7 Things That Still Don’t Make Sense About Thunderbolts*

Thunderbolts* might not have been the MCU’s most traditional ensemble outing, but it was one of its most daring. Part anti-hero team, part covert thriller, and part psychological character study, Marvel Studios’ Thunderbolts* set out to flip the formula, and in many ways, it succeeded. But as much as fans enjoyed the chemistry of the team and the surprising emotional swings, the movie also left audiences scratching their heads in places.

Now, don’t get us wrong, we loved the Thunderbolts* movie. But there are a few things that still don’t make sense to us…

1) Congressman Barnes…?

Let’s just get this out of the way: Bucky Barnes, the Winter Soldier turned reluctant superhero, becoming a U.S. Congressman feels like a fever dream. It’s a plot point introduced briefly in Captain America: Brave New World, and then more significantly in the earlier part of Thunderbolts*. They even treated it as a serious lifestyle shift for Bucky. for a couple of scenes at least. What’s weirdest is that he’s not even using it as a secret identity. He’s just… a Congressman. But is he really sitting in on local constituency matters or shaking hands at fundraisers? Are we expected to believe that the same man who once punched Iron Man in the face is now voting on infrastructure bills?

And it seems that Bucky wasn’t so convinced, either. Because it didn’t take long for him to go all Winter Soldier in Terminator cosplay on his motorcycle and blow up a bunch of Valentina Allegra de Fontaine’s goons. Then he never seems to go back to his day job.

Fans are left wondering if this was supposed to be a clever Easter egg or a character shift we were supposed to take seriously. Many think that the Congressman angle might have been a joke that landed flat—but that doesn’t explain why it’s never revisited. At this point, we need confirmation: is Bucky going back to Congress? Or did he just ghost the government the minute things got weird?

2) The Brief Introduction of Sentry

When Marvel fans heard that Bob Reynolds, aka Sentry, was joining the MCU, expectations were sky-high. In the comics, Sentry is one of the most powerful beings on Earth, who also contains the monstrous entity The Void. He’s the overpowered superman-like Marvel hero and the Thunderbolts* movie builds up his introduction throughout.

Starting off as the nervous Bob, played by Bill Pullman, we see the ragtag team of Ghost, Yelena, and Walker rescue him from Valentina’s bunker, only for Bob to get shot by Valentina’s security and get taken to her HQ in New York. From there he’s groomed into being the newest supe, which brings out The Void, and has to be stopped by the Thunderbolts team. In the credits scene after the movie, the Thunderbolts — and Bob — are the “New Avengers,” except Bob has chosen to no longer be Sentry. The end.

This raises even more questions. Why bring Sentry into the MCU at all if you’re going to hobble him after one outing? If Bob refuses the mantle in the very universe that’s meant to introduce him, then surely we’re going to get the same uncontrolled entry of The Void, and the same problematic distraction for his teammates in future movies?

3) What Were the New Avengers Doing for 14 Months?

Which leads us to another confusing thing. The 14-month time-jump in the credits scene. You see Alexei trying to get noticed by potential New Avengers fans in a grocery store, and the rest of the gang (including Bucky) living in Watchtower — Valentina’s building that was once Tony Stark’s. So… what happened in that timeframe?

That’s more than a year of potential global fallout, Kingpin’s promise to outlaw vigilantism, and opportunities to work with Captain America and his team (don’t worry, we’ll get to that later). But the movie skips all of it, offering no clarity on what missions the new team took on, how they’re fairing, or whether they even have enemies yet. For a universe built on interconnectivity, it’s a rare moment of narrative silence.

4) Who are the Actual Avengers Now?

As promised, we’re tackling the whole Captain America & Avengers branding problem.
The MCU made a point of establishing that the “old” Avengers are gone. Iron Man is dead, Steve Rogers retired from being Captain America, and the Hulk is off raising kids or fixing arms depending on the week. But Thunderbolts* decides to let slip that the “The Avengers” brand copyright is owned by Sam Wilson’s Captain America, and he is not happy about Valentina’s New Avengers team name.

This means there are two Avenger teams. The problem? Nobody tells us who the “real” Avengers are or what they’re up to. And where is Sam Wilson in this movie? Is he still in DC? Why wasn’t he more bothered about Valentina’s shenanigans? And why is Wilson so hung up on the copyright of the name? This seems way out of character for the new Captain America and reduces him to being quite petty when he’s surely got bigger things to deal with.

5) Where Were Spider-Man and Daredevil? Did The Void Get Them?

This one’s a head-scratcher. And it also shows us the issue with setting multiple storylines in the same universe, in the same city. We can understand that the early events in Thunderbolts* are done away from the standard MCU cities, but as soon as Bob is brought to Manhattan, and then The Void takes over, you’ve got to start wondering where exactly the likes of your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man or Daredevil are.

Instead? Radio silence. No cameos, no name drops, not even a news ticker. Despite the world no longer knowing that Peter Parker is indeed Spider-Man thanks to the memory-wiping spell from No Way Home, he still exists in this universe. And sure, we don’t technically know where Daredevil is, as Born Again is set prior to Thunderbolts* but that doesn’t really explain their absence.

It’s almost like the movie is saying, “Don’t worry, the real heroes will sit this one out.” A bit like the whole Eternals debacle. And that’s a strange stance when you’re trying to establish world-ending stakes.

6) What Was the Point of Taskmaster?

This is one that has had numerous fans screaming into the multiverse. Taskmaster, first introduced in Black Widow, was a divisive character. The MCU’s take on it chose to make Antonia Dreykov Taskmaster, and make her a silent mimic soldier reprogrammed against her will. In Thunderbolts*, fans were hoping for a redemption arc, or at least some deeper character development. What they got was essentially a cameo who had about three lines of dialogue before Ghost shoots her dead.

For a figure whose whole gimmick is replicating Avengers’ fighting styles, she barely uses that skill. Her presence on the team doesn’t affect the plot in any meaningful way and there seems literally no reason to have her there other than to be eliminated as per Valentina’s wishes. But, in all honesty? Ghost could’ve been sent to kill her earlier some other time off screen. It’s not like they knew each other.

It has been revealed that the original script did have Taskmaster in the movie from start to finish, but Marvel decided to take her storyline out. Which makes the entire point of her being there in a new shiny outfit more nonsensical. Many fans are also hoping that it’s a ruse, and that Taskmaster will return. But it’s hard to see how when she was first shot at point-blank range then incinerated.

7) What’s With the Oven Timer?

Which leads us to the most bizarre detail in the entire film. When Valentina has managed to trick all her “loose thread” assets into her secret facility, and lock them in her storage room, they realize she’s going to incinerate all the evidence to her nefarious deeds, including themselves. That’s when Valentina remotely activates the room’s incineration program. Helpfully for the Thunderbolts, there’s a countdown clock in the room.

Let’s pause for a second. Why would an incinerator — a device designed to destroy something completely — need a dramatic countdown clock? The room isn’t specifically designed for living beings to watch the moments of their life ticking away. Sure, we could get it if it was for anyone who worked there to be warned, but the doors are locked before the countdown is initiated. So, would Valentina’s staff just get cooked if they stumbled in there at the wrong moment? We wouldn’t put it past her to be honest.

This feels like peak movie logic. It’s the same school of thought that puts a self-destruct button in plain sight or requires a 12-step password sequence to close an airlock. This moment is so random that even fans on Reddit and Hero Haven have called it out, suggesting it’s a parody of spy tropes. But the movie plays it completely straight. No one jokes about it. No one questions it. It’s just there. And now we’re left wondering: was this simple cinematic tension, or did she just want rid of the clock as well?

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