In recent years, especially following their migration to Disney+, the quality of Marvel Television has been… mixed. I refuse to believe anyone finished She-Hulk and didn’t leave it feeling they wasted 6 hours of their time (why was she twerking with Megan Thee Stallion, Marvel, explain?). Agatha All Along somewhat fell flat in the shadow of its predecessor, WandaVision, a fate easily predictable following the slightly anticlimactic Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. At 53% Rotten Tomatoes rating, I learnt from my mistakes and didn’t bother watching Secret Invasion (I’m sorry, Nick Fury, you’re still great, I’m sure). That being said, Marvel has created some incredible television over the last couple of decades, if you know where to look. I’ll be your guide, if you’ll have me, to the top five Marvel series of all time (huzzah!). 

5. Jessica Jones: Season 1 (2015)

At number five, we have the first season of Jessica Jones. The show follows Jessica Jones (Krysten Ritter), an ex-superhero turned private investigator. The acting is incredible, particularly from David Tennant, who plays Season 1 villain Kilgrave, a performance that even freaked me out as a serial consumer of horror movies (and I love David Tennant). The concept is really cool, and it feels quite psychologically dark for a Marvel series, which I really enjoyed. Jessica’s sarcasm is magnetic, and you become quite invested in the will-they-won’t-they chemistry she has with Luke Cage (Mike Colter), despite the fact that her past makes them theoretically doomed.  However, I have to place it at five as I have only watched the first season. My reasoning for this, and the reason I am somewhat wary to recommend it, is the amount of ‘required viewing’ you need to undertake to fully understand the subsequent seasons – Daredevil, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, The Defenders, and The Punisher are all considerably relevant if you don’t want to be confused. It’s like finding a show you adore and being told to wait a year before continuing viewing if you want to fully enjoy it. Not so fun.

4. WandaVision (2021)

This was the show that convinced me I wanted to explore Marvel television. It follows Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) and Vision (Paul Bettany) on a sitcom of Wanda’s creation following the events of Avengers: Endgame (which returns to cinemas in November 2026, so we can witness Tony’s fateful ‘snap’ all over again on the big screen just in time for Avengers: Doomsday). The thing I love the most about WandaVision is that it impersonates the style of a sitcom and recreates time periods spanning from the 1950s to the 2010s. The show feels fully immersive, from details in the period outfits to the Easter eggs hidden in the mock ad each episode contains (advertisements include ‘The Strucker Wristwatch’, ‘The Hydra Soak’, and ‘Lagos Paper Towels’, all hidden references to Wanda’s dark past that seep through into the sitcom world). WandaVision was my favourite Marvel Television show for a really long time, as I loved the escapism of it all. And then Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (terrible name if you ask me) came along and undid a lot of the things I loved about the show. It turned Wanda from a woman grieving the loss of her partner, in admittedly questionable ways, to a full-on Machiavellian villain with no possible chance of redemption. Not to mention that that movie was our first realisation that Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) movies would not be able to truly stand alone from their Marvel Television counterparts anymore – if you didn’t have Disney+, you were no longer part of the club. This has been less of the case recently, but that feeling is not entirely gone.

3. Agent Carter (2015-2016)

If you too: a. thought Peggy Carter (Haley Atwell) was a total badass in Captain America: The First Avenger and b. wanted to see more of what she got up to after Captain America went under the ice, then this show is definitely for you. It follows Peggy’s attempts to balance life as a secret agent, navigate her position as a single woman in 1940s America, and hide her affiliations with fugitive Howard Stark (Dominic Cooper) and his butler Edwin Jarvis (James D’Arcy). It feels like an extension of the MCU’s dive into historical settings, and it’s something they excel at really compellingly in my opinion. I’ve re-watched this show multiple times – Atwell really holds her own as the show’s leading lady, and there’s something satisfying about Marvel’s refusal to have Peggy’s identity in the MCU be exclusively tied to Captain America. It seems this view was not shared by all, though, as Agent Carter was cancelled after two seasons despite suggesting a continuation of its storylines, a result of declining ratings. It’s a shame, as it was really a solid show, and if it were rebooted today, I feel it would have greater success. If these are my own selfish manifestations, so be it, I’d die on this hill.

2. Loki (2021 – 2023)

‘I am Loki, of Asgard, and I am burdened with glorious purpose’ – what is this glorious purpose I hear you ask? Watch both seasons of Loki, and you’ll find out. Loki follows Tom Hiddleston’s God of Mischief as he navigates the infinitely-expanding multiverse with the help of Time Variance Authority agent Mobius (played by Owen Wilson). I love the repartee between Loki and Mobius so much, mostly for its ability to give Loki the moral compass he lacks in Thor and Avengers: Assemble. Ultimately, Loki allows the God to explore his values in a way I find really endearing; whilst you can have free will, the way you use it truly defines you as a person, and there is no point taking over the world if there is no one on your side. I especially enjoy the queer energy Loki inadvertently brings to the table – Loki is not defined by social or physical barriers. In all variants, Loki is simply Loki. And the amazing part is this: Loki was genderfluid long before Disney+ told us so, and they chose to confirm this was also the case in the MCU. Hell yeah.

1. Moon Knight (2022)

Ah, where to begin with Moon Knight. It almost doesn’t feel like a Marvel series. Like, yeah, it follows a caped crusader, it has mythological elements and the sci-fi GOAT Oscar Isaac playing multiple identities of Steven/Mark/Jake?!, but it is very much grounded in the exploration of darker issues. The series follows Steven, a museum gift-shop employee who discovers he has a dissociative identity disorder and shares a body with mercenary Marc Spector. The elements of Egyptian mythology offer a refreshing setting that feels like a step away from the world the Avengers inhabit, a feat Eternals attempted and categorically failed to achieve (cough cough 47% on Rotten Tomatoes).  On a deeper level, though, it beautifully explores mental health, trauma, and how the two can be inextricably intertwined. Episode 5 is a tough watch, but equally, it is Moon Knight at its absolute best. Whilst it doesn’t currently seem likely Oscar Isaac will be willing to work with Disney, and by extension Marvel, in the near future, I would love to see Moon Knight explored further in relation to other members of the MCU if the time is right. However, on its own, Moon Knight is truly a captivating, self-contained piece of television, and reminds me why I continue to stick with Marvel through its ups and downs in the hope it can move me this way again.

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