So the 22 film Infinity Saga has run its course. Through it all we have been educated, entertained, saddened, surprised, angered and bewildered. Everything great entertainment should bring us. Now that the final chapter of that saga has been filed, its time to see what we learned from the final curtain call for this tale. So in no particular order, What we learned from Avengers: Endgame.
⚠️ WARNING! This contains Major Spoilers. If you haven’t seen End Game yet, ? STOP!! If you have seen it, continue on.
1) There is no question now that Thanos was a tough customer, Infinity Stones or not. It was long wondered whether Thanos superior fighting skills were based solely on the power of the Infinity Stones. If the events of End Game are any indication, Thanos is a highly skilled and extremely powerful fighter who was more than a match for any of the heroes, including Captain Marvel, although she gave him the most evenly matched fight. Thanos even split the once thought almost indestructible shield of Captain America. There’s no doubt about it, Thanos was one tough son of a bitch!
2) Thor’s Mother Frigga ( Renee Russo) is the coolest and most accepting Mother in the world. When Thor arrived back at the now intact Asgard, he saw his Mother who had previously died. He thought about speaking to her but he decided against it. However he didn’t count on her highly tuned observation skills and she found him. The fact that he was so different in his appearance did not phase her in the slightest. Nor did his travel through time. She was accepting of him as he was and all she wanted was for him to do the same. For him to not try to live up to what others expected of him, but be whoever he is. It was just what Thor needed to hear but it made it all the harder for him to know that later that day she would die when she defends Jane Foster against Malekith and is stabbed through the heart by Malekith’s henchman Kurse.
3) Pepper really rocked the armor that Tony made for her. She used it like she had been wearing it forever although as Peter Parker said about his Iron Spider Suit, “This things very intuitive Mr. Stark.” It is possible that Tony designed it to be maximum user friendly. Nonetheless she held her own although I would imagine her involvement at all was not what Tony wanted. He had went to great lengths to make sure their daughter was safe and that would also no doubt include Pepper’s safety as well. Of course, Pepper is a strong willed woman who does what she wants and apparently she wanted to fight alongside her man.
4) As much as fans had wanted a Hulk/Thanos Mano a Mano rematch, it never really happened. In fact, I felt like the Professor Hulk version of him had lost the Hulk’s edge. Part of the Hulk’s strength was he generally used his unfettered force fueled by his anger. A good example of this was when they were back at the battle of New York and they showed the scene of the past Hulk slamming a car down on a Chitauri soldier and then jumping up and down on the car to make sure he finished the job. The new and smarter Hulk just couldn’t channel that kind of rage. He was still strong but he had lost a bit of his mojo along with it. The feeble growls and pardon the term but “puny” attempts he made at “smashing” just really didn’t get the job done. However, if you wanted someone to help you figure out how to safely make Quantum realm jumps, he was your guy…as long as the controls were designed for his huge hands.
5) In my recent discussion about the MCU Phase 2, I had discussed the scene in Age of Ultron where all of the heroes took turns trying to lift Thor’s Hammer. All were unsuccessful including Steve Rogers but he did get it to flinch a bit, much to the initial shock of Thor. I said at the time that Mjolnir’s “Worthy Sense” must be defective if it didn’t recognize Super Boy Scout Steve Rogers as being worthy. Well come to find out either that was true or Steve had done something between then and now that changed the Hammer’s mind. It was a hair raising scene to see Steve Rogers wielding Thor’s hammer. Special Kudo’s to Thor for being smart enough to call for it when he was in Asgard. It was funny when Cap had Stormbreaker and Thor had Mjolnir, he told them to switch so he had the “Bigger” weapon. Of course Thor was suffering from self-esteem issues at the time so it was understandable. Still, the only thing better than seeing Thor with his hammer was seeing Steve with it. And speaking of Steve…
6) I’ve already read a number of articles who have a problem with Steve’s resolution. Whether it involved a character analysis on what they felt Steve would or wouldn’t have done, or the “rules” set forth by time manipulation, I admit I understand them all and they have a point, good ones in fact. However, just this once, is it not okay to check our logical minds at the door and give Steve this one? If anyone deserved some sense of happiness in his life it was Steve Rogers. He served his country when it mattered most and sacrificed the better part of it for God and Country, and that was before he was frozen. After the 70 year thaw he jumped right back in to service. He never asked why me, well he might have thought it, but he never seriously entertained it. He just did what he thought was right as best as he could. Even Peggy lamented when he visited her before her death that she had lived herself a life, she only wishes he had lived his. Now, if we set aside logic, or psychological profiles, or Quantum realm physics, he was able to do that, with the woman he loved. I may be in the minority here but I’m OK with that. Just once…”Captain’s Orders.”
