Welcome to Small Talk, a series where we catch up with the internet’s favorite Extremely Online individuals offline.

TikTok’s food content spans quite a range. “What I eat in a day” videos, both serious and meme-driven, collect billions of views, while aesthetic cooking videos (from influencers like Emily Mariko or the guys that cook out in the middle of the forest) drive food-related internet trends. 

For many people, these videos are fun to watch but they present largely unattainable culinary realities. Sometimes ingredients are hard to find, and complex recipes might be difficult for novice chefs. Or, as is the experience of many Americans, locating affordable food in general is a daily struggle.

TikTok creator Marissa “Sunni” Rudd’s food videos aim to help those who don’t have the ability to cook extravagant, ingredient-diverse meals. While some creators show off pricey Wagyu beef or papaya yogurt bowls, she shares potentially life-changing recipes for low-income families who rely on government assistance to feed themselves and their children. As a new mom who’s currently studying for her master’s degree at New York University, she finds the time to share daily, accessible recipes with those who might need them the most.

Rudd’s TikTok account, @justsunni, currently has more than 45,000 followers. It’s a dedicated space for sharing helpful information and recipes that benefit users of the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). For those unfamiliar with the WIC program, the government benefits are provided to eligible lower-income people who are pregnant, postpartum, or have infants and children up to age 5. The program differs from other food assistance programs, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which gives money allowances that allow users to purchase a variety of foods at an array of grocery and convenience stores, and even farmers’ markets. Unlike SNAP, WIC benefits can only be used to purchase select food items approved by the National WIC Association. 

The WIC program’s shopping guides are published by each state and are updated periodically. The limitations of each list can be frustrating and leave mothers scrambling to find more ways to incorporate the approved foods, Rudd explained to Mashable in a call. That’s where her TikTok account can help. She offers WIC-friendly recipes for delicious, varied meals and works to destigmatize government assistance programs. Her recipes include breakfasts, lunches, dinners, healthy snacks, and even a WIC-approved Thanksgiving. 

Mashable spoke with Rudd about her TikTok account, her WIC cookbook, and what you can find if you scroll a little deeper on #FoodTok.

Mashable: When did you start your TikTok account?

I started my TikTok a while ago, like during the pandemic [in] early 2020. I really started engaging on TikTok once I found out that I was pregnant, because I needed to find a community of people who understood what that experience was like. 

Did you start posting these WIC-friendly recipes right away?

I started vlogging and talking about motherhood. I was doing pregnancy updates, and asking questions, and just kind of interacting with my pregnancy mom community. And then I applied for WIC, because I’m in school and I have a very tight budget. 

On WIC, you have all of these lists of approved items that you can buy. And not all of the stores in New York stock those items, or make them easily accessible. So then I started creating recipes and started creating cheat sheets on how to find those items, and what to make with those items. Like, when you’re down to your last dollar and you only have your WIC card, what are you gonna make? 

What was that first recipe you shared that took off?

I think I was making breakfast. I made a scramble with like fried potatoes or something. And the TikTok moms were like, “Oh my god, that’s amazing. You need to keep going!” So I just kept doing it. People asked me for lunches and dinners, because those can be more complicated on WIC. You do get a lot of breakfast options, but utilizing those breakfast options to make lunch and dinner is sometimes complicated. So then I started getting really creative.

Your account is really interesting to me, since #FoodTok is a huge thing. Probably half of my For You Page is food videos, but they’re so aspirational or inaccessible. Your account seems to try to be the opposite. It’s addressing a problem. 

My goal with all of my content is to make it as accessible as possible.

When I go to my grocery store, I’m gonna just get the regular produce, and anything that’s more exotic… those just aren’t in my neighborhood. I try to stick to things I can just get from a little corner store down the way. You can get creative with really simple items, and I think that’s really exciting. My mom did that a lot growing up because she was a WIC mama, so I’m kind of taking after her in that way.

As a new mom, how do you find time to come up with your recipes?

I’m creating new [recipes] every week, but a lot of them are just things that my mom made or my nana made. Also, I was a vegetarian for a while and you don’t really get any protein on WIC. You get tuna and salmon, but only some people get that, so a lot of [the recipes] are vegetarian. You have to be creative in that way, and I find that’s not something everyone knows how to do. 

Generally I just go to my fridge and see what I have, because the majority of what I buy and what I utilize are WIC items. And so I’ll just pop in the fridge and be like, “OK, what are we making today?” And I’ll just record it in real time.

I saw someone comment that they didn’t even know you could get things like tuna on WIC benefits. You also provide a lot more clarification and information about the program with your followers.

Yep, that’s the majority of my comments. I try to go down the WIC list and use the items that aren’t so obvious. Because lots of people know that we can get beans, and cheese, and eggs. But not everyone knows that you can get tofu. Or not everyone knows that you get tuna sometimes, or you can refashion squash into chicken fingers, or things like that. Fried mushrooms can work for a lot of different things. Also, WIC doesn’t give you flour. So a lot of the time, I do crushed cornflakes as a breading option — that’s another one. 

And also making [the list of approved foods] stretch because you have a limited budget. For produce in New York, we get $43 for the month. So finding different produce that’s on sale, that’s seasonal, that you can prepare and store — maybe freeze, to use and make it last throughout that month — is also challenging. 

Wow, I had no idea those kinds of items weren’t included. There seems to be a lot of missed information.

I’m so passionate about this, because I’ve lived it. I’m living it right now. And my heart aches for people who don’t have the answers readily at their disposal, so I try. 

WIC mamas feel for other WIC mamas. So lots of times other followers or other people coming across the video will respond to people who have questions, so I don’t have to answer them all directly. 

Do you have a cooking background? What’s your favorite recipe? 

[These are] all things I’ve come up with on my own, but nothing is [done by] myself. I’m a combined effort of everyone who’s ever loved me, you know? This is my mom, and my grandma, and the people in my community. [It’s the result of] other videos that I’ve seen, and other moms who have commented on my posts.

My favorite recipes are those that feel cozy to me. One of the easiest recipes that did well was a grilled cheese and tomato soup. It’s so cozy, and it was fall and it made me think of my Nona. So many people love it and can relate to it. And it’s not something that you immediately think of when you think of WIC products. Some people didn’t even know that you could get tomato paste or any tomato-based, canned products. So it was really informative. It was fun. It was heartwarming.

Outside of your page, I don’t see a lot of conversations or accounts talking about WIC and other government assistance programs. Do you think that’s related to a sense of shame?

I think a lot of it is shame related. You don’t see a lot of people talking about food stamps all the time, or giving resources on TikTok for that in a popular, engaged setting. And I have a lot of moms that comment on my posts. They say, “Oh my gosh. I was on WIC at this point, but I was too afraid to talk about it” or “I was too ashamed to even apply in the first place.” 

How do you accept help when it comes if you feel like you’re going to be shamed by your community for even admitting that you needed help at one point?

I get extremely hateful comments probably every day, saying, “If you can’t afford to have kids, don’t have them,” or calling me a welfare queen. When we talk about government assistance, how are you framing that for the people in your community? Because maybe you’ve overheard something that was derogatory toward people who take advantage of government assistance. And now that subliminal message is in the back of your mind, and it’s getting in the way of you accepting the help that’s there for you.

How do you accept help when it comes if you feel like you’re going to be shamed by your community for even admitting that you needed help at one point?

So you’re destigmatizing the need for WIC or other government assistance.

Yes, absolutely. 

You’ve also mentioned a cookbook…

I’m finalizing a whole cookbook, which I’m really excited about. I’m hoping to drop that before the new year. That is my goal.

There are two different versions of it right now. The first one is going to be an e-book. It’ll just be a downloadable link from my link tree that’s in my bio. My 2022 goal is to release a hardcopy. I’m meeting with some people right now to make that happen. That one will have a section that has gluten-free options, gestational diabetes options, and different things that I ran into when I was creating recipes while I was pregnant, because people who are pregnant have very specific kinds of dietary restrictions sometimes. 

That’s amazing. With both the cookbook and your TikTok account, who do you hope your content reaches? What should they take away?

I hope that anyone who needs to see it comes across it…and they come across the WIC mama community. I hope they come across that name and feel empowered by what they find. 

And further, I hope that the National Association of WIC comes across it and reads the comments and sees how limiting it can be for some mothers, and they make changes accordingly. Because this has turned into a little voice of the people, and I hope that they take advantage of the fact that it’s right there in front of them. [The National Association of WIC] actually reached out to me, so I’m gonna be meeting with them. There are ideas in the works. 

Want more Small Talk? Enjoy:

• YouTuber, author, and cook Nat’s What I Reckon threw jar sauce in the bin to empower people

• Unpack racial biases in medicine with a myth-busting TikTokker

• Travel down a Wikipedia rabbit hole with the mastermind behind DepthsOfWikipedia Instagram

• Connor Franta, YouTube’s resident LGBTQ advocate and poet, talks about sharing your story online

Time travel is the stuff of science fiction, but looking back in time is science fact and the James Webb Space Telescope is our most powerful tool to date.

Using a massive mirror and infrared technology, the telescope will allow us to see what happened more than 13 billion years ago – to observe the birth of the first stars and galaxies to form after the Big Bang.

Two Amazon workers from its Bessemer, Alabama facility died last month, one of them suffering a stroke not long after his request to go home was denied, said two of their co-workers. Speaking to workers’ rights organisation More Perfect Union, they claim that work continued as normal despite the deaths.

The Amazon workers reportedly died within hours of each other on Nov. 28 and 29, one at the facility and one after being transported away from work in an ambulance. In a video interview being widely shared on Twitter, Amazon day-shift worker Isaiah Thomas claimed that the man who suffered a stroke had been on the night shift in his department, and “had died on the job.”

“He had gone to HR and said, ‘I’m not feeling so well, can I please go home?'” said Thomas, explaining that many Amazon warehouse workers don’t have enough unpaid time off, and have a fear of being dismissed if they take time off beyond their allotted days. “And this dude, he didn’t have enough [unpaid time off] to go home… And so, they’re effectively telling him, you either go home and lose your job, or you just stay here and keep working through the pain. And that’s what he did.”

When asked for comment, an Amazon spokesperson said they were looking into the matter. In its video, More Perfect Union noted the company did not respond to its requests.

