The presumably final trailer for Avengers: Endgame dropped this week and continues to give us very few glimpses into the overall plot of this so-called MCU “finale.” However, there are a few hints in the trailer that give some intriguing details into what we can expect from this film.
Before we dive into the trailer, we should first look at the theatrical poster for the film. We see a line-up of essentially all of our heroes that are still alive (to our knowledge) after Thanos’ snap. The cast list at the top essentially confirms this. The main thing to note here is that, unlike the poster for Avengers: Infinity War where he was the focal point, Thanos is simply blurred out in the top left corner into the background. Meanwhile, we have Captain America front and center here, which is refreshing for fans of the character as he was largely sidelined in Infinity War. Unfortunately, this may also be a sign of things to come for his character in this film. Also, Captain Marvel!
Back to the Beginning
The trailer opens with Tony Stark giving a voiceover, presumably recording a message to Pepper Potts aboard the Benatar. We see him land in the desert in his original Iron Man suit and talking about the realization that he was in love with Pepper. Though not featured in the trailer, Gwyneth Paltrow is expected to reprise her role as Pepper Potts in Avengers: Endgame, with rumors of her donning her own armor to become the hero Rescue.
We also see Captain America as a skinny lad wishing to join the troops in the original Captain America: The First Avenger film. We get a very interested voiceover from his love interest, Peggy Carter in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, saying, “The world has changed. None of us can go back. All we can do is our best, and sometimes the best that we can do is to start over.” This statement seems to be hinting heavily at time travel, which has been rumored since the events of Avengers: Infinity War.
We also get a few shots of Thor on Asgard with Odin, but no dialogue. It’s interesting to note that these shots are all almost entirely in black and white with the only color being red and white. But we’ll touch on the significance of that later.
Hawkeye’s Daughter…or Kate Bishop?
Mixed in with the flashback scenes, we get a brief shot of Hawkeye in his first appearance since 2016’s Captain America: Civil War training a young girl in the woods. Originally, it was assumed that this was his daughter. However, following the trailer’s release, it’s now being speculated that she is the hero known as Kate Bishop. In the comics, Bishop eventually dawns the Hawkeye persona and is a member of the Young Avengers. Only time will tell on the identity of this character. It’s also presumed this takes place before Thanos’ universe-shattering snap, because in the next shot we get…
Ronin
Enter Ronin. We have already had our first look at Ronin in the first trailer for Avengers: Endgame. However, it’s heavily implied that Hawkeye dawns the Ronin persona after his family turned to dust with the less fortunate half of the universe following the events of Infinity War. Quite frankly, he looks way more badass this way. But it’s nice to see them fleshing out Jeremy Renner’s character with some actual plot this time around. It’s also interesting to note that he appears to be in Japan, so there’s still some uncertainty as to how he ended up there.
R.I.P. Half the Universe
Closing out the opening flashback scenes in the trailer, we see Falcon, Black Panther and Scarlet Witch turn to dust after Thanos’ snap, with Thor and Captain America both looking in shock.
Ant-Man Returns Home
We get an interesting shot of Scott Lang returning home looking distraught at a street post with missing posters of people all over it. It has been confirmed that Ant-Man will somehow escape the Quantum Realm after the events of Ant-Man and the Wasp, which saw him enter the realm with the help of Hope van Dyne, Hank Pym and Janet van Dyne. Unfortunately, in the post-credits scene, the three of them turned to dust leaving Ant-Man stranded in the Quantum Realm. It’s not known how exactly he escapes, but it is suspected the Quantum Realm will play a part in helping reverse the effects of Thanos’ snap in Infinity War.
Hawkeye-Black Widow Reunion
In a short but sweet moment we see a reunion between Black Widow and Hawkeye (or Ronin) with him placing his hand on her shoulder. The two have a long history together that began long before the events of the first Avengers film, and it’s nice to see these two on the same side again. The last time they interacted, they were on opposite sides of the Iron Man / Captain America conflict during the events of Captain America: Civil War. It’s good to see the two paired up again and back in action.
