Cakeās Top Ten Little Moments in the MCU
For @alphaflyer, who suggested the little MCU moments in which āordinary people (like us) confront and comment on that super-ness.ā .Thanks for the idea! This was a lot of fun.
10.Ā āCan we get a selfie?ā ā Thor: Ragnarok
Letās face it; who wouldnāt want to get a selfie with a superhero, especially one as hot as Thor?Ā But beyond that, this scene shows the way normal humans would acclimate to the Avengers, accepting their presence the same way we deal with stars and royalty.Ā Weād take selfies, post on social media, and overall be excited that our paths crossed with someone so amazing, even if only tangentially.Ā
Plus, Lokiās eye roll is absolutely fabulous.Ā
9.Ā āWhy the hell should I take orders from you?āĀ ā NYPD officer in The Avengers
Itās a funny scene that highlights the difference between the police and Captain America. But it also shows the very human reaction of disbelief (the officer has no clue who this guy in a spangled suit is), mistrust (what does he know?) and basic skepticism superheroes would be met with by most people.Ā Only once the officer sees Cap at work, how quickly he neutralizes the threat, does he accept Steveās orders and begin issuing them himself.Ā Like Doubting Thomas, he needs visual evidence and actions before he can come to terms with whatās happening.Ā
8.Ā āIām in the system?ā ā Luis in Antman
Sidekicks are the best and Luis is the pinnacle of perfection.Ā Think about it; he befriends Scott Lang in prison, helps him through his time behind bars. Heās there when Scott gets out, gives him a place to live, lets him borrow his car.Ā When they rob Hank Pymās house, heās in the get-away van; when Scott decides to turn hero, Luis dons his uniform and plays his part, even going back to rescue the guard heād knocked out.Ā Itās Luis who knows a guy who knows a girl who heard about the Avengersā compound and the part they need.Ā He always has Scottās back, accepting the wacky hijinks with a smile and a long-winded story.Ā We would all be lucky to be as exemplary a sidekick as Luis.Ā
7.Ā āWe are vegetariansā ā MāBaku in Black Panther
Heās the leader of the JāBari, a mighty warrior, a keeper of tradition, and entirely human. MāBaku has no time for royalty or superheroes. What he wants is to be respected and to keep Wakanda and his people safe and free ā¦ even if that means turning down the heart-shaped flower and saving his rival TāChalla. This scene sums up MāBaku in an ad-libbed line that cracks me up every time I watch it.Ā MāBaku is a fully realized character who isnāt impressed with all the posturing that happens in a world of superheroes; he makes a joke out of it instead.Ā Ā
Plus, this scene, like so much of Black Panther, is layered with the history of colonialism and racism; MāBaku barking at the CIA representative is more than funny, itās a reclaiming of self-agency.Ā
6. Peggy almost touches Steve ā Captain America: The First Avenger
Another unplanned moment, the furtive hand movement from Peggy Carter as Steve emerges from the pod is sweet, funny, and so very poignant.Ā Peggy is a woman in a manās world; she knows her value, is ready to punch her way out of situations and has battled to be where she is. Itās such a telling slip, reaching out to see if heās real, if heās okay, if heās still Steve.Ā All the yearning pent up in one action, the knowledge that the young man sheās grown fond of is now changed forever. You can see it in the way she heaves a breath in the second gif, like sheās been through the process herself. This is the moment, with the others celebrating the scientific breakthrough, where Peggy realizes just how screwed she is to be falling in love with a superhero.Ā
5.Ā āYes, I didā ā Darcy Lewis inĀ Thor
There are so many Darcy moments to choose from.Ā Ā āStill muscly.āĀ Ā āIām not dying for three college credits.āĀ Ā āGive me your shoe.āĀ But this moment, when she proudly admits she tasered Thor, the guy who fell from the sky, is when we knew Darcy Lewis was aĀ ātake-no-shitā type of person who will deal with whatās happening and worry about it later.Ā Sheās not impressed by superheroes, but, unlike MāBaku, sheās a small woman who relies upon her wits, her smart mouth, and pure luck.Ā Sheās not a genius like Jane Foster, not a fighter like Peggy Carter, sheās just plain Darcy and thatās what makes her strength of will so damn amazing in the MCU.
