There’s a sense of finality that comes with Avengers: Infinity War. Everyone’s favorite heroes make an appearance and Thanos finally gets his chance to headline. All indications suggest things are going to look and feel differently following the events detailed in the film. But that doesn’t ensure that a major character is going to die. Even with ending contracts in mind, I have every reason to believe Marvel is going to keep its all-stars on the shelf for rainy days. We’ll almost certainly see less of Captain America post-Infinity War arc. Same goes for RDJ or even Hemsworth, but I’m not convinced these contractional factors spell death for these heroes.
In a lot of ways, the death of a character following a comprehensive arc feels lazy. For one, it’s to be expected and it’s a way to invoke an emotional response with minimal effort. However, I think Marvel is smarter than that.
Mark Ruffalo tweeted this recently:
Saw this on Reddit. Hhaha. My last day on IW. The final exit. pic.twitter.com/UfzWXfzODB
— Mark Ruffalo (@MarkRuffalo) February 2, 2018
The Twitter post incited a throng of op-eds about whether or not the Hulk survives Infinity War. He is the World Breaker, after all—he almost certainly does. Also, you got to remember we’re dealing with time gems, magic and weird comic book science here, people. No one stays dead forever in superhero land.
I could be wrong, but I just think the anticipation should not lie in the obsession over “who are they gonna kill off,” because I think that’s bound to disappoint. They might kill off Rhodey, but no one will really care. Fuck Rhodey.
