The Marvel Cinematic Universe Shake-Ups Crazier Than Miles Morales

When Marvel Studios announced that they would finally Spider-Man into their fold, the news divided the Internet in ways not seen since Team Edward vs. Team Jacob. While the traditionalists stump for Peter Parker to join his Avenging brethren, the disruptors out there think it’s Miles Morales’ turn for a big screen treatment. 

“But that’s crazy!” cries Team Parker. “Marvel would never mess with one of their top franchises that dramatically.”

Wouldn’t they, though? It’s not as if Marvel Studios hasn’t stirred the pot with twists that, before they were turned, seemed inconceivable. Below, we run through the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s craziest stunts, which more than prove that they have the cajones to put Miles Morales underneath the mask. 

HYDRA Secretly Running SHIELD

“Hail Hyrda.”

Since last year’s Captain America: The Winter Soldier, those words have never felt more threatening. As the Cap sequel revealed, S.H.I.E.L.D., the world’s leading peace-keeping organization, was all just a cover for those Nazi-aligning extremists HYDRA. S.H.I.E.L.D. was the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s backbone throughout phase one, showing that there was a much bigger world of heroes than any singular film indicated. But now, it’s merely a ruse. 

With ramifications still felt in the Marvel Universe, this move was Marvel’s wildest yet. It proved nothing was sacred, and that even Marvel Comics’ strongest pillars could crumble in the Cinematic Universe. 

Loki Posing As Odin

When Thor: The Dark World ended, it seemed as if all was honkey-dorey for The God of Thunder and the eternal realm of Asgard. He even managed to make his prickly papa, Odin, proud. It was the storybook ending audiences love and expect with their superhero films.

But not so fast, true believer. Before the film’s credits could even roll, Marvel pulled the rug out from everyone by revealing that Odin was in fact Loki, in disguise. But didn’t Loki die in The Dark World? It seemed that the trickster god saved one of his best stunts for last, cheating death and somehow usurping the All-Father without anyone noticing. The last-second switcheroo left viewers with tons of questions, making for the first true cliffhanger in Marvel Studios’ slate. While Thor and his brethren had saved the day, it was the villain who truly won the war. 

If the Marvel Universe is willing to give one of its biggest scumbags the literal keys to the kingdom, it clearly has little issue with doing the exact opposite of what’s expected of them.

The Mandarin Isn’t the Mandarin

As it turned out, Iron Man 3’s main villain wasn’t the villain at all—just a drunken actor who was really good at making the words “fortune cookies” sound menacing. While the twist seems minor the surface, diehard Marvelites can attest that there was nothing insignificant about it.

The Mandarin has been Tony Stark’s greatest rival throughout his entire history. He responsible for Shell Head’s biggest headaches and greatest challenges, and completely deserving of the “archnemesis” title. And the cinematic universe even played along with that idea, putting the Mandarin on a pedestal with Easter Eggs and references that he was out there, just waiting to strike. But then when the big twist came, all the hype was deflated with a single Budweiser belch. It would be like a Batman movie saying that the Joker is really just a used car salesman. The stunt showed that fans can take nothing at face value, and even if the Cinematic Universe plants seeds years ahead of schedule, there’s no telling that they won’t bare rank fruit. 

Bruce Banner’s Party Trick

He may not look it, but Bruce Banner is always ready to Hulk out.

When Banner flaunted his not-so-popular party trick in The Avengers’ climax, he also revealed that he can transform into the Hulk at a moment’s notice. This shake-up completely upends the inner power struggle between Banner and his emerald alter-go, showing that “The Other Guy” may not call as many shots as poeple once thought. 

While the trailer to Age of Ultron shows that Banner still has plenty of personal struggles ahead of him, there’s little denying that The Avengers took Bruce Banner into new and wholly unexpected territory. Everyone was comfortable (enough) with Banner as the ticking time bomb, but now that he’s guided cruiser missile, there’s no predicting what he’ll do next.

Sending Nick Fury Underground

As much as S.H.I.E.L.D. was the spine of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s initial phase, Fury was the glue that stuck everything and everyone together. But as Captain America: The Winter Soldier proved, even the One-Eyed Eagle can be knocked off of his perch. When HYDRA took over Fury’s S.H.I.E.L.D. in earnest, the director decided it was smarter to let their assassination attempt on his life look like the real deal. Though once the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s top cop, Nick Fury is now dead to the world.

But in doing so, Fury lost all of his authority within the Marvel Universe. Not only does this rewrite the rules for a man who was the walking embodiment of control, it also creates a massive power vacuum for the rest of the Universe. Sure, the now-independent Avengers are there to protect the world when panic strikes, but who’s going to pull the strings from behind the scenes? A Fury-less Marvel Universe is a far less secure one, and proves that Marvel is quite content to leave things dangling by a thread. 

And let’s not ignore the fact that a Fury sans-eye patch is an equally bold move–even if those Ray Bans are pretty stellar.

What do you think the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s craziest stunts are? Sound off in the comments below.