10 Burning Questions We Have After Watching Avengers: Infinity War

Avengers: Infinity War is finally here! The biggest entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe to date and likely the biggest movie of the year as a whole, it sees practically everyone in the franchise unite to take on Thanos, the alien overlord who wants to wipe out all life in the universe. It's an intense plot, then, with a scope that expands across the galaxy. As that sounds, to say that there's a lot to digest in the movie is an understatement. In fact, we had to pick our jaws up off the floor after seeing it. As the beginning of the end of the first decade of the MCU, Infinity War moves the pieces on the board as it sets up next year's Avengers 4 and all films beyond that. Because of this, it leaves us with many questions to chew on as we now sit back and wait a year until we find out what happens next. On that note, join us as we explore the 10 that are bugging us the most, and if you've got any answers to them, feel free to drop those in the comments section down below. Where Are Valkyrie, Korg And Miek? Infinity War begins in media res as we see the aftermath of a devastating battle on the Asgardian refugee ship. Over the opening scene, the last of Thor's allies fall when Thanos kills Loki and Heimdall and gets away with the Space Stone. Last time we checked in on the ship, though, there were a couple more heroes on board who could have helped. Ragnarok ended with Tessa Thompson's Valkyrie and Taika Waititi's Korg - not to mention his pal Miek - standing with the God of Thunder. However, in Infinity War, they're nowhere to be seen. And we're not even entertaining the possibility that they were killed off screen. We swear to God, if you harmed one pebble on Korg's head, Marvel... As these characters proved so popular in their debut movies, we've heard a lot about how the studio has big plans for them in future films, so we know that they're out there somewhere. The most likely option is that the three left the Asgardians to themselves at some point, but we can't say for sure. What Happened To Hawkeye And Ant-Man? There was a lot of fuss made about the lack of Jeremy Renner in the marketing for Infinity War, but it turns out that there's a very good reason for that: Hawkeye isn't in the movie. Like, at all. Along with Ant-Man, they're the only two MCU heroes missing from the party. A reference is briefly made to the pair though when Steve Rogers enquires where his old pal Clint Barton is. Natasha reveals that both Clint and Scott Lang took deals that allowed the fugitive vigilantes to return to their families. Apparently, this means that the duo are now impossible to get a hold off. Even if the whole universe is in danger, they decide to let Barton and Lang spend time with their kids. Hawkeye we sort of understand, as even the surprisingly useful archer might not serve much purpose against the Infinity Stones. However, Ant-Man's shrinking abilities could have proven incredibly useful against Thanos. As they're absent though, we're also left the wonder whether Hawkeye and Ant-Man survived the cataclysmic events of the film's finale. Why And When Did Thanos Nearly Give Up His Destiny Before? Thanos drops a very interesting detail into his final conversation with Gamora on Vormir. Though it's revealed that he loves her dearly, the Mad Titan ultimately sacrifices his daughter in order to claim the Soul Stone. His reasoning is that he once almost turned away from his destiny in the past, but he won't make that mistake again on this occasion. This sounds like Thanos once had the opportunity to unite the six Infinity Stones, or perhaps just claim the Soul Stone, before now but decided not to at that point. Presumably, for the same reason that he almost didn't this time - to save the life of someone he loved. Perhaps Thanos had a family on Titan and didn't enact his plan to halve the population in order to save them... But they ultimately died when the planet destroyed itself. This is just speculation on our part, though. The MCU's version of Thanos contrasts with the comics' portrayal to such an extent that we can't look to the source material for answers, either. It's likely that this tease will be further explored in Avengers 4, though. What's Up With The Hulk? In contrast to the Hulk-heavy Thor: Ragnarok, Infinity War only features the Green Goliath for its opening scene, where he gets well and truly beaten in a fight with Thanos. From thereon out, Bruce Banner can't get "the other guy" to come out, even in the heat of battle. So, what's going on here? One explanation could be that the Hulk didn't enjoy losing a fight for once and so is frightened of facing Thanos again. Alternatively, his moral compass arguably isn't as heroic as Banner's, so maybe he just doesn't want to lose again for the sake of his pride, regardless of what happens to the universe? There's likely another reason for Hulk's refusal to get smashing, though. After all, when has the Jade Giant ever turned down the opportunity to punch things? Maybe Thanos just hurt him so badly that he doesn't have the strength to fully take control again at the moment? Thematically, we imagine that this will led to Bruce encouraging Hulk to come out in Avengers 4, thereby seeing the character embrace his other half for the first time. What Can The Soul Stone Actually Do? Thanos goes to a lot of trouble to get hold of the Soul Stone. In contrast to the others, which he retrieves by beating up his enemies, he sacrifices the one person he loves in the universe in exchange for this one. Once he accessorizes his gauntlet with it, though, Thanos doesn't actually seem to use it for anything. We see throughout the film how useful the other Infinity Stones are, as the Mad Titan uses them in different ways during combat with the Avengers. The Power Stone allows him to hit harder, the Space Stone allows him to teleport, the Reality Stone allows him to warp matter, the Time Stone allows him to rewind events... But what about the Soul Stone? Its main role seems to be to occasionally give Thanos