Murphy's Multiverse

Category: Features

  • Charles V’s CAPTAIN AMERICA 4 Pitch: Apocalypse Now, A Blind Ronin, and Gods in the Pacific

    Charles V’s CAPTAIN AMERICA 4 Pitch: Apocalypse Now, A Blind Ronin, and Gods in the Pacific

    In a previous episode of Murphy’s Law, Charles and I talked about our pitches for Captain America 4 on the podcast. The caveat we agreed upon was to set the story during WW2 which gave us a lot of leeway on what stories to tell. Suffice to say, both our ideas of what we wanted the next Captain America adventure to be were very different and for good reason. We talked about eventually writing up and have fans compare the two. Well, here’s mine.

     

    SETTING

    1944. Leyte, Philippines.

    Yes, this Cap story of mine is set in my home country. For all those unaware, the entire Philippines was ground zero for countless battles between Americans and the Axis Powers, specifically the Japanese, with my people pretty much caught in the middle. The Philippines was under Japanese occupation for 3 years and in those 3 years, the Filipinos suffered inexplicable horrors. A chunk of my life growing up was spent listening to horror stories experienced first-hand by my elders, like my grandmother. These stories were nothing short of horrifying and to be a descendant of Filipinos who suffered directly under Japanese cruelty makes this piece of fanfiction hit close to home. There are two Filipino characters here that are more or less based on my great-grandfather, who worked as a translator for the Japanese and who, according to my grandmother, had to kill a few of them to save his own ass when he overheard something that wasn’t supposed to be heard.

     

     

    The story, in particular, takes place around the last months of 1944 and the Battle of Leyte Gulf, an event widely considered to be one of the turning points in the Allied Forces’ liberation of the Philippines. It doesn’t necessarily deal with the actual naval battle but has the events going on in the backdrop. Despite this being a war story, there’s a bit of a folkloric component to the premise which is a far cry from the science fiction action of Captain America: The First Avenger. Because the Philippines is a deeply animistic country and mostly made up of dense forests and rural mountains, local myths, and folklore have always been prevalent. To this day, I still hear stories of paranormal experiences involving spirits and mythical beasts, and the atrocities suffered by the Filipinos during the Japanese occupation have only amplified such stories. Plus, I thought it’d be cool for Cap to deal with larger-than-life things early on in his career.

     

    Not the actual treasure.

     

    The MCU has had more than its fair share of McGuffins and my pitch is shamelessly no different. It revolves around the fabled Yamashita treasure, alleged war loot stolen by the Japanese throughout their campaign in Asia. As the story goes, the treasure, comprised of gold and all kinds of artifacts, was rumored to be scattered and buried all throughout the Philippines and was to be shipped to Japan as soon as the war ended. Things didn’t go as planned for Japan in the history books and the treasure never made its way back. To this day, there is no clear answer as to whether the treasure actually existed. Some experts have debunked it as a myth while some treasure hunters still think it’s a real thing hidden somewhere in the country. In my pitch, the treasure plays an important part though I take a ton of liberties to tailor it to the movie.

    Tonally, think of the story as an Apocalypse Now-type movie where Cap and his friends venture deep into a jungle behind enemy lines. The elements are against them, the terrain is unfamiliar, and they’re chasing their own Colonel Kurtz. Thematically, I want a story that delves into Cap’s relationship with the Howling Commandos, what the friendships were like for these people who were sent on the most dangerous missions in WW2, and what war does to people who are victims of it. Think Band of Brothers or Saving Private Ryan.

    PLOT

    In 1923, a blind Japanese child is awakened by visions of Japan engulfed in smoke and flame, corpses of his people turned into ash, his nation in complete ruins. In the final months of 1944, American ground troops successfully land in the province of Leyte after a grueling naval and aerial skirmish with the Imperial Japanese forces. Leading the frontlines are Dum Dum Dugan and the Howling Commandos. Meanwhile, Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes are covertly parachuted deep into the jungles of Leyte, behind enemy lines,  to extract a Filipino translator working for the Japanese claiming to have crucial information that could turn the tide of war. 

     

     

    After a night of fighting through Japanese platoons and freeing POWs along the way, Rogers and Barnes locate the translator, Alejo, hiding under an abandoned guerilla bunker. Alejo retells the events of the past week; he and his brother, Eden, witness the massacre of a Japanese platoon committed by Tomi Shishido, a lone blind Japanese assailant with the ability to petrify, demanding the location of a rumored cache of stolen artifacts and gold.  Alejo narrowly escapes capture but his brother is unsuccessful. Barnes is apprehensive to track down the assailant until Alejo shows them an emblem resembling HYDRA’s. Fearing a wide-scale operation happening in the Pacific, similar to the one in Europe under HYDRA, Rogers and Barnes decided to track down the assailant.

    The following morning, the Howling Commandos arrive at Rogers and Barnes’ planned extraction point where they encounter delirious Japanese soldiers surrendering to a small Filipino guerilla unit. Jim Morita overhears the soldiers mention demons and ghosts in the surrounding valley. Rogers, Barnes, and Alejo take control of a guarded Japanese communications outpost to message the Commandos but are ambushed by three assassins with seemingly supernatural abilities. Rogers and Barnes are quickly outmatched but the fight is interrupted by the arrival of Dark Wind, who kidnaps Alejo and escapes into the night, along with his agents. The resulting commotion attracts the attention of platoons of Japanese forces, who pin down Rogers and Barnes until the Howling Commandos arrive.

     

     

    Rogers and the Howling Commandos take a boat further into the island and coordinate on a plan to retrieve the two translators and prevent Shishido and Dark Wind from stealing the treasures. However, the team is split on what to do with the treasure; Duggan argues about the merits of the US gaining that amount of gold to end the war while Steve sees it as bloodied spoils of war. Upon arriving at their destination, the team splits into two. 

    Rogers’ team trek towards a Japanese outpost, where they find several Japanese soldiers murdered. The team overhears a commotion in a nearby armory and see a Japanese officer get impaled. Shishido emerges from an armory, dragging Eden behind him. Rogers’ team engages Shishido and rescues Eden. Shishido initially has the upper hand but yields when Rogers and Barnes overpower him. Shishido explains the existence of a clandestine transhumanistic cult among Japan’s most elite and Dark Wind’s plan to secure an ancient powerful artifact to unlock the Emperor’s latent divine abilities, based on the belief that Japan’s emperors are direct descendants of the sun goddess Amaterasu. Shishido pleads for the Commandos to help stop him from retrieving the relic.

     

     

    With Eden to help him navigate, Rogers ventures further deep into the island to locate Dark Wind’s vessel. Reaching a lake at the center of the island, they see a large amphibious landing craft surface. Rogers infiltrates the ship and rescues a brutally beaten Alejo. Just as he makes his escape, Rogers is incapacitated by Dark Wind. Dugan’s team arrives at the foot of a mountain where they find an abandoned church. They investigate and uncover an entrance to a series of catacombs leading to a large cavern. In the cavern, they uncover a massive tomb filled with gold and relics. They form a garrison surrounding the area and radio the rest of the Howling Commandos which Dark Wind hears from Rogers’ radio.

    A huge firefight commences as soon as Dark Wind and his forces arrive at the church garrison. The Commandos are outnumbered despite Bucky’s team, along with Shishido, arriving to defend the garrison. Dark Wind gains the upper hand and defeats Shishido brutally in battle. The Commandos are rounded together by Dark Wind’s remaining forces but are saved by the Filipino guerilla soldiers they met earlier and a rescued Captain America. Dark Wind is killed by Shishido. 

     

     

    As the remaining survivors regroup, the Howling Commandos and Shishido head to the catacombs to survey the cache. On their way, Shishido tells them of the story of Hiruko, the firstborn child of the deities of creation, Izanami and Izanagi, and how the child was banished for its weakness and replaced by another named Amaterasu. He further reveals that, like Amaterasu, Hiruko had descendants. As he unearths the relic, Shishido reveals to them his intent to save Japan and his home of Hiroshima from a premonition and unleashes his power on the Commandos, leaving Rogers, Dugan, and Barnes left to fight. Rogers is almost killed by Shishido but is saved by Barnes when he uses Shishido’s own petrifying powers against him, turning Shishido into stone. 

    Alejo succumbs to his wounds. The Commandos decide in secret to leave the gold in the hands of the Filipinos as reparations while the relics are returned to their rightful countries by the SSR. 

    ARCS/THEMES

    Steve Rogers

    It’s always hard to think of an arc for Steve Rogers to go through when the man is so set in his heroic and selfless ways, especially in a period like World War 2. Ultimately, this is the story where you get to Steve, for the first time, deal with the bleakness of war and the world. Captain America: The First Avenger depicts Cap and the Commandos having a swell time as they take out HYDRA bases. They laugh and shrug at enemy soldiers dying and have a beer right after. This story has them witnessing what the war is like for people who are merely caught in the crossfire. Cap comes off this movie having a few realizations about people and the world. In Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Steve tells Nick Fury, “We compromised. Sometimes in ways that made us not sleep so well. But we did it so people could be free.” This story details that part of Rogers’ experience.

    Bucky Barnes

    One thing that was sorely lacking in the first Cap movie was an exploration of Steve and Bucky’s friendship. When you watch Winter Soldier, it’s evident that they tried to compensate by giving us flashbacks of pre-serum Steve and Bucky spending time with each other. My story has Steve and Bucky as a duo, like it was in the Golden Age of comics, going on missions and bantering with each other. We also get to see a glimpse of who Bucky really is outside of being the Winter Soldier. You have a Bucky who hasn’t gone through the wringer, who hasn’t committed all sorts of heinous crimes, and who, by and large, is still the kid Steve grew up with.

    The Howling Commandos

     

     

    These guys actually get to play a big part in the story for once. We get to see Dum Dum Dugan’s leadership skills rival Captain America’s and more importantly, the nuanced dynamic the team has with one another. You’ll see that some of them get along better with others while some aren’t as close. The story explores all their personalities, what they mean to each other, and how their experiences in the war shape their friendships.

    Alejo and Eden

    Two Filipino brothers who set the events of the film in motion when they witness Shishido murdering the Japanese officers they work for. A lot of Filipinos were historically forced into working with the Japanese in exchange for their family’s safety. The experiences of my own great-grandfather as a Japanese translator was the primary inspiration for including these two characters. I also thought it important to view this superhero larger-than-life war story through the lenses of the people caught in the middle of it. The story takes place at the height of Cap’s WW2 tour, before he was an Avenger, before he became the legend that he is, and you get to see what a figure like Captain America was to common folk like Alejo, who are so far removed from all the crazy superhero happenings in the opposite end of Earth.

