There is really no need to emphasize how awesome, yet heartbreaking, Avengers: Endgame turned out to be.
However, that’s exactly what’s about to happen. Many shed tears during Tony’s death, Natasha’s demise, and Steve’s 80-years-too-late with Peggy, amongst other moments. We can’t forget that this is a 3-hour movie with dozens of characters dealing with, not only 50 hours worth of past Marvel flicks, but the consequences of living in a world where half of the universe was suddenly erased.
This means that there were probably a handful of moments with much more of an emotional impact than audiences first realized. Meaningless quotes, split-second scenes, and off-screen implications may hold more weight than initially apparent. So, in an attempt to plunge a dagger into our already open wounds, here are 10 facts about the Avengers that make Endgame more heartbreaking.
Last words
Let’s start off with a rather sad quote. Or, that is what it will become for anyone who reads this article. Funnily enough, it happens in one of Endgame’s most joyous moments. As the assembled crew of surviving heroes band together around the “time heist machine” in their Hank Pym-inspired quantum suits, they all get the opportunity to throw in a couple of one-liners.
Rocket compliments Cap’s public speaking ability, Scott agrees with him, and Clint “promises” to bring back the Guardian’s ship intact. In Natasha Romanoff’s case, she simply looks around and cheerfully tells her teammates: “see you in a minute”. As we all know, she did not, in fact, see them in a minute…because she threw herself off a cliff on Vormir. And suddenly, a lighthearted scene turns into an ominous promise of looming death.
A chaotic world
The last Avengers movie was very focused on the Avengers (duh). Nevertheless, if Marvel Studios had gone crazy and released a six-hour movie, we might have gotten different points of view. How did the 3.5 billion survivors move on with their everyday lives in those five years? The truth is if some kind of realistic representation of the lives of the general public had been shown, Endgame would be much, much darker.
Firstly, the snap was definitely responsible for a whole lot more than half the population. Sudden plane/helicopter/car crashes would have happened all over the world, hospital beds would be left unattended, children (and even babies) would have become parentless, and the list goes on. For all of those who survived the initial consequences, many would be consumed by suicidal thoughts or terrorist-like behaviors. The world would have been more chaotic than ever before.
Public announcement
A very heartbreaking, yet inevitable fact, was first reported on Reddit by GreenGengar459. As this user suggests, the first scene after the five-year gap sees Steve Rogers managing a support group for those who seek to move on from everything they lost from the snap. What is most surprising, though, is the Captain’s mention of the Mad Titan indicating that those present know who Thanos is and what he did.
This means that at some point during those five years, the Avengers had to inform the worldwide public that some giant purple alien used a bunch of magic rocks to erase half of the planet’s population. Having to make that sort of announcement must have been one of the, if not the hardest things, Earth’s Mightiest Heroes had to do during that period of time. Hearing that all hope is lost from the Avengers themselves must have been equally as heartbreaking for the public.
Rocket’s tribute
This was another Reddit discovery, this time courtesy of WolfBrigadeII. His attention to detail revealed that Rocket’s new appearance in Endgame has a slight emotional touch to it. It turns out that the long, red scarf that the non-raccoon wears is exactly the same as the one around Peter Quill’s neck in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. There is no concrete evidence that it is the same scarf but…it is definitely the same scarf.
This is the only time we have ever seen the Guardian wear a scarf, and Star-Lord wasn’t using it when he was “snapped”, meaning it must have stayed behind somewhere. Either Rocket took it himself or he searched every clothing rack in the universe to find its exact replica. Either way, it is a very sweet (and sad) gesture that just goes to show that even after all their disagreements, the Guardians really are a loving family.
Traumatized Spider-Man
Imagine for a moment if you had just wasted all your energies battling a monstrous alien creature, before being defeated and dying in the arms of the person you most look up to, your father figure. Now, imagine if you instantly woke up afterward, before being sent to an even bigger battle against the same alien who killed you and his army. While this results in a win, the same father figure winds up dying right in front of you. What if you were 15 years old and this all happened in a matter of hours?
