“ Endgame” reaches the end of the line

This year will see the end of many storytelling arcs: “Game of Thrones,” the “Star Wars” Skywalker Saga, and of course, the Marvel Cinematic Universe as we know it. The MCU clocks in at 11 years, 22 movies, and three phases since its inception with “,” which was released in 2008. It has grown from Phase One separately introducing the original six Avengers, to Phase Two featuringtheAvengersteamingup,toPhaseThreewrapping up the original Avengers’ arc. “Endgame” is an aptly chosen title for a film that helps to close out Phase Three of the MCU, as Tony Stark in “Age of ,” released in 2015, talking about the type of catastrophic extraterrestrial threats we see in this film, says, “That up there? That’s the endgame.” In 2015, a film as large-scale as “Avengers: Endgame” seemed like a distant dream: something floating up in outer space. But now it has come and gone, effectively closing the door on characters we have known and loved for years: , Iron Man, and more. More than anything, the film is defined by its role as the ending chapter of the Avengers story, a story that served as the backdrop of many of our own coming-of-age journeys. The film had big shoes to fill: it needed to drop us into a world broken in half by Thanos’ snap, introduce characters not present in “Avengers: Infinity War,” released in 2018, and bring the series to a definitive and satisfying close. But what makes “Endgame” so satisfying and fulfilling is not simply that it accomplishes so much in incorporating an entire universe’s worth of characters to undo the snap, but that it manages to do so without undermining the foundation established by its predecessors. It would have been simple for the writers to just “undo” the events that occurred in “Infinity War” without resolution or much effort, but doing so would have undermined the impact of that film and left unacknowledged the legacy of the previous 22 films. Instead, Stephen McFeely and Christopher Markus’ solution does the opposite. Utilizing time travel, these screenwriters allow us to revisit what are essentially the greatest hits of the MCU. “Avengers Endgame” reaches the end of the line

graphic by Jennifer Ren “Endgame” effectively amounts to one last hurrah for the Avengers arc: the writers and directors adopted a “let’s give the fans what they want” mentality, and so the film includes Steve Rogers swearing unreservedly when faced with the prospect of fight a past, brighter- eyed version of himself, then checking out his own behind; an absolutely jaw-dropping action sequence with ’s hammer Mjolnir; and Tony Stark — now a married man and a father himself — having one final conversation with a Howard Stark who is the same age as him. Perhaps even more obviously than most of the previous films, “Endgame” is not just a battle between good and evil or a spectacle of explosions and special effects. It is about the dynamics of the remaining Avengers as a longstanding but splintered family. But, perhaps most profoundly, it is about the human experience — the challenges we face and what we are ultimately willing to sacrifice to overcome them. The ending of the movie is highly controversial among fans. Steve finally gets his long- speculated dance with Peggy and his “happy ending,” but Tony, who finally has the family he wanted, dies. Tony’s death, though unfortunate, is perhaps necessary, only the character “Avengers Endgame” reaches the end of the line

who began this great era could be the one to end it. It also sets up Phase Four, where new heroes must fill the vacuum left by the death of Iron Man, a technological revolutionary and “Earth’s best defender.” On the other hand, Steve’s ending leaves us with a lot of lingering questions. Having spent more than a decade in the 21st century — at the forefront of 21st century history — can he still possibly belong in the 20th? What happened to “I’m with you till the end of the line?” Will he silently stand by with the knowledge of the John F. Kennedy assassination, growing inside S.H.I.E.L.D., and the Winter Soldier program, as the years roar by around him? It seems antithetical to the crux of his character — the upstander with an infallible moral compass — and to the man who called the Avengers his family and the Avengers Compound his home. This decision does a major disservice to Steve Rogers as a character, and it is the biggest blunder of the film. Alongside “Endgame,” “Spider-Man: Far From Home” closes out the monumental arc of Phase Three. It will be very much shaped by Peter Parker trying to cope with Tony’s death and struggling to fill his mentor’s shoes. The end of Phase Three leads into Phase Four, the final phase to this Marvel Cinematic Universe. Phase Four movies that are all but confirmed are “Guardians of the Galaxy 3,” “Black Panther 2,” and the solo “Black Widow” movie. Disney has revealed that, including “Far From Home,” there will be a total of nine Marvel movies released in the next three years. The original characters that we know and love from the first three phases should be mostly absent in the next phase, other than the probable appearance of Thor in “Guardians of the Galaxy 3,” the definite appearance of Natasha Romanoff in “Black Widow” and Tony Stark’s roundabout cameo in “Far From Home.” Though unfortunate, finishing the stories of original characters gives the opportunity to focus on fresh faces like The Eternals and Shang-Chi through introductory solo movies of their own — establishing a new dynasty of beloved Marvel superheroes.