    Tomi Shishido/Gorgon

     

    Shishido is the Colonel Kurtz of this story; a madman our heroes have to go after. Like Kurtz, Shishido is an enigmatic presence all throughout the story. His backstory is merely hinted at and much of it left unsaid. What we do know is that he is one of the Four Lotus of Dark Wind’s cult who goes rogue upon learning the existence of the treasure. We know he was born blind and his petrifying powers were given to him by Dark Wind in an experiment. We know that he is motivated by premonitions of a catastrophe befalling Japan, which we know to be the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombing.

    As for his origins, I’m taking a lot of liberties to fit this version of Gorgon in my story. Comic fans know Gorgon to be a mutant (and a big bad of Wolverine) but in this story, he has latent mystical abilities due to his divine heritage. Shishido is a descendant of Hiruko, the crippled firstborn god of the deities of creation, Izanami and Izanagi. Shishido seeks to use his divine heritage and power to usurp the Emperor, whom he believes to be the primary catalyst for Japan’s defeat in his visions, and have Japan win the war completely.

    Akin to what Sarah Connor was in the Terminator films, he’s a bit of a sympathetic figure in that you understand his desperation to stop something as horrific as the Hiroshima bombing. Despite it not yet happening in the story, we, the audience, are fully aware of how catastrophic that event was to humankind and that real-life perspective shifts our feelings towards a character wanting to stop it, no matter the cost. The lines of morality are even more blurred when Cap and his team successfully stop Shishido from his plan, inadvertently letting nature and history take its course.

    Kenji Oyama/Dark Wind

    Not actually Dark Wind as it is Mortal Kombat art of Shang Tsung. However, I did write Dark Wind with Cary Hiroyuki Tagawa’s Shang Tsung as the inspiration.

     

    Another Wolverine villain (why does the X-Men have carte blanche on all the best Japanese Marvel characters?!) tailored to fit my story. Dark Wind in the comics is known as the father of Lady Deathstrike. In this story, he is the head of Dawn of the White Light, a clandestine cult dedicated to human enhancement whose existence is only known to the Japanese royal family. One of their goals is to unlock the Emperor’s divinity. The Emperor has mostly refrained from using the cult and its assassins to help in the war to ensure the utmost secrecy. That all changes when the whereabouts of a cache of mystical artifacts buried in the Philippines surface, prompting the Emperor to send Dark Wind and his forces to secure it before anyone else.

    Dark Wind and his cult are deeply loyal to the throne of Japan. He’s a brilliant scientist and a cunning warrior in his own right. He views HYDRA as inferior to his cult and Red Skull as a foe. He has a closeness with the Four Petals, his cabal of experimented assassins, and a fondness in particular towards Shishido, with whom he has a tempestuous relationship with.

  • Charles M’s CAPTAIN AMERICA 4 Pitch: The Serpent Crown, Human Torch, and Namor

    Charles M’s CAPTAIN AMERICA 4 Pitch: The Serpent Crown, Human Torch, and Namor

    In a previous episode of Murphy’s Law, Charles and I talked about our pitches for Captain America 4. The only thing we agreed upon was the setting: WW II. We never talked about them again until we recorded the podcast and, as it turned out, while wildly different, they would work out as companion pieces in a WW II Cap trilogy. For me, the pitch comes from one line in Captain America: The First Avenger (and the Fuher digs for trinkets in the desert) and the Nazis very real fascination with Atlantis. So while this movie takes place during the same time period as TFA, we see a completely different side of the Nazi effort to rule the world. Here it is-Captain America: The Serpent Crown.

    September 19, 2015-Berlin, Germany

    At a small pub in Berlin, Steve Rogers and Sam Wilson enjoy a few beers while going over their findings from a recent raid of an old Hydra facility. Rogers tells Wilson that he’s been impressed with how he’s handling himself in the field against what enemies that are becoming increasingly well-armed and well-prepared. As Rogers flips through a tablet containing their dossier and inventory of the items confiscated during the raid, Wilson replies, “Yeah, coming along great, Cap, but guns or no guns, these are just regular guys. You thawed out after 80 years and jumped right in against aliens and gods with a green monster at your back and never flinched. I don’t know how you did it, but I’m not sure I’m ready for that.” Rogers turns the page, pauses and says, “Well, it wasn’t my first time, Sam.” Before cutting to the title screen, the page in the dossier reveals a picture of the Serpent Crown.

    Serpent Crown | Marvel Database | Fandom

    The Southern Ocean Near Antarctica-July 1939

    An expedition led by Nazi Heimlich Himmler and supported by submarines and several war ships carves out a sweeping path of destruction in the ocean. Depth charges are deployed and as the water settles and as night begins to fall, hundreds of blue bodies begin to bob at the surface. The next morning, Himmler leaves his ship and boards the Hydra submarine the Leviathan and, accompanied by several other similar submarines, begins to descend into the depths of the Southern Ocean. More of the blue-skinned creatures begin to appear and attack the submarines but are quickly killed. Following the destruction of the warriors sent out to stop them, the Nazi submarines deploy several small pods of divers. Himmler smiles. He’s found it. He’s found Atlantis.

    The Pacific Ocean Near the Coast of Washington-July 1939

    Word of the Nazi attack on Atlantis reaches the Royal Family who had relocated from Antarctica roughly 20 years earlier. For the first time, we see the full wonder of Atlantis. Emperor Thakorr and his daughter Fen discuss appropriate retaliation against the Nazis. Thakorr is hesitant to bring the full might of the empire to bear; he points out that the humans, who are so hateful of one another, will happily destroy themselves if given time. He fears that an attack on any humans would give them a reason to unite and destroy Atlantis, which has remained hidden for generations until Himmler’s attack. Their meeting is interrupted by an intrusion by Fen’s brash son, Namor. The pink-skinned prince has worked his way through several members of the Royal Guard and blown through the heavy doors to Thakorr’s war room. Though they are clearly disturbed by his behavior, Fen and her father know they cannot hope to keep him away any longer. The Avenging Son demands revenge on the Nazis but is denied by his grandfather. Namor leaves, the anger burning in his eyes, knowing not even the wrath of the Emperor will stop him.

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    Berlin, Germany-1939

    Himmler, who has long believed the Aryan race to be descendants of Atlantis (this is not fictional, look it up) has returned from the lost city to a warehouse in Berlin where the spoils of his invasion are laid out before him. Surrounded by countless artifacts from the before the recorded history of man, Himmler finds himself drawn to one item in particular: the Serpent Crown. The crown speaks to Himmler and when he touches it, time becomes irrelevant. He finds himself in the past, present and future as his brain floods with visions of Serpent Men, ancient Lemuria, Nazi Germany and Nazi Earth. The crown promises him a totalitarian empire and dominion over the Earth. Though intrigued by the visions, Himmler releases the Crown as a reaction to the searing migraine it’s inflicted on him. It’s clear to him he has the ultimate weapon in the Nazi’s efforts to conquer the world: one that can win the war without firing a single shot; however, they need to find someone who can wield it. Returning to his Ahnenerbe headquarters, Himmler pushes the envelope on locating individuals they believe to possess latent psychic powers.

    New York City-1943

    The World Exposition of Tomorrow has concluded it’s incredible run. Howard Stark and Phineas Horton are meeting to discuss Horton’s Synthetic Man, one of the great wonders of the show. Horton’s description of how he came to create the Synthetic Man, which he calls Jim Hammond, fascinates Stark. During his presentation, Horton indicated he had higher hopes for what he’d be able to share at the Expo, but that Hammond wasn’t complete yet and apologized to the crowd, promising a better display of his creation at the next Expo; his conversation with Stark went a bit differently. As Stark inspects the android from outside the chamber, Horton eagerly adjusts a couple of dials, allowing a small amount of oxygen into his android’s vacuum chamber. To Stark’s amazement, the android’s head and hands burst into flame! Horton, happy with demonstration, removes the oxygen extinguishing the flames. Horton explains that Hammond is an android and while he has a human-like appearance and gives the illusion of having a personality, he can only handle simple programming which can be swapped out. A second, more permanent internal drive allows him to record data (have memories) though he seems unable to learn from them which  is something Horton hopes to fix. As the two continue to talk about Horton’s work, a crew carefully loads the vacuum chamber into a large cargo truck which Hammond believes is headed to his Brooklyn lab. After a couple of wrong turns, the truck arrives at the docks and loads the crate containing Hammond onto a ship headed for Nazi Germany (I absolutely imagine this scene playing out like so many have in the Indiana Jones films like when Indy boards the plane in Temple of Doom then the audience finds out whose plane he is on).

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    Berlin, Germany-March 16, 1944

    Inside a Nazi command room, officers discuss the destruction of what they believed to be a secret missile base in the Pacific. As we circle the room, we see Himmler growing in anger as the reports indicate that the base was destroyed by Atlanteans led by Namor. As Himmler leaves the room with his two assistants, he reminds them that a year prior, Hitler had ordered the destruction of the underwater kingdom and, if not for Namor, it would have been so. In that time, Namor’s legend, as well as his rage, have grown. His grandfather, Thakkor, was nearly killed in the attack and has been in a coma; during that time, Fen named Namor his temporary successor, meaning nobody stood in the way of Namor’s path of destruction. The trio arrive in Himmler’s lab, a room full of occult relics and writings and the empty vacuum chamber of Jim Hammond. Himmler grabs a file and moves through the compound to another room where we meet Paul Destine. Destine was living in France in June of 1940 when the Nazis invaded the country. A Nazi collaborator, Destine claimed to have had visions of the world that would be and chose to do everything he could to make that world a reality. When Himmler became aware of his “visions”, he began experimenting on him and soon realized that Destine had latent but weak telepathic powers. In the years that have passed, Destine has been trained by the Nazi psuedoscientists and gained control of his powers. For the past few weeks, Himmler has been preparing Destine to become the Nazis’ ultimate weapon as the man who wields the Serpent Crown. Destine puts the crown on and demonstrates his ability to control the minds of several concentration camp prisoners, forcing them to bend to his will. When Himmler has seen enough, he gives the order. From the prisoners’ perspective, we see what first begins as a glow, then the camera pans to Jim Hammond as we hear the screams of the prisoners. Phineas Horton’s Synthetic Man has been reprogrammed as a terrible weapon for the Nazis. As we cut back to Himmler, he leaves the room and heads toward a deeply secluded bunker room. Here he reports to Hitler that he is ready to win the war.

