The MCU It’s had its share of surprises, twists, deaths, and team-ups worth admiring, but lately it’s fallen short in offering anything more memorable from a physical appeal standpoint. While iconic couples like Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) and Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell) and Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) and Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) have left this cinematic universe, we are still light years away from seeing any real sexual tension between these characters. Having to appeal to families and having to try to make the most of the box office, the consequence is that there isn’t much room for spicier elements. But here’s the recent one X-Men ’97animated revival of X-Men: The Animated Seriesoffers something more from this point of view.
Violence, shocking deaths and, above all, sexual tension galore! Despite being an original Disney+, the series knows that its target audience is former kids who grew up with the original series and are now in their thirties. The relationship dramas that were omitted from the ’90s series can therefore now be exploited, but in an organic way that feels relevant to the story being told. Being X-Men ’97 the first incursion of the Marvel Studios in the world of mutants, highlighting his approach to romantic relationships and use of sexual tension is important to the evolution of the universe.
3The MCU was romantic, but with almost zero sexual tension
Tony Stark and Pepper Potts are the iconic couple of Phase 1 of the MCU. Robert Downey Jr. he even asked that Gwyneth Paltrow resumed his role in the final film of the phase, The Avengers. But while Tony Stark is portrayed as a sex symbol with all of his adventures in the early films, he is treated in a way that doesn’t allow him to have the same relationship with Pepper. Their relationship is based solely on their intelligent minds and competitive personalities, and in this way, they complement each other. But this dampens Tony’s sexuality, which is also an essential part of his character. Iron Man 2 continues to exploit this side with the introduction of Natasha Romanoff Of Scarlett Johansson. While she doesn’t build much with them, Natasha later has a weaker romance with Mark Ruffalo’s Bruce Banner in Avengers: Age of Ultron.
Sexual scenes, such as the one where Nat and Steve kiss, are not romantic in nature and any possibility of a relationship was quickly dismissed in favor of Steve’s desire for Peggy. The relationship between Peggy and Steve is the backbone of the story arc of Captain America in the MCU, with his decision to remain in the past after returning all the Infinity Stones to their place in the finale of Avengers: Endgame. This gives them a romantic happy ending – plus the long-awaited last dance – but there’s no spice. Even when Eternals came out, with a real sex scene between Ikaris (Richard Madden) and Sersi (Gemma Chan), fan reaction was mild to say the least. There was a lack of chemistry between Richard Madden and Gemma Chan and what should have been a hot scene ended up being a bit bland. Ultimately, the MCU has generally treated romance as something separate from sex.