7) We knew going in that people were going to die here. In was fairly inevitable, especially knowing the business side of things as far as actor contracts go. Even knowing all of that, it was almost impossible not to get emotionally wrapped up in the deaths of characters we have spent the last ten years plus with. Logic dictated (yes, we use logic when we want here. It’s our prerogative as Geeks) that more than likely either Iron Man, Captain America, or perhaps even Thor might meet their demise. In the end, our worst fears were realized and not just for one of them but also for another character that maybe wasn’t expected. The choice that character made WAS in keeping with their makeup and when you weighed the arguments for and against, it made sense for it to go down like it did. That didn’t make it easier to take. In both case, tears were spent as if a family member had passed. Such is the power of Marvel and the work done by the creative geniuses of the MCU.
8) We have some characters fate suspended in Limbo, due to the wonderful Rubix Cube that is time manipulation. We have Loki who was killed in Infinity War and was not brought back, but the 2012 Loki used a moment of, dare we say hero bungling, to take the Tesseract and escape. Where he was sent we know not where. Perhaps where he ends up is Disney+ and his show there. The same goes for Gamora who was also killed in Infinity War and not brought back, but her past self WAS brought forward and expressed her devotion to Peter by kneeing him in the groin, twice. Of course this was Gamora before she had met Starlord, so she only knew what Nebula told her. Apparently she wasn’t impressed. With Guardians of the Galaxy 3 back to a going concern, perhaps this will get worked out.
9) It’s official: Marvel has some badass women. Carol Danvers was as powerful as her origin film made her out to be and she made a huge difference in the climatic battle. The scene previously mentioned by our own @TC_Stark in her article was a sight to see with Wanda, Shuri, Okoye, an armored Pepper, running blocking for Carol. It was as cool a segment as you could see and reminded us about the great diversity that Kevin Feige has been promoting for the upcoming Phase Four. If it is anything like the Infinity Saga, we have some good times ahead.
10) What’s Next? With the End of Phase Three, the board has been partially wiped clean and we have some new avenues to explore. Past favorites will still be included with the upcoming Spider-Man: Far from Home next month, the sequels for the aforementioned Guardians (Asgardians) of the Galaxy, Dr. Strange and Black Panther. We also have the Eternal’s in the works as well as Shang-Chi, and the Black Widow solo film, so the cupboard is hardly bare. It will just have a few lovingly remembered empty holes to fill. For those of you who have seen End Game, did it come to a satisfactory conclusion for you? Do the possible holes in logic or character actions give you pause? If so, here at GVNation is where to discuss those issues. If you haven’t seen it yet, hopefully you’re not reading this at all and are instead preparing to have yourself a three hour rollercoaster of emotions. Once you’re done, come see us, we’ll be waiting with a calming word or a tissue, whichever you need.
Senior Writer at GeekVibesNation – I am a 50 something child of the 70’s who admits to being a Star Trek/Star Wars/Comic Book junkie who once dove head first over a cliff (Ok, it was a small hill) to try to rescue his Fantastic Four comic from a watery grave. I am married to a lovely woman who is as crazy as I am and the proud parent of a 18 year old boy with autism. My wife and son are my real heroes.