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    *NOTE* Keep in mind that originally, Hammond was a “monstrosity” of science fiction…sort of a warning of what happens when man goes too far. This is probably a little darker place than Marvel Studios would ever take the character, but in the comics he’s done some terrible things as well and had to “live” with them.

    Several days later, Steve, Bucky and the Howling Commandos come upon a small village in France that has been completely incinerated. As they move through the village, Steve stops. As he looks more closely, he notices a pair of victims who he first believed to have died in an embrace actually died strangling one another. As he informs the team and they move through the carnage, other similarly strange instances become apparent. These people were killing each other before they were burnt to death. That night, he and Bucky sit apart from the team and talk about the horrors of war. The relationship between these two men before Bucky fell from the train could use some development and this is a great place for it. We know they raided a lot of buildings and beat up a lot of bad guys, but the horrors they witnessed together deepened their bond.

    Howling Commandos (Team) - Comic Vine

    The following morning, Steve and the crew meet up with the Free French resistance. The resistance shares intel on the flying torch that destroyed the city and on the strange. cloaked man who accompanied Himmler to the village. As Steve and Bucky formulate a plan to catch up with the Nazis, the resistance shares on last piece of intel with them: they’re not the only ones chasing Himmler and his Torch. The Free French have an ally from the sea. A man of incredible strength and anger. A man who not only lives in the sea but also flies and has helped liberate small villages like the one Cap and Bucky saw burnt to the ground. They never know when he’ll appear, but they know the Nazis fear him and they know he will stop at nothing to destroy what he can in the time he has on land before returning to the water.

    Two days later, Steve, Bucky and the Howling Commandos along with some Allied troops catch up Himmler’s squad thanks to the French intelligence. Himmler, Destine and Hammond are deep in the village where Destine continues to learn to command the Serpent Crown. As the battle grows, Himmler believes it’s time to unleash his ultimate weapon on the allies and sends Destine out to end battle. Through Bucky’s sniper scope, we see the Allied soldiers begin turning on each other as Destine works his way into their minds. Though he’s grown powerful, he finds himself unable to bend the will of Cap. As Cap makes his way through the crowd, Destine steps into the light for the first time. The Crown twists and deforms the man as he struggles with everything he has to slow Cap. Just as he finally makes a dent in the iron will of Rogers, he finds himself on the receiving end of Cap’s shield. However, before he can be taken off the board, a German tank falls from the sky and explodes: Namor has arrived! Wild with rage, Namor dispatches with the Nazi troops with extreme prejudice before catching a glimpse of Himmler. Namor, believing his revenge will be complete when he has Himmler’s head, flies off in pursuit of the Nazi as we hear, for the first time, his famous battle cry!

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    Namor crashes through the roof of the building into which he saw Himmler run. Several Nazis fire on the Avenging Son to no avail and Namor happily snaps their necks for their efforts. Himmler is cornered. Namor will have his revenge. He grabs Himmler by the throat, lifts him from the ground and as he closes his hand around his neck, we see a flaming hand grab the arm of the Sub-Mariner. Namor drops Himmler as the flame spreads and we see fear on the Atlanteans face as he turns to see the Torch in his full, flaming glory. Namor flies off aflame while Himmler and the Torch head to end the battle raging outside. From his perch, Bucky sees the flaming man take out a half dozen men but he also sees, Himmler, the target that would help end the war, running in the other direction towards Destine. Bucky aims and squeezes the trigger…the bullet ricochets off the android’s head as Himmler, Destine and the Serpent Crown get away. We see the android turn his head to Bucky’s location just before we see it separated from his shoulders by Cap’s shield. The Torch is down, but the real threat has escaped.

    As Cap, Bucky and the Howlers regroup at one of the Free French compounds, James Montgomery and Gabe Jones insect the fascinating body of the android. As the duo pokes and prods at the marvel in front of them, a familiar voice chimes in from the background: Howard Stark is on the scene, accompanied by Phineas Horton. The professor is haunted by the horrors his life’s work has wrought. As he and Stark work on the android, Cap and Bucky walk the coastline. Cap explains what he felt as Destine worked to take over his mind: visions of him leading SS troops, wearing a green and gold suit and working as the Hand of Hydra.

    As the two continue their walk, Bucky recognizes they are not alone, turns and throws a knife. Though its aim is true, the knife bounces off of Namor’s chest and the Prince of Atlantis continues on. Fill in a lot of pompous, pretentious Namor stuff here as he insults Steve and Bucky, including some typical backhanded compliments given to Steve. The trio returns to camp where we find that while the android Jim Hammond has been reprogrammed, his memories remain intact and expresses, for the first time, a desire: to make up for the horrors he has done. Charles de Gaulle of the Free French resistance delivers new intel from an intercepted message: Himmler and Destine are in Budapest and Himmler feels Destine has achieved his final from and is ready to end the war. Captain America, Bucky, Namor and the Torch rally the troops for what may be their last stand: the Invaders are born.

    Budapest, Hungary-April 3, 1944

    As Allied bombers conduct runs over the city, we find ourselves following a bomb as it approaches the ground. Just as it appears to be headed for a group of Allied soldiers, Namor flies in and redirects its course. We see an incredible and unrecorded battle take shape on the ground as the Invaders work towards the Nazi stronghold. As the battle turns in favor of the Allies, Destine makes his entrance. Noticeably changed physically, Destine no longer relies on turning the soldiers on one another; he’s grown so strong that he can now simply shut down the minds of those he targets and he can apparently do so to hundreds of soldiers at a time. As the battle rages on, we see Destine shut down Bucky and the Howlers, leaving Cap, Namor and the Torch on their own. As they approach the compound, the Torch’s memories begin to come back to him as he passes by the charred remains of soldiers…he glitches, taking him out of the battle. Cap and Namor charge Destine. Both men of steel reserve, they fight the control of the Serpent Crown before falling victim to Destine’s enormous powers. With no more heroes in his way, Himmler emerges from the compound, standing with Destine. Himmler notices the blood of the Atlantean flowing from his nose and, as a scientist, collects it carefully. As they overlook the carnage and the Nazis take the remaining soldiers prisoner, Jim Hammond approaches his former master. Himmler laughs as the machine he used as a weapon approaches him and he mocks the android. As he continues forward, Destine, glowing from his victory, attempts break into the mind of the android and shut him down. From the cameras perspective, the glow grows and as it pulls away, we see Hammond in full flame as Destine comes to the realization that he cannot control the mind of this android. While Himmler fully realizes the gravity of the situation and runs, Destine’s concentration is broken. Cap, Namor and Bucky find themselves coming to just in time to see Hammond rise into the sky and unleash his full flame on Destine. Destine, fully engulfed in flame, runs for the Danube River but, as he reaches its banks, he succumbs to them, falling dead just as he reaches the water. As he dies, the Serpent Crown falls into the river from his head (the Danube empties into the Black Sea which ultimately connects to the ocean).

     

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    As we close we find that while almost everyone has fully recovered, Namor has not. To their best guess, the Allied forces believe that Namor’s unique physiology made him more susceptible to lasting effects of the crown. Namor appears to not only have no recollection of the battle but also no memory of his past at all, including no ability to use any of the incredible powers he demonstrated: his battle with the Serpent Crown has stripped from him all that he was. Steve and Bucky receive a memo directly from the President: they are wanted to help plan Operation Overlord, tentatively planned for May 1.

    Berlin, Germany-September 19, 2015

    Sam speaks to Cap who is clearly lost in thought, clearly somewhere else. Cap comes back to the moment and finishes his beer. “Sam, this crown in these files…it wasn’t at the base. It’s in these documents, but it wasn’t there. They had it at some point since then, but it’s gone now. Sam, if this crown is out there, nothing good will come of it. We have to find it.” Sam replies, “I’ll put in on the list.”

    If you’ve read Secret Avengers, you know that we could, from here, tell a pretty interesting story about the Serpent Crown reappearing in the modern world! We’ll leave that for another time, perhaps between the events of Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War.

    Post Credit Scene: Auschwitz-May 6, 1944

    While listening to a record of Franz Schuber, Nathaniel Essex works in his lab studying the blood of Namor while Himmler waits for his results. Having been obsessed with the Theory of Evolution for the last 85 years, Essex knows he has found the next step in that ladder: the first mutant.

    Post Credit Scene: Sokovia-May 6, 2015

    A bearded, amnesiac Namor runs through the streets of what remains of Sokovia. Terrified as objects fall from the sky, he seems to instinctively head for the sea. As he reaches the shores, a car falling from a bridge above crashes down on him sending him plunging into the sea. As his eyes reopen, we see the Sub-Mariner reemerge and as he flies up out of the water, towards the destruction, he sees shield of Captain America returning to Steve Rogers hand. Confused by the returning rush of memories, Namor flies off to the ocean, unseen by the Avengers.

     

     

  • Part 3: How Marvel Studios ‘ETERNALS’ Sets the Table for the Future of the MCU

    This article originally appeared on That Hashtag Show.

    Welcome back. In Part 1, we took a look at how the Celestial’s experiments on early man in Eternals could provide the MCU with a path to eventually introducing the Greek pantheon, Hercules, Moondragon and Phyla-Vell among others. Part 2 further explored the early history of the Eternals, their rivals the Deviants, their connections to two famed lost contients, Atlantis and Lemuria, and some potential pathways to bring characters like Namor, the Sub-Mariner and relics like the Serpent Crown to the screen.

    The Eternals and Deviants, while intriguing and powerful, only make up two-thirds of the genetically engineered population of the Earth. Celestial experimentation also produced a branch of early man that held within them a dormant gene with the potential to unleash incredible powers at some point. Those latent genes were carried by all of mankind’s early ancestors and those who evolved and manifested that potential became known as Homo superior…the mutants of the Marvel Universe.

    While Charles Xavier’s X-Men are the most well known mutants, they are not the only and were certainly not the first. While it’s up for debate as to just who the “first mutant” really, was individuals such as Garbha-Hsien, The Forever Man and Amahl Farouk, aka The Shadow King, are among the contenders for the title. The mutant External known as Selene claims to have been born after the Great Cataclysm which saw Atlantis and Lemuria lost to the oceans, and En Sabah Nur has clear ties to Ancient Egypt. Despite the inability to pinpoint the “first mutant” the focus can remain on the fact that mutants have always been among mankind in the Marvel Universe; however, beginning in the late 19th century, their numbers increased exponentially until modern times.

