Why The End Of Marvel’s Phase 3 Is Important

17th April 2018

By Finley Crebolder.

Why the two final standalone movies of MCU’s Phase Three could be the most important.

When Marvel revealed their plan for Phase Three all the way back in 2014, the main excitement from fans centred around the announcement of Infinity War Parts 1 and 2 (the latter of which is now Avengers 4). Since then, this excitement has only grown, and the two standalone films, Captain Marvel and Ant-Man and the Wasp, placed between the two Avengers movies have largely been forgotten about, with many merely viewing them as something to fill the time during that inevitably agonising year-long wait. However, as we discover more and more about The Avengers 4 and it’s potentially time travel based storyline, it is becoming clear that Marvel may have always had a much larger purpose in mind for these two films.

Before getting into specifics about such a purpose, first some context: So, all we know about the thus far untitled Avengers 4 is that it links to Infinity War but is a “very different movie”, its title is a spoiler for Infinity War, and, judging by leaked set photos, it features Ant-Man and Iron Man being present at the Battle of New York. This third point is the big one, as it drops a huge hint that the movie will indeed centre around a group of characters going back in time. So, just how would they do so?

There are effectively three ways in which they could. The first, and perhaps the most obvious, would be that it is done using the Time Stone. It’s currently in the possession of Dr Strange and his standalone film made its abilities to manipulate time very clear. However, whilst it may be the most obvious form of time travel in the MCU, that does not make it the most likely to be used for this scenario. You’d imagine that for a group to resort to going back in time, things would have to be pretty dire in their current time zone, which suggests that Thanos does indeed get hold of all the Infinity Stones for his gauntlet, including the Time Stone. From what we’ve seen and heard thus far regarding Infinity War, it does indeed seem unlikely that Dr Strange will manage to hold on to it until the end of the movie either way, meaning he won’t be able to use to send himself and/or others back in time.

So, option number two: BARF. No, I’m not just describing what happens when you rewatch Iron Man 2. As seen in Civil War, Binary Augmented Retro-Framing, otherwise known as B.A.R.F (Still waiting on that improved acronym, Stark.), is a prototype device created by Tony Stark which enables the user to view previous traumatic memories. Whilst this method would explain the presence of Ant-Man and Iron Man at the Battle of New York in set photos, it is not actual time travel as such. Stark created it as a therapeutic device used to clear traumatic memories, and let’s be honest, “The Avengers 4: Tony goes to Therapy.” would be somewhat underwhelming. Besides, if the visit to 2012 New York really was for therapeutic purposes, why would he bring Ant-Man along? B.A.R.F could be used by Stark to do some research before his trip back, but as far as we know, it couldn’t be used to travel back in time.

Which brings us on to our third and final option, the Quantum Realm. So far in the MCU, we know that the Quantum Realm is an alternate dimension that transcends time and space. It has so far been explored in two films, Ant-Man and Doctor Strange. To put things simply, the latter was able to enter it through magic, whilst the former did so through shrinking. Yep, just go with it. Anyway, it has already been said that Ant-Man and The Wasp will revolve around the title characters finding a way to enter the realm again safely in order to save a character trapped there. They will do so using the same Pym Tech used to shrink Scott Lang in the first place, and should they succeed, who’s to say that same tech isn’t what Lang, Stark and whoever else might fancy the trip use in Avengers 4 to travel back in time through the Quantum Realm? In the leaked set photos, Iron Man is seen wearing a device on his hand similar to the button used on Ant-Man’s suit used to shrink him, which certainly suggests this is the case.

Now, it may seem unlikely that Marvel would base the finale of the MCU as we know it around a concept that has hardly been explored and is hardly known to the audiences, and presumably there is going to be little time in either Infinity War or Avengers 4 to explore and explain it further. This is where the standalone movies come in. Could Marvel use these films to do so in preparation for “The Avengers: The Quantum Realm”? It seems likely. Whilst Ant-Man’s links to the Realm are obvious, Captain Marvel will also include it. Whilst it is not as clear how exactly, it has been recently revealed that the Realm will play a role in the film and will provide the audience with a better understanding of Carol Danvers and her powers. Speaking of powers, it has also been said that Captain Marvel is going to be the most powerful hero in the MCU to date. Could this be why the trip back in time is being made in the first place? The film is going to be set in the 90’s, and there’s every chance Tony Stark might be heading back to that time to recruit some much needed Manpower, or should I say Womanpower, to bring back home to meet Thanos.

Picture it now: Infinity War ending with Thanos putting the Mind Stone in his Gauntlet to complete the set having defeated our heroes attempting to defend it, and clicking his fingers. The screen cuts to black, and the words “The Avengers will return in The Avengers: The Quantum Realm” next year. A little ways down the road, Captain Marvel has just finished and along comes a post-credits scene of Tony Stark showing up telling her he’s putting a team together (now where have we heard that one before?…). Not a bad way to set things up, huh?

Whilst the MCU has had its duds (10 points to those who can actually recall the events of Thor: The Dark World), it’s fair to say that it has always thought ahead and considered each standalone films role in the grand scheme of things, and If any of this theory turns out to be true and I haven’t just thrown away many hours of sleep over nothing but incorrect speculation it could be about to drop the biggest ones yet.

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