The MCU timeline has never been more cloudy and unclear than in Phase 4, as delays, prequels, and events taking place outside the timeline and in other universes have made it hard to understand the chronological order. Thankfully, Disney+ has an MCU timeline order section to keep track of events.
With so many heroes and villains new and old appearing with every project, the timeline confusion makes it hard to tell which heroes are around. Among those recent additions is Natalie Portman's Jane Foster, who became the Mighty Thor in Thor: Love and Thunder, only to succumb to her cancer by the end of the flick.
But even though Foster's time as Mighty Thor may have been brief and largely off-world, She-Hulk: Attorney at Law appears to have revealed the public is aware of her existence, and not everyone is a fan.
She-Hulk's Thor References Create Timeline Confusion
Warning- The rest of this article contains spoilers for She-Hulk: Attorney at Law Episode 9.
The She-Hulk finale delivered a reference to Jane Foster's Mighty Thor as a member appeared to namedrop her while criticizing the existence of female versions of male heroes. The unnamed hero hater simply referred to "Lady Thor," saying that she "just sucks:"
“Why does there even need to be a She-Hulk? It’s not like there’s a He-Hulk. And Lady Thor… Guys, she just sucks. Okay? And I’m not just saying that because she’s a female. I would have the exact same criticisms if she was a man.”
However, turning attention to the MCU timeline order that was presented on Disney+, She-Hulk is placed before Thor: Love and Thunder. This means Jane Foster shouldn't yet have become the Mighty Thor, raising a continuity error.
The full MCU Phase 4 timeline in 'official' chronological order can be seen below:
- Black Widow
- Loki
- What If...?
- WandaVision
- The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
- Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
- Eternals
- Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
- Hawkeye
- Moon Knight
- She-Hulk
- Ms. Marvel
- Thor: Love and Thunder
- Werewolf By Night
She-Hulk's Timeline Problem Explained
There are several possible explanations for why this continuity error in She-Hulk exists. The first, perhaps the most likely, is that the timeline order on Disney+ is simply incorrect, errors have been spotted in the past after all.
With regard to a more in-universe explanation, perhaps She-Hulk, Ms. Marvel, and Thor: Love and Thunder take place around the same time. The events of the Asgardian sequel take place during the legal comedy's season, which likely spans the course of several weeks or months.
Or, on another note, perhaps the so-called "Lady Thor" that Intelligencia is referring to isn't actually Jane Foster's Mighty Thor but rather Valkyrie. This may just come down to the group not referring to her by her actual name, but giving her that name as both are Asgardian warriors.
The Direct exclusively discovered recently that Marvel Studios has hired its own official timekeeper to preserve the MCU continuity. With that in mind, it's hard to imagine this having come to be as a result of an accident but more likely that She-Hulk, Ms. Marvel, and Love and Thunder take place within weeks.
Multiple MCU projects taking place in the same short period would come as nothing new for the franchise, with Phase 1's Iron Man 2, The Incredible Hulk, and Thor taking place in the same week - dubbed "Fury's Big Week."
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law and Thor: Love and Thunder are streaming now on Disney+.
