Category: Features

The final trailer for Marvel Studios’ Eternals gives us a closer look at the titular alien race, the Deviants, and even the Celestials. Yet many fans are not only intrigued by the main cast but also how they might fit into the wider Marvel Cinematic Universe. There are many questions the trailer still leaves us with, but also some intriguing hints that could be built upon. So using comic runs and promotional materials let’s guess as to where the Eternals might go next.

Created in 1976 by Jack Kirby, the Eternals are tied to the cosmos and Earth. They are a result of Celestial experiments on archaic humanity. Despite being immortals the “minds [of the Eternals] remained all too human” as noted in Avengers #361 Vol 1. This is perhaps where, as Thena suggests in the trailer, their love of humans comes from amidst their long-standing watch over them. As they are pulled in opposing directions between being amongst humanity and learning more about their Celestial creators in the cosmos, we might see our group of ten Eternals split between those different overarching stories of the MCU going forward. This is perhaps even more likely if the film follows some elements of Neil Gaiman‘s (Vol 3, 2006) and Kieron Gillen‘s (Vol 5, 2021) comic runs. What made these two stories stand out was that there’s a betrayer amongst them.

Sersi’s fondness for humans and her romance with Dane Whitman seems to suggest she might be amongst the top candidates to stay on Earth. Sersi was a member of the Avengers between issues #314 (Vol 1, 1990) and #375 (Vol 1, 1994) along with Dane Whitman. It suggests she might have a role to play alongside the cinematic version of Earth’s mightiest heroes. In the trailers, we’ve seen Kingo enjoying life as a famous Bollywood star, meaning he might not have any interest in the isolation of space. It’s not too hard to imagine him being a famous hero on Earth once the Eternals reveal themselves.

Sprite as the Eternal trickster child, who wants to experience fun amongst humans as she does in the 2006 Gaiman run, seems bound to the planet as well. Similarly, Makkari is repeatedly seen saving humans and Phastos’ home setup seems to suggest he has a human family, indicating each of them having a preference for being rooted where they are, regardless of whether they join a team of adventurers or not. 

One of the leading candidates for space adventures is Ikaris. Although he volunteers to lead the Avengers in the teaser trailer, it’s also clear that his relationship with Sersi might be changing. Although it has been teased before, thanks to the update that Sersi and Dane are dating in the modern era rather than the past, perhaps might motivate Ikaris to head out into space. He has sometimes shown more reticence than other Eternals to help humans and join the Avengers in the comics. So, it’ll be curious to see whether that translates into the film or whether he goes in search of the Celestials or even others of their race.

In the most recent comic run by Gillen, Druig is another Eternal who has come under suspicion of being a traitor. In the trailer, it looks like he might be running some kind of a cult in a forest, suggesting he disagrees with how other Eternals have interacted with humans, as earlier character descriptions have suggested. Perhaps his disdain toward humanity might lead to a mission to get involved in the cosmic politics soon to engulf various planets and races of the universe. 

There are some Eternals whose destinations are less foreseen. Ajak has often performed the role of the communicator with the Celestials in the various comic runs. Whether she stays on Earth to protect humanity or goes off into space to find out more about their otherworldly masters is an open question. The trailer teases a connection with Ikaris, which might hint at a joint journey. Thena and Gilgamesh have complicated comic histories. She’s been involved with the Deviant leader Kro and even bore him twin children in the comics, while Gilgamesh has been an on-off Avenger. In the trailer, he seems bound to Thena in some way. They are still hiding quite a bit of detail to really pinpoint these character’s future journeys.

Even if any of Eternals die, as they have done a myriad times, The Machine, the narrator of the recent Kieron Gillen run, is their resurrection protocol in the comics. It is an artificial intelligence that is composed of and thinks of itself as Earth. This is particularly interesting as EW recently noted that Chloe Zhao “​​loved the idea of treating the Earth itself as an 11th character in the film.”  Fully introducing The Machine as a disembodied voice for a character could be an intriguing prospect for an antagonist in a sequel.

Another aspect could be how the various other hosts of Eternals that might be on different planets similar to Titan, Thanos’ planet could factor into a sequel. Perhaps we might even see some other Eternals in Thor: Love & Thunder, as Gorr The God Butcher goes on a tour of destruction. Drawing the Eternals team back together again seems like it will again represent a tension between planetary and cosmic conflict.

There are plenty of different places for the Eternals to join various overarching stories on the streets, across the globe, and beyond the stars. Whether it’s keeping to themselves and trying not to interfere again, saving people on street corners, joining The Avengers, or going in search of the Celestials, there are plenty of opportunities for each of them to go in different directions before coming back together for a sequel. 

