by Al Harron
IN TERMS of cinematic adaptations and public consciousness, Marvel comics has arguably never been bigger than today. This year two long big-screen journeys come to an end. The first, Avengers: Endgame, is the grand finale to Phase 3 of the Marvel Studios Cinematic Universe and concludes a decade-long narrative that spanned 22 films and 10 TV series. As of this article’s publication, it is one of the most financially successful films in history. The second, X-Men: Dark Phoenix, is the culmination of an even longer tale that began 11 films ago with 20th Century Fox’s groundbreaking 2000 film X-Men. Since both film studios have been annexed by the Disney Empire, there is a sense of a great curtain call for two of the most successful and lucrative film series in history – but it is just one chapter in a much longer story, with many more to come.