Just like any other long-running franchise, the Marvel Cinematic Universe is subject to a standard set of tropes and trappings that can be found in the majority of the superhero saga’s output, but the final trailer for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania has revealed the return of one of the most ominous.
Being a Kevin Feige production, we can fully expect Paul Rudd and Evangeline Lilly’s latest outing to feature snappy one-liners, bickering banter between the central characters, a third act battle against a multitude of CGI villains, and the requisite subpar visual effects that have become par for the course among the MCU’s most vocal opponents.
However, as pointed out by Erik Davis on Twitter, the dreaded Forehead Touch is also set to make a comeback, and history has shown that two favorites knocking noggins has tended to be a go-to moment when things get deadly serious.
It’s one of those things you may not have even realized was part and parcel of the MCU’s complexion until it’s pointed out, but a quick glance through the history of forehead-touching moments does not paint an encouraging picture for a number of reasons, not least of all because Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow is dead and Florence Pugh’s Yelena Belova is still grieving, never mind the fact we’re all still waiting on that Eternals sequel to emerge from the realms of rumor and hearsay to become a reality.
A well-placed gag? Good. Forehead touching? Concerning, to say the least.
