‘Baymax!’ on Disney+: Is the ‘Big Hero 6’ Spinoff Part of the MCU?

Baymax! is a different kind of Disney+ superhero show. Like, it stars a big puffy robot whose primary function is providing health care for those with aches and pains and cuts and bruises. But that’s Baymax, the lovable marshmallow we all met back in 2014’s Oscar-winning Big Hero 6. Baymax is a hero unlike any other — but the character actually has ties to Marvel.

Yeah — Baymax is a Marvel creation! But what about Baymax’s show, Baymax!? Do you need to watch all of the MCU shows to know what’s going on in Baymax!? Will Baymax eventually show up in an Avengers movie? Or is Baymax just off in his own world, handing out lollipops as necessary? Here’s everything you need to know about Baymax! and the MCU.

Is Baymax! on Disney+ part of the MCU?

It is not. Despite the character’s origins as a Marvel Comics heavy-hitter, the Baymax that you see in Baymax! is the same lovable health robot that you met on the big screen in Big Hero 6. And before you ask, no, the animated film Big Hero 6 isn’t part of the MCU either. Disney’s take on this Marvel Comics property is very much its own thing. That means you can watch all of Baymax! and feel zero pressure to catch up on all of the movies and TV episodes Marvel Studios has released since you started reading this article.

There’s also the possibility that you now have one very major question:

Wait — Baymax is a Marvel Comics character?

Oh yeah — but you would never recognize the guy if you saw him in a panel. That’s because when Hiro built Baymax in the comics, he made him look like a dragon monster.

That’s about as far away from the Baymax we know today as a design could get. The character’s name is even listed as “Monster Baymax” in an official Marvel handbook. That’s how Baymax appeared from his debut in 1998’s Sunfire and Big Hero 6 #1 all the way until 2008’s second Big Hero 6 series.

In that comic, Baymax was redesigned by artist David Nakayama to look like a robot bruiser. He looks a little more like the Disney version…?

Yeah, still a ways off. Interestingly, the most popular version of Baymax — the puffy Disney one — has yet to appear in the comics. Baymax still looked like an anime robot in his most recent appearance in 2012’s Amazing Spider-Man: Ends of the Earth #1. What gives, Marvel? Bring this cuddly marshmallow superhero robot to the comics!

Baymax! on Disney+ does have one tiny MCU connection, though.

Okay, it’s not a connection in terms of plot or characters, but rather in terms of structure. Just like the Marvel Cinematic Universe films, each Baymax! short features a post-credits scene. Make sure you keep watching to get the whole story!