    A total of 13 films (including Dark Phoenix and New Mutants) were made by Fox while they held the live-action rights to mutants. Of those 13, nearly half of them were Wolverine-centric to some degree and while dozens of mutants were introduced in those films, they’ve certainly left Marvel Studios plenty of new territory to cover. A future Marvel Studios film featuring a pair of scientists like Herbert Wyndham and Nathaniel Essex could go a long way towards helping viewers uncover and understand the history and science behind mutants and, as in the comics, the post-nuclear proliferation of the mutant population could be a sign (one picked up on in the comics by the Eternals) that the Celestials would soon be back to check on their work.

    Of course Fox was gracious enough to have never utilized some insanely popular and interesting characters that have played huge roles in the X-Men books in the past. Fans of the comics know that the X-Men have been into space nearly has often as they have traveled through time and Marvel Studios will certainly not continue in Fox’s footsteps by shying away from the Cosmic side of things. The Starjammer, the Shi’ar and the Brood all provide a number of interesting stories for Kevin Feige to tell and you can bet that Feige has all kinds of ideas for how to fully integrate these characters into the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

    While it may be a while before we see (or at least hear the word) mutants in the MCU, it sure seems like there’s a great chance that the seeds will be sown in 2021’s Eternals. The catalog of X-Men stories is enough by itself to sustain a cinematic universe, so what’s most interesting is how Feige and his team of executive producers will weave them into the pre-existing tapestry of the MCU. At this point, your guesses are as good as mine, so let’s hear them in the comment section. What stories would you like told when the mutants make their way into the MCU?

  • Part 2: How Marvel Studios ‘ETERNALS’ Sets the Table for the Future of the MCU

    This article originally appeared on That Hashtag Show.

    Welcome back. In Part 1, we took a look at how the Celestial’s experiments on early man in Eternals could provide the MCU with a path to eventually introducing the Greek pantheon, Hercules, Moondragon and Phyla-Vell among others. Part 2 will further explore the early history of the Eternals, their rivals the Deviants, their connections to two famed lost contients, Atlantis and Lemuria, and some potential pathways to bring them and their host of characters to MCU.

    For hundreds of thousands of years, the Eternals stayed in the shadows, emerging only on occasion to war with the Deviants, or dealing with their own problems which were detailed in Part 1. The genetic manipulation of the Deviants DNA allowed to develop more rapidly than mankind and, as a result, they ruled over most of the world by 18,000 BC. Ruling from the fictional lost land of Lemuria, the Deviants terrorized the inhabitants of the Earth and warred with the one region they could not conquer: Atlantis.

    Both Atlantis (located in the North Atlantic Ocean, between North America and Europe) and Lemuria (located in the Southern Pacific Ocean near Southern India, Madagascar and Australia) have made their way into pop culture in various ways over the years but Marvel Comics developed what is an absolutely fascinating treatment of the history of both lost continents. In the earliest times, Lemuria was ruled by Sligguth, the demon spawn of the Elder god, Set. The first cities of men were also built on Lemuria at that time and, eventually, mankind defeated Sligguth and his Dragon Kings and took over the continent. For nearly 100,000 years man thrived on the Lemurian Isles under barbarian kings such as King Kull and often fought with the Serpent Men, remnants of Sligguth’s reign, while the Deviants took control of continental Lemuria and the rest of this world, enslaving mankind, with one exception.

    On the other side of the world, the kingdom of Atlantis grew from a land of barbarians (Kull himself was born there) into a one of exploration, trade and alchemy. They created trade routes and discovered new places such as the Savage Land and their alchemists were responsible for the construction of the artifact known as the Serpent Crown which was built as a vessel to house the power of the Elder God, Set. As the two great civilizations grew in power, they continued to come into conflict. After the Deviants overtook the Lemurian Isles, they launched a massive attack on Atlantis wielding the power of the Serpent Crown. To fend off the attack, the Atlantean King unleashed the power of Atlantis’s magma pits. While it defeated the Deviants, it also damaged the tectonic plates below and Atlantis was lost to the sea.

    It was at this time  that the Celestials, absent from Earth since their genetic experimentation created the Eternals and Deviants, returned to administer the Second Host. Unhappy with how their creations had behaved (the Eternals, for all their power, ignored humanity; the Deviants, in all their cruelty, enslaved it), the Celestials destroyed Lemuria, plunging it underwater and killing most of its Deviant inhabitants. In the comics, this series of events is known as the Great Cataclysm and the flooding of the Earth that followed was responsible for the Ark legend in which the Eternal Utnapishtim built an Ark to help save Earth’s species and his fellow Eternal Ikaris led the Ark to safety.

    In the wake of the Great Cataclysm, the Earth was reshaped and man, once again, emerged as the dominant species and spread across the land. This period of nearly 8,000 years became known as the Hyborean Age and saw the likes of Conan and other legends come to life. It was also during this time that the species Homo mermani emerged (some believe through evolution, others believe they were genetically engineered and still others believe that they were survivors of the Great Cataclysm who were transformed either by sorcery or by the god Neptune). While they originally wandered the sea, Homo mermanus eventually found the sunken city of Atlantis and made it their kingdom. At some point, a group of Homo mermanus that worshiped the Elder god, Set, left Atlantis with the Serpent Crown, located sunken Lemuria, and made their home their. That splinter group, led by Naga, came to resemble the early Serpent Men, growing scales and turning green. The Lemurians and Atlanteans became great enemies and have fought against each other for centuries and the Serpent Crown was often at the center of their battles.

    Homo mermanus of Lemuria

    It doesn’t take a lot of creativity to see the potential here. While the comics present a long, detailed and fantastic story of ancient Earth, Marvel Studios really only has to pick and choose what it would like to show in Eternals in order to set up one of its greatest characters: Namor, the Sub-Mariner. While it’s a subject of speculation and sometimes we like to pretend we know, we truly don’t understand the hangups in the live-action rights that Kevin Feige has hinted at over and again. We do know, however, that Feige’s rhetoric on the subject has evolved over the past several years, culminating with his recent comments which indicated that Namor COULD appear in the MCU and that the studio was pondering the “ifs” and “whens.” While it doesn’t sound like much, that’s as close to confirming plans for Namor as Feige will come and while we don’t know how, we do believe we’ll see the Avenging Son sometime soon.

    With a little hand waving here and there, Marvel Studios could establish a brief history of Lemuria and Atlantis, show the Great Cataclysm and the creation/evolution of Homo mermanus. Of course Namor is, at least in the comics, a Homo mermanus/Homo superior hybrid, meaning that his story could be the lynch pin between the story of the Eternals and the X-Men.

    Given his age, Namor could appear at any time in the recent history of the MCU and move around as seen fit. While his stories, cast of supporting characters and fan support are worthy of a trilogy of films, it’s unknown exactly what hoops Marvel Studios might have to jump through to make solo Sub-Mariner films. However, should they be capable of going down that road, an origin story that would see Naga or Attuma come into conflict with Namor would be enough to make anyone shout IMPERIUS REX. While fans will be quick to point out that Marvel Studios would just be following the presumed success of DC’s Aquaman, fans of the comics know that while the characters share similar origin stories, they are vastly different men with different values and that Namor has often been the villain (which is probably when he’s at his best). While I’ve long wanted to see Namor square off against T’Challa, The Eternals does provide the opportunity for Marvel Studios to set up a much deeper story for the Lord of the Seven Seas should to be so inclined.

    Atlanteans. Lemruians. The Serpent Crown. King Kull and Conan (not sure that Marvel Studios gets to include those characters but it’s still pretty cool). Just a few more potential future stories for the Marvel Cinematic Universe that could spin out of Eternals.

  • Part 1: How Marvel Studios ‘ETERNALS’ Sets the Table for the Future of the MCU

    This article originally appeared at That Hashtag Show

    When news broke that Marvel Studios was developing film around Eternals, most people were left wondering just who they were. Marvel Studios and Kevin Feige know they are playing with house money at this point, so their apparent willingness to gamble on yet another underappreciated property really isn’t a huge surprise because to this point, those gambles have paid off. Audiences trust the Marvel Studios brand and, for the time being, will continue to line up to see whatever they put on screen. However, as people look to find out more about the cast of characters we will be seeing when Eternals hits theaters on February 12, 2021, they may be surprised to find out that the film, which will likely have its root in the past, has the potential to be the epicenter for the future of the MCU.

    When Jack Kirby came back to Marvel Comics in 1976, he created The Eternals and used their story to explore the idea that ancient aliens influenced the evolution of modern man. This is a theme he had played with before during his work on The Inhumans, but really doubled down on in The Eternals following the pop culture craze inspired by the books Chariots of the Gods? and 2001: A Space Odyssey. The theme has been repeated time and time again (Ridley Scott’s fascination with similar ideas certainly showed through in his Alien films and were followed through on in Prometheus), but now may be just the time for it to be fully explored in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. While there’s no telling just what Kevin Feige and his team have planned, their love for Kirby’s work has been noticed more and more often over the past several films and it seems possible that they’ll be using one of his most compelling works to put gears into motion that could pay off for another decade. Marvel Studios doesn’t always closely follow the narrative spun by the comics, so anything written here is just my ideas about how Marvel Studios could apply Kirby’s ideas to the MCU.

    In The Eternals, Kirby’s space gods were the giant beings known as The Celestials. We’ve already seen Celestials in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and so far, they don’t seem like they’re all that kind. Eson the Searcher wiped out a planet while Ego was set to take over the entire universe and happy to do so while killing all of his children.

    Eternals, however, gives the Celestials a chance to redeem themselves a bit and is likely to stick pretty close to the story that Kirby laid over the first 19 issues of the comics and that was expanded upon over the past 40+ years. Created by the universe itself, the Celestials grew to become the great explorers and scientists of the Cosmos, visiting world after world and planting the seeds of evolution. On such a visit to Earth over 1,000,000 years ago, the Celestials encountered early man and as part of the First Host (the first of a series of 4 tests Celestials administer on all the planets where they meddle with evolution), and performed the experiments that would ultimately produce 3 offshoots of humanity: the Eternals, the Deviants and the Latents.

    The Celestial known as Ziran the Tester created the Deviants of Earth (Homo descendus) by mutating their DNA, creating an unstable genome which caused each creature to undergo a unique mutation.The Deviants were sometimes hideous, often powerful and became villified throughout history as the monsters and demons of legend. The Celestial named Nezzar the Calculator created the Earthly Eternals (Homo immortus), beings of great beauty who would go on to become the heroes of legend and do battle with the Deviants for centuries. Finally, the Celestial known as Oneg the Prober experimented by adding a latent gene with the potential for mutation which would later manifest itself as the X-gene in Homo superior. Their work complete, the Celestials left Earth leaving the 3 offshoots of early man to fend for themselves. It would be somewhat surprising if we didn’t see the First Host at some point in Eternals or another film.

