6. Daredevil: Born Again
After some welcome cameo appearances throughout other MCU properties, The Devil of Hell's Kitchen made his long-awaited return to the spotlight in Daredevil: Born Again. The Disney Plus series is a sequel / continuation of the Netflix show, which was a pivot from the MCU franchise's original plans to have the characters be alternate variants instead. It was all the better for making that last-minute decision that ultimately resulted in a creative reboot taking place halfway through production on the first season.
Daredevil: Born Again is a bit of a tale of two halves because of that. Some of the earlier episodes (which were filmed prior to the creative reboot) don't quite get the pacing right (although Charlie Cox and Vincent D'Onofrio offer up thrilling performances) and the newer characters lack the gravitas of the original characters. The second half, however, produces some of the best outings from the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a whole, once again finding that groove that made the original Daredevil series so gripping.
It hasn't quite reached the highs of the Netflix show, but after those final few episodes of season 1, it's on track to becoming one of the finest shows Marvel has ever produced. Look for season 2 to earn itself a high position in Phase Six when it arrives on screens in March 2026.
5. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
There was a lot of intrigue to see how Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 would wrap up its titular heroes' arcs. After all, it had no choice but to be the final installment in the trilogy due to director James Gunn's impending move to DC Studios. But how could it serve as the finale to a selection of characters who had now firmly established themselves as part of the wider MCU franchise in the previous two Avengers movies. Pretty darn well, it seems.
Guardians 3 had a lot to juggle, attempting to wrap up each of its characters' storylines, find a way to write Peter Quill out of the franchise for now, and deal with the aftermath of both Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame (which saw the original Gamora killed by Thanos before a younger version of the character, who had never met the Guardians, joined up with them instead). Yep, a lot.
The film balances it all very well, producing a story that is very James Gunn and very Guardians of the Galaxy while also finding a way to be the most emotional of the trilogy too. As we've come to expect from these films, it's heart-wrenching and side-splitting at the same time. And that, perhaps more than anything, allowed for it to send the franchise out on a high.