don't forget to check out my website, Comic Books vs The World, for even more comic book related content!
Sources
The entire series of films:
Iron Man
Iron Man 2
Iron Man 3
Captain America: The First Avenger
Captain America: The Winter Soldier
The Incredible Hulk
Thor
Thor: The Dark World
Guardians of the Galaxy
Ant-Man
The Avengers
Avengers: Age of Ultron
Marvel One Shots
The Consultant
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Thor's Hammer
Item 47
All Hail the King
Agent Carter