Avengers: Infinity War Characters With More Meaning Than You Realized

The culmination of Marvel Studios' first decade of movies is here, and it's so big it can't be contained in a single movie. Though next year's Untitled Avengers Movie is no longer referred to by its originally announced title of Avengers: Infinity War Part II, it will definitely have some cleaning up to do after the universe-shattering events of its predecessor. We're here to discuss some of the implications of those events in detail, so turn back now if you're not ready for spoilers.

Infinity War has arrived loaded with surprises and swarming with heroes and villains. With so many of them wiped out in the movie's climax, the path forward is unclear. We know that at least some of the characters decimated by Thanos' fateful finger snap won't be dead forever...after all, they have more sequels in development. So where do Earth's Mightiest Heroes go from here? There may be clues right in front of us. To shed some light on the Marvel Cinematic Universe's grand design, let's take a look at some Avengers: Infinity War characters with more meaning than you might have realized. 

When last we saw Steve Rogers at the end of Civil War, he was living on the run as a fugitive from the government, breaking some of his allies out of the Raft prison and committing to his "faith in individuals" above institutions. His reappearance in Infinity War finds him sporting a beard (one that Thor quips he "stole") and a suit that's missing its emblematic white star. He's also still missing his iconic shield, having dropped it dramatically after his fight with Stark.

Rogers is referred to as "Captain" just once in Infinity War (by Vision, who hasn't seen him in a while), otherwise going only by his real name. Though he makes no grand proclamations regarding his identity, it's pretty clear that he no longer thinks of himself as Captain America. As directors Joe and Anthony Russo confirmed on ESPN's Fantasy Focus Football podcast, there are parallels to Steve's state of mind in Infinity War and the period in the post-Watergate comics of the 1970s in which he took on the mantle of Nomad. "I wouldn't say that he is exactly Nomad," Joe Russo explained, "but he is the spirit of that character." 

One of the most surprising twists Infinity War had in store for fans was the strange return of one of the Marvel Cinematic Universe's earliest villains: Johann Schmidt, better known as the Red Skull. Captain America's nemesis was last seen getting blasted into some far-off dimension, seemingly as punishment for his hubris upon his attempted seizing of the Tesseract. Of course, we now know that the Tesseract was housing the blue Space Stone all along. What we didn't know was just how deep the connection between the Skull and the stones would end up running.

When Thanos and Gamora travel to the planet Vormir in search of the Soul Stone, Schmidt appears to them as a cloaked, wraith-like figure (perhaps in a visual nod to the importance of Lady Death in the original Infinity Gauntlet comic), briefly hinting at how his attempts to claim a stone for himself have burdened him with the duties of "Stonekeeper." It's astounding to imagine what kind of cosmic horrors this former Nazi was subjected to between his World War II disappearance and his entrance here, and audiences likely won't have time to ponder the significance of this revelation in the midst of Infinity War's action. Perhaps those untold years of torment are why he isn't quite the same man we remember. 

When Thanos first made his presence known to Earth (and, in fact, to movie audiences), he was still shrouded in mystery, pulling the strings from afar. The instruments of his wrath were the Chitauri, an army of alien drones that attempted to invade New York City in search of the Tesseract with the help of Loki. It was only later, as the cosmic side of the Marvel Cinematic Universe began to unfold, that the significance of this first grasp at the Infinity Stones would become clear.

Though their presence has lingered over the films in the form of Tony Stark's haunting visions and the technology central to the plot of Spider-Man: Homecoming, the Chitauri haven't gotten much onscreen action since the original Avengers. In Infinity War, however, we seem them in full swing again, in the flashback to Thanos' "rescue" of the young Gamora. While the Mad Titan claims the child as his adopted daughter, his Chitauri summarily execute the rest of her people. The scene is a chilling look at what would have awaited the people of Earth if the Avengers' first team-up had been a failure. 

Infinity War may have left us with a lot of unanswered questions and unresolved angst, but Marvel's still got two movies coming down the pipe before the epic event continues in 2019's fourth Avengers film. One of them is this summer's Ant-Man and the Wasp, and the other will introduce a long-awaited arrival to the MCU: Captain Marvel. Brie Larson will portray Carol Danvers, the Air Force pilot who becomes a superhero after getting embroiled in the intergalactic Kree-Skrull War.

With the knowledge that Carol's solo film debut was already in production and the fact that she'd be a helpful character to have around for a cosmic conflict, speculation ran rampant that Larson might make a cameo in Infinity War. Turns out, she doesn't...at least, not physically. The movie's post-credits scene finds Nick Fury sending a distress signal via some sort of beeper just before he turns to ash like so many other beloved characters. The last thing we see is the device's screen lighting up with Captain Marvel's insignia, hinting at a major role in undoing the damage Thanos has inflicted. 

Just because he's one of the main characters in the movie doesn't mean there isn't still more than meets the eye. Stephen Strange has a lot to do in Infinity War, as his particular brand of time and space manipulation is just what the more earthbound Avengers need in order to have even the slightest chance against Thanos and the assembled Infinity Stones. His scenes are peppered with hints straight from the comics as to his ever-increasing range of powers, from the Cauldron of the Cosmos to the Crimson Bands of Cyttorak.

But it's in the climactic clash with Thanos that the true extent of Strange's knowledge and foresight starts coming into focus. Just before the Mad Titan arrives, the good Doctor peers into millions of possible outcomes and sees only one that finds our heroes victorious. He later convinces Thanos to spare Tony Stark's life in exchange for the Time Stone, explaining that this is "the only way," just before he turns to dust. Clearly, Strange sees something we don't yet about how this could all be made better, even if he knows it has to get a whole lot worse first.