There is so much that I am anticipating this year that it was very difficult to pick just one thing. So I decided to pick at least one thing per category and revisit this sometime in June to see if anything changes. So here is my most anticipated Movies, Shows, and Animation in 2023:
MOVIES
Antman and The Wasp: Quantumania - I have really enjoyed all of the Antman movies so far. Unlike most of the Marvel movies, the Antman ones have been very fun and light-hearted but still have a pretty compelling character in Scott Lang. Though I feel most of that is due to Paul Rudd’s character portrayal. From the trailers however, it seems that this Antman movie is going to be a bit darker with the introduction of Kang the Conqueror, the new big bad of the MCU. While I am fully aware that Kang was technically introduced in the first season of Loki, that was only one variant. I am still excited to see how this version will act in comparison. Though I can speculate thanks to the trailer that he'll be very cold and calculating. This is a definite difference from previous villains that Antman has faced in the past. Most importantly this will be the first movie of phase five and I am hoping that this will be an indication of where this phase will be going in the future.
Animation
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse - Out of all the pop culture things that are happening this year there is nothing I am more excited about than Across the Spider-Verse. The First movie Into The Spider-Verse is one of my favorite animated movies of all time because it merges great storytelling with amazing art in a way that no one has been able to duplicate since. Because of Into the Spider-Verse (and the PS4 games), Miles Morales, whom I had only a vague idea of before, has become one of my favorite Marvel characters. The trailer that came out last December, as of the writing of this post, has gotten me super hyped for the movie even more. Especially since the sequel will be introducing more new Spider-People to the public, some for the first time. My impression from the trailer is that just like its predecessor Across the Spider-Verse so going to continue to fuse good storytelling with amazing art and my hope is that we might get even more cool visuals to go with it.
Shows
The Mandalorian Season 3/Ahsoka Season 1/Loki Season 2 - Okay, okay I cheated a little on this one but for the first two subjects it was easier to pick one, for shows I really had to think about it and I came to the realization that I should just pick all three that I am excited about. As of the writing of this post, The Mandalorian Season 3's trailer just dropped and wow, I can't tell what's going on, but man, it looks so cool! The first two seasons of The Mandalorian were so good and the characters so compelling that seeing them together again just gets me hyped. My only hope for the new season is to see Mandalore (the home planet of the Mandalorians) in live-action for the first time, as we have only seen it in animated form in The Clone Wars. Other than that I am just ready for a wild ride for this new season.
I will be the first to admit it but after I saw The Clone Wars movie I wasn't too happy with the character of Ahsoka. As the seasons of the show went on Ahsoka, as a character, grew on me and has since become one of my favorite characters in the Star Wars universe. So that is why I am very excited about the new show featuring her. Another thing that gets me anticipating the show is that Dave Filoni is going to be the director. I have watched a good majority of Dave's projects from Avatar: The Last Airbender to Clone Wars and then to The Mandalorian and one thing I can tell you is that THIS MAN KNOWS STAR WARS. He was taught by George Lucas himself and anything that has to do with him and Star Wars instantly gets me excited. Couple that with the fact that he helped create Ahsoka and has intimate knowledge of the character makes me less worried about if this show is going to be good. In short, I can't wait to see where Dave Filoni takes Ahsoka and what this might mean for Star Wars as a whole.
Loki Season 2 is a mystery to me, nothing is really known about it and the first season left off on such a bonkers cliffhanger. I think that maybe Antman and The Wasp might shed some more light on the end of season one but you never know. One thing is for certain we will be diving deeper into his character and motivations and maybe even learn more about Owen Wilson's character Mobius and Sophia Di Martino's Sylvie along the way. Either way, this season is probably going to be just as bonkers (in a good way) as the first season, and just like with Antman and The Wasp, I can't wait to see where this season takes the MCU.