Avengers: Infinity War – A Second Look

Distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

The Beardict: Avengers: Infinity War is simply the best superhero team movie since Marvel’s The Avengers (Captain America: Civil War included).

It’s not a surprise that Avengers: Infinity War is now the new box office king, with multiple records broken during its opening weekend.

A lot of people are already reviewing it as a film, so instead, let’s look at moments that deserve a second look. From fun facts to important plot devices, what could/do they really mean?

_____________WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD_____________

1) Thanos Is The Villain We Need. There’s a running joke that Infinity War should instead be titled Thanos: The Movie since it seems he is the main character of the story, and the Avengers are just along for the ride. To be fair, it’s a good observation. I think he even had more lines than Steve Rogers. The movie took great care in explaining the motivations for his actions, and he truly believes he’s doing what is necessary for the universe to survive.  Contrary to his moniker the Mad Titan, he’s not crazy at all. Everything he does is methodical and with great purpose. This is a stark contrast to the Thanos of the comic books, where he just collected the Infinity Stones to impress Lady Death.

“Perfectly-balanced, as all things should be.” He assumes the responsibility of being the balancing force and brings it upon himself to do the things no one else will do. Thanos may seem like a heartless monster at first, but his connection to Gamora proves that he feels.  In the end, when he was chilling in the Banaue Rice Terraces, he was reflecting on his life choices; content that he succeeded in halving the lives in the universe, but sad that he had to give up “everything” in the process.

2) Thanos (Almost) Considers Tony Stark His Equal. Obviously, Thanos thought very lowly of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. The fact that he no longer put back his battle armor after getting the Space Stone is testament to this. Indeed, he did end up clobbering every Avenger who tried to stop him, but did you notice that Iron Man was the only one Thanos called by name? He referred to Dr. Strange as wizard, Spider-Man as insect (which is actually wrong since he’s an arachnid, but let’s not get technical here haha), and Star-Lord as the boyfriend, but he actually said the name “Stark.”

Why does Thanos even know Stark? Does he have Internet? It’s probably because he was the one who blasted his Chitauri army to hell in the first Avengers movie, almost sacrificing himself in the process. This most likely impressed Thanos, given his belief in sacrifice and all. When Iron Man asked Thanos how he knew him, he said Stark is not the only one with the curse of knowledge. Is Thanos talking about the entire Ultron fiasco, and how Stark started the whole project because he knew he needed to protect the earth no matter what, safety measures be damned? This could mean Thanos sees a bit of himself in Stark, and that’s the reason why he has his respect.

3) The Chitauri Make An Appearance. Speaking of the Chitauri, it seems they used to be the favored army of Thanos and his Children (before they were decimated in the Battle of New York, of course). In the flashback scene with young Gamora, we see Chitauri-like soldiers dividing the crowd while Ebony Maw drones on, preaching about Thanos’ mercy. Up above, there are floating Leviathans, the beast-ship hybrids we saw in the first Avengers movie. I actually miss the Chitauri, simply because the Outriders from the Battle of Wakanda are hideous–they remind me of Lickers from the Resident Evil franchise.

4) Hulk Realizes He’s Not The Strongest. Yes, the entire struggle between Bruce Banner and his Hulk persona was ridiculously funny, making it one of the most consistent things that made people laugh in the cinema. However, although Banner hasn’t realized it yet (he says he is going to have a talk with the Hulk–this is probably going to happen in Avengers 4), Hulk obviously does not want to come out because of crippling self-doubt. As evidenced by his arena antics in Thor: Ragnarok where he wanted to beat Thor to a bloody pulp, Hulk has always prided himself in being the strongest. The fact that Thanos made quick work of him inside the Asgardian ship was extremely damaging to his identity. If Hulk is not the strongest, then who is he, really?

