There are plenty of Easter eggs out there in the world. Get it? Because Easter was this weekend and we’ve all been bombarded with eggs on Animal Crossing? But I’m talking, more specifically, about the idea of Easter eggs in movies. The concept is basically expanding the Disneyworld “Hidden Mickey” search to movies and television shows and beyond and has been happening for years. There are little hidden gems in the fabric of our favorite properties, and through them, we can see what the creators really had in mind.
So, it isn’t surprising that Avengers: Endgame, at 3 hours long and the culmination of a decade of movies, had Easter eggs that we somehow missed in our viewings. (Or that I somehow missed throughout my 15+ screenings.) But now that I saw the little ode to the man who started it all off, I can’t help but cry yet again. Will I ever stop crying over Avengers: Endgame? Verdict still out.
On Friday, Disney launched a fittingly timely thread of Easter eggs in their movies and, in doing so, ushered in another full wave of my tears with this one:
Avengers. Assemble. pic.twitter.com/sv4pzFJnYC
— Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) April 10, 2020
The Marvel Cinematic Universe truly got going when Tony Stark first took to the screen. Iron Man debuted in 2008 without any idea as to what was going to happen with the world it was, theoretically, building.
(Marvel Entertainment)
Sure, there was an “idea,” but … who knew if it would work out?
But when you really stop and think the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a whole, there are many who feel as if there was “too much” Tony in the entire series. I don’t agree, but I think that many of us flocked to the characters we loved the most and wanted to see more of them, and sometimes, those characters were not Tony Stark. But, when we stop and think about it, none of this would have been possible without that first Iron Man movie.
It started the MCU, and thus, that shot—the Avengers all putting their hands in so they could complete their journey to bring back those they lost—being an ode to Tony, long before the audience knew his fate was sealed, hurts just that little bit more. He’s one of those characters that was always going to make the sacrifice play, even before Steve Rogers called him out in The Avengers, and so, with Avengers: Endgame, when it came down to Thanos winning or sacrificing himself to make sure his kids (and the rest of the universe) had full and beautiful lives, Tony Stark did what he had to do.
So yes, this Easter egg just exists now to hurt me and my soul, but looking back at Endgame, there were so many callbacks to the series as a whole that led up to this movie, and no matter how we all feel about the outcome of our heroes in the film, it’s impressive that Endgame managed to tie together 21 movies and kick off the next phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
(via ComicBook.com, image: Marvel Entertainment)
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