The MCU Diaries is Blake Larsen’s craft-first Marvel essay series for people who love the MCU but want more than recap, Easter eggs, or empty hype.
This is where I break down what Marvel stories are actually doing under the hood: character pressure, moral debt, value shifts, structure, theme, and the choices that make something hit — or miss. These essays are built around one idea at a time, with on-screen receipts to prove it.
That means you’ll find writing on Loki, WandaVision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and the bigger road to Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars. Sometimes the question is about a single episode. Sometimes it’s about a saga-level move. Either way, the goal is the same: figure out why the story works, why it doesn’t, and what it teaches us to watch for next.
If you’re looking for smart Marvel essays with a character-first lens and no sacred cows, you’re in the right place.
Start Here
- RDJ As Doctor Doom: The Mirror Villain Move
- What Secret Wars Is (Defined In LOKI Season 1)
- Why Doctor Strange Matters to Marvel’s Multiverse Saga
- Secret Wars Explained Through Loki Season 1
Prefer audio?
If you'd rather listen than read, the companion podcast lives here: The MCU Diaries podcast.
Latest MCU Diaries Entries
What Quantumania Is REALLY Doing (The Consent Line)
A storycraft read of Quantumania that frames the movie around one core question: when fear spikes, who gets to choose?
Marvel’s Multiverse Has One Weak Spot: Loki Season 2 Explained
Loki Season 2 doesn’t just end a show. It installs the multiverse rule engine. The finale turns reality into a load-bearing system—and Loki into the failure point.
What Is an Incursion in Marvel? How They Work, What Causes Them & Why They Matter
A Marvel incursion happens when realities destabilize and can move toward catastrophic collision. Here’s what causes incursions, how they work, how anchor beings fit in, and why they matter...
Doctor Strange, Moral Debt & Doom’s Path Explained: The Bill Comes Due, Always
Marvel keeps turning Strange’s control under pressure into moral debt — and that craft choice is why a Doom alliance can feel inevitable instead of random.
Why Doctor Strange Matters to Marvel’s Multiverse Saga
Doctor Strange matters because he is the multiverse character who understands the cost, breaks the rules anyway, and still refuses the one shortcut that would destroy his soul.
Why Spider-Man: Brand New Day Matters for Avengers: Doomsday
Marvel does not need one more bridge made out of trivia. It needs a bridge made out of cost.