    We know that we’ll be seeing the Terran Eternals in the 2020 film and though they were absent from the list of characters we mentioned, it would hardly be surprising to see their archenemies the Deviants in the film as well. The hatred and warring between them is reason enough to tell their story, a story which can lay the groundwork for many others. Of course Disney’s pending acquisition of the Fox-owned Marvel characters leaves open the titillating notion that Eternals could also provide the origin story for mutants in the MCU. Assuming that their deal is closed by the time the film begins production (tentatively scheduled to begin in London on September 4, 2019) it would take just a minor tweak to any existing script to tease their existence and thrill fans. While that’s far from certain, it’s also hardly the only interesting connection that can be made and so for now, we’ll put aside the enormous potential of mutants in the MCU and speculate as to how the rocky relationship among the Eternals and between the Eternals and Deviants can set up future films and also provide an explanation for some things we’ve already seen.

    As the Eternals developed, they built a city called Titanos in Northern Asia. For a time Titanos was ruled by two of the earliest Eternals, the brothers Kronos and Uranos. Kronos was a man of science and philosophy whereas Uranos hungered for war and conquest. The two eventually went to war over Uranos’ wish to rule the planet. Kronos defeated his brother in single combat to end the war and exiled Uranos and his followers into the cosmos.

    With Titanos destroyed and its population decimated, Kronos went about the rebuilding of the Titanos. Kronos carried on his scientific studies and fathered two sons, A’Lars and Zuras, whom he made swear an oath that they would never turn on each other the way he and his brother, Uranos, did. While experimenting with the cosmic energy that Eternals wield, Kronos accidentally caused the complete destruction of the rebuilt Titanos and vaporized himself. He later awoke, his mind having become one with the universe, and ascended to godlike levels eventually developing the ability to control and manipulate time. As those events unfolded on Earth, Uranos and his fellow exiles found their way through the cosmos, landing first on Uranus, where a small colony of Eternals remained, and then on one of Saturn’s moons, which they named Titan in honor of their former home. Titan developed for generations before the entity known as the Dragon of the Moon seeded mistrust between the colonists, mistrust that eventually grew into a war which claimed the lives of all but one of Titan’s inhabitants: Sui-San.

    Back on Earth in the wake of Kronos’ death, the Eternals discovered the ability to create the Uni-Mind (they all meld together into one collective consciousness) and used it to determine which of Kronos’ sons should lead them into the future. The Uni-Mind chose Zuras as the leader and he lead his people to build 3 new Eternal cities: Olympia, in the Greek Mountains, Oceana in the Pacific Ocean and Polaira, located in northern Russia. From these 3 cities, many generations of Eternals were born. As for his brother, A’lars, kept his father’s dying wish and left Earth of his own accord. In search of a new home, A’lars eventually found the settlement on Titan and worked together with Sui-San to repopulate the colony. He and Sui-San had two children of their own: Thanos and his younger brother, Eros.

    From these stories we can see a genealogy that has already influenced the MCU. A’lars, the father of Thanos, was name dropped in Avengers: Infinity War while Thanos was questing for the Soul Stone on Vormir. The early history of the Eternals which pitted brother against brother and ultimately led to the colonization of the cosmos by Terran Eternals certainly feels like something that could (maybe even SHOULD) come into play in the MCU. The character breakdowns we revealed indicated that the cities ruled over by the children of Kronos are both likely to feature in the film. Zuras and his daughter, Thena, are each set to be leads in the film as is A’lars other son, Eros, aka Starfox. In the comics Zuras and the Olympian Eternals were often mistaken for the gods of the Greek Pantheon (Zuras/Zeus, Thena/Athena, Makkari/Hermes) or as other legendary Greek figures (Sersi was the legendary witch Circe from The Odyssey).  They made a deal with the Greek gods and it was all rather confusing in the comics. It would MUCH simpler, and not out of line with prior practice, for Marvel Studios to eliminate the confusion and just make the Eternals the Greek gods. If they were to do that, they could create a direct route to introducing the MCU version of Hercules, one of the most iconic Avengers yet to reach the big screen. We do know that they are looking for a male lead to portray a “Greek god” and that one of Herc’s pals, Gilgamesh, is set to appear in the film and are hopeful that means we’ll be getting to see Herc join the MCU in 2020 (and if we get Herc, can Ares be far behind?). We know that Feige has often said that one of the fun things about the Avengers is the rotating roster and if this movie introduces Hercules, Sersi and Starfox, they could join Monica Rambeau (set to be introduced as a young girl in Captain Marvel) as potential members of a future ensemble film.

    As for the business on Titan, it’s safe to say that it’s a little more confusing and also a little more exciting. It’s important to remember that with a group of essentially immortal beings, this story can be told at any point, or points, in time. Starfox’s inclusion likely assures us of a trip to Titan and one that might well take place before the destruction described by Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War. Josh Brolin has stated he’d happily return to work as Thanos again and it would not be surprising to see it happen. Should we see a pre-cataclysmic Titan, we might be fortunate enough to see Thanos’ parents, A’lars and Sui-San, develop the sentient super computer known as I.S.A.A.C.. I.S.A.A.C. controlled almost all of Titan and created several artificially engineered Titanian Eternals to aid him in his duties. One such creation, Elysius, is set to appear in the film and while her comic adventures were brief, they are noteworthy: Elysius used the DNA of the Kree hero Mar-Vell and created two children: Genis-Vell and Phyla-Vell, the latter of whom became Quasar, the protector of the universe, and an integral character in the Annihilation and Annihilation: Conquest story lines. Finally, there’s the business of the unknown character known as “Karen.” Described as being international with a timeless feel, “Karen” is set to be a powerful leader who is warm, intuitive and nurturing but also capable of kicking ass. Since there are no Karens involved with the Eternals, we’ve been left to speculate on just who this character might be and one of our favorite guesses is that this will be the MCU version of Moondragon. It would require some changes from the comics to be sure, but James Gunn’s decisions on characters in Guardians of the Galaxy has made those very possible. If we’re going to toss around ideas, we like the idea of adding one of Marvel’s most powerful females to the MCU.

    As you can see the potential exists for several new characters and story lines to emerge from this film and that’s just part one. The Greek pantheon. The Dragon of the Moon. Phyla-Vell. The untold ancient history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Sounds like the types of things that could set up another 10 years of stories.

  • Murphy’s Law Review: ‘THE BOYS’ 2.01: “The Big Ride”

    Murphy’s Law Review: ‘THE BOYS’ 2.01: “The Big Ride”

    Season 2 of Amazon Prime’s series The Boys has landed on the streaming service. The first season was a smash hit (is that a reference to A-Train killing Hughie’s girlfriend?) and left a lot of questions to be answered. How well did the first episode of the sophomore season address those questions? Read on the find my verdict…

    The Opening Statement

    Thought Season 2’s opening scenes are nowhere near as jarring as what we got in Season 1, they do a nice job of bridging the gap. As new series regular Giancarlo Esposito’s Stan Edgar, who we met briefly in Season 1, asserts control over the military operations of the Seven, Black Noir takes care of one of last season’s loose ends: the super terrorist Naqib. We’re also reminded of the propaganda machine that is Vaught as Homelander and Starlight put on what amounts to a soap opera performance at the funeral of the Seven’s fallen member, Translucent. The nationally televised funeral is watched by Hughie, serving to remind us not only that he’s the one who took out Translucent, but symbolically that he is the “outsider” and our eyes and ears in this f-ed up world.

    The Testimony

    The episode does a nice job of reintroducing the returning characters, reminding us of not only of where they left off in Season 1 but also setting up where they’re headed in Season 2’s first arc. Hughie and Starlight’s awkward reunion reminds us that for all his good intentions, Hughie can’t seem to stop making a mess of things. Homelander’s efforts to establish control at Vaught are met with several reminders of psychopathic personality (he warms up some breast milk, assaults and insults a blind superhero and drops in unexpectedly to see his child). However, his pursuit of power is pissed on when a new hero, Stormfront, is added to the Seven without his knowledge; furthermore, when he approaches Edgar in hopes of intimidating him into falling in line, the very human Edgar doesn’t flinch, reminding Homelander just how “ordinary” he is.

    We also catch up with the rest of The Boys who have found themselves wanted as associates of Billy Butcher. The series makes full use of dramatic irony around the death of Elisabeth Shue’s Madelyn Stillwell to set up an interesting complication: though we know Homelander killed her, Butcher’s attempt to kill himself and Homelander by detonating the explosives have framed him as Stillwell’s murderer, making him and The Boys a target of not just the Seven but the general public as well. With Butcher MIA, Hughie tries to establish himself as the group’s new leader to no avail. Despite their fugitive status, they stumble onto something major (a super terrorist has been smuggled into the United States) and seek out the aid of the CIA’s Deputy Director, Susan Raynor. Just as it seems they’re headed for some respite, we’re reminded that in this world, nobody is safe when Raynor’s head explodes sending The Boys scrambling. Just when it looks like it’s time to give up, Butcher comes storming back on the scene.

    The deconstruction of who Erin Moriarty’s Starlight thought she was continues as well. Moriarty delivers some great lines about the absence of God as she blackmails a an old (and unsurprisingly disturbing) friend into stealing some Compound V so that she and Hughie can expose Vaught. Her continued journey into hell weighs heavily on Hughie though Starlight herself believes she’s serving the greater good. That said, we’re reminded by a brief glimpse at A-Train, that Starlight can become a target at any time.

    The Verdict

    The Boys boss shares new look at characters in season 2

    As was often the case in Season 1, this episode juggled several story lines and put us in touch with well over a dozen different characters, all of whom are going to play a major part in this season. The parallel arcs set up between Anthony Starr’s Homelander and Jack Quaid’s Hughie were well done. Despite the pair being on opposite ends of the powered spectrum, both of them make failed efforts to assert themselves as the alpha. Of course despite that similarity, they otherwise couldn’t be any different: where Hughie continues to try to do what he perceives to be the right thing, no matter the collateral damage, Homelander continues to be a prick of the highest order without a shred of goodness to spare. The relationship between these two characters, who never share a scene, continues to be fascinating. Moriarty continues to steal the show and though he was left out of the conversation above, we are treated to a few scenes with Chace Crawford’s the Deep as a reminder of just how far from grace these characters can fall. Given the places the once clear conscience of Starlight has gone, the Deep serves as a pretty stark warning of what might be in store.

