The End of an Era: The Top 15 Moments of the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Voted by CHS
BY TIARA ROCHON
Now that Endgame has been released, many have flocked to see it on the big screen. Phase 4 of the MCU has officially ended, along with the original six Avengers. So what better way to celebrate this end by going over CHS students’ top 15 favorite moments from the films? (This list excludes Fox and Sony Marvel franchises like X-Men, Fantastic 4, and Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire’s Spiderman).
#15: Tony Stark Creates Mark 1, the first Iron Man suit- Iron Man (& Avengers: Endgame end ‘scene’)
When kidnapped by terrorists and held against his will, he creates the first Iron Man suit to escape. Not only is this the first look at the iconic Iron Man suit, but it is also a reference to the comic books. It becomes a nicer touch at the end of the Endgame credits in which you can hear the clanging of his hammer.
#14: Tony snaps with the Gauntlet- Avengers: Endgame
During the battle between Thanos (Josh Brolin) and our beloved heroes, Thanos holds all six Infinity Stones, snapping once again as he states “I am inevitable”. To his dismay, Tony (Robert Downey Jr) gets ahold of all six Infinity Stones before Thanos could notice. “I am Iron Man”. And then Tony snaps. Tony knew that he would not survive the amount of power from the Gauntlet, but he sacrificed himself to protect Earth. Not only was this the end of a true hero, but the end of the heart of the MCU.
#13: Captain Marvel fights the Kree- Captain Marvel
As Captain Marvel/Carol Danvers (Brie Larson) defends her newfound allies, the Skrull, she must fight the people who brainwashed and trained her to be a weapon. Although Carol is extremely powerful, the Kree prove to be a close match to her. Though in the end when Carol faces her former ally, Yon-Rogg (Jude Law), she doesn’t give him any time to give the villain monologue and fight, she blasts him, ultimately defeating him and sending him back to space. Not only were these scenes visually captivating thanks to the CGI, but they were empowering for women and girls across the world.
#12: The Avengers assemble to fight the Chitauri- The Avengers
When Thanos sends Loki (Tom Hiddleston) and the alien race, the Chitauri, to Earth to attack and take over, the Avengers must assemble for the first time to defend Earth. Although each of the Avengers came from many different backgrounds, (a god, a billionaire playboy philanthropist, a WWII soldier, a former Russian spy, a father of three, and a scientist with seven PhDs) each hero unites together to fight for a common cause, to defend planet Earth.
#11: ‘Proof That Tony Stark Has a Heart”- Iron Man & Avengers: Endgame
When Pepper Potts, Tony Stark’s CEO for his company (Gwyneth Paltrow), gets ahold of Tony’s arc reactor, she encases it with the words ‘Proof That Tony Stark Has A Heart’ and gifts it to him. Although a nice sentiment in the very first MCU film, it means so much more in Endgame. As all of our heroes attend Tony’s funeral, a bouquet of flowers with the reactor nestled among them is placed into the river by Tony’s home. Not only is this piece the beginning of Tony’s and Pepper’s relationship, but it also became the end of it.
#10: Bucky and Shuri- Black Panther end credit scene
As the scene opens, Wakandan children are seen laughing and talking to an unknown person. As they run out of the hut, Shuri (Letitia Wright) asks if they have been bothering the person, as if on cue, Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) exits the hut without his mechanical arm. Not only does this show continuity from the end of Captain America: Civil War, but it reveals to us how much Bucky has progressed due to Shuri helping him crack his brainwashing from Hydra.
#9: The Snapped Return- Avengers: Endgame
When Professor Hulk/Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) snaps with the gauntlet, ultimately injuring his right arm, he brings all of the ‘snapped’ back from Infinity War. As Captain America (Chris Evans) faces off with Thanos, he hears Sam Wilson/Falcon (Anthony Mackie) say ‘On your left.’ This then commences the scenes of many portals opening, revealing all of the snapped heroes, along with many others who did not travel to space. Not only do we get to see all of our heroes fight on one battlefield together, but we finally get to hear Captain America say ‘Avengers Assemble.’
#8: Tony Stark and Howard Stark talk about family- Avengers: Endgame
When Tony and Steve go back to the 1970s to steal the Tesseract and more Pym Particles, Tony runs into his father, Howard Stark (John Slattery). As the two make short conversation (Tony under the alias ‘Howard Potts’), the topic of family and children come up. Tony reveals that he himself has a daughter, while Howard reveals that he and his wife are expecting a child. Howard reveals that he has no clue what to do as a father, but wants the best for the child. As they part, Tony hugs him (getting a puzzled expression from Howard) and thanks to him… for everything, he’s done for the country. Although this moment is brief, it provides more closure for Tony, who as a young man didn’t see his father in the brightest light. Not to mention this makes this scene sweeter knowing that Tony had seen the recording of his father saying to Tony that he was ‘my greatest creation will always be you.’
