This is it, the culmination of a decade of Marvel story-telling. From the first movie, Iron Man in 2008, to Infinity War, we’ve been introduced to countless superheroes, villains and gripping fight sequences that left us in awe. And they all lead to this epic fight with Thanos (Josh Brolin). BUT… before you head to the theatres to catch the ultimate showdown between Thanos and the Avengers, here’s a refresher course on where we left off with the Avengers and where all the Infinity Stones were.
Thor, Loki and Hulk
Our memory is still fresh with this trio. We last saw them in Thor: Ragnarok. Thor (Chris Hemsworth) was on an unsuccessful hunt for the Infinity Stones, and with Odin (Anthony Hopkins) passing on, he has to face the wrath of a sister he hadn’t known. Somehow. He and Loki (Tom Hiddleston) end up in Sakaar, a garbage planet surrounded by wormholes, and reunite with Hulk (Mark Ruffalo).
And if you remember, Hulk had decided to abandon earth at the ending of Age of Ultron, feeling like he didn’t belong there anymore. He somehow landed on Sakaar and had been in Hulk form for a while, until Thor convinced him to return to human form and join in his cause to defeat his sister Hela: The Goddess of Death (Cate Blanchett).
They manage to get to Asgard, only to find Hela hell-bent on returning Asgard to its previous power-hungry glory. During the process of destroying her, Thor ends up sacrificing Asgard as well. Together with the surviving Asgardians, Thor, Loki and Hulk escape in a spaceship.
Oh and he also lost his hammer and one eye.
It would be a happy ending, except that in the far reaches of space, their ship came face to face with an enormous spaceship, which no doubt, belongs to Thanos. Suffice to say, Infinity War is most likely going to start with Thor, Loki and Hulk facing off with Thanos.
Iron Man and Spiderman
We saw Tony Stark, aka Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) in Captain America: Civil War, trying to get Steve Rogers, aka Captain America (Chris Evans), to play ball and sign the Sokovia Accords. This would effectively put the Avengers on the leash of the United Nations. Half of the team agreed, but half were against it. Sokovia, as we know, was all but torn apart in the Age of Ultron. This splits the Avengers into two camps, those supporting Tony and those who follow Steve.
It was also at this time that he recruited a young talented high-schooler who just happens to have spider-like abilities. The last we saw Tony was in Spiderman: Homecoming. Peter Parker, aka Spiderman (Tom Holland), helps to apprehend the villain, Vulture (Michael Keaton), and Tony invites him to join the Avengers, only to be rejected. He ends up proposing to Pepper (Gwyneth Paltrow).
Peter, after the events of Civil War, where he was in Iron Man’s camp, returns to school and resumes his normal life, which he finds lacks challenge and excitement. He ends up finding crimes to fight and did save the day in the end, and all of Tony’s valued artefacts. He rejects the invite to join the Avengers and decides that being a friendly neighbourhood Spiderman ain’t so bad after all.
Captain America and The Winter Soldier
Technically, Captain America is currently a fugitive. In Civil War, he refuses to sign the Sokovia Accords, and after saving his best pal, Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), aka The Winter Soldier, who was brainwashed into going on a killing spree, he gives up his shield and goes off the grid. He was last seen helping Bucky enter cryogenic sleep in Wakanda, until a cure for his brainwashing is found.
Bucky is dealt with the short end of the stick after his death. Returning as The Winter Soldier, he is nothing more than a killing machine, a pawn used in Hydra’s evil hands. At the end of Black Panther, we saw Bucky out of his sleep. Perhaps he’s ready to re-enter society?
Black Widow
In Civil War, agent Natasha Romanoff, aka Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), joins Tony in convincing Steve to sign the Sokovia Accords, because she thought that was the right thing to do. However, during their face-off, she switches sides, opting to help Steve and company instead. Where is Black Widow now? Well, agent Romanoff has always been a lone ranger, she’s possibly out doing her own thing, and laying low.
Scarlett Witch
Wanda Maximoff, aka the Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen), was also last seen in Civil War. She was devastated with the events at the beginning of Civil War, which sees her using her telekinesis power with the intention to stop a theft on a biological weapon, but accidentally damaging a nearby building instead, killing civilians. She joins Steve in refusing to sign the Sokovia Accords, and in the fight between Team Iron Man and Team Captain America, she was captured and placed in an underwater facility known as the Raft. However, at the end of Civil War, it looked like Steve was breaking her out of prison.
