THE BE ALL AND THE END ALL

Endgame film follows several political themes from original Marvel comic

Abby Landwehr

More stories from Abby Landwehr

THIRD OR NOTHING
May 10, 2021
+Marvel%E2%80%99s+%E2%80%9CAvengers%3A+Endgame%E2%80%9D+opened+on+April+26.+Long+awaited%2C+both+theaters+of+Twin+Vali+Cinema+in+Powell+showed+the+movie+opening+night.

Abby Landwehr

Marvel’s “Avengers: Endgame” opened on April 26. Long awaited, both theaters of Twin Vali Cinema in Powell showed the movie opening night.

Every journey has an end. Avengers: Infinity War left the world stunned last year when exactly half of the Marvel Universe was killed after the infamous snap of the toughest villain yet.

Marvel fans waited in anticipation for about a year to find out how and if Avengers: Endgame would resolve the issue.

That said, I think they saved the best for the end. Endgame easily soared past every expectation I had and I was truly blown away. The movie was emotional from beginning to end with the usual amusing banter throughout. I found the film to be perfect in every way and was by far one of my favorite movies of all time.

If you thought Infinity War was the most ambitious crossover of all time, just wait until Endgame. Almost every character in the Marvel universe coming together on screen to fight their most villainous threat yet.

Marvel has one of the most diverse group of characters in any movie franchise. Many people believe that Marvel has only added these different types of diversity to their movies as a modern development. This isn’t entirely accurate. Marvel has constantly had a diverse group of characters and this array of on screen roles isn’t new to the company.

Intolerance for hate such as racism and bigotry have always been one of the cornerstones of Marvel comics. The late Stan Lee, the artist and comic book writer who played a huge role in Marvel comics, wrote on the topic of bigotry and racism in a 1968 edition of his “Stan’s Soapbox” column.

“‘Let’s lay it right on the line. Bigotry and racism are among the deadliest social ills plaguing the world today,’” Lee wrote. “‘But, unlike a team of costumed super-villains, they can’t be halted with a punch in the snoot or a zap from a ray gun. The only way to destroy them is to expose them – to reveal them for the insidious evils they really are.’”

Intolerance for hate such as racism and bigotry have always been one of the cornerstones of Marvel comics.

Yet, many people have become angry with Marvel for having such diverse superheroes. My advice to those people? Get over yourself. There are many different ethnicities in the world, and it’s just as fair for them to be represented on screen in the Marvel universe the same as you are.

Gender also plays a part in diversity. There are multiple points throughout the movie where the female characters are emphasized. It’s pretty common for people to take their grievances to the internet when they have an issue with something, and I found many angry tweets online about the female superheroes. When I saw the complaints, I was a bit shocked. There was about minute-long shot in the movie where the women took charge for a bit and people were angry about it?

I was absolutely thrilled when all the female superheroes joined each other on the battlefield. We’ve had some “she’s not alone” cameos alongside a couple strong friendships, yet this was a whole new level of MCU women. Marvel definitely got the message across.

Other people had different ideas about the scene. “Why is it such a big deal?” one of my friends asked me after the movie. “Why can’t it just be the normality instead of treating it like an exception? If they keep making cheesy scenes like that, how will we get to the point where it’s equal and not a big deal?”

But that’s the point. It’s supposed to be a big deal. The comic industry has been around for years and the facts are that the majority of the main characters are male superheroes. Actually, the main team of superheroes that the movie focused was 80% male. Marvel creating complex female characters is incredibly important and should be treated like a big deal.

Now moving onto the ending of Endgame … pseudo-spoiler-alert …  we lack somewhat of a happy ending when the film closes. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Life doesn’t always work out the way we expect it to, and we usually get thrown a curve ball or two during the game. This movie was meant to be the end of an era; thus we eventually have to say goodbye to our favorite characters (no matter how much it stings). They stuck the landing so beautifully on this one that it’s unbelievable. Like Tony Stark once said, “Part of the journey is the end.”

We’re out of the Endgame now — 11 years, 22 movies and one cinematic universe summed up in the span of 3 hours. Part of the journey truly is the end. To Stan Lee, Kevin Feige and the entire cast of the MCU, thank you for everything. Marvel, we love you 3,000.