4.Ā āNoā ā Sam Wilson in Captain America: Civil War
From the moment Sam jogs his way, slowly but steadily, into the MCU, he never doubts that his job is to skewer the egos of all these super-powered people, make sure they never forget their goal is to help others. From his invitation to eat breakfastĀ āif you people do things like thatā to making Natasha thank Redwing to asking Tāchalla if he likes cats to the fabulous fight scene at the airport with quips flying between him and Bucky, Sam is on equal footing from day one. Of all the scenes, this one in the car, when heās literally inches in front of the Winter Soldier, a brainwashed assassin whose already tried to kill him twice, really shows just how confident Sam is of his own abilities, both as Falcon, but also as a caring person whoās trying to help Steve get Bucky back.Ā
3.Ā Ā āFor Wakanda? Without questionā ā Okoye inĀ Black Panther
Okoye knows superheroes.Ā She is the Captain of the Guard of the Dorae Milaje and her job is to protect the King of Wakanda, the Black Panther.Ā She could have been rigid, unyielding, a follower of the rule of law ā¦ and she is all those things, but sheās also very human, a woman who had to choose between the man she loves and the King she serves.Ā Sheās funny, loyal, unfazed by super soldiers and magic-wielding witches.Ā She side-eyes Bruce Banner when he trips in the Hulkbuster armor, fights flawlessly in an evening gown, and stays true to her convictions even in the face of King Killmongerās reign. To Okoye, those with superpowers have a great responsibility to protect others and sheās not afraid to call them on the carpet if need be.Ā Ā
This scene is revolutionary because of the idea of a woman who doesnāt put romantic entanglements first, who, like male heroes, is willing to sacrifice everything for what she believes in.
2.Ā āDonāt waste your lifeā ā Yinsen in Iron Man
God, I teared up just looking at these gifs.Ā Ho Yinsen, a scientist, husband, father, man who just wanted to do some good in the world. Caught in the midst of such violence and faced with the man whose company built the weapons that killed his family, the man who once ignored him and his ideas. This moment. This fucking moment when heās dying, has always known that he would die, understood just how small a part he was going to play in the larger-than-life story of Tony Stark. How do I get to be this type of person who not only accepts who he is and what heās not, but uses his precious few seconds on the worldās stage to change the future? Make no mistake, itās because of Yinsen that Iron Man exists, that Tony builds the arc reactor, saves himself, saves New York, saves the whole world, saves the fucking universe.Ā One regular human guy who saw the potential in Tony and made the ultimate sacrifice.Ā
Ho Yinsen.Ā
1.Ā āCaptainās Ordersā ā Cameron Klein in Captain America: Winter Soldier
Of all the moments in the MCU, itās this one where I see myself the most, the little peon at their computer who suddenly is thrust into the middle of a superpowered battle and has to make a choice between life and death. He knows, knowsĀ that heās dead, that Rumlow will shoot him and push the button anyway. Look, Iām not a brilliant scientist or a warrior or a military officer; Iām not going to be the one fighting beside Steve or laughing at TāChalla or tasing Thor; Iām Cameron Klein and I hope to God that if that moment ever comes where thereās a gun to my head that I can sayĀ āCaptainās ordersā and refuse. Heās one of the many faceless S.H.I.E.L.D. employees who work at a desk or cafeteria or mailroom, doing their jobs, only to be injured, have their lives destroyed or die when the Triskelion falls or when Hawkeye attacks the Helicarrier or when their names are revealed on the internet.
Cameron is #1 because heās me, the small cog in the wheel that got caught when the machine gave way.Ā He said no without having the power to fight back or to change anything ā¦ but he did it anyway.Ā