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Workers at Amazon’s Bessemer warehouse attempted to unionise in April under the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU), but the effort was defeated with 1798 votes against to 738 for. The RWDSU told Mashable that it worked with More Perfect Union to release the report, but declined to comment further, citing a desire for focus to remain on the workers’ stories.

The National Labor Relations Board found that Amazon illegally interfered with the union vote by intimidating workers, and ordered a revote on Nov. 29 — the same day one of the Bessemer warehouse workers allegedly died. 

Amazon worker Perry Connelly told More Perfect Union that the worker who had a stroke was reportedly inside a trailer when he died. His body allegedly wasn’t found for approximately 20 minutes, when someone realised he hadn’t been seen for a while.

Neither Connelly, nor Thomas witnessed the actual deaths, however they were present for the aftermath. According to both, managers at Amazon instructed workers to continue working despite the deaths.

“They actually come around and tell people not to talk about it, and go back to work,” said Connelly, who has spoken before about his desire for unionization. “There’s no shutdown, there’s no moment of silence, there’s no time to sit and have a prayer. A couple of people that worked directly with him or knew him good was badly shaken up. A couple of them wanted to go home and were not allowed to go home….

“You’re a body. Once that body’s used up, they’ll just bring somebody else in and do the work.”

Earlier this month, Amazon came under fire after six workers died in an Illinois warehouse collapse during a tornado. Amazon has also been repeatedly criticized for the high rate and harsh severity of injuries in its warehouses, boasting a rate of serious injuries almost 80 percent higher than at other warehouses.

“Amazon’s long history of putting their profits above their workers is exactly why their employees in Bessemer organized and tried to form a union,” said More Perfect Union’s executive director Faiz Shakir. “We’re seeing Amazon workers rise up around the country to fight against their abusive labor practices and we’re here to tell their stories despite Amazon’s desperate attempts to cover them up.”

Hard to believe it’s been an entire year since a whole new hardware generation for video game consoles got its proper kickoff. But here we are.

Microsoft’s Xbox Series X (and its cheaper, storage-deprived Series S sibling) launched on Nov. 10, 2020. Sony went right after, setting both the disc-based and all-digital (but otherwise identical) PlayStation 5 consoles free on Nov. 12. It was a busy week, to say the least.

The arrival of a new console generation is historically one of the biggest hype moments in gaming. Upgraded hardware means shinier, fancier games that look better, run smoother, and deliver more complex experiences. But no one should need any reminding at this point that it’s been a less-than-optimal stretch of years for the people of planet Earth.

The big question, then, isn’t “How are these consoles doing one year in?” It’s more, “How has the current shape of the world impacted the arrival of a new generation of gaming hardware and the games that hardware powers?” Let’s take a look.

The invisible elephant in the room

Credit: Kellen Beck / Mashable

Any discussion about the current state of PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series gaming has to start with people’s ability to actually buy these things. The fact is, you can’t. Yes, all the various major retailers get re-stocked at a semi-regular pace, but the consoles still disappear in a matter of minutes, every time.

That means demand is still far outweighing supply for these things. And that’s not likely to change soon, either. The chip shortage that’s just one aspect of the world’s broader COVID-era supply chain issues isn’t likely to end soon. As recently as Dec. 16, we had Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger admitting that the chip shortage is likely to linger into 2023.

It’s going to be a while before shopping for a new PlayStation or Xbox gets easier.

Would-be buyers still have options, but it definitely takes some work. There are plenty of tracker bots out there, of course. If you’re on Twitter, the @Wario64 account regularly shouts out when more consoles become available. There’s also Matt Swider, a veteran tech media journalist who’s developed such a reputation for connecting people with new game machines during these lean times that he started a whole service, The Shortcut, devoted specifically to that.

I won’t lie, though: It’s still not going to be easy. You’re up against countless other would-be buyers who are getting the same information from the same sources. Every time these things appear for sale in the wild, it’s a race to get one. But it’s not impossible. Just be patient, jump on the opportunities when they come up, and cross your fingers.

The hardware experience

Sony’s comically oversized new gaming machine has seen some small but significant changes in the year since it launched. One that hasn’t arrived yet, but which is nonetheless exciting (and happening soon enough): replacement outer shells.

I was very much a fan of the PS5’s unique shape and look back in 2020 and that opinion hasn’t changed. It’s like a video game machine hatched from the mind of Frank Gehry. But the white shell-on-black hardware look isn’t for everyone, and while that outer shell is easily removable (and built to be removed), Sony hasn’t exactly been welcoming with third-parties that want to sell aftermarket shells in an assortment of colors and looks.

We found out why on Dec. 13. As many suspected, Sony is going to sell its own “PS5 console covers” in an assortment of colors, starting in Jan. 2022. They’re on the pricey side at $55 for a set, but they’ll finally let PS5 owners spice up the look of their entertainment centers, at least.

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Sony’s latest console also has some truly experience-changing shortened load times thanks to the way the hardware puts its built-in solid state drive (SSD) to work. But that setup also meant buyers didn’t have the ability to easily add more storage that takes advantage of the same features when the console first launched. It took almost the entire year in the end, but a post-release update in September finally brought M.2 storage expansion to the PS5.

Without getting into overly technical territory, M.2 SSDs are faster, but pricier, upgrades to the older, boxier 2.5-inch SSDs you might be used to seeing. So if you’re willing to spend the money — and deal with potential compatibility headaches (IGN’s got you covered on that front) — you can now add significantly more storage capacity to your PS5 and it’ll operate just as efficiently as the built-in storage.

It’s not all good news for PS5 owners, though. The user interface (UI) is better than it was at launch, with less-than-clear menus and submenus making it overly difficult to ensure you’re installing the PS5 version of a particular game when a PS4 version also exists. There was even a period after the PS5 launched when game downloads defaulted to the PS4 version for whatever reason. That particular issue has since been fixed, but interacting with the PS5 outside of games themselves could still be smoother.

Take the Media Gallery, where all your saved screenshots and clips are stored. It’s not exactly the easiest thing to find. You can get to it using the Share button, but that’s not immediately obvious because it’s buried in a submenu. It’s also accessible from your Game Library — another submenu — but there’s no way to, say, pin it to the PS5 dashboard or create a quick-access link in the console’s extremely limited shortcut bar. The issue with Media Gallery exemplifies what is generally a clunky and cumbersome interface that Sony will hopefully work on improving in 2022.

Credit: Dustin Drankoski / Mashable

Also, the DualSense controller that I loved at launch is still brimming with so much unrealized potential. The tech itself is so cool: DualSense gives game developers a greater and more nuanced level of control over haptic feedback, including location-specific rumble and the ability to increase the tension on pulls of either trigger.

A handful of games have done cool things with these features: Pinprick rumbles in Returnal give players a tactile sense of falling rain; click-y triggers in Bugsnax and Marvel’s Spider-Man create the sense that you’re snapping photos or thwipping out strings of webbing; even Square Enix’s troubled Avengers game is a winner with the DualSense, with rumble effects that are specific to each hero creating a different feel depending on who you choose to play as.

As the games of 2022 and beyond start to arrive, we’ll hopefully see more developers taking advantage of what feels like gaming’s most significant player input innovation since motion controls came along with the Wii in 2006. When a game gets it right, those tactile effects really do heighten the experience.

There’s far less to be said about how the XSX has evolved in 2021, but that’s not necessarily a knock. Microsoft’s latest Xbox arrived in strong shape right from the outset. It’s not perfect, and the PS5 still has plenty of its own, unique advantages (I really do adore the DualSense), but the Xbox is in a pretty good place all the same.

Microsoft’s latest Xbox arrived in strong shape right from the outset.

Microsoft’s buzzword-y “Smart Delivery” feature immediately trumps Sony’s approach to the leap from last-gen to current-gen. What it really means is you don’t have to worry about getting the right version of a game downloaded, or transferring your save data — except for some game-specific exceptions that have no connection to Microsoft or Sony — from your old hardware to your new one. As long as you’re up and running online with your Xbox account connected correctly, all that stuff is handled behind the scenes for you.

In a similar vein we have the Quick Resume feature, which lets players suspend most games, power down their Xbox (technically it’s a low-power suspend mode), and come back later to pick up right where they were with no load times or intro screens to wade through. The feature isn’t as helpful for online-only games, but it works perfectly for offline and most hybrid online/offline games, and it’s been like that since day one.

Don’t underestimate quality of life features like these. Smart Delivery and Quick Resume may not be as flashy or directly impactful to your gaming experience as something like haptic feedback, but anything that gets players into their games more swiftly and with less friction is a good thing. It’s why the XSX and its basically unchanged UI from the Xbox One era stills runs circles around a PS5 dashboard experience that looks and feels similar to what was on PS4, but is changed enough for there to be a distinct learning curve.

Games, games, and… oh yeah, games

However you feel about the hardware, Sony’s first year of PS5 releases delivered one of the strongest launch lineups in recent memory. Returnal is a Sony exclusive that was an easy pick for Mashable’s “favorite games of 2022” rundown, and it’s also my pick for best of the year. The mid-year release of Ratchet & Clank: A Rift Apart is similarly strong, and delivers an incredible showcase of what “next-gen graphics” can look like: basically, it feels like a playable Pixar movie.

The lineup was strong right out of the gate, too. A remake of Demon’s Souls, From Software’s precursor to the Dark Souls series, is also the first proper PS5 exclusive, and it shows in the way the game looks and runs. Spider-Man: Miles Morales (along with an updated-for-PS5 re-release of 2018’s superb Spider-Man) is also a first-class showcase packed inside an incredible game. The list goes on from there: Deathloop, Bugsnax, MLB The Show 21, Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade, Sackboy: A Big Adventure, and Astro’s Playroom all bring console-exclusive excellence to Sony’s hardware.

Credit: Microsoft

Older games are still the big missing piece here, though. While the PS5 does play nice with an “overwhelming majority” of PlayStation 4-era games, anything from before the last generation is left out. The best bet for fans of Sony’s older games is to check out PlayStation Now, a subscription-based cloud gaming service that lets you play (via stream) an assortment of games, including some from the PlayStation 3 era and earlier, on your PS4, PS5, or PC. It’s far from a complete library and obviously less than ideal if all you want to do is slide your old copy of Folklore into a disc tray and start playing.

