After weeks of speculation, the Avengers 4 trailer has blazed online – and the title has been revealed too. Here's our breakdown.
1. Tony Stark in space
Avengers: Infinity War culminated in Thanos (Josh Brolin) obliterating half of all life in the universe. This left survivor Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) in the tricky position of being stranded on the villain's home planet of Titan. And all alone no less – he was forced to watch the likes of Spider-Man (Tom Holland) crumble into dust in front of his eyes.
The Avengers 4 trailer begins on a bleak note for Tony, flying through space on an unnamed ship recording a video message into what appears to be a damaged Iron Man helmet. We know who he's addressing – the name "Miss Potts" reveals it's his love interest Pepper (Gwyneth Paltrow) – but how did he get the ship? Where's he going? And, more significantly, is this the end for the character who kick-started the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU)?
There's certainly no acknowledgement of Tony's child, rumoured to be appearing in the movie. Judging from the dialogue, it appears Tony is on some kind of do-or-die journey back to Earth, but seems to be somewhat pessimistic and beaten down by his chances, food and oxygen running low. ("Part of the journey is the end," he sighs.)
Is this the end for Iron Man? If so, this would be the momentous culmination of Phase 3 of the MCU that we've been promised, one that retires some of our most popular characters and prepares to make way for new and exciting ones.
2. Everything crumbles
The reveal of the Marvel Studios logo wouldn't usually be worth flagging up. But look at the effect applied to it – the design visibly crumbles in front of our eyes, alluding to the destructive force of Thanos and that chilling scene at the end of Infinity War when 50% of all life dissolved into nothing. Plus, the way 10 has been incorporated (referring to 10 years of the MCU) is awesome.
3. Thanos reigns supreme
The evil Mad Titan remains largely unseen in the Avengers 4 trailer, but one image strikes fear into us: his armour raised high above an eerily quiet and devastated landscape (presumably Wakanda). It brings home the fact our Avengers lost the Infinity War battle and a new master now reigns supreme over all. But how long can Thanos' ruthless hold last?
4. The fallout from Thanos
Throughout the MCU, our heroes have established many emotional and physical scars from their various battles. But never have we seen the likes of Captain America (Chris Evans), who is significantly seen weeping, and Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) utterly at a loss as to where they go this time. The new Avengers base, last seen in Captain America: Civil War, is now a desolate and lonely place where no amount of technological prowess or super-human strength will change things.
Of course, the shot of a dismayed Bruce Banner/Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) standing in front of a projection of Scott Lang/Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) is a devious way of establishing a potential saviour on the horizon... That said, we can clearly see the image of Wakandan gadgets expert Shuri (Letitia Wright) on the display next to Lang, so is she still alive? The end of Infinity War didn't make it clear, so she could emerge as another secret weapon in the Avengers' arsenal against Thanos.
5. Nebula returns
Karen Gillan's Guardians of the Galaxy character Nebula has veered between the poles of good and bad. However, in Infinity War she reluctantly teamed with the Avengers to help bring down her adopted father Thanos. She was one of the survivors of his dreaded finger snap, and it remains to be seen whether she'll still be at Iron Man's side as per the end of Infinity War.
One thing's for sure: the upcoming battle is more personal for her than possibly anyone else in the MCU. We see her touching what appears to be an item of clothing, maybe indicating her grief over the death of half-sister Gamora (Zoe Saldana) at the hands of Thanos.
6. Hawkeye is back
Jeremy Renner's Clint Barton/Hawkeye controversially sat out the events of Infinity War – so where was he? Of course, the Avengers 4 trailer doesn't make that clear, but he's now firmly back in the fold. It looks like former love interest Black Widow goes to track him down in an unnamed city – judging from the ambience, we'd assume it's somewhere like Japan. And his brandishing of what looks like a samurai sword promises an upgrade from the bows and arrows he's used before.
This may also be a sign that Hawkeye has upgraded to the Ronin persona familiar from the comics. Ronin is a Japanese term for warrior, and Barton was but one of several to adopt such an identity. He in fact was the second to do so, taking over from original Ronin Maya Lopez, a deaf women with photographic reflexes – whether any of this history will translate into the film remains to be seen.
7. Captain America's plan
Upstanding Captain America has always been the strategic heart of the Avengers initiative – after all, that's what a background in World War II will do to a man. And it seems that the final fight against Thanos stems from one of his plans – as he reveals to Black Widow, he's placing everything on a last-ditch attempt to reverse Thanos' destruction: "I know it's going to work... Because I don't know what to do if it doesn't."
We've no idea what said plan is, but given he's glancing at a photo of old flame and wartime ally Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell), we get the sense this is Cappy's most personal – and possibly final – battle.
Plus, the beard is gone, so you know he means business.
8. The Avengers 4 title is revealed
Cleverly, the reveal of the title comes as everything re-forms in front of our eyes – this indicates a reversal of Thanos' destructive capabilities, and a re-establishing of all the physical life that was obliterated in his universe-conquering scheme.
Of course, what we're really here for is the title, and it is revealed as Avengers: Endgame. Many had indeed speculated that this was the title (rumours began swirling months ago), and, of course, we're now asking questions.
Whose endgame is this referring to? In addition to the final conflict with Thanos, it may also indicate the end of the road for some of our most iconic characters. As we've previously reported, the contracts for Downey Jr., Evans and Chris Hemsworth (barely glimpsed in this trailer as Thor) are coming to an end with Avengers 4, so this could be the dramatic (and not a little tear-jerking) farewell we've been bracing for.
9. Ant-Man is back from the Quantum Realm
We're not sure how Paul Rudd's shrinking superhero escaped from the Quantum Realm – the end-credits scene in Ant-Man and The Wasp revealed him to be stranded there right as Thanos devastated half of the galaxy's existence. However, he now emerges as the secret weapon in the fight against Thanos, promising to assist Captain America, Black Widow, Thor and Hulk as they approach the endgame.
It seems like we'll have to keep speculating about the Quantum Realm's role in the Avengers 4 storyline for a little while longer...
When you've come to terms with all this, check out the trailer again and tweet us your thoughts @Cineworld. Avengers: Endgame is released on 26th April 2019.
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