The Avengers: Infinity War trailer has wracked up over 160 million views since it debuted in November. It’s safe to say that fans are excited for the next installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, that excitement is also met with trepidation as beloved superheroes gear up to fight ultimate-intergalactic baddie Thanos. The film is rumored to have up to 76 different characters, joining the stories of the original Avengers, the Guardians of the Galaxy, Black Panther, Doctor Strange and Spider-Man to name a few. Infinity War is a culmination of conflict between superheroes and universes that the MCU has been building up to since the first Iron Man movie in 2008. In case you don’t have the time (or patience) to rewatch all 18 of the proceeding Marvel movies, here’s some important information you should know before heading to the theaters.
Who’s Thanos?
Thanos has made a few appearance throughout other Marvel movies. We first met him during a mid-credits scene of The Avengers. Throughout the movie, Thor’s adopted brother Loki attempts to take over Earth while working for a mysterious entity. When he fails and returns with his tail between his legs, Loki’s boss is revealed to be none other than Thanos himself.
More of the super-villain’s story is revealed in Guardians of the Galaxy, when we learn that Thanos is 1) obsessed with infinity stones, and 2) is the adoptive father of Nebula and Gamora and 3) is a pretty bad dude. During a mid-credits scene of Avengers: Age of Ultron, Thanos says “Fine, I’ll do it myself,” after donning the Infinity Gauntlet. The ‘it’ that he’s talking about is presumably the destruction of half the universe that Gamora mentions in the second Infinity War trailer released by Marvel in March.
What’s the big deal with the Infinity Stones?
So, what’s an Infinity Gauntlet you ask? It’s basically a big ol’ glove that allows the wearer to wield the power of the Infinity Stones. Say, what are Infinity Stones? They’re a set of six stones that have been around since before the universe itself, each possessing a unique power. So far in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, we’ve seen five of the Infinity Stones.
The space stone, AKA the Tesseract, first made appearances in Thor and Captain America: The First Avenger. It’s a favorite toy of Loki’s, who uses it in The Avengers and steals it at the end of Thor: Ragnarok.
The mind stone also appears in The Avengers as the power in Loki’s scepter, and is used by Ultron in Avengers: Age of Ultron. The mind stone is the source of Quicksilver (RIP) and Scarlet Witch’s powers, and currently resides in Vision’s forehead.
The last known location of the Reality Stone, AKA the Aether, is with the Collector (that weird hoarder dude with white hair in Guardians of the Galaxy). As we saw in Thor: Dark World after it almost killed Dr. Jane Foster, the Aether possesses hosts and can be used as weapon capable of killing mortal beings as well as destroying the universe.
Speaking of destroying stuff, the Power Stone has the ability to destroy any living, biological thing. In Guardians of the Galaxy, the Guardians stop Ronan the Accuser from delivering the Power Stone to Thanos, and instead place it in the care of Nova Corps.
Steven Strange uses the Time Stone, AKA the Eye of Agamotto, to place the demon Dormammu in a time loop. Following the events of Doctor Strange, the Masters the Mystic Arts place the the Time Stone in their compound in Nepal.
The Return of Wakanda
Fans of T’Challa will be pleased to know that Wakanda’s king will have a big role. At the close of Black Panther, T’Challa announced he would be opening Wakanda’s doors to the world, and it seems that Thanos will be one of the first unwelcome visitors. Both trailers place a major battle scene in Wakanda itself, promising appearances from Shuri, Okoye and M’Baku. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Marvel producer Kevin Feige has described Wakanda as an “anchor point” for the next stage in the Marvel Universe. It’s also rumored that the final Infinity stone, the Soul Stone, is hidden there.
Someone’s Going to Die
As Robert Frost pointed out, nothing gold can stay. Infinity War is predicted to be as much of a finale for some characters as it is a climax for others in the MCU’s story arc. In the EW interview, Feige emphasized that if anyone dies in the film, it’s for good. The movie’s trailer shows a kneeling, Sad Tony Stark, as well as both Thor and Steve Rogers having a one-on-one with Thanos’ hand. These images predict that at least one of the OG Avengers might meet their demise in Infinity War.
Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Hemsworth have all hinted that their stints with their iconic portrayals are coming to a close. It’s unclear whether this means their stories will conclude in Infinity War or in the next Avenger’s movie due out in 2019. However, there are no more Captain America, Iron Man or Thor movies slated for the near future, making the death of one of these characters highly likely.
In the post-credits scene for Thor: Ragnarok, Thor and Loki have charted a path to earth when Thor says “I feel like everything’s gonna work out fine.” His poorly timed statement is followed by the dismal appearance of a massive ship, assumed to be that of Thanos. In the trailer, Loki is seen offering the Tesseract to someone (Thanos?) and Thor is on the receiving end of some serious head crushing (probs Thanos). This could allude to Loki’s death, as Thor is shown eventually having some kind of interaction with the Guardians of the Galaxy.
Steve Rogers’ fate also looks bleak as he comes face-to-hand with Thanos. Evans recently said that the fourth Avengers movie will be his last. While that leaves one more movie to go, we don’t know how the events of Infinity War will play out and in what capacity certain characters could return in the next film. Honestly, anything can happen and I’m preparing for anyone to die.
Among characters that almost definitely will not die are Spider-Man and Black Panther. Not only are sequels to both in the works, but it would be pretty pointless to introduce either characters this late in the game without giving them a future.
Avengers: Infinity War debuts in theaters on April 27.