Marvel Zombies is the first animated MCU TV show I’m genuinely excited for, and its brutal first trailer shows why
- The first trailer for Marvel Zombies has been released
- Marvel’s next animated TV show arrives in full on September 24
- It’ll be the goriest Disney+ project released by the comic book giant
The first trailer for Marvel Zombies has been released online – and it might be the first animated Disney+ project from the comic book giant that I’m genuinely excited for.
A continuation of the story depicted in What If…? season 1 episode 4, titled ‘What If… Zombies!?’, Marvel Zombies was originally slated to arrive in October.
However, Marvel Studios recently confirmed Marvel Zombies will make its debut on September 24. And, with just three weeks left (at the time of writing) until it airs, the comic titan has finally given us our first glimpse at the show in action.
Shocking no-one, Marvel Zombies‘ art style is identical to that of What If…?. That’s led to disappointed reactions from some viewers, who’d hoped it would move away from the latter show’s divisive aesthetic.
Still, it would’ve been weird if Marvel Zombies debuted with a completely different look to What If…? and potentially caused confusion as to why Marvel opted to move away from its J.C. Leyendecker-inspired visuals for a miniseries that expands on a story that began in What If…?.
Fan debates about the show’s aesthetic notwithstanding, there are plenty of reasons why Marvel Zombies‘ first trailer has sparked a U-turn in mine and other fans’ opinions on the forthcoming series.
For starters, it’s great to see Marvel actively leaning into the story’s ultraviolent tendencies.
Sure, high levels of gore don’t automatically make a movie or TV show better than a less gruesome production. However, we’ve been starved of full-blown R-rated projects from Marvel.
Daredevil: Born Again‘s first season, Werewolf by Night, and Deadpool and Wolverine have their moments, but Marvel Zombies‘ inaugural teaser looks like it’ll go above and beyond what any of those Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) projects did.
Just look at Spider-Man decapitating zombies with his webs. Or someone having their heart punched through their chest by a bearded zombie. Or Blade Knight slicing up an undead Ava Starr/Ghost.
Speaking of Blade Knight, it’ll come as no surprise that he’s a mash-up of Moon Knight and Blade in this alternate reality (NB: obvious though it might be to write, Marvel Zombies doesn’t take place in the MCU).
For those of us who have grown weary of waiting for Mahershala Ali to make his MCU debut as Blade, Marvel Zombies is officially the first time we’ll see the iconic Daywalker in a Marvel Studios project (no, his off-screen, voice-only cameo in 2021’s Eternals doesn’t count, nor does Wesley Snipes reprising his role as Blade in Deadpool and Wolverine). Based on the amount of screentime he gets in this trailer, I’m willing to bet he’ll have a substantial role to play, too.
The only disappointing thing about Blade’s appearance in this Marvel Phase 6 production? He isn’t voiced by Ali. Todd Williams portrays Blade Knight in Marvel Zombies and, while he’s a sensational actor in his own right, it’s a pity Marvel didn’t capitalize on fans’ desire to see Ali in a Marvel project by having him voice Blade Knight instead.
Marvel Zombies has brought back nearly every single actor to play their respective MCU character in this show, though.
Simu Liu (Shang-Chi), Florence Pugh (Yelena Belova), David Harbour (Red Guardian), Iman Vellani (Ms Marvel), Paul Rudd (Ant-Man), and Hailee Steinfeld (Kate Bishop) are just some of the big-name stars who’ll reprise their roles. Even Elizabeth Olsen, who plays Scarlet Witch, is on board. Marvel Zombies‘ stacked cast, then, might be reason enough to check it out if you’re still sitting on the fence about it.
I don’t expect Marvel Zombies to be perfect. I know its animation style will occasionally bug me. So too will its corny humor if it’s been carried over from ‘What If… Zombies!?’.
For a show I had little interest in, though, its trailer won me over and showed why I should catch it when it’s released on one of the world’s best streaming services.
After the relative disappointments of other recent Marvel animated projects – What If…? wasn’t as good as I hoped, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man was hit and miss, and Eyes of Wakanda was pretty boring – I’m hoping Marvel Zombies will surprise us all and be consistently good across the board. If it isn’t, it might be time to bury every other Marvel animated production apart from X-Men 97.
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