It’s a bit of a roles reversed situation here with Xbox. While Microsoft has had some very strong exclusives, notably including fall 2021’s Forza Horizon and Halo Infinite, its launch lineup hasn’t made as much of an impact. You’re going to have a great time playing Psychonauts 2, Gears 5, Sea of Thieves, and the Ori games (to name a few), but Forza is the only one that feels like a truly strong showcase of Microsoft’s hardware leap.

That said, Microsoft’s real “killer app” at this point isn’t any one game, it’s an entire service. Xbox Game Pass is a subscription-based add-on that gives subscribers immediate access to an enormous library of games, including hits from Electronic Arts and Bethesda Softworks (the latter of which is now a Microsoft subsidiary). It might sound similar to PS Now, but any comparison between the two isn’t even close.

While PS Now offers more games, with close to 1,000 in its library compared to Xbox’s 100-plus, most of the Game Pass offering skews toward newer releases. What’s more, all first-party releases — which is to say, games published by Microsoft itself — are in the library and available to play on day one. That means subscribers don’t need to worry about buying the latest Halo or Gears game; it’s simply free with a subscription.

Microsoft’s real “killer app” at this point isn’t any one game, it’s an entire service: Xbox Game Pass.

In 2021, and after an extended beta period under the name “xCloud,” Microsoft rolled out Xbox Cloud Gaming for Game Pass subscribers. Just like PS Now, the feature lets people who have a speedy internet connection access their library of games without downloading a thing. And unlike PS Now, Xbox Cloud Gaming supports mobile gaming on Android in addition to console and PC.

The smaller library on Game Pass is also easier to accept because of the other low-key killer XSX feature: full backward compatibility. If it’s an Xbox game released at any point in the brand’s history, the latest generation of Xbox hardware will play it (though the Series S lacks a disc drive, so it’s a bit more limited in terms of support).

What’s more, many older games get a straight-up performance upgrade on Xbox Series consoles via “FPS Boost,” and in the past year we’ve seen that feature expand to include a growing number of titles. The list of backward compatible Xbox games with or without FPS Boost is incredibly long and rather daunting. It’s not every single thing, but it’s the lion’s share of them. So if you’ve ever owned an Xbox before, you have a library of games ready to go before you even pick up an XSX or subscribe to something like Game Pass.

Bringing it all home

Credit: Carlos_Pascual via Shutterstock

Both the PS5 and XSX were in pretty great shape right out of the gate when they launched in 2020. Each has its own advantages and drawbacks, and each has also improved in small yet significant ways in the year since they launched. Even if they don’t entirely fulfill your own idea of what the next-gen hardware promise should look like, there’s no question that they’re getting closer.

Availability continues to be the biggest problem, and there’s no separating that from state of the surrounding world. Disruptions caused by almost two years of a global pandemic continue to wreak havoc on everything from the availability of parts to the actual day-to-day work of creating and polishing the video games we all want to play. It’s not just that these consoles are hard to find; the games that promise to really push the envelope are also slipping into later release windows because getting the work done is that much harder.

That said, if you can get your hands on a PS5 or XSX now in the twilight days of 2021, you’ll inarguably be getting yourself a more features-packed piece of hardware than you would’ve in late 2020, and with a wider offering of games to play. That’s just the nature of time, progress, and release schedules, but it’s good news all the same for fans of video games.

Once upon a time, Marvel had a villain problem, but those days may be far behind us.

To be fair, there are still a lot of duds in the growing history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but recent additions like Vulture, Wenwu, and the Mad Titan Thanos himself are almost enough to make us forget the dark days of Justin Hammer.

Almost.

We’ve put together a comprehensive ranking of all the MCU’s major supervillains — that’s “major” as in the really big bads, no low-level henchmen or children of Thanos. We also left out villains from Marvel’s Disney+ shows for now — though at least one of those will be on the big screen soon.

Read on for our ranking of supervillains in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

35. Malekith (Thor: The Dark World)

“Accursed” is right.
Credit: screenshot / marvel

Literally who? —Angie Han, Deputy Entertainment Editor*

34. Dormammu (Doctor Strange)

I still don’t entirely understand what Dormammu is and I don’t care. And if you’re about to launch into an explanation based on the comics, my point is that the movie doesn’t do a good job of explaining what he is or why I should care. —A.H.*

33. Ivan Vanko (Iron Man 2)

With his gold teeth, thick Russian accent, and pet cockatoo, Vanko is basically a latter-day Johnny Depp character – and as with most latter-day Johnny Depp characters, there doesn’t seem to anything like an actual person underneath all those tiresome affectations. —A.H.*

32. The Dweller in Darkness (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings)

The Dweller-In-Darkness is the CGI manifestation of studio executives flipping through the screenplay of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and realizing that there’s nothing in there that would make a cool Lego set. It’s not on the very bottom of the list because all it wants to do is eat snacks (relatable) and everyone after this entry is in Marvel’s clown car of really bad villain ideas.— Alexis Nedd, Senior Entertainment Reporter

31. Aldrich Killian (Iron Man 3)

The reveal that the Mandarin was really a role being played by Ben Kingsley’s Trevor Slattery was a jaw-dropper, but the truth about who was really pulling the strings was far more disappointing. Not even Killian’s embittered-nerd backstory can make him a compelling foil to Tony Stark. —A.H.*

30. Ronan the Accuser (Guardians of the Galaxy)

Marvel really wasted Lee Pace.
Credit: Marvel Studios / Kobal / Shutterstock

Ronan gets more laughs than most of the other villains on this list, which could push him up a couple slots. But that’s mostly because he’s just in a funnier movie than most of the other villains on this list, not because he himself is all that funny. So he moves back down toward the bottom. —A.H.*

29. Justin Hammer (Iron Man 2)

Justin Hammer is essentially another Tony Stark, only inferior in every possible way. Which shouldn’t be that interesting, except that Sam Rockwell makes him kind of an odious oddball. It’s fun to watch him try to take down Stark, and even more satisfying to watch him fail again and again. —A.H.*

28. Abomination (The Incredible Hulk)

There’s the germ of something interesting in Emil Blonsky, an aging soldier who agrees to undergo a painful experimental procedure in order to achieve Hulk-like power. Unfortunately, The Incredible Hulk never gets there, and by the end has reduced him to a mindless CGI monster. —A.H.*

27. Ayesha (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2)

Ayesha is essentially just a superiority complex dipped in gold, but so much of the fun of her character comes in seeing her haughty grandeur rub up against the goofy, grimy world of the Guardians. Here’s hoping she’ll get more to do once Adam emerges. —A.H.*

26. Yon-Rogg (Captain Marvel)

Anyone surprised to learn that this dude sucks?
Credit: chuck zlotnick

Carol Danvers’ fragile masculine captor isn’t particularly interesting, but not for the first time Marvel gets by on some inspired casting — and in this case, a few well-placed twists. When Carol is about to blast him to Kree-Kingdom-Come during their final showdown, Yon-Rogg encourages her to strike him, to defeat him. It’s so hubristic and patronizing (what’s the Kree word for “mansplain?”) that Carol decides she’d rather just dip. —Proma Khosla, Entertainment Reporter

25. Obadiah Stane (Iron Man)

Obadiah Stane fits so many of the MCU villain tropes we’ve become familiar with: He’s a greedy businessman and a false father figure, and he’s vastly less interesting than the superhero he’s out to get. What makes him first among equals is that he was literally the first, setting the mold for years to come. —A.H.*

24. Goliath and Ghost (Ant-Man and the Wasp)

Sharing a spot on the list because they share so many villainous goals, the foes of Ant-Man and the Wasp are pretty textbook. Goliath a.k.a. Ben Foster has beef with Hank Pym (a man who specializes in beef) and wants revenge, while Ghost a.k.a. Ava just wants to stop phasing and not die. They team up to harness the energy of the Quantum Realm, which interferes with Hank and Hope’s plan to interfere Janet, but by the end of the movie everyone realizes what a viewer probably caught early on: There’s a version of this plan where everyone wins. —P.K.

23. Kaecilius (Doctor Strange)

The MCU also somehow wastest Mads Mikkelsen!
Credit: film frame / marvel

Now we’re really getting down to the dregs. Kaecilius is yet another MCU antagonist who lusts after some abstract notion of power. However, he wins a couple points for that flawless eye look and that hilarious who’s-on-first routine. —A.H.*

22. Arishem the Judge (Eternals)

The Eternals’ Celestial space-robot daddy is one of the most powerful beings on this list, but fails to make a proportionate impression because he is in fact a CGI space robot with no face. Arishem is the reason the Eternals even exist. He makes villains of them and their Deviant foes by basically using everyone as chess pieces — if a game of chess ended with the Earth being destroyed to create a cosmic superbeing. Arishem isn’t evil in the way of someone like Thanos; Celestials operate on ancient universal laws, while Thanos acted out of hubris — but what they all have in common is the view that most mortal life is unremarkable and therefore unessential. Hopefully Sersi, Kingo, and Phastos can convince him otherwise.

21. Thunderbolt Ross (The Incredible Hulk)

General Ross doesn’t get the big showdown with Hulk (that dubious honor goes to Abomination), but for the first two-thirds of the movie, he’s a rather chilling portrayal of a man so obsessed with revenge that he’s blind to the fact that he’s become a monster in his own right. —A.H.

20. Dreykov (Black Widow)

While far from the most charismatic or memorable villain on this list, Dreykov is pretty damn sinister when you think about what he’s done. He kidnapped orphans to turn them into soldiers, and he made a point to pick children with uteruses so he could forcibly sterilize them. He turned his own daughter into a barely-sentient killing machine and seemed pleased as punch — incidentally Natasha (and the rest of us) really want to punch him. Eff this guy. —P.K.

19. Yellowjacket (Ant-Man)

He’s essentially Obadiah Stane Redux, minus the shock of realizing that, holy shit, it’s Jeff Bridges under that chrome dome. Yellowjacket was just one too many wounded male egos plotting against the MCU’s heroes, which perhaps mercifully led to the new era that followed. Sorry, Corey Stoll – we love you, just not this role for you. —A.H.

