They forgot how to use post-credit scenes after pioneering them

Go all the way back to Phase One, and you see how each post-credit scene pushed the larger narrative leading to The Avengers. The end of Captain America: The First Avenger is directly followed by a post-credits scene, which is actually a scene from the film. This continued into Phase Two, and it felt like even if the movie you saw wasn’t the best, that last scene could give you the hype you needed to make sure you were in theaters for the next film. It perfectly captured the early days of Marvel Comics, where you’d see little cameos of characters from other comics in panels, and then, as you read, you’d see a little editor’s note directing you to check out another title.

Yet now, most of the post-credit scenes feel like dangling cliffhangers that will never be realized in a new movie or show. We were teased Blade in The Eternals years ago. What happened to Dane Whitman, the Black Knight? That was Kit Harington — Jon freaking Snow — and he can’t be brought back after all these years? Many Phase Four and Phase Five scenes felt, at times, like they were trolling the audience and going against what we expected.

While it seems like they’re getting back on track with the post-credit scene in Thunderbolts, it just feels a bit too late, as we’ve been burned too often. Building on what I stated earlier, with the phases functioning as story arcs on their own while still advancing the saga, they need to return to making each post-credit scene feel like it’s pushing the larger story forward. Even if they want it to be funny or a bit of a troll, there still has to be some meat there for our appetites to hook onto—so we don’t walk away feeling like our time was wasted.