    As an opening act for what’s expected to be another wild ride, Episode 1 did just find. Murphy’s Law rules in favor of Episode 1, giving it a solid 8 out of 10 machete hacks to the arm.

     

  • Phase 4 Theory: The Thunderbolts Initiative

    Phase 4 Theory: The Thunderbolts Initiative

    “I found something 40 years in the army never taught me: Perspective.”

    -Secretary Ross

    This quote is particularly importan for where the Marvel Cinematic Universe heads to in the aftermath of Avengers: Endgame. Not necessarily because it’s a cryptic line that could potentially set up the things Secretary Ross has been doing in the shadow of the MCU for many years, but because it’s really telling of how Marvel Studios operates in terms of storytelling. When you think about it, it’s always about keeping a “perspective” in the belief that all their individual stories eventually condense and fit into the structure of a larger plot. So, in their own way, Marvel Studios tells their stories exactly as the comics would even if the beats differ. They have their own individual characters with their own individual stories which then set up elements and plot points that will eventually interweave with other characters in a larger event. Now that the “The Infinity Saga” concluded back in 2019, many fans are left to wonder exactly how Marvel Studios will move forward heading into Phase 4 and Phase 5 in terms of the stories they’ll tell next, and we believe that the answer actually dates all the way back to 2008. You remember 2008, right? It is when a little-known Marvel Studios introduced the MCU with Iron Man.

    Now, the first film of the MCU’s Phase 4 is Black Widow, and while the film might be chronologically set in the “Infinity Saga Timeline”, we must acknowledge that this film will be hoping to accomplish the equivalent of what Iron Man did back in 2008. This film will kick off a brand-new story that will eventually build up towards a larger plot down the line. I have reason to believe that Black Widow will set the seeds for the possible introduction of the Thunderbolts in the MCU the same way Iron Man set the seeds for the Avengers Initiative all the way back in 2008. Before I get into that discussion, let’s delve into some background info.

    “Who are the Thunderbolts?”

    01

    In the comics, the best way to describe the Thunderbolts is essentially a group of “reformed villains with the best intentions”. Think Marvel’s Suicide Squad, and General Ross is their Amanda Waller. Don’t get it twisted: there have been heroes that have been a part of the Thunderbolts (i.e. Hawkeye, Luke Cage, Elektra), but the members of this infamous group have been mostly villains. Now there have been different groups with the same mantle but they have had different leaders (most notably; Baron Zemo, Norman Osborn and Red Hulk).

    With the Avengers sort of disbanded following Avengers: Endgame, there might be some who may want to capitalize on the opportunity to become the next enhanced superteam. So now that you have a basic understanding of who and what the Thunderbolts are…

    “Let’s discuss the Thunderbolts Initiative”

    Avengers_Initiative

    There are many possible teams inside Marvel Comics lore that could “replace” the Avengers in the MCU but, right now, the Thunderbolts seem like the most plausible choice as the next superteam to take center stage, mainly because some of its seeds have already been planted way back in 2016.

    “Enter Secretary THUNDERBOLT Ross”

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    Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross was brought back into the MCU in 2016 after his last appearance in The Incredible Hulk back in 2008. During his absence, he became the Secretary of State and has served as a sort of secondary antagonist in Captain America: Civil War. I, for one, don’t necessarily believe in coincidences, especially when it comes to Marvel movies. Nearly everything Marvel Studios does in their films, whether it’s the introduction of a new character, an easter egg, or something as subtle as a name drop, has a payoff in some way or form. Now sometimes, that payoff can come in the short-term or it can be long-term. Secretary Ross’s recent appearances in the MCU, and especially his upcoming role in Black Widow, seems like it could be one of these long-term payoffs.

    Now, don’t be fooled. Just because Thaddeus’ nickname is “Thunderbolt” and he led the Thunderbolts at one point in the comics, it doesn’t mean that that’s where the Thunderbolts got their name. (In comic lore, the group received their name from Baron Zemo, who organized the first Thunderbolts). Though ironically enough, given his position of power as Secretary of State & with the Avengers out of the way, I could see Secretary Ross capitalizing on the opportunity and he could very well become the “Nick Fury” for this new phase of the MCU, mainly organizing/running the Thunderbolts from a position of power. Who could become a part of these Thunderbolts?

    Well, I have a list of possible candidates

    :

    “CANDIDATE #1: TASKMASTER”

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    With his introduction coming up in the upcoming Black Widow movie, Taskmaster could potentially be a viable candidate to join the Thunderbolts. His comic counterpart has an interesting ability, which is he possess a photographic memory and reflexes, where he’s able to duplicate nearly any physical act he sees after seeing it done by someone else only once. Based on what we’ve seen from the trailers, he may very well possess this ability, where he imitated the movements from Black Panther, Black Widow, Captain America with his shield, and Hawkeye with his bow and arrow. Someone with this ability, in my view, is far too interesting of a character simply write as a one-off, so I’m willing to bet that Taskmaster may continue in the MCU following his appearance in Black Widow.

    “CANDIDATE #2: BLACK WIDOW (YELENA BELOVA)”

    db8b0035a2dbc93737d3f149e8faf860

    Also being introduced in the upcoming Black Widow movie is none other than fellow Black Widow, and Natasha’s sister, Yelena Belova. While in the trailers we’re shown a sort of sibling bond/rivalry between the two, Yelena has served her time as an antagonist to Natasha and the Avengers in the comics: we have witnessed her joining forces with the likes of AIM and even being in the ranks of the Thunderbolts. Now, Yelena’s fate in this film is something I have previously discussed here on Murphy’s Multiverse (POSSIBLE SPOILERS IN THAT ARTICLE SO BEWARE), but ultimately, considering that this film is supposed to be a passing of the torch from Natasha to Yelena, I could see Yelena being a part of the Thunderbolts down the line following her debut in Black Widow.

    “CANDIDATE #3: BARON ZEMO”

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    What team would be complete without a leader? And who better to lead the Thunderbolts than the man who single-handedly manipulated the Avengers into their disbandment in Civil War? Baron Zemo is a well-trained soldier and a dastardly mastermind with an incredible “will and patience”. His upcoming appearance in the Disney+ show; The Falcon and The Winter Soldier could set up Zemo to eventually gather the attention of Secretary Ross and have him work under the radar as the leader of the Thunderbolts, similar to how Zemo operated in the comics with the original Thunderbolts. It wouldn’t be a surprise to me for Zemo to take up this role and join the Thunderbolts in this fashion.

    “CANDIDATE #4: GHOST”Ant-Man-and-the-Wasp-Ghost-concept-art

    Introduced as one of the antagonists in Ant-Man and the Wasp, Ghost is an interesting character with an interesting background. Her powers of quantum intangibility were a result of a Quantum accident involving her parents, which resulted in their deaths. Since being adopted by Bill Foster, S.H.I.E.L.D. had taken advantage of Ava and her powers, training her as a stealth operative that would carry out covert missions on behalf of S.H.I.E.L.D. prior to their fall in 2014. Since then, she’s been presumably in hiding until 2018 when the events of Ant-Man and the Wasp took place, where she was forced into hiding once again after those events. We don’t necessarily know what happened to Ava following Avengers: Infinity War (2018) & Avengers: Endgame (2019). If Ghost was snapped, then she would probably still be alive and in the state where she left when the snap occurred. If she wasn’t, then she wouldn’t have received her quantum healing molecules that helped keep her stable since Ant-Man was trapped in the Quantum Realm for five years and everyone else was snapped. That might be a cause for concern since she might believe that everyone abandoned her again, and this might push her to the becoming a villain once more.

    HOWEVER, in an interview, Hannah John-Kamen (the actress) had mentioned “that Ghost didn’t die” and that we could see her again in the MCU. If I had to bet, we could probably see Ghost return as a member of the Thunderbolts.

    “CANDIDATE #5: ABOMINATION”

    The-Incredible-Hulk-Abomination

    Remember Emil Blonsky from The Incredible Hulk? Well, last time we heard from The Abomination was in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., where Agent Coulson casually mentioned that Blosnky was in a cryo-cell in Alaska at a secret facility known as The Vault: this facility was under “then-General, now-Secretary” Ross’ supervision, as explained by Coulson in Marvel’s One Shot: “The Consultant”. The World Security Council, along with General Ross, had even considered putting Abomination on the Avengers Initiative program before Agents Coulson & Sitwell, along with Stark, forced Ross to disagree with the decision and keep Blonsky in cryo-sleep.

    Now this detail is really important because if Ross wanted to have Blonsky be a part of the Avengers, his “new perspective” could be to eventually develop his own Avengers-esque team, starting with Emil Blonsky. Back then, the Avengers themselves stood in the way of his plan, but by having the Avengers out of the way, his plan can now come full-circle.

    “CANDIDATE #6: JUSTIN HAMMER”

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    We all remember Sam Rockwell’s interpretation of Justin Hammer from Iron Man 2 (2010). He was one of my favorite things about the film. The quirkiness, the smugness, the many ways he tried to imitate Tony Stark. The last time we saw him was at Seagate Prison during the Marvel One-Shot: All Hail the King. Now, the reason why I mention him is that he is essentially the anti-Tony Stark and he actually had a connection with “then-General” Ross. Since Tony Stark is dead following the events of Avengers: Endgame, one might assume that Ross might pull some strings to get Hammer Industries to work in developing weapons for the Thunderbolts.

    Plus, Sam Rockwell had actually shown interest in reprising his role as Justin Hammer last year during a Reddit AMA.

    “CANDIDATE #7: SONGBIRD”

    SONGBIRD

    Melissa Gold aka Songbird has yet to be introduced into the MCU. However, our very own Charles Murphy had actually made a “Connecting Imaginary Dots” article where we can see from some interesting set photos from The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, and we ALSO see a character donning a purple mohawk, similar to what Songbird dons in the comics. That article does a really good job in describing who/what Songbird is, but the most important thing we need to know about her is she has “acoustikinetic abilities” (she can use her vocals to generate her powers) and she has an interesting relationship to both the Thunderbolts and Baron Zemo.

    “WHY THESE CHARACTERS AND WHY NOW?”

    thunderbolts

    Like I said earlier, nothing Marvel does is done by pure coincidence. All of these characters, in some shape or form, have been a part of the Thunderbolts. And with potentially 5 of these characters already having a major presence in both the Black Widow movie and The Falcon and The Winter Soldier Disney+ show, the chances of something bigger being developed are certainly high.