Source: EW

Marvel Studios caught fans off guard with their early morning drop of the first full trailer for their upcoming film, Eternals. The trailer not only showcased the beautiful scenery we’ve heard so much about alongside impressive displays of power from the group, but also seemingly gave a major clue as to what exactly the ancient aliens will be fighting against in the film.

While the trailer finally showcases the Deviants, the changing people who are forever pitted against the Eternals, it also indicates that while they pose a formidable threat, they’re not the biggest threat to Earth. In the trailers opening moments, Salma Hayek’s Ajak explains that when Bruce Banner snapped half of the Earth’s population back into existence, it provided enough for something called “the emergence” to begin. The way the trailer is cut, it’s easy enough to believe that the emergence refers to a new wave of Deviants coming forth to threaten the Earth; however, given the trailer’s heavy emphasis on Celestials and the fact that part of the film seems to be about assembling the team for a larger threat, it seems like a more terrifying, underlying threat may be looming.

Underlying may be the key descriptor for the film’s true threat, if comic book (alternate) history is to be followed. In 1999, Marvel Comics published Earth X, a limited series from creators Alex Ross, Jim Krueger and John Paul Leon. Taking place on Earth-997, Earth X was notable for Ross’ incredible redesigns of several characters who inhabited a wild dystopian possible future. Central to the series’ plot (and potentially to Eternals) was the seemingly crazy idea that the Celestials had implanted an egg at the center of Earth that, after eons of gestating and being protected by the Eternals would “emerge” and destroy the Earth. Interestingly enough, the Celestial eggs are also used to explain why that universe’s Galactus (revealed to be Franklin Richards) gets busy eating planets.

Earth X was enormously popular and spawned three additional series, the most recent having been published in 2020. That said, it’s still relatively unknown, as are the Eternals, so it would provide a wonderful bit of influence for Marvel Studios big screen adaptation. If the “emergence” Ajak is talking about is indeed that of a Celestial emerging from the Earth’s core, the Deviants are going to seem like small potatoes to the team of Eternals.

Eternals is set to hit theaters November 5, 2021.

Finally, the new trailer for Eternals has arrived. It offers a closer look at the unique take on a Marvel Cinematic Universe story. After remaining hidden for centuries, they return to face an event known as the Emergence. Yet, we also get the confirmation that they are only allowed to interact with humanity to protect them from the evil Deviants. It’s the franchise’s way of explaining how they weren’t there to take on Thanos and other world-ending catalysts. The trailer gave us our first look at these twisted creatures that are a far cry from the humanoid figures we’ve grown up with within the comics. Yet, these small details may have confirmed that the Mad Titan has a very different origin from the comics.

Thanos was the son of Eternals A’lars and Sui-San alongside Eros on the moon of Titan. We briefly visited his destroyed home, but it’s still uncertain if the race has a connection to this planet. Thanos’ purple skin turned out to be the result of him carrying Deviants gene. His mother Sui-San feared what he became and tried to kill him. Yet, she got stopped even though she warned them what he might become when he aged. In his early years, he was a pacifist until he fell in love with Death.

So, if he is, in fact, part of the Deviants, wouldn’t that constitute that the Eternals would have to stop him? Yet the designs, even that of the only humanoid Deviant, are far removed from what we know from the race. So, it almost seems safe to say that they won’t explore his direct connection to the Eternals and the Deviants. There are also no signs of others from this race outside of the core group teased in the trailer.

So, who knows if the Eternals even exist beyond these members, which means Thanos’ parents and family might simply be from the planet Titan. When talking about his past, he implied they lived for quite some time on the planet before it met its untimely end. He could still have a genetic defect that makes him stand out from his race but has no direct connection to the Deviants.

The big question is also why the Eternals can only act when Deviants are involved. It almost seems like the Celestials, who gave them this order, are just trying to hide the genetic mistake they’ve unleashed upon the world. The films didn’t focus much on his past, which we thought might get explored in the Eternals film. Yet, this approach lets them tell a unique take on these characters and the Celestials’ influence over them without treading old ground. In reality, there’s no necessity to connect this race with Thanos.

As much as the Marvel universe intertwines, we’ve seen them take unique approaches to bring the comics to life. The unique take also opens up the question of how they might approach his brother Eros, also known as Starfox if he makes an appearance at some point in the MCU. We also have rumors that we’ll get introduced to other alien races that are known as “Gods” to humans. Perhaps, their introduction is the set-up to further exploring the concept first introduced with Thor’s arrival on Earth. Either way, it’ll be interesting if the trailers are hiding some details that might connect them after all.