18. Trevor/The Mandarin (Iron Man 3)

To this day, the reveal of the Mandarin’s true identity is one of the most shocking twists that the MCU has ever pulled off – and Ben Kingsley plays both sides beautifully. He’s chilling as the Mandarin but delightfully daft as Trevor, the party-bro actor who has no idea what’s really going on. —A.H.*

17. Taskmaster (Black Widow)

Taskmaster is Black Widow’s main antagonist for most of the movie, and while they doesn’t do much beyond showing up and kicking ass, that ass-kicking is some of the best in the MCU. Tasky’s fight scenes are a highlight reel of every Avenger’s coolest moves, and half the fun of watching Black Widow is seeing how Natasha would actually fare if she squared up against Captain America, Bucky (again), Black Panther, and herself. Also, points awarded for having a cool third act reveal. Best wishes to you, Taskmaster. — A.N.

16. Alexander Pierce (Captain America: The Winter Soldier)

Like Vulture and Zemo, Alexander Pierce is a relatively understated villain. But he’s got gravitas, because he’s played by Robert Freakin’ Redford, and he raises some genuinely complicated questions about security versus freedom. Well, at least until it’s revealed that he’s been a Hydra agent all along, and therefore unambiguously evil. Oh well. —A.H.*

15. Red Skull (Captain America: The First Avenger)

Red Skull is a really good representation of another annoying MCU villain trend: squandered promise. He’s played by Hugo Weaving and based on a popular comic book character, so he seems like he should be amazing. But onscreen, he comes across as just another generic nemesis. —A.H.*

14. Ulysses Klaue (Avengers: Age of Ultron, Black Panther)

Ulysses Klaue is a villain who died before he really got to live. Mostly in the sense that it would’ve been wild to see Andy Serkis’s take on the comics, but Klaue served his purpose in the MCU’s ongoing story. It’s Klaue who smuggled Vibranium out of Wakanda, a singular act that directly leads to Killmonger’s plot to establish Wakanda as a fearsome ruling superpower. Without that Vibranium, where would Ultron’s consciousness end up after he escaped Tony’s computer system? It’s impossible to know what the MCU would look like without Klaue’s impact, and that’s what makes him one of the saga’s essential villains. —Adam Rosenberg, Senior Entertainment Reporter & Weekend Editor

13. Ego (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2)

Talk about villains grounded in painful reality. Kurt Russell is perfect as Ego, the personification of every dashing deadbeat who’s ever refused to let minor details like “a child” stand in the way of his grand ambitions. It’s just that his grand ambitions involve remaking the entire galaxy. —A.H.*

12. Winter Soldier (Captain America: The Winter Soldier)

Before we saved our poor boy Bucky, he was a hell of a foe for Captain America.
Credit: zade rosenthal / Marvel studios

Bucky is only a true villain in Winter Soldier, and then just because he’s been brainwashed by Hydra. Maybe that’s a shame, because it turns out he’s pretty good at being bad. He’s all ruthless efficiency and controlled intensity, but his real secret weapon as a supervillain is his tragic backstory. —A.H.*

11. Ultron (Avengers: Age of Ultron)

A sort of sentient robot son to Tony Stark, Ultron sounds cooler in theory than he actually is in execution. But he is voiced by James Spader in mustache-twirling villain mode, and he’s the kind of unapologetic drama queen who insists on having his own throne. That’s not nothing. —A.H.*

10. Hela (Thor: Ragnarok)

Odin’s firstborn and the goddess of death, Hela is a formidable foe for Thor. She breaks Mjolnir! She kills the Warriors Three with her knife-y powers! She’s played by Cate Blanchett! Even though Hela is sidelined for much of Thor: Ragnarok, Blanchett imbues her with delightfully chilling villainy. Also, her outfit is among the best villain outfits in the MCU – talk about being dressed to kill. — Belen Edwards, Entertainment Fellow

9. Mysterio (Spider-Man: Far From Home)

On paper, Mysterio looks like a pedestrian amalgam of Vulture, Justin Hammer, and Aldrich Killian — but the formula doesn’t account for Jake Gyllenhaal chewing the absolute heck out of this role. In Mysterio, Gyllenhaal finds layers of sincerity (with Peter), egomania (with his team) and outright unhinged madness that is nothing short of delightful to behold. How did Tony Stark ever overlook this guy? —P.K.

8. The Grandmaster (Thor: Ragnarok)

The Grandmaster is charming as hell, but he has SO many slaves.
Credit: marvel studios

Grandmaster (Jeff Goldblum) may not be Thor: Ragnarok’s main villain, but the hedonistic leader of Sakaar more than steals the show. Everything from his sparkly blue makeup to his funky piano jam sessions oozes funky, offbeat charisma – even when he’s forcing unwilling fighters to battle his champion to the death. Arguably the most fun Marvel villain, thanks in no small part to Goldblum doing what he does best, Grandmaster is just a blast to watch. —B.E.

7. Helmut Zemo (Captain America: Civil War)

In contrast to the colorful, power-mad personalities we’ve come to expect from comic book movies, Zemo is a quiet, unassuming man driven by grief. Best of all, the guy’s kind of got a point when he points out that the Avengers are responsible for a lot of collateral damage. —A.H.*

6. Vulture (Spider-Man: Homecoming)

Vulture is a basically normal dude grappling with the fact that he lives in a superpowered world — but unlike our heroes, Adrian Toomes isn’t inspired by example to become one of the good guys. He channels that rage into a successful black-market enterprise selling alien weaponry, but what’s fascinating about Adrian is there’s much more to him than supervillainy. He doesn’t seem to be playing a role in the way that, say, Obadiah Stane was only pretending to be Tony’s friend so he could stab him in the back later. Adrian really is a family man and he really is an illegal arms dealer. He contains multitudes, and Homecoming doesn’t shy away from it. —A.H.*

5. Green Goblin (Spider-Man: No Way Home)

No Way Home may have brought back every notable Spider-Man villain since 2002 (sorry, Hobgoblin), but Willem Dafoe’s Green Goblin is a magnificent standout as he urges them all to go rogue. This character once laid the groundwork for the misguided-scientist-who-turns-into-a-bad-experiment that every Spidey villain followed until Vulture, and his performance is as unhinged and spectacular as it was 20 years ago. Sliding back into Goblin’s armor, madness, and signature cackle, Dafoe reminds us that he all but invented the modern comic book movie villain, that everyone else here is in the house that Goblin built. It’s a hell of a legacy to leave behind in the first place, and even mightier to live up to it yourself.

4. Loki (Thor / The Avengers)

There’s a reason Loki is the rare baddie to stick around for more than one movie (and a whole TV show). He’s the only MCU supervillain who’s as fully developed as the MCU superheroes – and with his sad tale of familial angst, he’s almost as sympathetic. Plus, Tom Hiddleston gives Loki a slippery, smirky charisma that’s hard to resist. You listen to one of his faux-Shakespearean monologues and tell me you’re not tempted to cross over to the dark side. —A.H.*

3. Wenwu (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings)

Over at thousand years of pure swag.
Credit: Courtesy of Marvel Studios

Leave it to Hong Kong cinema icon Tony Leung to show up twenty-five movies into the MCU and proceed to wipe the floor with almost every other villain the franchise has come up with. Wenwu is a fascinating villain because he’s a bad guy who isn’t always a bad person, and the real tragedy of Shang-Chi is knowing Wenwu is mourning more than the loss of his wife — he’s mourning the lost possibility of his own redemption. Also, he’s a Marvel villain who keeps another Marvel villain as a human pet. That’s god-tier villainy right there. —A.N.

2. Eric Killmonger (Black Panther)

Hot off the heels of Vulture revolutionizing MCU villainy came Michael B. Jordan’s legendary turn in Black Panther. Eric is everything T’Challa isn’t; Vengeful, embittered, and deeply isolated. His methods might be villainous, but his message is compelling. Growing up in Oakland, far from the promise of Wakanda, he mourns generations of injustice Black people have experienced around the world, seething with envy at T’Challa and his supposedly charmed life. Killmonger’s pain stays with us long after the credits roll on Black Panther, as does his chilling final line. —P.K.

1. Thanos (Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame)

Thinkin’ bout what Star Lord said about his chin.
Credit: marvel studios

Here we go. The big bad. The biggest bad. In one *snap*, Thanos erased half of the known universe from existence — but it’s more than that. The build-up to Thanos pretty much defined the entire pace of the MCU’s first truly sprawling story arc, from Iron Man to Endgame. Marvel spent 10 entire years teasing and setting up this massive villain before 2018’s Avengers: Infinity War gave him an outwardly significant role to play. It was a hell of a trick, and it wouldn’t have worked without the decade of build-up making it clear that a larger, more malevolent puppet-master was always pulling the strings just out of view. There are more exciting villains in the MCU, but Thanos is, as ever, inevitable. —A.R.

*This blurb appeared on a previous list.

HBO Max’s beautiful new miniseries, Station Eleven is a solid adaptation of the novel by Emily St. John Mandel. While it makes some big changes, it remains faithful to the spirit of the book, which is an important aspect of any adaptation.

Station Eleven moves back and forth in time, following characters like Kirsten Raymonde (Mackenzie Davis) and Jeevan Chaudhary (Himesh Patel) as they struggle to live through an apocalyptic flu. When she grows up, Kirsten joins the Traveling Symphony, a troupe of performers whose way of life is threatened by a dangerous prophet. Other storylines include the creation of both a Museum of Civilization and a comic book titled “Station Eleven.” There are a lot of characters and stories to juggle, and Station Eleven does its best to bring them all to life in a way that stays true to Mandel’s work and makes good television.

Here are the biggest changes Station Eleven has made so far. The following contains massive spoilers for the novel and the show, so consider yourselves warned.

Jeevan and Kirsten

Just a casual pre-apocalypse grocery store run.
Credit: Parrish Lewis/HBO Max

With its first episode, “Wheel of Fire,” Station Eleven deviates from Mandel’s novel in a big way. In the book, Jeevan helps Kirsten find her guardian in the wake of Arthur Leander’s heart attack. That is the extent of their interaction. In the show, Jeevan offers to help young Kirsten (Matilda Lawler) get home after a performance of King Lear. As the episode progresses, a deadly flu rips through Chicago. (The location is another change from the book, much of which takes place in Toronto.) Realizing he needs to take shelter with his brother Frank (Nabhaan Rizwan), Jeevan brings Kirsten with him. And the three of them prepare to ride out the flu together

This change opens up an entirely new relationship for the show to explore and the opportunity to examine elements of these characters that Mandel didn’t touch on. Kirsten’s time before joining the Traveling Symphony is left vague in the novel (She was so young that she doesn’t remember the early days of the pandemic.) In tying her story in with Jeevan’s, Station Eleven promises we’ll see more of how she was forced to grow up during the apocalypse. It also suggests we’ll see how Jeevan and Frank deal with the responsibility of caring for her.

