The history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is carved out into distinct Phases. Phase One, for instance, began with Iron Man and ended with The Avengers. Phase Three, meanwhile, spanned Captain America: Civil War through Spider-Man: Far From Home. With new MCU feature Thunderbolts*, Phase Five (which began with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania) officially comes to a close. This has been arguably the rockiest Phase yet for the MCU in terms of overall quality for movies.

Phase Four had cinematic clunkers too, but the creative nadirs of Phase Five were way worse than the creative low points of the previous batch. The exclusive reliance on sequels and spin-off’s in this Phase, meanwhile, meant that Phase Five lacked divisive but audacious swings like Eternals. Ranking the six movies comprising the MCU’s Phase Five from worst to best solidifies the creative hardships the franchise has undergone in the last two years. Luckily for fans of this saga, Phase Five’s greatest movies did provide some of that classic MCU charm that once seemed guaranteed whenever the Marvel Studios logo flashed up on the silver screen.

6) Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania 

If the first two Ant-Man movies were marked by fun, low-key comedy, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania was a boondoggle leaning too heavily on grand Avengers-scale spectacle. The end result was the inevitable outcome to asking a man with no prior film screenplay credits and a director best known for comedies to make something as big as Star Wars. Murky imagery and grotesque interpretations of Marvel Comics icons like MODOK just exacerbated this feature’s problems. At least Michelle Pfieffer got more screentime in a title that otherwise epitomizes all the problems with modern superhero movies.

5) Captain America: Brave New World

For some reason, the fourth solo Captain America movie, Captain America: Brave New World, functioned more as a sequel to 2008’s The Incredible Hulk. Poor Sam Wilson/Captain America looked adrift in a feature whose emotional crux concerned reassuring audiences that a POTUS who commits war crimes is still a decent dude deep down. The closest thing to entertainment here in Brave New World was witnessing the comically obvious scenes cobbled together in reshoots. A key third-act sequence involving Wilson and the nefarious Leader conversing right outside a hospital, for example, couldn’t more clearly involve two actors who were never in the same room. Aside from those unintentional laughs, Brave New World was a snooze.

[RELATED: The 7 Funniest MCU Movies, Ranked]

4) The Marvels

Oh, if only The Marvels had a smaller scope. A fun low-key feature focusing on the endlessly compelling Iman Vellani’s Kamala Khan navigating High School with the aid of Carol Danvers and Monica Rambeau, for instance, could’ve been a riot. The funniest scenes of Danvers and Rambeau intruding on Khan’s grounded home life vividly reflect the potential of that juxtaposition. Unfortunately, The Marvels instead focuses most of its story on yawn-inducing cosmic drama involving the vengeful Kree soldier Dar-Benn and Captain Marvel extinguishing a solar system’s sun. By the time the finale involves a literal rip in the tapestry of existence, it’s impossible to care, The Marvels has gotten too big to get involved in.  The entertaining intimate corners of this Nia DaCosta directorial effort only reinforce what a forgettable drag its grander tendencies are.

3) Deadpool & Wolverine 

No amount of quips about the MCU being “at a low point” and the overplayed nature of multiverses can mask Deadpool & Wolverine’s faults. Ryan Reynolds’ schtick gets old fast and the tired “edgy” jokes have been done better elsewhere. The convoluted multiverse mythos and Shawn Levy’s uninspired direction don’t help matters. Heavily lifting up this comedy are the deeply committed performances from Hugh Jackman, Emma Corrin, and Channing Tatum while a splashy climax set to a choir rendition of “Like a Prayer” is quite stirring. Still, for a movie this snarky, Deadpool & Wolverine needed more idiosyncratic wit.

2) Thunderbolts*

Unfortunately, the chopping and cramped blocking plaguing most Marvel Cinematic Universe movies (Phase Five or otherwise) persists into Phase Five swan song Thunderbolts*. However, this title focusing on Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) and her reluctant anti-hero comrades proves surprisingly entertaining thanks to a more intimate scope that lets some great performances shine. The script even conjures up a distinctive and emotionally involving third act that isn’t just live-action superheroes duking it out with armies of CGI baddies. Plus, how can you go wrong with the riveting chemistry between David Harbour and Pugh?

1) Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

So many Phase Five MCU movies were concerned with reminding audiences of the past or setting up future Disney+ programs. James Gunn’s incredibly unique vision for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, meanwhile, was totally concerned with the here and now. In the process, it became the monumentally successful gem of this stretch of the MCU’s history. Vol. 3 went big in both its aching depictions of traumatic childhoods and cosmic fun, with these paradoxical tones working divinely in complementing each other. Better yet, this standalone saga’s cast members (namely Dave Bautista and Pom Klementieff) have become so comfortable in their respective characters that it’s richly entertaining just watching them stand around. A firmly definitive ending (set to a great Florence + The Machine needle drop) making Vol 3’s emotions even richer just solidified how special this Phase Five feature was.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is now streaming on Disney+, Thunderbolts* is now playing in theaters.