Marvel fans were given something pretty to look at during Comic-Con 2017 when Marvel Studios unvieled the first official banner for Avengers: Infinity War. The banner came from a combination of individual posters, each showcasing a unique mix of Marvel Cinematic Universe heroes, framed in a the color of a particular Infinity Stone, with Thanos and his Black Order lieutenants at the center, wielding the all-powerful Infinity Gauntlet.
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There’s been a lot of fan speculation that this Infinity War banner could contain some kind of story hints in its imagery. A new Reddit thread revisits the issue, and offers some interesting theories about just what the imagery might be telling us about Infinity War‘s storyline.
Here’s what the Avengers: Infinity War banner may reveal:
(Click HERE for Hi-Res Version)
Exact Placement
The first theory is that we should take the imagery in this banner literally, and that the character placement reflects the groupings and story arcs that we’ll see in Infinity War.
The groupings breakdown like this:
- Rocket, Groot, Drax , Thor, Loki
- Captain America, Black Widow, Falcon, Vision and Scarlet Witch
- Iron Man, Gamora, Nebula, Doctor Strange, Mantis, Spider-Man
- Hawkeye, Winter Soldier, War Machine, Black Panther, Hulk
The Guardians/Thor connection is something we’ve seen teased in the Infinity War trailer – it may even be a cosmic meeting that could occur in Thor: Ragnarok. Cap’s squad has been underground on Earth since the end of Civil War, but how Vision gets mixed up with them is unknown at this time. Winter Soldier and Black Panther are both in Wakanda, where Hakweye and War Machine could easily join them.
Iron Man is working with the government and still trying to defend earth. His group is the most random in the lineup, but each person in it has intricate knowledge of the larger threats out there in the cosmos, so it would make sense for Tony to surround himself with the best intel available.
Two questionable characters are Spider-Man and Hulk. While some think Spider-Man is in Black Panther’s group, it looks more like he’s swinging in to back up Iron Man’s group. Meanwhile, the way Hulk is framed at the top of the picture, partially see-through, could spell out an ominous fate for the big guy – as in, his presence may not be all that strong, either because he dies or is sent away by Thanos, early on.
Stone Rainbow
The other part of this picture puzzle is the color shading from the various Infinity Stones in the picture.
Thor’s group: framed in the purple light of the Power Stone – with a line of red light (the Reality Stone) separating Thor from Cap’s team. Could Thor and Co. be embroiled in some interdimensional mission or battle?
Cap’s group: framed in the yellow light of the Mind Stone, which is still with The Vision.
Iron Man’s group: framed in the green light of the Time Stone, which is still with Doctor Strange.
Black Panther’s group: it’s hard to make out what exact color the light surrounding them is; if anything, it’s the place in the picture where we should see the orange light of The Soul Stone.
The Earth itself is surrounded in the blue light of The Space Stone (Tesseract), suggesting another invasion portal attack; that light seems to reflect on Black Panther’s group, though not as directly as the other groups. Could this be Earth’s line of defense for the final Infinity Stone (soul)?
Set Photos Shuffle
As some Reddit users point out, this mural and its groupings run contrary to things we’ve already seen in Avengers: Infinity War set photos and videos:
- Doctor Strange and Starlord are seen working together to fight Thanos in the “Battleworld” setting.
- Captain America helps Bucky and Panther in Wakanda.
- Hulk (as Bruce Banner) is seen with Tony Stark, Doctor Strange, and Wong.
- Hawkeye and War Machine in Wakanda helping Winter Soldier seems off – as does an Iron Man/Gamora/Nebula team-up.
It should be remembered that Avengers: Infinty War will have a lot of moving parts, so groupings and locations could definitely shift during the course of the film.
That said, a lot of what is laid out in the banner art could indeed fit with a storyline in which the Marvel heroes are racing Thanos and The Black Order to secure Infinity Stones. Think about it:
- Thor and Star-Lord could be retrieving the Power and Reality stones from the Nova Corps and The Collector.
- Cap’s team is protecting Vision and The Mind Stone.
- Doc Strange and Iron Man’s team are protecting the Time Stone (aka Strange’s Eye of Agamotto).
- After the events of Thor: Ragnarok, Thanos already obtains The Space Stone form Asgard. Using it, he sends The Black Order to various sites to retrieve the other stones.
- In a twist, it’s revealed that Wakanda is the site where the Soul Stone fell to earth (that Vibranium meteor) and is where Black Panther, his allies, and the army of Wakanda (seen in set photos) make their stand.
In the end, we know the heroes lose, and Thanos gains the Infinity Gauntlet, and omnipotence. That’s all just theory, but it’s theory that’s definitely hinted at by this artwork. What do you think? Do you agree with this breakdown Avengers: Infinity War? Or do you have your own theory? Let us know on Twitter @ComicbookNow – and be sure to rate your exictement for Avengers: Infinity War, below!
Avengers: Infinity War will be in theaters on May 4, 2018.
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Image Credit: Marvel Studios