Aside from this merging of two storylines, the first episode tweaks Jeevan’s character slightly. In the novel Jeevan is training to be a paramedic, so he attempts CPR on actor Arthur Leander (Gael García Bernal). The show makes no mention of this fact or of his time as a paparazzo. Instead, he briefly alludes to working as a reporter or “cultural critic” before admitting he doesn’t have a job, suggesting that Station Eleven may be approaching his backstory differently than the novel.

St. Deborah-by-the-Water

Book readers will recognize St. Deborah-by-the-Water as one of the stops the Traveling Symphony makes on its journey. They visit the settlement early on in the novel to perform and reunite with two former troupe members, Charlie and Jeremy, who stayed there while the former was pregnant. When the troupe returns, the couple has fled because of the sinister Prophet who has taken up residence in St. Deborah-by-the-Water. The show introduces Charlie and Jeremy as they make the decision to stay behind. Their departure has a strong impact on Kirsten, who worries about people leaving her. Considering the timeline, it’s unlikely that the show will cover Charlie and Jeremy’s flight from St. Deborah-by-the-Water, especially since the Prophet hasn’t appeared yet. Or has he…

A mysterious stranger

Kirsten and Alexandra (Philippine Velge) meet a strange traveler named David (Daniel Zovatto) and his ward Cody (Luca Villacis). He hits the Traveling Symphony with a sob story, but Kirsten isn’t buying it. She picks up on inconsistencies in his accounts, rightfully points out that he’s creepy, then stabs him and leaves him for dead.

Despite Kirsten’s best efforts, David lives to be creepy another day. Station Eleven doesn’t confirm whether he’s the show’s version of the Prophet. But based on his strange ruminations about Day Zero pain and his threats to make the Traveling Symphony disappear one by one, it’s a big possibility.

Miranda and Arthur

Miranda gives a harsh toast.
Credit: Warrick Page/HBO Max

Miranda Carroll (Danielle Deadwyler) plays a big role in Station Eleven, given that she creates the comic from which the show and novel take their name. As well as being an artist, she is Arthur’s first wife. Their meeting in the show differs greatly from their meeting in the books. However, their marriage follows many of the same beats, including Miranda’s realization that Arthur is having an affair with co-star Elizabeth (Caitlin Fitzgerald) and the divorce it spurs. 

In the novel, Miranda and Arthur both come from Delano Island, Ontario. They connect years after they’d each left the island, when Arthur is an established actor. Miranda leaves an abusive relationship to be with him, all while continuing to work on her comic book about Dr. Eleven. The show gives them a restaurant meet-cute, where Arthur asks Miranda questions about her art. 

Even though the events leading up to their marriage differ between the books and the show, both versions of Miranda and Arthur share a similar dynamic. You can immediately understand how protective Miranda is of Station Eleven, a sentiment that remains throughout their marriage and culminates in Miranda’s rage when Arthur shows Elizabeth her drawings.

Miranda in Malaysia

Station Eleven expands on Miranda’s pandemic experience in its third episode, “Hurricane.” In both versions, Miranda is in Malaysia when the pandemic hits. In the show, she attempts to escape from Malaysia on a tanker but stops when she learns of Arthur’s death. She remains stuck in her hotel with her pitch partner Jim (Tim Simons), whose attempts to remain casual about the situation mask his true horror. The results of this change are harrowing, giving us a clearer picture of hopelessness in the face of an unstoppable illness.

The Prophet

Station Eleven‘s fourth episode confirms that David, who we met in episode 2, is the show’s version of the Prophet. There are a few key differences between book-Prophet and show-Prophet, though. In the book, the Prophet has already taken up residence in St. Deborah-by-the-Water, where he convinces the survivors of the pandemic that they’re special. He also takes child brides, cementing his status as a monster. He even requests to marry Alex from the Traveling Symphony.

The show’s Prophet also tries to take Alex away, only this time with discussions about how people born after the pandemic — post-pans — are special and free from trauma. It’s essentially the opposite of his philosophy from the book. Show-Prophet’s cult is made entirely of the children he’s lured from their homes, and he gets points for not being gross and marrying them. However, he loses all those points by using the children as his personal army, resulting in many of their deaths.

Going to Pingtree

When Kirsten recognizes the Prophet’s philosophy as being similar to that of Station Eleven, she gets the Conductor (Lori Petty) to bring the Symphony’s actors to the settlement of Pingtree, where she left her copy. Everything that happens at Pingtree, from meeting Gil (David Cross) to the Hamlet performance, is a show-only occurrence. Station Eleven takes this new sequence as an opportunity to explore Kirsten’s worries about abandonment via her conversations with Alex. It also emphasizes the importance of art and theater brings people in these dark times.

New characters in Severn

How to survive the apocalypse in an airport 101
Credit: Ian Watson/HBO Max

Episode 5, “The Severn City Airport,” follows a group of survivors living in an airport through the early days of the pandemic. Among them are Arthur’s friend Clark (David Wilmot) and second wife Elizabeth, as well as Arthur and Elizabeth’s son Tyler (Julian Alberto Garcia). The episode adds some new characters to this storyline, including airport employee Miles (Milton Barnes), whose engineering skills become necessary for keeping the airport community afloat. Another addition is a custodian posing as a homeland security agent in order to gain authority over other survivors. These two new characters are effective ways of showing how people react differently to the apocalypse, either helping people or taking advantage of them.

The trouble with Tyler

The Severn episode reveals that David the Prophet is actually Tyler, Arthur Leander’s son. In the book, Tyler becomes convinced that the pandemic happened for a reason, and he and Elizabeth leave the airport and begin assembling a following. The show complicates things quite a bit, starting with a possibly infected passenger making it off a stranded plane. Tyler tries to help him, but the man gets shot, and Tyler and Elizabeth end up in quarantine. His limited trust of people quickly devolves, until he fakes his death by setting fire to the stranded plane and pretending he’s inside it.

This new departure drastically changes the course of Tyler’s story. He’s headed out into the world to survive alone, convinced that his own mother doesn’t care about him. These thoughts emphasize his connection to the comic Station Eleven, which he uses as a prophecy in the present.

We’ll update this post as more episodes of Station Eleven stream on HBO Max and potentially deviate further from Mandel’s novel.

Station Eleven is now streaming on HBO Max, with new episodes every week.

We’ve grown used to a lot of things in the past decade-plus, with one of the best being big-budget, high-quality superhero movies.

Marvel started its multi-phase movie takeover in 2008, and since then has shelled out dozens of movies and now TV shows about Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Black Panther, the Hulk, Doctor Strange, Ant-Man, Spider-Man, the Guardians of the Galaxy, Captain Marvel – and sometimes all of them, as with Avengers: Endgame.

With so much to choose from, how do the movies stack up? To celebrate the release of Avengers: Endgame, we’ve updated our ranking of all the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Enjoy.

27. Iron Man 2 (2010)

Get out of the doughnut.
Credit: MARVEL

A tepid followup to the sleek brilliance of Iron Man, the sequel gives us a sinister yet funny Mickey Rourke but does the franchise no favors with its creative decisions. We meet Black Widow, but not without some classic 2010 misogyny, which is the root problem with Iron Man 2; the first film was all about Tony’s growth as a person, and the second doesn’t let him mature nearly as much. There’s still a long road before this is the Tony we see in Endgame, but it’s too slow on that path.

26. The Incredible Hulk (2008)

Sure, it’s part of the MCU canon, but The Incredible Hulk was so aggressively meh that its title character got recast and was only made palatable by The Avengers. Since it’s not an origin story, we don’t get to watch Edward Norton as Bruce Banner becoming the Hulk; he already is. We don’t watch him fall in love with Betty (Liv Tyler), because he already is. What we do get is a lot of the big green guy getting angry, which may have been cool in 2008 but pales compared to the visual effects that followed.

25. Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)

Ultron has a lot of good moments but is not overall a good movie. It’s sloppy and it drags, even with ambitious action sequences in Sokovia, and struggles to build Ultron’s disdain for humanity. The main Avengers have a fun dynamic – look no further than the party scene at Stark Tower – but the new characters don’t fit in (especially since X-Men: Days of Future Past basically owns Quicksilver). Black Widow, at the time robbed of a solo movie, gets a disproportionate consolation prize of becoming Hulk’s girlfriend and a woman defined by her biology.

24. Thor: The Dark World (2013)

The Dark World brings back Natalie Portman as Jane, yet even as the physical host of a literal Infinity Stone, she’s somehow underutilized. There’s a lot of levity, particularly between Thor and Loki, and a surprising amount of gravity in Loki’s “death” – which is once again undone before the movie ends. Oh and some dude named Malekith is mad… don’t worry about it.

23. Doctor Strange (2016)

This guy used to be a real dick.
Credit: Marvel studios

Iron Man minus the charisma, it took five years for Marvel to retread this territory and make Strange interesting in time for Phase 4. Benedict Cumberbatch is great, but he’s always great, so let’s not give out free brownie points. Strange received appropriate flack for whitewashing Asian characters and lore for the story, and tragically sidelines Rachel McAdams in every way. Visuals: Yes. Everything else: Meh.

22. Eternals (2021)

With no familiar faces and little connection to the wider MCU, Eternals had a gargantuan task set forth from the start. Helmed by Oscar-winner Chloé Zhao, the film introduces no less than a dozen new characters, a rushed history of their cosmic presence on Earth, an apocalyptic threat in the form of Earth becoming a Celestial, and an explanation for how the entire Marvel Universe was created. It’s sometimes slow, sometimes muddled, and a little too enthralled with its white male antihero — but it’s also a visual feast, a huge victory for representation, and a banger of a soundtrack.

21. Thor (2011)

Thor isn’t a top Marvel movie, but it’s a classic fish-out-of-water story that teases how much fun this character will be in time. The film also gives us our first dose of Loki, one of Marvel’s best villains to this day. It’s easy to forget the magnetism and subtlety of Hiddleston’s original performance, and Thor is one of Loki’s best arcs: The sensitive sibling growing up in Thor’s shadow and coming to terms with the truth about his past.

(Also Chris Hemsworth’s eyebrows are blonde and it’s terrible.)

20. Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)

The Wasp (Evangeline Lilly) and Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) are both lovely people.
Credit: Ben Rothstein / Marvel Studios

In some ways, Ant-Man and the Wasp is more even-keeled and sure-footed than its predecessor. It delivers zippy action, tons of laughs, and the nicest cast of characters we’ve ever seen in the MCU. Mostly this movie is just so sweet, whether it’s Scott bending over backwards to impress his darling daughter or Hope and Hank going to great lengths in memory of Janet. Oh, and speaking of Hope, she more than holds her own as the MCU movies’ first true leading lady. – Angie Han

19. Iron Man 3 (2013)

Iron Man 3 lets Tony get vulnerable as he faces his post-Avengers PTSD. The film gives ample time to guest stars Rebecca Hall, Guy Pearce, and Ty Simpkins, all the while remaining true to Tony’s internal struggle and getting in a few CGI-battles. The Mandarin reveal is fun (more fun as of 2021), even if Killian is still a boring baddie.

18. Captain Marvel (2019)

Brie Larson stars as Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel, the first female superhero to headline a Marvel movie.
Credit: chuck zlotnick / marvel studios

Even with the weight of Avengers: Endgame on its shoulders, Captain Marvel is primarily an origin story, and the MCU does those damn well, even if this isn’t the best one. We meet the staggeringly powerful Carol Danvers, a Kree warrior with the power to save the universe. Brie Larson and a fabulous cast make Marvel’s first solo female superhero outing one for the ages – a film that also doubles as the Nick Fury origin story we didn’t know we needed, and a star-making debut for Goose the “cat.”

17. Black Widow (2021)

Helena (Florence Pugh) makes fun of Natasha’s (Scarlett Johansson) fight poses in “Black Widow.”
Credit: Jay Maidment/ marvel studios

Marvel’s unexpected two-year movie draught ended with a long-overdue solo outing for Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) that takes place between Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War. After years of grand-scale alien battles and CGI battle set pieces, Black Widow was a welcome throwback to human beings just beating the heck out of each other, with nary an alien, wizard, or android in sight. Natasha’s surrogate family (Rachel Weisz, David Harbour, and an utterly charming Florence Pugh) leave a lasting impression in a film worthy of the MCU’s first heroine.

16. Ant-Man (2015)

Kudos to this film for bringing us Paul Rudd in the MCU, the thing you didn’t know you needed. Rudd lends dimension and heart to his performance as Scott Lang, a reformed criminal and father to an adorable little girl. His chemistry with Evangeline Lilly crackles (even if they saved her good stuff for the sequel), and Scott’s everyman persona makes him an irresistible addition to the hero roster. Michael Peña shines as Scott’s best friend and Corey Stoll seems born to be a villain, even though it’s Michael Douglas as Hank Pym who steals the show with his embittered quest for revenge.

15. Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)

A trip to Europe changes everything for MJ (Zendaya) and Spider-Man (Tom Holland) in “Spider-Man: Far From Home.”
Credit: marvel studios / Sony

Far From Home officially ends the Infinity Saga with a smaller-scale story about Peter Parker finding his place in a post–Tony Stark world. Highlights include Tom Holland hitting yet another Spidey performance out of the park, Jake Gyllenhaal as a pitch perfect Mysterio, and the best trippy CGI battle yet seen in the MCU (sorry, Doctor Strange). It’s not the best solo Marvel movie ever, but Far From Home does a lot of good work by closing one door and opening a new universe of possibilities.

14. Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)

The most ambitious team-up since Avengers: Endgame sees Peter Parker tangling with space and time, only to have Doctor Strange unleash a spell that accidentally rips open the multiverse. Spider-Man fans received an unimaginable treat, with resurgent villains from Sam Raimi’s early 2000s trilogy and Marc Webb’s The Amazing Spider-Man movies — as well as previous incarnations of the heroes themselves reprising their web-slinging roles. It’s not higher on this list because of some glaring plot holes, but it’s where it is because everything else sticks the landing.

Despite the spectacle of returns and reunions, No Way Home is an emotional powerhouse, its great responsibility resting on the shoulders of Tom Holland but shared with Zendaya’s MJ, Marisa Tomei’s May, and both Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield as older, wiser Peters. Willem Dafoe’s Green Goblin is a standout, and while the movie’s stakes are a little questionable, the ending undoubtedly raises them for Peter Parker’s MCU future.

13. Avengers: Infinity War (2018)

A teamup of epic proportions.
Credit: chuck zlotnick / marvel studios

For years, it all led up to this: Almost every Marvel hero you can think of, joining forces against the biggest threat this universe has ever faced. Infinity War is enormous in scope and spirit, with the budget to match its astronomical ambitions. And in its final moments, it packs a punch worthy of Thanos’ golden-gloved fist. If we have one complaint, though, it’s that this feels like half a movie – and many of us had to wait a year until Endgame. – Angie Han

12. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)

Cheer up, Groot, we’ve got some good news for you.
Credit: marvel studios / disney

Fans didn’t have any exorbitant expectations of GotG Vol. 2, especially when low expectations yielded such joy for the first film. Here we get Peter meeting his biological father Ego, fighting with his friends over said father’s intentions, and mocked by those same friends for his crush on Gamora, as exposed by Mantis. We also get loads of Baby Groot, who thawed many a stone cold heart, and the surprise emotional gut-punch of Yondu at the end.

11. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)

Xialing (Meng’er Zhang), Shang-Chi (Simu Liu) and Katy (Awkwafina) battle for the future of humanity in “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.”
Credit: Courtesy of Marvel Studios

Cynics expected Marvel’s first theater-exclusive film in over two years to fail. It introduced brand-new characters, dense mythology, an unknown lead, and a good chunk of it is in Mandarin. The movie ended up shattering box office records and being one of the best MCU standalones in a long time, with huge stakes, rich characters, and transfixing family drama. Its jaw-dropping action sequences flex some of the best fight choreography in the MCU and Hollywood at large (bus battle, anyone??). Simu Liu belongs in the MCU and we can’t wait to see more of him in future Phases. Can we find a way to get more Tony Leung too?

10. Captain America: Civil War (2016)

Captain America (Chris Evans) and Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) face irreconcilable differences in “Captain America: Civil War.”
Credit: marvel studios

Civil War could be a tighter movie, but it’s doing a hell of a lot. Picking up with the fallout of Avengers: Age of Ultron and Captain America: The Winter Soldier, this movie thoroughly interrogates the toll of our heroes’ adventures and divides them harshly on how to move forward. Black Panther and Spider-Man make epic MCU debuts, while secondary Avengers like Vision, Scarlet Witch, and Ant-Man still get their moments. The final fight is brutal as Cap and Tony come close to actually killing each other, and don’t even reconcile before the credits roll.

9. Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)

It’s crazy to think that early trailers of Guardians looked silly when its rock ‘n’ roll comedy thrill ride model is now the template for action movie promos. We didn’t expect much from Guardians in any capacity; we had our avengers, our non-MCU Spider-Man reboot, yet here was this group of ragtag space trash in a movie that was so much better than it had any right to be. Chris Pratt may have debuted his six-pack, but more importantly, he and the cast set a new standard for comedy and chemistry in the MCU and all superhero movies.

8. The Avengers (2012)

The first Avengers was and always will be a truly stellar teamup. The film doesn’t waste time on expository baggage, with plenty of witty banter and fascinating face offs instead (Mjolnir vs. Vibranium, anyone?). Tom Hiddleston does a magnificent job as Loki per usual — even without the believable motivation he had in Thor — working for some guy named Thanos who we don’t have to worry about yet. The Avengers also ends with shawarma, thus accidentally creating the best sub genre: Avengers-not-avenging. When can we green light that franchise?

7. Iron Man (2008)

As both the dawn of the MCU and the second coming of Robert Downey Jr., Iron Man shocked audiences who forgot superhero movies could be good (this was a year after Spider-Man 3). Downey is the perfect hubristic Tony Stark, an arrogant billionaire sobered by becoming a prisoner of war. It was a fun version of 2005’s Batman Begins with sex and expensive gadgetry to supplant the mask and the brooding, and it holds up.

6. Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)

Tom Holland’s Spider-Man debuted in “Captain America: Civil War,” but “Spider-Man: Homecoming” really lets him shine.
Credit: marvel studios / sony

Homecoming is, simply put, a goddamn delight. Tom Holland is a born showman and a flawless Peter Parker; the cast is talented, funny, and diverse; it’s a view of New York we’ve ludicrously never seen and Vulture was the best villain since Loki when this film premiered in 2017. Not an exciting movie to be a female character, but Zendaya crushed every scene she had and has only gotten better in the sequels.

5. Avengers: Endgame (2019)

The final chapter of the Infinity Saga and of three phases, 22 movies, and 11 years of the MCU stuck the landing and made it look easy. We might spend years griping about time travel or lamenting the last moments between Steve and Bucky, but the simple facts are that Endgame hit an impressive number of emotional beats, including near-perfect conclusions for multiple O.G. Avengers. It’s a heist, a love story, and everything magnificent about the MCU, and we love it 3000.

4. Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)

“Captain America: The First Avenger” introduces us to a kid from Brooklyn who never backed down from a fight.
Credit: Marvel / Paramount / Kobal / Shutterstock

The Star-Spangled man with a plan was once a scrappy kid from Brooklyn, until a biological experiment made him swole extremely strong. With the Help of Peggy Carter, Abraham Erskine, Howard Stark, and his day one pal Bucky Barnes, Steve becomes the kind of hero people remember for decades, even while he’s off literally cooling his heels in the Arctic. From Red Skull to the Howling Commandos to Bucky’s heartbreaking fall and that adrenaline-fueled first kiss, The First Avenger hits all the right marks.

3. Thor: Ragnarok (2017)

Taika Waititi’s “Thor: Ragnarok” is a huge tone shift for the character — and it’s perfect.
Credit: jasin boland / marvel

It took the better part of a decade, but Marvel finally figured out who Thor was with Thor: Ragnarok. Director Taika Waititi puts Chris Hemsworth’s considerable comedy chops to good use, resulting in a version of the character that feels fresher and looser than anything we’ve seen before. Toss in some stellar work by Jeff Goldblum, Cate Blanchett, and Tessa Thompson, plus the return of Tom Hiddleston as Loki and Mark Ruffalo as the Hulk, and you’ve got the most entertaining Thor movie yet.

2. Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)

“Captain America: The Winter Soldier” works because it’s a genre movie at its core.
Credit: zade rosenthal / marvel

The MCU had S.H.I.E.L.D. infiltrated by Hydra and completely changed the game for the Avengers’ alliance. Winter Soldier sets the stage for Cap and Iron Man’s feud in Civil War, and for Steve and Bucky’s love affair renewed friendship. It charmingly and skillfully introduces Falcon and has no less than four fighting female characters, none of whom functions as a love interest. Winter Soldier isn’t trapped in one genre; it’s a spy thriller disguised as a superhero movie and better for it.

1. Black Panther (2018)

Chadwick Boseman gives an unforgettable performance as T’Challa in “Black Panther.”
Credit: Film Frame Marvel Studios 2018

Even the worst MCU movies are kind of good, which means that the best ones are truly exceptional — none moreso than Black Panther. Ryan Coogler, along with his talented cast and crew, crafted a film that has something to say, that feels distinctive in its style and point of view – while also delivering on the usual superhero movie goods, like lovable heroes, exciting action, and a compelling villain. Chadwick Boseman’s T’Challa feels fittingly regal, surrounded by admirable supporting players like Michael B. Jordan, Letitia Wright, Angela Bassett, and Danai Gurira. Though it took far too long for Marvel to bet on a Black superhero at the box office, it paved the way for the kind of representation we want and need in future phases.

Angie Han and Alison Foreman contributed to this article.

UPDATE: Dec. 22, 2021, 1:15 p.m. EST This story has been updated to reflect current prices and availability.

We’ve compiled the best deals on robot vacuums from brands like iRobot, Shark, and Ecovacs. Here are the ones to grab as of Dec. 22:

• BUDGET PICK: The iRobot Roomba 692 offers a standard, reliable cleaning for under $180 — $177 $299.99 (save $122.99)

• BUDGET SELF-EMPTYING PICK: The self-emptying Shark EZ is reliable with a compact base that’s not an eyesore — $349.99 $549.99 (save $250)

• BEST ROBOT VACUUM/MOP DEAL: The Ecovacs Deebot N8 Pro+ uses LiDAR to vacuum and mop, then empties the mess on its own — $489.99 $799.99 (save $310)

Only three things are certain in life: Death, taxes, and a few days each month when you need to vacuum but just don’t have time. Whether you detest the chore or get a little bummed when you can’t have that satisfying dance with your Dyson, a robot vacuum is a lifesaver. Shop models on sale below.

Robot vacuums under $200:

Why we like it

We’re pumped to welcome back the cheapest Roomba we’ve seen this season. The 694 is part of iRobot’s entry-level series, offering a standard clean to keep floors tidy on a daily basis. Cleanings can be scheduled in the app based on your needs. The only difference between the 694 ($179.99) and the 692 is that the latter doesn’t include an extra filter.

More robot vacuums under $200

• Ecovacs Deebot 500 Robot Vacuum — $159.99 $279.99 (save $120)

• Eufy Robovac 15C Max Robot Vacuum — $169.99 $279.99 (save $110)

• Eufy Robovac G30 Robot Vacuum — $199.99 $319.99 (save $120)

• iRobot Roomba 670 — $177 $329.99 (save $152.99)

• Ecovacs Deebot Ozmo U2 — $179.99 $249.99 (save $70)

• iRobot Roomba 694 — $199 $274 (save $75)

• Shark ION RV761 Robot Vacuum — $199.99 $259.99 (save $60)

Robot vacuums under $500

Why we like it

You could say that any self-emptying robot vacuum at the $350 price point is a steal — and is an extra stellar deal from a brand as reliable as Shark. The EZ vacuum isn’t decked out with features, but cleans efficiently and returns to dirty areas that need more work. Its auto-empty dock is compact and less of an eyesore than those of other Sharks.

More robot vacuums under $500

• Yeedi Vac Robot Vacuum — $209.99 $299.99 (save $90)

• Roborock E4 Robot Vacuum — $179.99 $299.99 (save $120)

• iRobot Roomba i1 — $279 $399.99 (save $120.99)

• iRobot Roomba i3— $299 $399.99 (save $100.99)

• Shark AI RV2001 Robot Vacuum — $299.99 $449.99 (save $150)

• Shark EZ Robot Vacuum with Self-Empty Base — $349.99 $549.99 (save $200)

• Shark IQ Robot Vacuum with XL Self-Empty Base — $379.99 $499.99 (save $120)

• Neato Robotics D8 Robot Vacuum — $349.99 $599.99 (save $250)

• iRobot Roomba i6 — $399.99 $549.99 (save $150)

• iRobot Roomba j7 — $449 $649.99 (save $200.99)

• iRobot Roomba i3+ — $499 $599.99 (save $100.99)

• Shark AI Robot Vacuum with XL Self-Empty HEPA Base — $499.99 $649.99 (save $150)

Robot vacuums under $800

Why we like it

The new face in town is the Roomba j7+. Just released in Sept. 2021, the j7+ is now seeing its second big discount (24% off versus the 18% off we saw in early November). The glow-up consists of Genius Technology and PrecisionVision Navigation to avoid obstacles that were previously problem-causers, like pet waste and cords. The j7+ also self-empties.

More robot vacuums under $800:

• Samsung Jet Bot+ — $506 $799 (save $293)

• Roborock S6 MaxV — $524.99 $749.99 (save $225)

Robot vacuums under $1,000

• iRobot Roomba s9+ — $899 $1,299.99 (save $400.99)

Robot vacuum and mop hybrids and dedicated robot mops

Why we like it:

The Deebot N8 Pro+ includes fundamental smart upgrades like LiDAR mapping and virtual boundaries for customizing its cleaning path down to specific rooms or areas. It also has sensors that avoid carpets while mopping and uses 3D obstacle detection to avoid small objects that cheaper vacs usually trip over.

More hybrids and robot mops on sale

• Roborock E4 Robot Vacuum and Mop — $219.99 $379.99 (save $160)

• iRobot Braava Jet M6 Robot Mop — $349.99 $449.99 (save $100)

• Roborock S5 Max Robot Vacuum and Mop — $379.99 $549.99 (save $170)

• Yeedi Vac Station Robot Mop with Self Empty — $349.99 $599.99 (save $200)

• Ecovacs N8+ Robot Vacuum and Mop with Self-Empty Station — $449.99 $599.99 (save $150)

• Ecovacs Deebot T8+ Robot Vacuum and Mop with Self-Empty Station — $549.99 $749.99 (save $200)

• iRobot Roomba i7 and iRobot Brava Jet m6 package — $854.98 $1049.98 (save $195)

• iRobot Roomba s9+ Robot Vacuum and iRobot Braava Jet M6 bundle — $1,099 $1,599.99 (save $500.99)

Are robot vacuums worth it?

The control of an upright vacuum comes with its own type of satisfaction. But if you’re not one to classify cleaning as cathartic, a robot vacuum could erase that huge, agonizing task from of your chore list. (And did we mention the joy of having “first day clean” floors all the time?)

But whether robot vacuums are worth it or not comes with a caveat: It can’t be just any robot vacuum. A cheap robovac that doesn’t do the job right — scattering dust, bumping into walls, getting stuck on area rugs — might actually create more work for you.

What to consider when buying a robot vacuum

• Suction power: A vacuum is the one purchase that you hope sucks a lot. Suction power is typically measured in Pascals (Pa), ranging between 600 Pa to 2,500 Pa. Stronger sucking will be needed to pick up heavier pieces of debris (be sure to set up a barrier around Legos) and to pull matted-down pet hair from rugs.

• Floor type: Carpeting and high pile rugs will probably require stronger suction than hard floors, as well as special features like an extra-wide or self-cleaning brush roll to prevent hair from wrapping and clogging. Folks in homes with multiple floor types might consider a bigger, sturdier robot vacuum that can hurl itself and its wheels over mats, rugs, and transitions from carpet to hard floors.

• Home layout: Every robot vacuum is equipped with sensors and drop detection. But if your home has lots of rooms, lots of turns, or lots of close-together furniture, you’ll have fewer navigation issues with an advanced model that uses intelligent mapping to remember exactly how your home is laid out, including labeling of specific rooms, mental notes of staircases, and ability to deploy zone cleaning.

• Low-profile furniture: No one should have to be scared about what’s accumulated under their couch over the past year. A robot vacuum measuring three inches or less in height should be able to scoot under most low-hanging couches and beds.

• Battery life and square footage: One of the main complaints people have about their robot vacuum is that it craps out in the middle of the floor. Larger spaces require more time to clean, and it all depends on how annoyed you’ll be if it only finishes a few rooms at a time. Average run times for the list below range between 90 and 150 minutes, which translate to about 500 and 2,600 square feet covered on one charge.

• App control: WiFi-enabled robot vacuums can be synced with a smartphone app to control scheduling, manual start, cleaning settings, as well as telling your vac to make its rounds when you’re not home. Low-end models that don’t connect to WiFi will usually come with a separate remote. If you’re used to asking Alexa or Google to turn off the lights or tell you the weather, a model with voice integration will blend in nicely.

Explore related content:

• The best robot vacuums for every budget

• Samsung’s Jet Bot AI+ robot vacuum is a must-have for pet owners

• Get a 70-inch Samsung for under $600, plus other great 4K TV deals as of Dec. 8

UPDATE: Dec. 22, 2021, 2:30 p.m. EST This story has been updated to reflect current pricing, including many picks still at their Black Friday prices during the week of Dec. 22.

• The Samsung 70-inch Q60A Series is a large, entry-level QLED that brings out HDR and looks great in bright rooms— $999.99 $1,349.99 (save $350)

• The LG 65-inch C1 Series OLED 4K TV has dazzling picture that can keep up with gaming — $1,796.99 $2,499.99 (save $703)

• The Insignia 70-inch F30 4K Fire TV operates on Amazon’s Fire TV platform and is cheaper than it was on Black Friday — $549.99 $749.99 (save $200)

Large 4K TVs no longer have to cost an exorbitant amount of money. Rather, these high-quality TVs featuring punchy colors, decipherable shadows, and smooth transitions are actually affordable for regular consumers. And to make them even more budget-friendly, we’ve gathered up the best deals on 4K and QLED TVs from top brands like Samsung, LG, Sony, and more.