Vision
Created during the Age of Ultron, Vision (Paul Bettany) is a half-human, half-synthetic man brought to life with the Mind Stone. He also has some Jarvis in him, giving him a conscience and immense knowledge. In Civil War, we can see a burgeoning relationship developing between him and Wanda, although he chose to be on Team Iron Man. With a mind-stone sticking out of his forehead, we can only hope Vision stays way below the radar. Thanos is out to get him, for sure.
Doctor Strange
After inheriting the title of Sorcerer Supreme following the death of The Ancient One (Tilda Swinton), Stephen Strange, aka Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), becomes a protector of earth and saves it from the clutches of villain Dormammu in a trippy time-looping sequence. He then takes up a post in Manhattan, keeping an eye on any possible threats that might harm the planet. He last made an appearance in Thor: Ragnarok, where he offers Thor some beer and have a stern talk with him on Loki and discloses the whereabouts of Odin.
Guardians of the Galaxy
We’re very excited that the Guardians and the Avengers are finally meeting. But first, let’s recap on the whereabouts of Peter Quill, aka Starlord (Chris Pratt), and his company. In Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, we saw the gang killing Starlord’s father and ended up inheriting a Mantis-like creature named, well, Mantis (Pom Klementieff). The last we know, they are gallivanting across the Universe, like they always do.
Black Panther
Marvel’s newest hero just debut with his own movie earlier this year, putting Wakanda on the map. Prince T’Challa, aka the Black Panther (Chad Boseman), starts off his namesake movie inheriting his father’s kingdom, and officially becomes the Black Panther. After fighting with a vengeful cousin who’s after his throne, he decides to open up Wakanda’s technology to the world. We’re not sure if that is a wise move, Thanos might just bring the fight to Wakanda!
Ant-Man, Falcon and Hawkeye
Do you remember what happened to Scott Lang, aka Ant-Man (Paul Rudd), Sam Wilson, aka Falcon (Anthony Mackie), and Clint Barton, aka Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner)? After the epic Team Iron Man vs Team Captain America fight, these three were imprisoned alongside Wanda. They’re being mentioned here because unlike Wanda, they are nowhere to be shown in the movie’s trailer, although we did see Falcon occupying a spot on the movie poster. Ant-Man might be a tad busy to appear in Infinity War, since he’s going to fight his own battles with a new partner in Ant-Man and The Wasp, coming out in a few months’ time. But what we’d like to know is… where is Hawkeye!?
Where Are those Infinity stones?
Since the beginning of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, we’ve caught glimpses of these precious stones. They form the basis of many fights and chaos, which isn’t surprising, since they hold seemingly limitless power. We know Thanos is hunting for the stones in Infinity War. But where are they?
The Space Stone, which we know as the Tesseract cube, can control the space by creating wormholes. We saw a glimpse into its power in the Battle of New York. The last time we saw it was at Asgard. Do you remember Loki taking a long, hard look at it when he was down at Odin’s vault in Thor: Ragnarok? Odds are he swiped it and brought it along during their final escape.
The Mind Stone, as we know, is now an “ornament” on Vision’s head. It has the ability to grant powerful mental abilities. It used to be on Loki’s sceptre, gifted to him by Thanos during Loki’s attempt at invading earth.
With the ability to warp reality, the Reality Stone was the one that infected Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) in Thor: the Dark World. It was eventually extracted and landed in the hands of the Collector (Benicio Del Toro), in Guardians of the Galaxy.
In the first Guardians of the Galaxy movie, we were introduced to the energy-manipulating Power Stone. The Guardians retrieved it from Ronan the Accuser. And do you recall the scene where Starlord held the stone with his bare hands and shocked everyone, leading to questions about his parentage? That’s right, the stones cannot be held by mere mortals but by beings of immense power. Anyway, it was parked at the Nova Corps for safekeeping.
Then, there is the Time Stone, with the ability to bend and manipulate time. It now hangs off the neck of Doctor Strange. He used it to fight off Dormammu’s attempt to take over the earth.
Finally, there is the Soul Stone, which no one knows where it is. This might also mean that it’s an all-powerful stone that Thanos really wants to get his hands on.
From the trailer so far, Thanos’ gauntlet is never filled with all the six Infinity Stones, but will he eventually find it, snaps his fingers and wipe out half the galaxy? We can’t wait to find out.
And for those of you who’re planning to watch or have seen the movie, remember, #ThanosDemandsYourSilence.