#7: Thor’s Entrance: Thor Ragnarok
As Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Bruce Banner/The Hulk, and Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson) prepare to face off against Thor and Loki’s sister, Hela the Goddess of Death (Cate Blanchett), Thor makes a large comeback to fight. With Led Zeppelin’s powerful rock song ‘Immigrant Song’ playing in the background, it creates a surge of electricity and power within the scene. Many fans regarded this as one of the most powerful and incredible scenes of the MCU before Infinity War and Endgame.
#6: Hulk defeats Loki: The Avengers
As Tony Stark and Loki talk about how superior they are, Loki states that he has an army, while Tony goes, “We have a Hulk.” As if on cue, Hulk smashes his way into the room, picking up the God of Mischief by his legs and swinging him back and forth, while slamming him into the ground a few times for good measure. Although being a God, Loki is taken down by a rather ‘unintelligent being’. This ultimately creates a comedic end to the gods’ attempt to take over Earth.
#5: Tony Stark’s ‘I Love You 3000”- Avengers: Endgame
As Tony’s closest friends and family view his final recorded message, Tony recites back the words his daughter Morgan (Lexi Rabe) had told him before turning to shut off his final hologram recording. This creates a final goodbye between the family/friends and Tony before sending off his arc reactor. ‘I love you 3,000’ not only was part of the final conversation between the father and his daughter but an actual saying that Robert Downey Jr. and his real-life children use. I’m sure we can all say that we love and miss Tony Stark 3,000.
#4: Women of Marvel protect Peter Parker- Avengers: Endgame
As Captain Marvel/Carol Danvers greets Peter Parker (Tom Holland) and asks for the gauntlet created by Tony, all of our *alive* favorite female heroes surround her and Peter to protect them so they could deliver the Gauntlet to safety. Among this group, we see Pepper Potts in her rescue suit, Nebula (Karen Gillan), 2014 Gamora (Zoe Saldana), Scarlet Witch/Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen), and Mantis (Pom Klementieff) (and many more of our strong heroines). Not only does this create a precious moment of all the women running to Peter and Carol’s defense, but a strong feminist view on how strong women are and can be, with and without amazing powers.
#3: Steve and Peggy get their dance- Avengers: Endgame
When Steve goes back in time to return all six of the Infinity Stones to their respective timelines, he decides to stay in the past to reunite with his only love, Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell). As an older Steve appears in the future, Sam Wilson asks about ‘her’ when he notices Steve’s wedding band. Steve does not divulge into his marriage, but we are lucky to have a context scene. This scene slowly pans to a house with music playing from a record player, to reveal Steve and Peggy lovingly slow dancing together. This scene creates continuity from Captain America: The First Avenger when Steve says he’ll have to postpone their dance before he crashes and is frozen in ice for 70 years. It’s even more of a heartwarming scene knowing that Steve had not seen Peggy since she had died sometime in her 90s in Captain America: Winter Soldier (creating about a 9 year period).
#2: Captain America wields Mjolnir- Avengers: Endgame
As Captain America and Thor face off with Thanos, Cap is able to summon Mjolnir, Thor’s hammer (before Stormbreaker, his second hammer). Eventually, he ends up wielding both of Thor’s hammer, before Thor tells him he may have the ‘tiny one’ (Mjolnir). This scene shocked audiences across the globe- becoming one of the ‘greatest’ Marvel moments within the MCU. This creates an homage to the scene in Avengers: Age of Ultron when everyone fails to become ‘worthy’ to wield the God of Lightning’s hammer. Thor watched smugly as no one could pick it up or shift it until Steve/Cap is able to move it the slightest bit. Overall, this scene amazed fans.
Honorable Mentions:
- Peter Parker and Tony Stark reunite- Avengers: Endgame
- Black Widow sacrifices herself for the Soul Stone- Avengers: Endgame
- ‘Get Help’ Scene with Thor and Loki- Thor: Ragnarok
- Tony and Harley meet- Iron Man: 3
- Scarlet Witch/Wanda avenges Vision- Avengers: Endgame
#1: Stan Lee Cameos: All Films
Stan Lee was the creator/co-creator of the majority of Marvel characters. He built the large comic franchise we know today and has made a cameo in all Disney-created MCU films. Also creating a comedic or sweet moment, Stan always made the films special. After his passing in November of 2018, the entire fandom was shaken. It was devastating to know that he would no longer be able to interact with the franchise and fans, but comforting to know he lived a fulfilling life, all the way up to 95 years of age. When watching Captain Marvel- it was opened with the traditional comic book transition- but only of Stan Lee and none of our favorite heroes. Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse (Sony franchise), Captain Marvel, and Endgame were his final cameos.
Thank you, Stan Lee, for everything you have done.
Excelsior!
(Thank you to all who filled out my surveys after school and during lunch!)
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