Samsung TV deals

Why we love it

A pre-holiday 2021 survey by Adobe found that more time spent at home has movie theater stans looking to bring the big screen experience home. Spending less than $1,000 on this sizable Samsung QLED seems like a sweet way to upgrade. The Q60A is Samsung’s entry-level QLED but it still makes HDR pop far better than 4K can, and looks great in sunny rooms.

More Samsung TVs on sale

• Samsung 43-inch Q60A QLED TV — $449.99 $599.99 (save $150)

• Samsung 50-inch Q60A QLED TV — $579.99 $699.99 (save $120)

• Samsung 55-inch 7 Series 4K TV — $399.99 $499.99 (save $100)

• Samsung 55-inch Q70A QLED TV — $799.99 $999.99 (save $200)

• Samsung 55-inch Neo QLED QN90A Series 4K TV — $1,497.99 $1,799.99 (save $302)

• Samsung 65-inch 7 Series 4K TV — $499.99 $649.99 (save $100)

• Samsung 75-inch 7 Series 4K TV — $929.99 $1,099.99 (save $170)

• Samsung 75-inch Q70A Series QLED TV — $1,499.99 $2,099.99 (save $600)

• Samsung 75-inch QN84A Neo QLED TV — $2,649.99 plus a $500 Best Buy gift card $2,799.99 (save $150)

LG TV deals

Why we love it

The LG C1’s OLED display has more than 8 million pixels to bring you deep blacks and vibrant colors. Its 4K AI processor adjusts with the content to ensure everything you watch looks the best it can. Its zippy refresh rate keeps heavy-graphics gaming on point, too.

More LG TVs on sale

• LG 48-inch C1 Series OLED 4K TV — $1,096.99 $1,599.99 (save $403)

• LG 55-inch NanoCell 80 4K TV — $646.99 $799.99 (save $153)

• LG 55-inch A1 Series 4K OLED TV — $1,096.99 $1,299.99 (save $203)

• LG 65-inch NanoCell 75 Series 4K TV — $729.99 $949.99 (save $220)

• LG 65-inch 90 Series QNED Mini LED 4K TV — $1,599.99 $1,999.99 (save $400)

• LG 70-inch UP8070 4K TV — $749.99 $999.99 (save $250)

• LG 70-inch NanoCell 75 Series 4K TV — $899.99 $1,199.99 (save $300)

Sony TV deals

Why we love it

Sony doesn’t often have the budget-friendly range that Samsung or LG do, so a 50-inch 4K TV for under $550 feels lucky. This X80J and the slightly more expensive X85J use different panels and offer different viewing experiences. If you care about wide viewing angles, this living room-sized X80J is the way to go.

More Sony TVs on sale

• Sony 50-inch X85J 4K TV — $649.99 $849.99 (save $200)

• Sony 55-inch X85J 4K TV — $749.99 $999.99 (save $250)

• Sony 65-inch X85J 4K TV — $899.99 $1,199.99 (save $300)

• Sony 65-inch X90J Bravia XR 4K TV — $1,198 $1,499.99 (save $301.99)

• Sony 75-inch X85J 4K TV — $1,199.99 $1,599.99 (save $400)

• Sony 75-inch X90J 4K TV — $1,599.99 $2,099.99 (save $500)

• Sony 77-inch X80J OLED 4K TV — $2,999.99 $3,499.99 (save $500)

• Sony 85-inch X95J Bravia XR 4K UHD — $3,999.99 $4,499.99 (save $500)

Other TV deals from TCL, Vizio, and more

Why we love it

The price on this XL Fire TV is still $30 cheaper than it was on Black Friday and Cyber Monday. The F30 series is the latest version of one of the best bargain TVs available. (It’s not to be confused with Amazon’s Omni series) It makes content look crisper than a non-4K TV does — plus, it has the Fire TV platform built in.

More TVs from TCL, Vizio, and more

• Insignia 43-inch 4K Fire TV — $249.99 $319.99 (save $70)

• Pioneer 50-inch 4K TV — $279.99 $469.99 (save $110)

• Insignia 50-inch Class F30 4K Fire TV — $299.99 $449.99 (save $150)

• Toshiba 55-inch C350 4K Fire TV — $359.99 $519.99 (save $160)

• Hisense 55-inch ULED U7G TV — $599.99 $849.99 (save $250)

• Hisense 65-inch 65A6G 4K TV — $449.99 $599.99 (save $150)

• Insignia 65-inch Class F30 4K Fire TV — $499.99 $699.99 (save $200)

• Vizio 65-inch V-Series 4K TV — $499.99 $599.99 (save $100)

• Vizio 65-inch P-Series Quantum 4K TV — $999.99 $1,299.99 (save $300)

• Hisense 120-inch L9 Series TriChroma Laser ALR TV — $4,999.99 $5,999.99 (save $1,000)

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• A shoutout from a celeb on Cameo is the best personalized gift, actually

• The best 4K TVs: For gamers, Netflix binge-watchers, and everyone else

• Your TV needs a soundbar. Here are our faves.

If you can wait until (possibly) post-Christmas, Amazon’s got you covered for last-minute gifts with a slew of its Echo devices at unprecedented prices. From smart speakers to glasses, there’s a present for everybody that will answer to “Hey, Alexa.” Here are the best deals on Echo devices as of Dec. 22:

• Echo (4th Gen) — $59.99 $99.99 (save 40%)

• Echo Link — $139.99 $199.99 (save 30%)

• Echo Frames (2nd Gen) — $154.99 $249.99 (save 38%)

• Echo Dot (4th Gen) Kids — $34.99 $59.99 (save 41%)

• Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) — $44.99 $84.99 (save 47%) 

We’ve been spoiled for convenience with Amazon’s range of Echo products — “Alexa, make me a coffee” is no longer (necessarily) a rude, arguably sexist thing to say, but rather a way to start your coffee machine from two rooms away. The virtual assistant is available in a range of devices; get an Echo Dot speaker for your roommate that doubles as a subtle gift for yourself or buy your parents an Echo Show so they’ll be able to video call you with ease.

Here are some of the Echo products on sale for their lowest prices ever:

Echo (4th Gen)

The 2020 edition of Amazon’s OG speaker (still its newest iteration) has a 3.0″ woofer and dual front-firing 0.8″ tweeters. For the non-audiophiles to whom that sounds like a small version of Looney Tunes (Sylvester would be ~2″ in this scale), that just means that the compact little speaker has powerful sound that doesn’t miss out on acoustic detail, with support for lossless HD audio with compatible streaming services.

The Echo obviously has voice control for playing music, but Alexa also doubles as a butler to control your compatible lights, locks, and sensors (buy into the Amazon ecosystem with Ring smart lights and security cameras) with its built-in Zigbee smart home hub. You can set timers, reminders, and alarms, or call friends and family (as long as they have the Alexa app or an Echo device of their own). Call your own devices to instantly connect to a convo in another room or “announce to the whole house that dinner’s ready.”

Echo Link

If you prefer audio with higher fidelity and don’t mind splashing out for it, the Echo Link might be a better option. It’s designed as an upgrade to any stereo system, so if you already have an amp or some turntables you paid good money for, you can link it to your Echo devices for simultaneous playback, upping audio quality and offering options for surround sound or multi-room broadcasting. Combine digital with analog for the best of both worlds.

Echo Frames (2nd Gen)

Whether you’re legally impaired or genetically superior to the rest of us and have 20/20 vision, these glasses can come in handy. The Echo Frames were renewed in November 2020 for a second generation with new and improved Alexa that learns your voice in order to respond only to it, after which you can make calls, listen to podcasts or audiobooks, set reminders, receive notifications, get the news, or control your smart home. The audio glasses play sound directly into your ears with Auto Volume technology that minimizes sound to those around you (because nobody likes the asshole blasting music on the bus) and adjusts your own playback volume based on environmental noise.

Besides its fancier features, the Echo Frames are perfectly functional glasses that are lightweight and comfortable, and come in prescription-ready, blue-light-filtering, and polarized sunglass lens with UV400 protection. Their battery life might be shorter, with just over 2 hours of calling/Alexa interactions or 4 hours of audio playback, but as the most convenient, close way to always have a smart assistant with you (even more so than your phone), they’re not a bad bet.

Echo Dot (4th Gen) Kids

It can be difficult to know when to introduce your kids to technology and to figure out how much tech is too much, but the Echo Dot is designed for full parental supervision. It’s got the acoustic power of a regular Echo Dot for a full listening experience (although perhaps fidelity matters somewhat less to a kid listening to Let It Go for the fiftieth time in a row) and thumping bass to match (again, possibly less of a concern, as most Disney songs don’t exactly belong in the club). Parental controls include daily time limits, filters for explicit songs, and activity review. Kids have access to Alexa for any questions they may have — Alexa will help with their homework, remind them of daily routines, read stories, and call friends/family. The Kids’ Echo Dot even has an option to approve friends/family before allowing your little tykes to call, so that you won’t inadvertently end up with a phone bill for 2-hour international calls when they feel like ordering a pizza from Brunei and call every pizzeria in the country.

Bonus mention: the Echo Dot (3rd Gen) Charcoal with Mandalorian The Child stand.

It’s not at its lowest-ever price, but it is on sale and also probably the cutest thing you’ve ever seen, even if you can barely tell Star Wars apart from Star Trek. Seriously, just look at it.

Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen, 2021 release)

This is the perfect gift for your grandparents who can’t seem to figure out how to Facetime you at a normal distance from their face (anybody else regularly get a good look at their ear canals over the whole hour-long call? Just me? Ok). The Echo Show line is a multifunctional display screen that can rotate through your Facebook or Amazon Photos as a digital frame or video call your friends and family (as long as they have the Alexa app on their phone, or an Echo device with a screen). You can even access the camera when you’re away from home to check in on your house and make sure you haven’t left the lights on. If you find that you have, simply instruct Alexa to turn them off. Recommended placement of the Echo Show is on your nightstand for easy access to Alexa’s features —including gradual lighting of the room, news updates, weather predictions, or your favorite songs — in the morning. You can even stream Netflix and other services on the 5.5″ screen if you so choose.

Other Echo Shows on sale:

• Echo Show 8 (1st Gen, 2019 release), $59.99 $109.99 (save 45%)

Explore related content:

• The best smart speakers: See where the Amazon Echo Dot, others rank

• Smart speaker showdown: Google Home vs. Amazon Echo

• Amazon’s Echo Show 5 Kids (2nd gen) is a magical portal without portability