‘Marvel Zombies’ Review: Event-Level Storytelling Returns to the MCU

The following Marvel Zombies review is spoiler-free.

Ever since What If…? Season 1, Episode 5, brought fans an adaptation of the 2005 Robert Kirkman comic, Marvel Zombies, I knew I wanted more of the world where the Quantum Realm virus turned an entire reality within the Marvel Cinematic Universe into mindless, flesh-eating forces of undead nature.

Luckily, Marvel Animation granted that wish with a 4-part TV-MA event, Marvel Zombies, which continues the events of the What If…? episode. However, they level up the violence and shock factor in a major way. Check out our Marvel Zombies spoiler-free review below!

What Is ‘Marvel Zombies’ About?

The Avengers are dead, well, undead, leaving the world to be defended by some relatively new heroes to the MCU. Fans who are missing the likes of Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani), Shang-Chi (Simu Liu), Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne), and Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld), it’s time to rejoice! This series puts these heroes at the forefront to try and save humanity from not only the zombie invasion. However, if that weren’t difficult enough, a new threat is posed by The Queen of the Dead, Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen).

Although Marvel Zombies is a 4-part series, it really plays like a movie, clocking in at over 2 hours. Kamala is truly the heart of this event, becoming the main character of the story for the audience to emotionally latch onto, while simultaneously having a strange connection to Wanda Maximoff. Wanda’s new ability to control the dead has enabled her hordes of zombies to fight as sentient beings, adding a new layer of danger to these infected adversaries.

Marvel Studios Showcases Their Potential for Future Adult-Leaning Projects

While Marvel Zombies isn’t the first TV-MA project the MCU has produced, it’s the first one that has its own unique voice. Both Daredevil: Born Again and Deadpool & Wolverine had an established tone from previous installments that the MCU was able to integrate into their own universe. However, this series features the classic MCU-style wit and comedy, combined with hyper-violent and bloody action.

Fans also get their first taste of Blade in the MCU with Bladeknight (Todd Williams), a version of Blade who has become the avatar of the moon deity, Khonshu. He is, of course, the ultimate badass. Making this thought more relevant than ever after getting a tease of MCU’s Blade — MARVEL MAKE THE BLADE MOVIE ALREADY!

It’s a delight to see the likes of Kamala, Yelena, Shang-Chi, and even Spider-Man (Hudson Thames) thrive in a project where they’re decapitating countless zombies, while still ensuring the characters don’t feel out of place in a reality engrossed in blood and guts. Marvel, this is your cue to put Spider-Man in Daredevil: Born Again Season 2, or a future Deadpool film. I hope Marvel Studios takes more risks with adult-leaning projects in the future, especially with how much fun Marvel Zombies proves to be.

‘Marvel Zombies’ Review: A Bloody Good Time

If anything, Marvel Zombies proves that the MCU can still deliver quality world-ending stories that force unlikely heroes to team up and attempt to save the world. The series acts as a perfect example of how Avengers: Doomsday can work. Even when it lacks the setup some fans think is necessary to provide a proper culmination event, similar to Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, Marvel Zombies showcases that the MCU still has some magic left in the tank when it comes to Avenger-level threats.

Although there is no required viewing to understand the series, if you’re familiar with the various series and movies that set up the characters involved in this series, it will hold more emotional weight and will have you pointing at the TV like Leonardo DiCaprio at all the Easter eggs. However, the true gift of this project taking place in an alternate universe is that no one is safe from shocking and gruesome deaths, giving Marvel Zombies intense stakes that haven’t been present in many recent MCU projects.

All in all, Marvel Zombies is the Avengers-level project we didn’t know we needed, and a massive win for the MCU. It’s extremely bloody, funny, and oozes with not only brains, but a whole lot of heart. Although the team formed in the series never calls itself the Avengers, they sure do defend the world like them. The biggest hurdle this series will have is that its conclusion will leave fans on a very ominous note, and if the series doesn’t continue with another season, it will leave fans eternally wanting more, for better or for worse.

All episodes of Marvel Zombies are now streaming on Disney+. Follow the Agents of Fandom podcast and socials for more Marvel Zombies content, as well as all the latest entertainment news and reviews.