This was Peter Parker’s Infinity War/Endgame experience. The poor kid had just become an Avenger before he was thrust into this non-stop traumatic nightmare. Needless to say, it’s understandable that Spider-Man wants to leave his home and his responsibilities behind for a while in Far From Home.
Cassie Lang
In 2018, Scott Lang was trapped inside the quantum realm. Reappearing in 2023, he was presumed dead because no one alive had information on his whereabouts, along with a large chunk of the population. His daughter Cassie survived the decimation but that almost worsens the situation. When the snap happened, Cassie Lang was still a child in need of adult supervision and parenting.
Best case scenario, she grieved over her beloved father, while her mother and step-father supported her through the process. Worst case scenario…an 11-year-old girl was left completely alone in a chaotic world. Even if she was still cared for, nothing changes the fact that her father missed five whole years of her life, while she matured from child to teenager. This is something that will forever mark both their lives.
Post-Endgame disorder
We’ve established that erasing half the universe probably had massive repercussions that went completely overlooked by the Endgame cameraman. The Avengers, however, have a solution. It may not fix everything, but bringing all those people back would definitely solve most of the world’s problems, right? Well…no. Yes, it seems as if the entire plot of Endgame revolves around a solution that may simply bring about more problems. It took five years for the world to somewhat settle and move on with this new Thanos-induced reality.
How will the planet cope with 3.5 billion people suddenly returning to Earth, simultaneously? In this case, Thanos’ fear of overpopulation and starvation may become a reality, even if he caused the problem in the first place. Countless snapped victims would return home to find their soulmate either remarried or (consider those previously mentioned suicidal thoughts) dead. Unemployment rates would rise dramatically. And the list goes on…
Age differences
In regards to the upcoming Spider-Man: Far From Home, many find Peter’s return to school to his old Homecoming classmates (as shown in the trailers) rather confusing. Simply put, just like Cassie Lang, anyone who survived the snap is now five years older than all those who were turned to dust. For school children, this is a pretty huge deal.
Typically friends (and young lovers) are brought together, first and foremost, by simply being the same age. A 45 and 50-year-old person are basically the same age, but a third grader is nowhere near as mature as an eighth grader. It seems as if Spider-Man was somewhat lucky, though, as some of his friends look like they also went on a 5-year hiatus. On the other hand, many students will be left heartbroken as childhood friendships and secret crushes are lost in age-gaps.
No weddings and a funeral
This one is actually a real-life heartbreaking breaking situation regarding the filming of Endgame, rather than an in-universe scenario. It’s been publicly known for a while that both Infinity War and Endgame were filmed back-to-back from January 2017 until the beginning of 2019, including reshoots. That means there were a couple of scenes that were filmed a long time before they actually made their on-screen debut.
One of these was Tony Stark’s funeral, where they gathered nearly the entire MCU cast together in formal clothing. The only problem is that, according to the Russo Brothers, 90% of the cast thought they were shooting a scene titled “The Wedding” and that they were preparing for the inevitable celebration between the newly wedded Tony and Pepper.
Original absence
The 11-year-old MCU delivered a massive amount of battles, both big and small. But after Endgame, it will be a while before any movie comes close to replicate the “epicness” of THAT final showdown. For the first time in Marvel Cinematic history, everyone was present. Every Avenger, Guardian, and hero assembled at last…almost. The heartbreaking truth is that a few crucial characters were completely missing; nevertheless, due to the size of the battle, that fact may have gone unnoticed.
Firstly, Vision, who had become a very important asset to the team since Age of Ultron, remained as dead as he was at the end of Infinity War. The most saddening absence is that of the hero that first appeared in 2010 and matured into a key character in the enormity that is the MCU: Natasha Romanoff. The only original Avenger who did not get to celebrate a final victory.