out of body experiences, including one where he gets to meet the young Gamora, presumably her spirit in some realm of the afterlife. As for practical usage, maybe it's a key part in using the Stones to wipe out half of all life in the universe? What's Doctor Strange's Plan? Doctor Strange giving Thanos the Time Stone in exchange for Tony Stark's life seems like a human, but ultimately dumb move. However, his dying words to Tony that this is the only way suggest that, however bad an idea it might seem now, Stephen does have a plan. Well, did have a plan, as he's now dead. Earlier in the movie, he used the Time Stone to view millions of alternate versions of the future to ascertain how many ended with the Avengers beating Thanos. It turned out that there was only one. Presumably, giving the Mad Titan the Time Stone somehow began the path towards this particular future. As Strange said earlier, his primary concern was defeating Thanos not saving the lives of his allies. The big sticking point to Strange's plan coming to fruition, though, is that he's now dead so can't help guide the timeline towards the one where the Avengers win. Wouldn't it have been handy to explain to the others what needed to happen in order to beat Thanos in the long run? For whatever reason, it apparently wasn't and the remaining heroes need to stumble into this victory blind now. Is The Infinity Gauntlet Kaput? At the climax of Infinity War, Thanos finally achieves his life goal when he gets to snap his fingers while wearing the Infinity Gauntlet... thereby wiping out half of all life in the universe. This apparently takes a gargantuan amount of power, however, even for the Gauntlet, and the glove is seen burned out after Thanos does the deed. This suggests that the Gauntlet - and perhaps the Stones themselves, by extension - are totally useless. Of course, this causes a pretty major problem for the Avengers. If the Gauntlet was still operational, then they would just have to get the glove off Thanos and reverse his action. If it's as broken as it appears to be, though, they now have no way to bring back all the lives that the villain took. We imagine the Stones are still just as powerful as ever and it was only the Nidavellir-made Gauntlet that couldn't withstand what had happened. That means that if the Avengers can find another way to harness the Stones, then they can perhaps make the universe whole again. Will they follow on from the Guardians of the Galaxy and hold the Stones as a team? We'll have to wait and see. What Will Thanos' Role Be In Avengers 4? The very final shots of the movie see Thanos finally retiring after achieving his goal to bring balance to the universe. Just as he said earlier on, he decides to relax and watch the sunset on some alien world, content with what he's done. If Thanos is truly happy with what he's accomplished, however, and has no more ambitions, then what will his role be in Avengers 4? Perhaps he'll feature a lot less in the sequel and it'll be more of the story of how the heroes have to find him to try and undo what he did. In effect, reversing the plot of Infinity War in which he has to search for them. Or maybe he'll settle down and decide to find himself a wife: cue his comic book accurate infatuation with Lady Death. Or maybe Hela, the Goddess of Death? As we've said, the MCU is taking Thanos in an all-new direction, so we really don't know what's going to happen next. How Many Of Those Deaths Will Last? If you didn't cry at the end of Infinity War, you're not a True Believer. As Thanos' snap kills half the universal population, many of our beloved heroes turn to dust. Your eyes were probably too full of tears by the end to keep track of all of the fallen so here's the whole list: Bucky, Falcon, Groot, Black Panther, Scarlet Witch, Doctor Strange, Mantis, Drax, Star-Lord and Spider-Man. Once we got over this initial shock, it became pretty obvious that many of those characters, if not all, simply have to come back to life. For one, there are more Black Panther, Spider-Man and Guardians movies on the way. But how could their deaths be reversed? Well, as we've said, the remaining heroes' goal in Avengers 4 will presumably be to attempt to undo Thanos' snap. On the other hand, there are a few other major deaths that didn't occur this way. Heimdall and Loki were murdered by Thanos in the opening sequence, Gamora was sacrificed for the Soul Stone and Vision had the Mind Stone ripped out of his head. Out of these four, the latter two are more likely to be reversed. Perhaps the Soul Stone can be used to resurrect Gamora and we were told that Vision might be able to survive without the Infinity Stone. Alternatively, maybe it will be as simple as pulling a Superman and just rewinding time back long enough so that everyone returns to life. Hey, why not throw Quicksilver back in there as well? We certainly wouldn't see it coming. Will Captain Marvel Play A Major Role In Avengers 4? Despite half of the world dying, the post-credits scene for Avengers: Infinity War offers a glimmer of hope for the future. Help might be on the way in the shape of Brie Larson's Captain Marvel. Though the heroine doesn't make her MCU debut in this film, Nick Fury does send a message to her before he dies. That's not confirmed, of course, but we'd recognize her logo and colour scheme anywhere. So, what sort of role will Carol Danvers play in Avengers 4? Judging by those who survived the finger snap, the film will basically head back to the original line-up of the Avengers, along with a few extras like Rocket, Okoye and War Machine. While having a second generation hero in the mix as well might mess up the theme of going back to basics, it could be a good way to establish her as a heavyweight hero after she's introduced in March's Captain Marvel. What's more, we're also left to wonder where Carol is and where she's been for the past twenty-something years - Captain Marvel is set in the 1990s, after all. Why has she pulled a Wonder Woman and hidden herself away when the Earth needed heroes? I guess we'll find out the answer to that next year.