Stony Brook University Plays 'Avengers: Infinity War' at Freshman Orientation

The freshman orientation at Stony Brook University was perfectly balanced this weekend, including a screening of Avengers: Infinity War after the informational sessions were done.

The idyllic outdoor screening made it to the Marvel subreddit on Saturday night. A user by the name of u/ShadowZothar posted a photo of Thanos' menacing stare behind the movie's language selection menu. It was projected onto an inflatable screen on a grassy lawn, just as the sun appeared to be setting.

"My college is playing Infinity War for our freshman Orientation!!" the post read. In no time at all, other users dropped into the comments with jokes about Thanos' genocidal plot.

"'Half of you will have dropped out by the end of the first semester, and it will have cost you everything,'" wrote one person.

The post migrated over to other subreddits, including r/UnexpectedThanos and, for balance, r/ExpectedThanos. Meanwhile, more commenters recalled that Marvel movies or superhero movies in general played at their own college freshman orientations. Together, users began to see a pattern -- noting that something about superhero films seemed to be a go-to source of cheap entertainment for colleges trying to impress newcomers.

"Typically each college has a large enough space outdoors to accommodate it, an out door movie, particularly a newer/bigger one attracts folks and gets them interacting, and it's not a terrible "per head" cost while generating some hype and potentially giving folks something to do before classes start," one person wrote, trying to explain the phenomenon.

"Guessing Infinity War is going to be shown at a lot of places- it's perfect for this," they went on. "It just came out on disc and digital, so the rights will be cheaper but it's huge name/attraction and folks will gladly go see it on a big screen again. The school I'm working at will also be showing it too. I'll probably go see it."

Avengers: Infinity War was released on digital download on July 31. Two weeks later, it became available on Ultra HD Blu-ray, Blu-Ray and DVD on Aug. 14. The home release comes complete with deleted scenes, a blooper reel, audio commentary and behind-the-scenes features. One such feature is a round table discussion amongs the Marvel Cinematic Universe's key directors, including the Russo brothers, Joss Whedon, Taika Waititi, Ryan Coogler, Peyton Reed, John Favreau and even the embattled James Gunn.

Many fans are cherishing this chance to re-live the movie, as it will have to sustain them for almost a year. The as-yet untitled Avengers 4 is expected in theaters on May 3, 2019.