Netflix recently caused some waves when it released its description of Marvel’s Avengers: Infinity War, particularly in regards to Thanos, and a few Marvel fans have taken issue with it.
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For context, here’s the official description from Netflix. “Superheroes amass to stop intergalactic sociopath Thanos from acquiring a full set of Infinity Stones and wiping out half of all life in the universe.”
The specific term that is causing all the ruckus is the term “sociopath”, which some fans are saying that Thanos clearly isn’t. Psychopaths and sociopaths sit underneath the umbrella of Antisocial Personality Disorder and mainly differ in regards to guilt or a lack of conscience. Psychopaths are typically described as having no empathy for their actions, lacking any true sense of right or wrong. Sociopaths, on the other hand, are described to have some basic sense of right and wrong, but ignore it to achieve their goal.
Throughout Infinity War Thanos shows that he does have regrets, especially when it comes to Gamora, both in her childhood and having to kill her to gain the Soul Stone. So it does seem he is aware of his actions. He also knows he is killing half of the universe, but believes it is for the greater good. In that case, he would actually be more of a sociopath than a psychopath, but then again, we here at ComicBook.com are far from doctors, so we’ll leave any actual diagnosis up to the experts.
In any case, several Marvel fans are taking issue with Netflix’s assumption, and you can check out their reactions on the next slides.
Before we go though, which category does Thanos fall in for you? Let us know in the comments!
How Dare You!
Some fans are pretty incensed about it and want Netflix to fix theirย egregious mistake.
How dare you call Thanos a sociopath, @netflix?
โ Corey Wooten (@CinemaNerd95) December 25, 2018
He was trying to save the universe from overpopulation. He recognized the finite amount of resources in the universe. He’s seen what happens when those resources run out.
Fix this, you ignorant bastards.#InfinityWar #Netflix pic.twitter.com/8W0VihqiHN
“How dare you call Thanos a sociopath, @netflix?
He was trying to save the universe from overpopulation. He recognized the finite amount of resources in the universe. He’s seen what happens when those resources run out.
Fix this, you ignorant bastards.
#InfinityWar #Netflix”
Wrong Category
Some just don’t think Thanos fits the definition of a sociopath, and feel that Netflix is miscategorizingย him.
Really take issue with Netflix categorizing Thanos as a sociopath. Heโs clearly not.
โ Jean Valjameis (@JeanValjameis) December 25, 2018
“Really take issue with Netflix categorizing Thanos as a sociopath. He’s clearly not.”
ALL CAPS
Some are so annoyed they are TAKING OUT THE ALL CAPS TO MAKE A POINT!
STOP NETFLIX DESCRIBED THANOS AS AN INTERGALATIC SOCIOPATH PLEASE. pic.twitter.com/cthPnFwzmw
โ sara, but festive (@thisbemesara) December 25, 2018
“STOP NETFLIX DESCRIBED THANOS AS AN INTERGALATIC SOCIOPATH PLEASE.”
Correct Me If I’m Wrong…
For other fans he is clearly more of a psychopath than a sociopath…right?
Isnโt thanos a psychopath, not a sociopath? Pls correct me if my dumbass is wrong
โ f saw spiderman: into the spiderverse (@muItimarvel) December 26, 2018
“Isn’t thanos a psychopath, not a sociopath? Pls correct me if my dumbass is wrong”
Does He Know?
The key difference between a psychopath and a sociopath is the knowledge that what you’re doing is wrong, so which side does Thanosย fall on?
The Netflix description for Infinity War describes Thanos as a sociopath. So does this mean that Thanos knows that what he’s doing is wrong, but is doing it anyway because he’s stubborn? Does he *truly* believe that wiping half of life from the universe is key to saving it?
โ SanTy?Clause (@tysynapse) December 26, 2018
“The Netflix description for Infinity War describes Thanos as a sociopath. So does this mean that Thanos knows that what he’s doing is wrong, but is doing it anyway because he’s stubborn? Does he *truly* believe that wiping half of life from the universe is key to saving it?”
Hot Daddy Thanos For The Win
For others the title of Intergalactic Sociopath just can’t top the best title, and that would be Hot Daddy Thanos. Gotta say that would be a hard title to surpass.
“intergalactic sociopath” is great but I’m afraid it’ll never top “Hot Daddy Thanos” https://t.co/8HfFfnDUyd
โ Justin Horowitz (@childvoodoo5) December 25, 2018
“‘intergalactic sociopath’ is great but I’m afraid it’ll never top ‘Hot Daddy Thanos’”