    Besides, following the events of Avengers: Endgame and Spider-Man: Far From Home and considering that:

    • Tony Stark aka Iron Man is dead.
    • Steve Rogers passed the mantle of Captain America on to Sam Wilson aka Falcon.
    • Thor is now off-world with the Guardians of the Galaxy.
    • Natasha Romanoff aka Black Widow is dead.
    • Bruce Banner is seemingly out of commission due to his snap.
    • Hawkeye is with his family.
    • Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes are both still wanted criminals by the Sokovia Accords.
    • Spider-Man has been branded a criminal.

    The world might no longer trust the Avengers, but the world also recognizes that there will always be threats that normal law enforcement alone will not be able to stop. So, by the time Phase 4 kicks into high gear, it might be time to introduce a new team of “heroes” to the MCU. And who better than some of Marvel’s best villains?

  • Box Office Battle: Mulan vs Tenet

    Box Office Battle: Mulan vs Tenet

    Just 2 days from now, on September 4th, we will be witness to what is perhaps one of the most important weekends for the film industry, movie critics, directors, producers, and general audiences overall. This Labor Day weekend, two major motion pictures will be released simultaneously in the United States across two vastly different platforms. Now usually, this would be your typical competition between two major studios, except, it’s actually not. The stakes in this “Box Office Battle”, as I like to call it, are actually much greater than any previous box office encounter for two major studios. Very few people realize the importance of this coming weekend and it’s that the outcome of this contest could very well determine how the film industry moves forward in light of the COVID-19 Pandemic, and the result could even affect the future of cinema as we knew it then. So let’s get right into it.

     

    THE CONTENDERS:

    Judging by the title, I’m certain that you know the two films going head to head this weekend. But let’s break them down so you know how we got here.

     

    CONTENDER #1: Disney’s MULAN

    Mulan

    Disney’s Live-Action Adaptation of the famous Chinese folk tale was meant to portray a more “accurate” telling of the story of Hua Mulan. Directed by the incredible filmmaker “Niki Caro”, Disney’s “Mulan” tells a story in which “a fearless young woman risks everything out of love for her family and her country to become one of the greatest warriors China has ever known. When the Emperor of China issues a decree that one man per family must serve in the Imperial Army to defend the country from Northern invaders, Hua Mulan, the eldest daughter of an honored warrior, steps in to take the place of her ailing father. Masquerading as a man, Hua Jun, she is tested every step of the way and must harness her inner-strength and embrace her true potential. It is an epic journey that will transform her into an honored warrior and earn her the respect of a grateful nation…and a proud father.”

     

    The film stars Yifei Liu as Mulan, along with Tzi Ma, Yoson An, Gong Li, Donnie Yen, Jason Scott Lee, Ron Yuan, & Jet Li for an incredible assortment of actors and actresses of high caliber.

     

    The film was originally meant to release in theaters on March 9th of this year, but the global pandemic has since delayed the release of the film to a new release date, 6 months later.

     

    CONTENDER #2: TENET

    PITT_Hero_MLP_1440_v2 copyThe highly anticipated sci-fi/spy thriller from the acclaimed director; Christopher Nolan, “Tenet” tells a story unlike any explored before, one that can only be explored from such a director. “Armed with only one word—Tenet—and fighting for the survival of the entire world, the Protagonist journeys through a twilight world of international espionage on a mission that will unfold in something beyond real-time. Not time travel. Inversion.”

     

    The film stars John David Washington as the new Protagonist, along with the likes of Robert Pattinson, Elizabeth Debicki, Dimple Kapadia, Martin Donovan, Fiona Dourif, Yuri Kolokolnikov, Himesh Patel, Clémence Poésy, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, with Michael Caine and Kenneth Branagh for an incredibly powerful and diverse cast.

     

    Originally scheduled for a July 17, 2020 release in IMAX theaters, the film was pushed back several times before finally deciding on a September 4 release date.

     

    What makes this Box Office Contest so important?

    Unlike previous premieres, the way these two films will compete in the Box Office is vastly different.

    MULWhile Tenet will be debuting in theaters the traditional way, Mulan will be taking a different approach and will be releasing the film via their Disney+ streaming service under a new brand titled “Premier Access”, something we have discussed thoroughly on this platform. Now, the way “Premier Access” works is:

     

    “Starting September 4, with Premier Access, you can watch Mulan before it’s available to all Disney+ subscribers. Disney+ will offer Premier Access to Mulan for $29.99 on disneyplus.com and select platforms, including Apple, Google, and Roku. Once you have Premier Access to Mulan, you can watch as many times as you want on any platform where Disney+ is available. Your access to Mulan will continue as long as you are an active Disney+ subscriber.”

     

    Now, these are two relatively different business models. One offers people the ability to watch a motion picture from the safety & comfort of their homes for a fee, while the other offers audiences the more traditional way of seeing films, albeit the immediate health risk wherever theaters are still open. With any business model, there are it’s pros and it’s cons.

     

    DISNEY+ PROS/CONS:

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    The Pro: As previously mentioned, is that you can watch Mulan from the safety and comfort of your own home without having to expose yourself to the health hazards of the outside world. And with over 60 million subscribers and more on the way with the eventual launch of Disney+ in Latin America in November, if this business model is successful with Mulan and theater restrictions continue in the US & around the world, we could see more blockbuster films eventually released under this brand, mainly Disney’s Soul & Marvel Studios’ highly-anticipated Black Widow.

     

    The Con: However, by making it available only to Disney+, it limits itself in only making it available in countries where Disney+ is available, which is currently United States, Canda, Puerto Rico, the Netherlands, Australia, New Zealand, India, and Europe. Also, some subscribers of the platform have expressed their dislike for Disney’s new business model as they find the need to pay a $30 fee to see the film early is something unnecessary in their view. Disney has described the move in a Q3 earnings report, as a “one-off”, (though our own personal investigations have said otherwise).

     

    TRADITIONAL THEATER PROS/CONS:

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    The Pro: Now I personally love the theater. The smell of popcorn, the ambiance, it’s supposed to allow us to escape our reality for a few hours and immerse ourselves in a world of fiction. Going to Drive-In theaters can be a wonderful experience to escape the 4 walls we’ve been forced to live in for the past few months.

     

    The Con: However, I must also state the massive con Tenet has going against it, which is that right now, we are in a pandemic that has forced many to quarantine themselves and has forced the shutdown of many indoor theaters. While a large number of people may not plan on going so as to not risk any contagion, those who plan on going to see the film also face another potential disadvantage which is that they have to find a drive-in theater that will showcase Tenet and even if your drive-in theater is open, Warner Bros. plans to release Tenet only in “Select Drive-In Theaters”, “mandating that “Tenet” can only play in outdoor venues if indoor theaters in that particular market are open”, which in itself, limits even further the revenue that Tenet can accumulate on opening weekend.

     

    SO WHO WINS? (MY PREDICTION)

    MULAN VS TENET

    There are multiple key factors that play in here when determining which motion picture might snag the opening weekend win, or better put, who would “break even” first. Mainly:

    • Location Accessibility
    • Reviews
    • Revenue to “Break Even”

    Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet” will be available to the general public via traditional theater format only, meaning it limits itself to locations where both outdoor venues & indoor theaters are open. However, the film has some generally great reviews about how the film’s originality and use of mindbending VFX to convey a fantastic production, which boosts its popularity among audiences, but with that incredible amount of production, comes a price. In order to break even, Tenet would need to pull in around $450 million. (Which in my view, is an extremely high price to pay for such a risky move).

     

    Disney’s “Mulan” however, tells a different story. By releasing on a PVOD format, the film will be available to all 60.5 million subscribers around the world where Disney+ is available. While there aren’t many reviews available for the film, the popularity of Disney is so widespread that people are bound to know about this film already. Lastly, in order for Disney to break even, Mulan would need to generate $300 million in revenue. (Something that is entirely possible given the amount of subscribers Disney+ has and that the demographic for this film is users that have families and small kids.)

     

    So, if I had to pick a scenario of how Labor Day Weekend might play out…

     

    MULAN ULTIMATELY TAKES THE WIN FIRST.

    mulan__2020__japaneses_poster_textless_by_mintmovi3_ddruacu (2)

    I see Mulan potentially breaking even first, and possibly generating even more than what they have invested in this film during their first week, given the amount of subscribers the platform has. In my own personal opinion, it is the safest way to go see a film given the circumstances.

    Now, this does not mean that Tenet does not have a chance at breaking even. Tenet could break even, but at a much slower rate than Mulan given the circumstances of the release. For it’s international release weekend, the epic spy/sci-fi thriller managed to achieve a $53 million debut despite the ongoing pandemic. HOWEVER, while Tenet may be an absolute masterpiece from the brilliant mind of Christopher Nolan, I don’t see a scenario where many people might go to drive-in theaters (sometimes traveling large distances), limited in the way Warner Bros. has done for this film. Not only that, but people might not take the risk of exposing themselves to the virus.

    But, no one knows for sure. Only time will tell what the audiences will do next week.

  • Ant-Man, Wasp & Young Avengers: All-Out Kaiju Attack

    Ant-Man, Wasp & Young Avengers: All-Out Kaiju Attack

    It has been a bit quiet on Marvel Studios’ front. There were some tidbits here and there but nothing major. Well, looks like we got our biggest news just a few days ago. It was finally quasi confirmed that the next installment in the Ant-Man and the Wasp will be released in 2022. We still don’t know much about the project as of now but there are so many possibilities. Ant-Man showed what is possible when a man can shrink. We got a story inspired by classic heist films. The sequel Ant-Man and the Wasp played around with a stronger comedy-vibe. Director Peyton Reed got a chance to play around with Pym tech to highlight what is possible. Now, the question is where does he go from here? Well, I believe the next installment should take its inspirations from Kaiju films. 

    Young Recruits

    There have been a lot of rumors floating around about what the next film will be about. One rumor pointed to the film being the introduction of the Young Avengers. Most of the team members are being introduced in their own series. Avengers: Endgame also gave us an aged-up Cassie Lang. It is a great way to introduce her to the team and give her a chance to become her own heroine. We are about to enter the next generation of heroes. They will need some guidance and the Pym family are a perfect choice. Who knows how many young heroes are out there in the world without someone to help them control their abilities. What if one of them might be much more dangerous than they know?

    young-avengers-team-standing-together-comic-panel-1200x526

    The upcoming Ms. Marvel show will reintroduce the Inhumans to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. While nothing is confirmed, there is a good chance we might see the Terrigen bomb go off. This won’t just affect Kamala Khan but many other unsuspecting people. Among them is a young man named Kei Kawade a.ka. Kaiju Kid. He played a major role in Marvel’s Monsters Unleashed storyline. The reason for his name is due to his ability to summon monsters through his drawings. He later even learns that he can fuse or create new monsters at will. Not only would he make for a great addition to the Young Avengers but also create a unique challenge for the young heroes to face under the tutelage of Scott and Hope.

