8 LIFE&ARTS Wednesday, April 17, 2019 @TheEtCetera The Et Cetera A SEISMIC CONCLUSION To those of us who have come of age con- The first cinematic universe to successfully With what can only be described as the most currently with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, cross over multiple movie storylines, the MCU anticipated cinematic culmination of all time it’s almost cliche to point out how groundbreak- has had its share of great moments, copycats in “: Endgame,” a celebration of all ing its journey has become. and cultural influence in its decade of existence. things MCU is in order.

Compiled by David Silva Illustrations by Aldahir Segovia Cinematic universes that tried When you passionately dedicate millions of man hours to meticu- lously plan out years’ worth of material and succeed, every- one else looks at your work and thinks that they can do the exact same Marvelous feats seen through the Stones thing with half the heart and in a fraction of the time. As it turns out, they were all wrong. Namely, these guys: Reality

Dark Universe The MCU has not become a cultural icon without find- In 2017, Universal Pictures ing itself in other aspects and mediums of our reality. sought to reboot all of these iconic Iconic moments, lines and stills have been quoted and horror characters and put them in memed nonstop. one cinematic universe. The effects of these superheroes have even been felt “The Mummy” starring Tom on a societal scale, with films like “Black Panther” and Cruise was paired with a huge mar- “Captain Marvel” not only helping diversify the MCU lineup keting campaign focusing on future but also bringing diversity to films in general. films with Russell Crowe, Johnny Depp and Javier Bardem. But “The Mummy” sucked, actors left and future movies are currently on hold. Soul This stone represents the MCU’s ability to DC really does blow The critically polarizing “Man of make both beloved and obscure characters Steel” was the first sign of trouble, accessible to audiences while still staying true then the fast-tracked “Batman V. to the soul of the original comic books. Superman: Dawn of Justice,” “Sui- When films were made, cide Squad” and “Justice League” they kept his core moral compass intact while put the nail in the coffin for DC’s giving him a relatable vulnerability. first iteration of a cinematic uni- ’s genius billionaire core has always verse. been intact, but was modernized by Downey’s Zack Snyder got the boot, both eccentric yet troubled personality. the actors playing Superman and Batman called it quits and several upcoming DC films are not consid- ered a part of the universe. At least we got “Wonder Woman” and “Shazam!” Mind Amazing Spider-Mess The mind stone represents the change of mentality that has rippled through the film To sum up what Sony has industry following the MCU. done with the Spider-Man The MCU has elevated audience expecta- character: They’ve fumbled two tions for superhero movies. trilogies despite having two With cosmic entities and multicolored aliens pretty great directors. showing up in blockbuster films, no longer They have one Spidey in the are superhero movies made with the intent to MCU. ground them into reality as much as possible. They have one cinematic uni- verse with only Spidey villains, and they have one animated Spidey cinematic universe. PHOTOS COURTESY OF UNIVERSAL, WARNER BROS. AND SONY PICTURES LIFE&ARTS 9 The Et Cetera www.eastfieldnews.com Wednesday, April 17, 2019

The future of the MCU:

Likely Departures Likely Villains Likely Newbies

Iron Man, and , the or The X-Men, the Fantas- Captain America will Dr. Doom may be the next tic Four and the Eternals leave a need in leadership big bad guy after Thanos are next in line to make for the Avengers crew. is (hopefully) defeated. their MCU debuts.

Must-see movies before Endgame Let’s say you’re like most people and have only seen a few MCU movies, but you don’t want to be totally lost when watching what is essentially the Marvelous feats seen through the Infinity Stones 22nd episode of Super Friends. For those who don’t have the time or patience to sit through 59 hours of Space content in preparation, here are the bare bones, minimum films to watch before “Endgame.” The MCU’s full-fledged dive into the cosmic realm and sneak peeks into the multi-dimensional and microcosmic realms are held together by their superb casting, tight writing Guardians of and commitment to balancing the intensity with a Saturday The Avengers morning cartoon aesthetic. the Galaxy These things allow the MCU to transport us into its films no matter how odd they become. 92% 91%

Power The power stone represents just how much of a juggernaut the MCU is as a franchise, racking up more than $18 billion worldwide. The studio has also made success- ful trilogies out of characters that were Avengers: Captain America: considered obscure to mainstream Age of audiences, played by actors who had troubled, stalled or otherwise mediocre careers in Robert Downey Jr., Chris 75% 91% Hemsworth and Chris Evans.

Time The time stone represents the lon- gevity that the MCU has claimed as a film franchise, which can be attrib- uted to a dedication and patience to Thor Avengers: make character-driven worlds. Ragnarok Infinity War Its 11 years of existence has surpassed the original Harry Potter franchise and “Endgame” will put 92% 85% the MCU two films shy of match- ing the James Bond series in films produced.