Run for your Life, Cap!
One of the few action-heavy shots in the trailer shows Captain America running from an explosion in some sort of sewer or pipeline. Not sure what that’s all about, but it makes for a good shot.
Rocket & War Machine
Continuing Infinity War’s pairing up on unusual teams, we get a great shot of Rocket on the shoulder of War Machine. The two both survived Thanos’ snap. With Rocket being the last surviving member of the Guardians of the Galaxy, it will be interesting to see him paired up with a new team. Rocket arrived on Earth with Thor and Groot in Infinity War to assist in the Battle of Wakanda. But with his team gone, we can be sure he’s going to do anything he can to bring them back.
Nebula Seeks Revenge
The trailer gives us a shot of Nebula holding two electrically-charged weapons, screaming and running toward an unknown opponent. We know Nebula and Iron Man were left as the sole survivors on Titan after a battle with Thanos before he left for Earth to finish the job. As mentioned earlier, we see Tony aboard the Guardians’ ship, the Benatar, and it’s presumed Nebula is on board as well with the two returning to Earth safely, given a shot later in the trailer. Nebula will play an interesting role in Endgame, as she is Thanos’ only surviving daughter following him murdering Gamora to retrieve the Soul Stone. We can expect Nebula to seek some harsh revenge for murdering her sister, and personally, I would love to see her deliver the death blow to her father after all he’s put her through.
“Whatever It Takes”
The repeated message at the end of the trailer: “Whatever it takes.” It’s clear the Avengers are going to do whatever they have to in order to stop Thanos and restore the world to how it once was. This is reiterated in the trailer through several of our heroes, including Captain America, Black Widow and Iron Man repeating the phase.
New Costumes
Perhaps the best part of the trailer is seeing the surviving members suited up in matching outfits of white and red walking through the Avengers compound. Included in the shot are Nebula and Tony, who appear to have somehow made it off Titan and back to Earth. More interesting is trying to figure what the costumes are going to be used to do. Many suspect these costumes will are a means of sending the team through the Quantum Realm or back in time order to reverse the effects of Thanos’ snap. But once again, only time will tell. For all we know, maybe they just wanted to coordinate outfits for once.
Thor Meet Captain Marvel
Following the amazing logo at the end of the trailer, we get our first look at Captain Marvel in Avengers: Endgame (for those who haven’t seen the post-credits scene of Captain Marvel). She doesn’t speak, but still worth the hype. We see her in a stand-off with Thor as he holds out his hand and pulls his hammer, Mjölnir, to him, sending it flying right by her face. But she doesn’t flinch and looks down at the hammer, only for Thor to say, “I like this one.” It’s an interesting pair-up between the two strongest members of the Avengers team by far. However, what’s more interesting is that Thor’s hammer is back after it was destroyed by Hela in Thor: Ragnarok. In Infinity War, Thor went on a mission to create a new weapon along with Rocket and Groot: an axe called Stormbreaker (which appears to be in the background). But how did he get his hammer back? More and more questions we just have to wait for answers on.
Final Thoughts
The trailers for Avengers: Endgame have kept a lot hidden. Presumably most of the information in these trailers is only from the first act, as we get very little in terms of plot. But there’s still a few interesting points. The main one being: Where’s Thanos? Last we saw in Infinity War, he achieved his dream: watching the sunrise after wiping out half of all living life in the universe. Even the end of Infinity War unceremoniously stated, “Thanos will return.” While he does appear on the poster, he may not have as big a role to play here as in Infinity War.
It feels like Endgame is returning itself to the roots of the franchise, focusing primarily on our original six heroes we started with: Iron Man, Captain America, Hulk Thor, Black Widow and Hawkeye. And since most of them are expected to be done with the franchise after Endgame, it feels like they will certainly get a glorious goodbye.
Directed: Anthony Russo & Joe Russo
Starring: Robert Downey, Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Don Cheadle, Paul Rudd, Brie Larson, Karen Gillan, Bradley Cooper & Josh Brolin
Release Date: April 26, 2019
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