    Size-Able Match

    We know that M.O.D.O.K. was featured in an earlier draft of the third installment. The leader of A.I.M. could still fit into a story with Kaiju Kid. I am getting inspired by the upcoming Marvel’s Avengers game here. That games’ story sees George Tarleton trying to save Inhumans before turning into the iconic giant head in a floating chair. They can still use this base concept and flip it on its head, A.I.M could still be in the script. With a sudden spike in monster appearances since the Terrigen incident, A.I.M is hunting down its source of origin. The organization filled the void that Tony Stark left behind after his death in Avengers: Endgame. After purchasing Hammer Industries, they became the #1 weapon manufactures and even added their own private army. It is unclear who took over the company after their original founder Aldrich Killian passed away. Still, someone is pulling the ropes behind the scenes.

    modok

    It becomes a race for Ant-Man and Wasp to locate who they believe might be behind it. Scott is forced to turn into Giant-Man multiple times to take down a variety of different monsters. They also get interrupted by A.I.M that are overly vigilant towards the young team. As time goes by, the mysterious mastermind starts to get more involved as he realizes that Pym is also a part of the hunt. It all comes to the moment that an unsuspecting Kawade gets confronted by the private army. Scott tries to come to his rescue but also ends up captured. Both are brought in front of the man behind the scenes, M.O.D.O.K. He reveals that he once worked alongside Pym for S.H.I.E.L.D. His own ventures into the Quantum Realm opened his eyes to a new world and took a toll on his body, but his mind now knows everything he needs to know.

    Kaiju Showdown

    In his elongated speech, M.O.D.O.K. reveals that he has no interest in the Inhuman gene. The reality is that he was focused on the Quantum remnant that was found on each of the monsters. A part of his Inhumanity is connected to the realm, which allows him to imagine the kaiju he summons. He doesn’t have full control over them but it is something Michelle Pfeiffer‘s Janet van Dyne can help him control. Sadly, Kawade is worried he will hurt someone. He doesn’t want to lose his parents and feels threatened by both groups. He starts frantically finishing a drawing he’s been working on throughout the film so that they would leave him alone. The final monster he summons will be the biggest yet. Maybe he will even be someone we’ve met before.

    00926047c863b1a39792834605f7ec1b

    Earlier this year, we heard a rumor that an iconic dragon of the Marvel universe will make his debut in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. It is none other than the giant dragon that was introduced in Strange Tales #89, Fin Fang Foom. Yes, in the middle of the final battle between A.I.M.. and the Young Avengers, Kid Kaiju accidentally summons the MCU’s version of Godzilla. The young team fights a group of robots and Beekeepers, as Scott is forced to fight the colossal dragon. They could pay a great tribute by having them fight through miniature buildings that get destroyed throughout their fight. Part of me wished they’d even have a few shots of Fin Fang Foom being a guy in a rubber suit because Scott gets electrocuted and can’t see clearly. It all ends with Cassie joining the fray and calming down Kei, as A.I.M. retreats to fight another day. Foom gets transported back to where he came from, as Scott managed to keep him at bay. Janet promises to help him hone his abilities and he becomes a member of the now officially formed Young Avengers. Scott looks on in pride as his own daughter joins them.

    Quantum All The Way

    This concept continues where we left off. Hank and Janet are still researching the Quantum Realm, especially after the Avengers managed to travel through time during Endgame. M.O.D.O.K. being connected to it also adds to why the character is quite unhinged throughout the story. Pym has a similar track record like Tony for former colleagues turning evil. This way, the resurgence of A.I.M. also fits into the story and gives them a reason to be an active participant. Kid Kaiju’s ability of inter-dimensional vision in the comics. We know that this has been connected to the Quantum Realm, so it makes sense to connect these abilities. It also opens up a whole new world to explore as Hank might try to decipher what connection the Inhuman gene might have with the realm. MCU isn’t a stranger to tweaking some origins, so the film could also be introduced to explore how exactly the Kree has created this new race of humans long ago. Still, this is just an idea by connecting various dots that have been preventing themselves during the pandemic. Whatever Peyton Reed may have planned, I cannot wait to see it.

    Source: DisInsider, Digital Spy

  • The Theory of Widows #2: A Death in the Family

    The Theory of Widows #2: A Death in the Family

    I want to start this article by saying that the theory I’m about to discuss has not left my mind for the past few months and it all started when I noticed something in one of the trailers for Marvel Studios’ Black Widow. The following theory I’m about to discuss not only discusses what I consider to be one of the most important scenes from the film, but also the film’s most important plot twist. So, take the following letters in bold as your general warning.

    **This article delves deep into a possible major spoiler for the upcoming MCU film, Black Widow. Consider yourselves warned.

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    Still here? Alright then!

    If you’ve read the title, then I’m sure you’d understand what I’m about to discuss, but if you require a blunter description:

    SOMEONE’S GONNA DIE IN THIS MOVIE.

    And when I mean someone, I don’t mean an extra or a one-off character. I mean someone who is part of this central cast. Now the question is: who?

    bw-online-char-combo-v5-lg-1580689197854

    We already know Natasha’s fate following the events of this film, where she heads off to join Captain America, The Falcon and Scarlet Witch and eventually the rest of the Avengers in both Infinity War (2018) and Endgame (2019). At the very least we know she’s safe for now.

    What of Yelena Belova, Melina Vostokoff and Alexei Shostakov? Could one (if not all) meet their fates during this film? Well, as Charles would usually say, “it’s a 50/50 chance. Either they’ll die, or they’ll live.”

    I believe I have enough evidence to make the case for at least one of these character’s ultimate demise. And that character is none other than…

    YELENA BELOVA

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    Now let’s discuss the scenes that lead me to believe this.

    Evidence #1: The “potential death scene”

    giphy

    Now, this gif that you see right here is from the final trailer for Black Widow. In this shot, you see Yelena and Natasha embracing together in what appears to be a forehead bump. Here’s what’s really interesting about this shot in particular: Natasha is very clearly devasted and heartbroken in this shot. Why? One can assume that something tragic has just occurred prior to this sequence, but it’s not so much what possibly happened that gives credence to this theory as much as who Natasha is reacting to this event with and how Natasha herself is behaving in this gif. Notice that she’s bringing in Yelena for this hug. Why her instead of Melina or Alexei? If they are embracing, why isn’t Yelena reciprocating the movement back at Natasha?

    Notice how Natasha blinks several times while crying, yet Yelena has a motionless (almost dead) look on her face where she doesn’t appear to even blink? Now, as an Anatomy and Physiology TA, I can tell you that when you look in different directions, your eyes will always blink no matter the direction you’ll look to. (You just tried it out for yourself, didn’t you? Good!)

    Anyway, do you notice that when Yelena is being brought into the embrace her eyes don’t blink or move even once? She is completely focused on just one spot and her eyes do not move the entire time. Look closer: it isn’t just her eyes, but her body doesn’t move either. In fact, in this shot, Natasha is PULLING Yelena into this embrace.

    So, just with this shot alone, analyzing the body movements, plus Natasha’s reaction and movements, plus Yelena’s stillness, leaves me to believe that Natasha is indeed mourning her sister in this shot.

    Now, if you’re skeptical and don’t believe me fully, then let’s continue with some more clips I’ve got.

    Evidence #2: Widow’s Jacket

    Now, remember that look Black Widow debuted in Avengers: Infinity War with the green vest? Well, that vest is actually worn by Yelena in this movie, as shown in the first image. When Natasha gets up from the floor in the second shot, she’s holding on to that same vest. My assumption is that Natasha took Yelena’s vest as a memento to remember her by and that her look in Infinity War is a nod to Yelena Belova.

    Now I know what you are about to say; But Edward, what about that shot where they’re both standing together side by side!?

    Yeah, I took those into account, and they stand out even more when you pay attention to the whole sequence where Alexei says “We fight with you.”

    Screen Shot 2020-08-26 at 9.18.33 PM

    Rule #1 when dealing with Marvel Studios films:

    NEVER TRUST MARVEL STUDIOS. ESPECIALLY THE TRAILERS.

    Look at what Marvel has done for trailers in the past, with the Hulk in Wakanda with the Avengers during Avengers: Infinity War or Nebula fighting in the ruins of the Avengers Facility when it was actually 2014 Nebula during Avengers: Endgame. Anyone remember this?

    Here we have a classic example of how Marvel Studios alters scenes in trailers to hide the final product, which may contain an important plot point or twist in the final product.

    I think this entire interaction is a fake scene with Red Guardian, Melina and Yelena. Mainly because the VFX and coloring of the scene with Alexei and Melina looks incomplete compared to this shot. This is in the same place and neither Alexei nor Melina nor Yelena are with her in the shot, yet it feels more complete because of the camera angle shot, the lighting and the coloring of the scene.

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    If I am right, don’t fret! Here’s the bright side, YelenaStans: Always remember Rule #2 with Marvel Studios films:

    NO ONE EVER STAYS DEAD.

    Screen Shot 2020-08-26 at 10.36.30 PM

    This shot (also from the final trailer for Black Widow), shows Yelena strapped to a bed. Notice she’s wearing her white combat gear that she would wear underneath the vest Natasha currently has in her possession. This scene would have to happen immediately after the events of what I consider to be the ending. Here’s what’s interesting: see the machine next to her with the logo? Can’t read it? Let me flip it around, increase the brightness and sharpen it for you.

    Screen Shot 2020-08-26 at 10.36.30 PM

    Right here, we can clearly see the corporation known as A.I.M. making their presence known once again in the MCU since their debut in Iron Man 3 (2013).

    My prediction is that we are most likely seeing a “Winter Soldier” scenario where Yelena will be “enhanced” as shown by the line around Yelena’s head. This leaves me to believe that Marvel will try to incorporate the storyline from the comics where Yelena accepts to be a part of A.I.M. in exchange for becoming an “adaptoid”, and THIS is how the Black Widow mantle “lives on”.

    Why make her an adaptoid, you ask? Who would do such a thing? Could Marvel be setting up Yelena as the new Black Widow for something bigger in the future? A new team perhaps?

    THAT’S for another theory.