Avengers: Doomsday received its first Disney+ release, and it's hard to miss. The crossover film arrives on December 18, giving Doctor Doom his official MCU debut, with Robert Downey Jr. playing the famous Marvel villain. The film, alongside its follow-up, Avengers: Secret Wars, is the culmination of the Multiverse Saga, and it's linked to the early Infinity Saga films in some form, making Marvel's new Disney+ program such an important watch for anyone planning to see it.
The Countdown to Avengers: Doomsday Official Podcast is now streaming on Disney+ and YouTube, with an audio version on podcast platforms. Ms. Marvel star Iman Vellani and The Basement Yard co-host Frank Alvarez host the five-episode series, which rewatches the biggest films of the Infinity Saga before Doctor Doom arrives.
Episode 1, which launched August 27, revisits The Avengers, discussing several interesting details fans likely missed on their first watch. Vellani is also a huge fan of the comics and comes armed with deep knowledge and passion, which is exhilarating to see from an actress so deeply embedded in Marvel.
Why the Countdown to Avengers: Doomsday Podcast is a Must-Watch
A Perfect Doomsday Catch-Up
Marvel recently released an essential viewing list for the December blockbuster, which makes watching this podcast all the more useful. The list consists of 14 movies and one Disney+ series. That's a lot of movies to catch up on, but having an official podcast that discusses these projects makes it fun and a lot less like homework. Vellani and Alvarez kicked things off with The Avengers, detailing its connections to Doomsday.
The next episode will focus on Avengers: Age of Ultron on September 3, with Alvarez revealing that Ultron is his favorite villain, so that should be a fun one. Captain America: Civil War, the movie that had the MCU's biggest heroes at each other's throats, will be spotlighted on September 10.
Then Infinity War takes center stage in the fourth episode, arriving September 17. Endgame will be the icing on the cake in the finale on September 24, as it's arguably the most important movie connected to Doomsday. Avengers Endgame: Encore, the film's theatrical rerelease with roughly four minutes of new footage and an exclusive Doomsday look attached, hits theaters the very next day, so that finale should be the perfect way to prep before seeing it on the big screen.
Insights Into the Connections Between Doomsday and the Infinity Saga Films
In the first episode, one of the strongest connections between The Avengers and Doomsday is Loki, and Vellani and Alvarez discuss this extensively. The God of Mischief, now the God of Stories, has one of the most interesting arcs in the MCU. Tom Hiddleston's character started as a villain in Thor and went on to be the catalyst for the now-famous Battle of New York. Vellani digs into his journey and what Doomsday could take from that transformation.
The hosts also highlighted the confrontation between Tony Stark and Loki in that film and how the two actors will be on opposite sides come Doomsday. Hiddleston plays the hero this time, and RDJ takes on the role of a villain. It's a dynamic no one, probably not even Marvel, predicted would happen.
Look Back at How Much Character Dynamics Have Changed
Rewatching the Infinity Saga films gives a fresh perspective on the character dynamics heading into Doomsday. The hosts discuss the tension between Steve Rogers and Tony Stark in The Avengers. The pair don't really get along for most of the Infinity Saga, until Endgame, when they finally put their squabbles aside for a greater cause, with Tony even giving Cap back his shield.
Vellani pointed out how the pair's reunion feels earned, given the history they share. Steve has come a long way since then, appearing in Doomsday as a father and having to fight a villain from an alternate universe who eerily resembles his dead friend Tony Stark. The hosts also touched on Thor, who plays a major role in the film, and what worthiness now means for the God of Thunder, who had to work hard to earn it in his first solo outing.
Thor is now in a mentorship role, given that he's one of the most experienced warriors on the hero roster, and the hosts argued that what worthiness means to him now is different from what it meant in the earlier films. Vellani even wished for Marvel to adapt the bit from the Time Runs Out comics, where Thor is unworthy of Mjolnir.
Making a Hero Roster Is a Lot More Challenging in Doomsday
Another discussion that came up is how the team-up dynamic will work in Doomsday. The fifth Avengers crossover packs a lot more heroes than the first, which makes a team-up roster much harder to pull off. The Avengers had six heroes learning to put their differences aside and work together.
Doomsday, on the other hand, combines multiple teams, with the Avengers, Fantastic Four, X-Men, and the New Avengers taking on Doctor Doom, who will likely have his own roster of comrades. Alvarez highlighted how the scramble of heroes learning to work together in this movie will play out on a larger scale. He also noted that the heroes don't have room for mistakes as they did in the first film, given how powerful and cunning Doom is.
Geraldo Amartey is a writer at The Direct. He joined the team in 2025, bringing with him four years of experience covering entertainment news, pop culture, and fan-favorite franchises for sites like YEN, Briefly and Tuko.