5) Scarlet Witch’s Raw Power Is Unlimited. Ever since Age of Ultron, the power of MCU Wanda has always been toned down. We’ve never witnessed her true potential (although we have noticed that she has dropped her Sokovian accent already. Haha.)  You can say that, in gamer terms, she’s a nerfed character. However, in Infinity War, we finally see glimpses of what she’s truly capable of: She held off two members of the Black Order (Children of Thanos) by herself (Vision was injured), dealt the finishing blow to Proxima, and destroyed the Mind Stone using one hand while keeping Thanos at bay using the other. That’s right, Thanos, with five Infinity Stones already in the gauntlet! After, we see Thanos brush Wanda’s hair affectionately when she was down: her resilience probably reminded him of his daughter Gamora. Although Scarlet Wtich is now gone like the other Avengers, she’ll definitely be back with a bang. Hell hath no fury than a woman who has lost her android!

6) Dr. Strange Actually Fulfills His Promise. At first glance, it seems Strange went back on his word about prioritizing the Time Stone over Iron Man and Spider-Man’s life. The unlikely trio did quite bond on the ship, and an emotional attachment was formed. However, keep in mind that Strange saw the future and out of the 14 million plus possibilities, there was only one instance that they would win. In that future, he probably saw Thanos succeeding in annihilating half of the universe, but Tony Stark was alive in that timeline, and he eventually finds a way to reverse the effects and becomes key to their victory. In effect, by striking a deal with Thanos, Dr. Strange did prioritize saving the Earth after all.

7) Spider-Man Is Still Just A Kid On A Field Trip. When Peter left the bus in New York, he just traded one field trip for another. There’s always a sense of adventure when it comes to kids and field trips, and that’s what he was feeling during the majority of the movie. Between the Iron Spider suit upgrade and getting “knighted” into the Avengers (and enjoying the banter with the father he never had), he didn’t realize the stakes were so high until he was about to disappear. Viewers were left emotional because Peter kept saying “I don’t wanna go,” but his last words were actually “I’m sorry.” He said sorry because Tony was right in the end; he should not have come.

8) Nidavellir Is A Giant Game of Thrones Commercial. Giant, get it? Haha. Kidding aside, it was really great seeing Peter Dinklage play the role of Eitri the Blacksmith. If you look closely, the entire segment at Nidavellir had a lot of Game of Thrones references. First of all, even though he is massive, Eitri is a dwarf in the MCU, a term used to describe Tyrion multiple times in Game of Thrones.

When they were firing up the forge, it looked like the opening sequence of Game of Thrones, with the engines and wheels turning. There was even a scene that looked eerily similar to the last seconds of the GoT opening which features the logo of the show. Additionally, the molten liquid that flowed through the forge looked like Blood and Fire mixed together, which is the Targaryen family motto (Tyrion is theorized to be Targaryen in the show). I know it’s a bit of a stretch, but it still remains an interesting coincidence.

9) Groot Wields StormBreaker. Teenage Groot is pretty much useless for most of the movie, glued to his game which Rocket says will “rot his brain.” However, he finally acts when he sees Thor dying, and Eitri is in a panic to find the handle of Stormbreaker. I initially thought Groot would heal Thor, but then he cuts a piece of himself to complete the magical axe. There’s a one-second shot of Groot lifting Stormbreaker before he drops it to the ground out of exhaustion.

If teenage Groot can actually lift Stormbreaker in his developing state, then an adult Groot could possibly have the capacity/worthiness to harness the axe. This scene might also be homage to the fact that a version of Groot in the comic books was part of the Thor Corps, and there, he was able to use Mjolnir, Thor’s hammer, very effectively.

10) Drax Looks Up To Star-Lord. It may not be that obvious now, especially with Drax developing a man crush on Thor when the Guardians rescued him, but remember that Drax was all about Peter Quill in the Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1. Drax may disobey direct orders and call Star-Lord a dude, but right when he was disintegrating on Titan, the last word he uttered was “Quill,” and the look in his eyes said it all: He was expecting Star-Lord to do something and save him. Unfortunately for Drax, Star-Lord could not do anything, as he couldn’t even save himself from getting erased.

11) Mantis Is The Most Dangerous Guardian. Star-Lord’s emotional breakdown may have been the focus when the Avengers were trying to get the gauntlet off of Thanos, but let’s stop for a moment and think: How did Mantis subdue Thanos’ mind for that long just by touching his face? The simple answer is this: Mantis is op (overpowered), and who knows what could have happened if she was able to put Thanos under for a longer period of time? Maybe the Infinity War ending would have been a lot different. Gamora might be the fiercest woman in the galaxy, but Mantis is just something else.

