An ‘Avengers’ update: How we got here
Villain is on a mission in the new ‘Avengers’
A refresher on the Marvel Universe before the release of “Infinity War”
There have been all sorts of magical weaponry, cool powers and memorable superheroes in the past decade of Marvel movies. But it’s six mythical gems and one obsessive cosmic villain that tie everything together.
Avengers: Infinity War (in theaters April 27) boasts more good guys than have ever been in a Marvel Cinematic Universe project before, and they’re all going to have to be at their best to beat Thanos (Josh Brolin), a dude wielding a legendary metal glove called the Infinity Gauntlet that holds the all-powerful Infinity Stones: Space, Power, Reality, Time, Mind and Soul.
We get it, that’s a lot to take in, especially if the only cool glove you’ve ever known is Michael Jackson’s silver number and all you’ve seen of this massive narrative is Black Panther. Here’s what you need to know about the Avengers’ biggest baddie to date and those six twinkly baubles he’s hunting.
Look out for Thanos, the Mad Titan.
The supervillain first showed his face in the end credits of the first Avengers film: He had tasked trickster god (and Thor’s brother) Loki (Tom Hiddleston) to lead an alien army against Earth’s mightiest heroes but failed. Then in Guardians of the Galaxy, he assigned Ronan the Accuser (Lee Pace) to snag a mysterious Orb — which ended up being the container for the Power stone — but was thwarted again. Now he’s irked enough to get the job done himself: With his Black Order henchmen in tow, Thanos comes to our world to collect the stones for his gauntlet, which will give him the power to rule the galaxy.
What are the stones’ origins?
As The Collector (Benicio Del Toro) explained to the Guardians of the Galaxy (see: the first Guardians movie), the stones date back to creation itself, are concentrated remnants of pure cosmic power and can be wielded only by folks with extraordinary strength. Or big, bad dudes with really fancy gauntlets.
What kind of stuff can you do with them?
The Space stone can open portals in space, fuel dangerous weapons and show visions of a possible future. The Time stone gives its wielder complete control over time, from stopping it to creating endless loops. The Power stone can wipe out a planet’s entire civilization. The Reality stone brings the dead back to life and controls darkness. The Mind stone is used to control others. And no one really knows yet the capabilities of the Soul stone, the only gem that hasn’t been introduced in the Marvel movies — in the comics, its user has mastery over every living or dead soul in the universe.
So where the heck are they?
Loki is in possession of the Tesseract (aka the Space stone) as Infinity War opens, The Collector is assumed to have the Aether (Reality stone), and the Power stone is being guarded by the space cops of the Nova Corps. Doctor Strange has the Time stone housed in the Eye of Agamotto amulet, while the Mind stone is embedded in the forehead of the android Avenger, Vision. As for the Soul stone, maybe Thanos has a bead on where it is, because we sure don’t. One possibility is that it’s buried under Wakanda in the high-tech African country’s vibranium mine. That could explain how Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman) has the ability to visit his ancestors in an ethereal realm.
Because of pesky superheroes, of course. Thanos has sent minions after them in the past, but he has been foiled by both the Avengers and the Guardians, which is why he’s getting his hands dirty and hunting them himself. He has his Black Order, the Avengers have a Hulk. Let’s get ready to rumble.