23% Of MCU Fans We Polled Said This Is The Best Phase 3 Movie

(Welcome to Survey Says, a feature where we conduct a movie-related survey for a random group of people and explain why they're completely right, completely wrong, or somewhere in-between.)

When it comes to the big questions in life, we must turn to the internet. Sure, we can come to our own conclusions and like, have opinions and stuff. But where's the fun in that? Anyway, you never really know how you feel until some rando on the internet says something that ignites your fury. Allow me to be that rando, because today we're asking the biggest question of them all — what's the best movie in Phase 3 of the MCU?

You might already have an answer in your head, but this isn't really about you. It's about the 635 randomly polled Americans who we've decided have all the answers. We had to outsource this one because this is really serious stuff — the MCU's third phase is no joking matter. It's the culmination of 10 table-setting years, bringing together all our favorite heroes for an epic final face-off. Together they take on that big, purple bad guy, and absolutely nothing goes wrong. But before all that grandstanding, we meet a couple of new heroes, including that one wizard man and the catsuit guy. Is this getting too vague? No worries, we're gonna go deep into the nitty-gritty to break this one down.

After 18 films in the MCU, we'd fallen into a pretty comfortable rhythm. But "Black Panther" dared to break away from all that.

We were very used to US-centric stories that focused on villainous foreign threats (whether they be invading aliens or Middle Eastern terrorists a la "Iron Man"). But "Black Panther" whisked us away to the fictional and futuristic Wakanda. Helmed by the franchises first African-American director, Ryan Coogler, the movie features a predominantly Black cast and grapples with issues of ancestral land and modern day Blackness. Just on its face, "Black Panther" was thematically rich and actually took time to delve into the complex issues it reckoned with.

Another major plus, "Black Panther" offers one of the greatest MCU villains to date in Michael B Jordan's Erik Killmonger. The best villains improve their heroes by exposing their flaws, and Killmonger more than accomplished that. Prince T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman) was content to leave the doors of Wakanda closed, a continuation of an outdated tradition. But throughout the film, tradition clashes with the modernity of the present — Shuri and M'Baku butt heads, just as T'Challa does with Killmonger. And while the former fight together in the end, T'Challa squares off with Killmongers. But he also learns from him.

Every great villain needs a worthy opponent, and T'Challa is a hero worth celebrating. He consistently proves himself to be a wonderful man with a strong sense of heart. The inner conflict sparked by Killmongers presence makes him better, because T'Challa walks the fine line of accepting his villain's critique, while rejecting his tactics.

Paired with its every nuance and clever scripting is that fact that "Black Panther" is fun. The movie is both hilarious and emotional, with whip smart action and very fun gadgets. Best of all, it's packed with talented performers whose individual characters could each carry their own movie.