12) Corvus Glaive Can Still Be Alive. Proxima Midnight, the Children’s best fighter, acted as their default leader in Infinity War. However, in the comic books, Corvus Glaive (Proxima’s husband) is the general of Thanos’ forces. Although he has superhuman abilities, what’s unique about him is he can keep on reviving himself and is essentially immortal “as long as his glaive’s blade is intact.” The Avengers gravely wounded him during the scrimmage in Scotland, and yet there he was again hunting Vision in Wakanda, restored to full health. That’s why his line to Vision “You’re dying, just like any man” is so pointed. Even though he got impaled in the end, there is a big possibility he is still alive.

13) The Red Skull Is Not Dead. It was a pleasant surprise to see the Red Skull in Vormir as some sort of gatekeeper for the Soul Stone. They didn’t really explain how he got there (Is he now a spirit? Did the Tesseract/Space Stone transport him there after the events of Captain America: First Avenger?), but he informed the audience that it really was him as he said that he once held an Infinity Stone in his hand.

14) Captain Marvel (Carol Danvers) Is Coming. Talk about opportune timing! In the post-credit scene, we see Maria Hill and Nick Fury suffer from the reality wipe. Thankfully, before he disappears completely, Fury is able to send a distress signal to Carol using a device that resembles a 90s beeper. This serves to connect Infinity War to the upcoming Captain Marvel film featuring Brie Larson, to be released on Mar 2019, two months before Avengers 4. One of the most powerful members and respected leaders of the Avengers, Captain Marvel will be instrumental if they hope to defeat Infinity Thanos.

15) The Original Avengers Were The Ones Left. Social media is abuzz with this. When Thanos snapped his fingers to end half of the universe, the Avengers who remained were the OG Team. Hawkeye is probably out there somewhere. We can consider War Machine as part of the OG since he’s been around since Iron Man 2. I’m not sure why Rocket and Okoye were left, but Nebula was a logical choice since she is bound to play an important role in Avengers 4 given her involvement in the comic books.

Coincidentally, Chris Evans and company’s contracts are up by Avengers 4. Since Captain America and Iron Man will  do whatever it takes to defeat Thanos, the current theory is that those who were left are the ones who are likely to die in the sequel. Stark might actually be the last to go, and the dream sequence he had in Age of Ultron where he saw his dead friends surrounding him can actually come true. This is quite sad, but at least…

16) The Ones Who Disappeared Will Come Back. We’re under the assumption that there will be a lot of resurrections in Avengers 4, as the remaining Avengers will fight to reverse the effects done by the Infinity Stones. Those with planned movie sequels will surely come back – Spider-Man: Homecoming and Black Panther part twos have already been announced, as well as Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Even Gamora who was sacrificed by Thanos can possibly come back, since her death is connected to the Soul Stone. Moreover, contract-wise, most of the ones who disappeared still have a long way to go. Sebastian Stan, who plays Bucky Barnes (Winter Soldier/White Wolf), has a 9-picture deal with Marvel Studios, and he has only appeared in four so far (not counting the Black Panther cameo). So don’t worry, true believers, this is just a temporary setback (I hope.).

Bonus Fearless Forecast: Thor Will Aim For The Head in Avengers 4. As my girlfriend pointed out, Thor will probably follow Thanos’ instructions and successfully dispatch him next time around by slicing off his head. Marvel likes doing these things (just look at how Vision stopped Corvus the same way Corvus stopped Vision at the start.)

There are still so many thing to discuss about Avengers: Infinity War:

• Ned (Peter Parker’s best friend) had the best one-liner in the history of Hollywood extras
• Infinity War was self-aware about how ridiculous some characters looked (Chris beards, Squidward, Grimace, etc.)
• There were so many movie references (Aliens, Kevin Bacon, Footloose, Flash Gordon, etc.)
• The Infinity Gauntlet flashed the stone which Thanos decided to use in a certain situation
• Rocket asked Bucky how much for the arm

However, we have to cap this for now so I don’t spend infinite hours writing this article. Haha. How about you, guys? What else did you notice about the masterpiece that is Avengers: Infinity War? What did you love? Reach out and let’s discuss!