Avengers: Infinity War (spoilers ahead)

I don't feel like it was totally fair earlier when I called the movie "tedious." Part of that is that I feel like I haven't seen - or don't remember - enough of the prior MCU movies to keep up with all the callbacks and chess pieces. Part of it, though, is that these kind of movies can feel to me like they are basically making up the plot details as they go along. I have a hard time obsessing over gauntlets and Tesaraks and infinity stones. But the character interactions and conflicts, that I enjoy. And, again, my kid loves this stuff, which is good enough for me.

I've seen it stated here and elsewhere that Thanos is considered a "great villain." Why is that? He seems fairly standard-issue to me. I feel like Loki and Michael B. Jordan's character in "Black Panther" are superior.

 

All fiction involves making things up as you go, however that is not at all a fair criticism of the MCU movies in general or Infinity War in particular. There are story beats that pay off elements of movies as far back as Captain America: First Avenger. There are 10 years of stories that come together in this one. Just because you don't feel like paying attention to those things doesn't mean they aren't there. My 14-year-old daughter, who has had to go back and catch up on the stuff from when she was too young, caught just about every reference. I thought she'd miss the Red Skull appearance, but she didn't.

Killmonger (Jordan's character) and Loki are excellent villains. For those who have watched the MCU Netflix series, Killgrave is another one who is just as good. But Thanos is different. He isn't just powerful. He beats the heroes with his preparation and tactical skill as well as his power. As they did with Killmongonger, they gave him clear motivations rather than just wanting to destroy everything or take over the universe. He's the main character in the movie, which is what makes it work.

Of course, I already wrote about much of that, but you're probably too busy hiding to see it.

 

The thing I actually liked about Infinity War is that it wasn't waiting for anyone to catch up. If you hadn't at least seen all of the previous movies, there was going to be something that seemed out of place, tedious or made up. There was only a brief explanation of the Infinity Stones in the beginning, and then it was a full sprint from there.

And I thought Thanos was their best villain yet because of how deliberately his fully fleshed-out character was revealed throughout the story. His strength and lack of mercy was put on display in the first five minutes. Then a bit of his backstory with Gamora. Then his true motivations/reasoning. Then the fact that he had actual feelings/love for at least one person in the universe. Ultimately, it all built to his will to do what he thought was necessary regardless of the consequences. Most of the other villains felt much more one-note. Even Killmonger, to me, feels fairly flat in comparison. Loki, on the other hand, toes that line between villain and hero throughout the whole series, so he is more complicated.

 

Most succinct way I can put it is that people who follow the MCU closely - and us "Star Wars" people are just as bad - spend a lot of time obsessing over MacGuffins.

 

100 percent.

I had about a dozen one-sided conversations over the past week with the fiancee about where the stones are and how/when they could be used in Infinity War. It was amazing she was able to keep her clothes on the whole time.

 

They are part of it, but so are the relationships among the characters. One reason Thanos and his people were so successful is because the Avengers were splintered at the start of the movie, something set up in Civil War. Bringing Bucky back into the fight picks up on elements of his story spread among three previous ones. The impact of Loki's death on Thor builds off a complex relationship between the characters that was developed over four movies. Many of the scenes, especially the deaths, pay off relationships built up over time.

As I mentioned earlier, I really thought the movie would end with the snap. Instead, they found a way to create a more emotional ending by showing the disappearances and reactions.

 

I would say the only thing that stuck out for me was the Wanda/Vision thing. Maybe someone else can remind me, but was there any other hint of this budding relationship except for the awkward cooking scene in Civil War? It felt like they pushed the accelerator on that relationship just for the emotional payoff at the end of Wanda having to destroy him.

 

You're correct. They really didn't have any other moments setting up their relationship, though they did spend some time on it in Infinity War. They did the same thing with Banner and Natasha in Age of Ultron.

The only real difference being the relationship between Vision and Scarlet Witch is a huge part of the comics while Banner's traditional love interest in the source material, Betty Ross, has been ignored since the Hulk solo movie with Ed Norton. I'm not even sure most fans view that one as canon, though the presence of Ross and Stark clearly mark it that way.

 

Having not seen "Civil War," I just assumed in "Infinity War" that they were married/coupled.

 

Nah, they flirted once over some paprikash.

 

If you pay attention to their scene together, it is explained that they have been sneaking off to see one another. That is set up in Civil War. Scarlet Witch is a fugitive. So are Captain America, Black Widow and Falcon. They also mention that Ant-Man and Hawkeye chose to turn themselves in so they could be with their families.

 

The Vision-Scarlet Witch stuff is definitely the weakest in the movie. Like, they just weren't that memorable or entertaining to me in the past movies, and it does feel like they pushed that relationship forward because they knew Thanos was going to be ripping the stone out of his forehead. If you know that's going to happen, well, giving him a love interest makes it more "emotional," except that I don't think Elizabeth Olsen was well-cast or given much to do in these movies. (She and ScarJo both seem to suffer from being backburnered in the 5 to 8 "main" cast member Avenger movies, whereas Gamora and Mantis from Guardians are presented on equal footing with their male counterparts.)