One could
argue that Avengers Endgame was one of the biggest films of 2019. My review didn't give much away for fear
of spoiling it, but truth be told, I was too drained to go into much
detail at the time. Now, with the end of 2019 on the horizon, I thought I would share my
thoughts. The source comes from a written stream of brain vomit recorded hours
after I saw Avengers Endgame.
With that
said, there will be spoilers from now on!
They were barely acquaintances after the disastrous events of Infinity War, but in the opening scenes of Endgame, there's a short montage of the unlikely duo, stuck up in a spaceship with Tony's weary monologues to keep them company. Despite her prickly nature, however, Nebula helps to patch up the stab wound Thanos left him, she who hated Thanos way before he snapped those fat purple fingers in the Infinity Gauntlet. As hard to read as Nebula might be, I remain fascinated by her character.
Many theorists said if Antman had shrunk himself down and crawled into specific places
in Thanos's anatomy, he (Scott Lang) would have stopped this whole Snap
business in its tracks sooner. But as we learn in Antman and The Wasp,
the Snap trapped Scott in the Quantum Realm by stealing Hope (the Wasp), and
her parents, before they could bring him back. His return, then, is harrowing
as he wanders through once-familiar neighbourhoods where missing posters are
stuck on every available surface, memorials commemorate his loved ones, and his
little daughter, Cassie, is now a young woman.
3) Time travel
I
cut my teeth on Doctor Who, so it was about time (ha!) the MCU got
involved, TARDIS or no TARDIS. It never gets old, unlike Steve Rogers, which I didn’t
see coming. More on him later.
Just what was Carol doing before that final battle? Besides getting her hair cut (which looks great, by the way.) I laughed much too loudly at the glare she gave Thanos after he head-butted her.
5) All the characters who
disappeared via the Snap stepping through Doctor Strange’s portals
Then
there is Hawkeye, who we see very early on in the film, which was probably the
fastest time my sad heart has ever broken. However, Clint’s transformation from
Hawkeye, husband, and loving father, to the bitter Ronin, could have done with a
bit more background. And, when did he decide to get THAT haircut?
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| Picture description: Hawkeye/Ronin looks to the left. His hair is shaved at the sides, leaving the back and top long in a floppy Mohican. |
3) Time travel
4) Captain Marvel
Just what was Carol doing before that final battle? Besides getting her hair cut (which looks great, by the way.) I laughed much too loudly at the glare she gave Thanos after he head-butted her.
 |
| Picture description: On the left, Captain Marvel glares at Thanos (right) surrounded by yellow flares. Thanos scowls in confusion. |
I
can’t lie, that was the happiest ugly cry I’ve ever had.
I still desperately want Black Panther’s brilliant sister to meet the amazing Spiderman. I wager that Peter Parker would get tongue-tied, but they’d be instant genius-besties – the Stark and Banner of their generation, even!
7) Natasha Romanoff deserved better
Despite Natasha's sacrifice in Vormir in Endgame, Black Widow now has a trailer, so we can only speculate what they’ll do with her.
Despite Natasha's sacrifice in Vormir in Endgame, Black Widow now has a trailer, so we can only speculate what they’ll do with her.
Maybe we’ll FINALLY find out
about Budapest?
8) Five years passed. Thor got fat,
but still looks magnificent in his cape
 | |
| Picture description: Thor is in full battle-mode, standing beside Iron Man. Lightning is everywhere. Thor has a long beard; his long hair is tied in a loose, messy bun. Blue sparks fly from his eyes and both axes in each hand. |
Even
depressed, Thor fights on bravely. What a great message! Also, it's nice to
have Korg/Taika Waititi’s offbeat humour to lighten the mood.
9) TIME TRAVEL!
We revisit The Avengers, The Dark World, and Guardians of the Galaxy, oh my! Which reminds me…
After “dying” twice in three Thor films, many fans were (understandably) in denial after Loki’s death in Infinity War, so we weren’t expecting him to come back as the younger, vitriolic would-be tyrant from Avengers Assemble. All that character development, all gone!
11) Hey, Tilda Swinton
If anyone was going to explain any wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey nonsense surrounding Endgame, it was The Ancient One. Ooh, Swinton would be a great villain in Doctor Who.
12) Um, can someone explain the Bruce-Hulk juxtaposition again?
 |
| Picture description: Though he wears a shirt and thick, black-rimmed glasses, Bruce Banner is huge and green-skinned. He is neither Banner nor the Hulk; he is both. |
And
no, it isn’t an excuse to use juxtaposition in a sentence (not entirely).
13) It’s official: Steve Rogers is worthy
I mean, he already has America’s ass, so it makes sense.
13) It’s official: Steve Rogers is worthy
I mean, he already has America’s ass, so it makes sense.
 |
| Picture description: Steve wears his Captain America costume. He looks battered and bruised as he wields Thor’s hammer, Mjolnir. It’s a good look! |
Wow. Also, who is more excited to see Cap holding Mjolnir, us, or Thor?
14) I still don’t know how to spell Mjolnir without consulting Google
Frigga is arguably one of the most underused characters in the MCU, so it's lovely watching her heart-to-heart with her son just moments before her death. Say what you want about The Dark World, Frigga’s funeral still leaves a lump in the throat.
 | |
| Picture description: Thor and Frigga smile at each other. It's a sad and sweet moment. |
16) Thor DID kill Thanos…kind of
A bit of an empty victory, but at least he went for the head! Right? Right??
17) Tony Stark IS Iron Man
Tony is also the only human to make Thanos bleed, and he's the one man who could wield the Infinity Gauntlet and do the job right (sorry, Bruce). Black Widow’s death hit me worse than Stark’s, because his whole character arc has spent him battling death and his demons, so I had a feeling that he would have to die to save the day here.
A bit of an empty victory, but at least he went for the head! Right? Right??
17) Tony Stark IS Iron Man
Tony is also the only human to make Thanos bleed, and he's the one man who could wield the Infinity Gauntlet and do the job right (sorry, Bruce). Black Widow’s death hit me worse than Stark’s, because his whole character arc has spent him battling death and his demons, so I had a feeling that he would have to die to save the day here.
 |
| Picture description: Tony wears his Iron Man suit with his face guard torn away to reveal his dirtied, bloodied, but determined face. He holds his hand up to show he wears the Infinity Gauntlet. |
18) Tony Stark is a dad
A
dad who gave his dad advice on how to be a dad before Tony was born. That had to be the only time
Howard hugged him. Great, now I’m sad again.
I’m
not going to lie; for some reason, I thought Nebula lived in Morgan’s garden
tent. Call it wishful thinking. I wanted to see more interaction
between Tony and Morgan, but that might have made Stark’s death that more
painful.
19) PEGGY CARTER!
It
just so happened, before I saw Endgame, I finished Season 2 of Agent
Carter. As a quick side note, if you haven’t seen Agent Carter, I
wholeheartedly recommend it, especially if you love 1940s fashion and
female-fronted superhero miniseries, because that’s not niche at all (maybe
that’s why they cancelled Season 3?)
With
that in mind, I have been rooting for Steve and Peggy ever since she shot at
his new shield in The First Avenger (although shouldn’t that title go
to Captain Marvel?). After Steve and Tony go back in time to the 70s, it only
made sense that Steve got to see Peggy again. All that while, she was utterly
unaware that Steve stood RIGHT THERE; if only she would look up from her desk…
 |
| Picture description: Steve (left) and Peggy (right) smile as they gaze into each other’s eyes. |
20) Steve gets his happily ever after
We
may never know how his reunion with Peggy panned out after he went back in time again (that’s what fanfiction is for),
but we waited eight years for him to get his dance with Peggy; it did not
disappoint, even if it was right at the very end of the film. That was the
fourth and final time I cried that day.
In the film's present,
it was a real shock to see Steve as an old man (the make-up artists did a
fantastic job), and it was especially touching when he passed his shield onto
Sam. It could be argued that it should have been Bucky, but we’ve had two-and-a-bit
films to explain why Steve’s oldest and best friend deserves a much-needed
break.
 |
| Picture description: (Left) Steve Rogers is old. (Right) The young Steve Rogers we are most familiar with. |
So, with that said, we’ve finished Phase Three of the MCU. Personally, it is the most exciting and ambitious of the phases so far, and I’m eager to find out where it will take us next.
Endgame
wore me out, but
I’ve had enough time away to consider watching it again, so I may add to this list in the new year.
For
now, though, I wish you all a very happy Christmas, and look forward to writing
more film reviews in 2020!
Picture Sources:
2)
Hawkeye’s marvellous new haircut - https://www.screengeek.net/2019/03/16/avengers-endgame-trailer-hawkeye-spoilers/
4)
It was in that moment, Thanos knew he had f****** up - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=In8GuMOTe_Y
7)
The official Black Widow trailer (there’s something I never thought I’d say!) -
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3480822/videoplayer/vi3862544153?ref_=tt_ov_vi
BUDAPEST?
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vbTgL9GMQM
8)
So, this is what happens when The Dude and Thorin Oakenshield have a baby? I
like it! - https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a27817816/avengers-endgame-thor-transformation-staying-mcu/
10)
Loki is getting his own TV show! - https://www.radiotimes.com/news/on-demand/2019-12-11/loki-tv-series-release-date/
17)
Iron Man saves the day, at a cost - https://www.polygon.com/2019/6/30/18761619/tony-stark-death-avengers-endgame-quote
20)
The fate of Steve Rogers - https://insidethemagic.net/2019/08/two-captain-americas/
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