I’ve had a couple people approach me regarding my salty Endgame feelings and address the fact that “the movie was already 3 hours long, they fit in everything that they could.”
To that, I say this:
A few months ago, the Russo Brothers released a statement that they were having difficulty cutting the movie down to 3 hours.
If you can’t tell your story in 3 hours, maybe you need to start over from square one. Maybe it’s a script issue, not an editing issue.
All the movies prior to Endgame did a fantastic job at telling their story in 2 1/2 hours or less, including Infinity War. And I’m almost positive at least 30 minutes of Endgame was nothing but fat jokes, pee jokes, taking a shit on PTSD and mental health, “America’s ass” jokes, “Nah, take a picture with him!” jokes -- you get my point. Cut that down and you could have allotted more time.
So I repeat: If you can’t tell your story in 3 hours, maybe you need to go back to the drawing board.
(( Some Marvel Wank: An Essay by Mir, or, How And What Shall Be Ignored 5Ever Regarding Endgame. ( SPOILER HEAVY BEYOND THE CUT YOU DON’T EVEN UNDERSTAND, SO MUCH SPOILER )
To be honest, I am rewatching both Infinity War and Endgame this weekend, but for now I need to pour some salt truths and thoughts out about mostly Endgame. Very frankly speaking, Infinity War was mostly acceptable but also sort of forgettable in a weird ‘ I like it but I kinda don’t ‘ sort of way. It’s hard to explain, I might actually better liveblog into 1 post when I watch it again so I don’t miss any... thoughts on what happened.
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Where do I actually even begin with it? As someone who has watched Marvel start with Thor’s story, and abandon any sense and reason when it comes to his character development, I feel Endgame was honestly just a final nail in the coffin of an already deteriorated version of an otherwise glorious character. The final noose around his neck, the falling chop of the guillotine if you will. The weirdest thing is that they sort of did other characters dirty by doing Thor dirty, which is something I didn’t expect but oh well... ( sans Steve, per usual <3 )
New Asgard: I love the idea of it. I had envisioned the remaining Asgardians would be allowed to settle somewhere, and it makes sense it would be by a shore but also with mountains. Even though they would thrive in woodlands and mountains I feel the connection to the Vikings of old would give them this opportunity, and the location is fitting. Do I suspect they will resurrect Asgard properly at some point? Absolutely. They would want to rebuild much of their former home, and I feel that would be only possible off-Earth, possibly hovering above it.
Vakyrie: It warmed my heart to see her thrive, and seemingly happy. I don’t like it when trauma and PTSD, ( and gods know what else ) is glossed over by movies, but it’s understandable they couldn’t focus in depth on her character, or the Asgardians for that matter. That still doesn’t mean my greedy ass didn’t want it, or means that all is well and good, emotionally and mentally, for her ( or any of them ).
Thor: - cracks knuckles - Listen, my bias for him as a character should be clear and well known at this point. Everything about him, about the setup, intro, continuation and the overall approach was a joke, literally...
I find it acceptable he wouldn’t be in a palace anymore, their main priority is getting their people back into the swing of normal life, coping with said life and this new world, and supporting each other. Nobody cares about glitter and gold at this point, and Thor def wouldn’t. He would NOT however live away from them. Post Infinity War, post everything, his people is what matters most to him right now, and getting revenge on Thanos. Showing him as a recluse makes no sense, and he would never, period.
Continuing on from that idea, let me make one thing very clear. I’m NOT against the loss of his physique, or whatever the hell that means, I’m not against the notion that he suffers from (suvivors) guilt, depression, and that various other issues would haunt and plague him to no end. Including poor coping mechanisms that goes with that. But painting him as someone who would wallow in self-pity, after everything he has experienced and been through, after everything he has lost? Not in a million fucking years.
These tantrums, and whining, and staying hung up on mistakes and a lost battle of all things, is going against everything he has learned over the years ( and considering both Taika and the Russo bros shat on all previous movies and everything they displayed, I shouldn’t have been surprised). Thor has grown and evolved from that brash, foolhearted boy, CHILD he was, with every step he has taken since being dropkicked in New Mexico, and with every loss and grief he had to endure since then. He was raised by a father who demanded loyalty and bravery from him since the day he was born, and raised by a mother who taught him compassion and seeing the good in others. He had friends ( AND LET’S NOT FRICKEN FORGET SIF IS STILL OUT THERE SOMEWHERE TYVM, don’t even get me started ) that have taught him how to persevere, that have encouraged him and brought him down a peg each time his head got too big. He is a MAN now, someone who doesn’t hide or run from his responsibilities, and definitely someone who will NEVER allow the woe is me to take his focus of his purpose. And speaking of purpose....
Not A King: Thor has always been reluctant to take the throne, this has been a red thread through his arc in the MCU, with waxing and waning intensity towards the issue. But judging by the comments ( mostly of the casual fans, but def some of the die hards as well ) people seem to believe he doesn’t want to be king at all. Honestly, I disagree so hard it makes my body itch. Thor is not Odin, and Thor has rarely understood, let alone agreed with how his father ruled. He didn’t want to be a king LIKE HIM. He didn’t want to be caged on a throne, and ( seemingly ) rule without a heart, without ACTIVELY doing something. That’s what he didn’t want. He is tempest made flesh, he has compassion and a heart, and he needs to DO SOMETHING. And he didn’t feel, for a very long time he was capable to be and act as a king without Loki, without someone by his side to do the ‘ hard stuff ‘, he thought he was incapable of doing what was necessary. He has believed himself unworthy often, of both his hammer and definitely of the throne, and after all this he will not cower and hide, and play Fortnite ( he would be an Overwatch or Skyrim dude anyway tyvm). This is why this... characterization if you may call it that, this story of self-pity and loss of confidence, is outright bullshit. It implies, once again, that he doesn’t learn from the past, and it’s regressing his character so much it’s painful. He would never ever run from his responsibilities, at this point in his life, and that’s why I cannot accept his renouncing of the throne, in whatever form that may be.
The Running Gag And Why It’s Gross For All Involved: I understand that contrast is funny by default, and that extremes, in characters, can be hysterical at times. I didn’t appreciate the Thor Is Fat jokes running through the movie, constantly. It made everyone participating looking like a douche in the process ( Rhodey for example, was so utterly disappointing I legit gasped...). Rocket is a character I expected cheap things from, but the OG 6 ( sans Steve, bless ) participating in it was so OOC for them it was cringe. They were there during the battle in Infinity War... they KNOW what he feels, they understand the guilt. And they would NOT act this way towards Thor.
A Moment Of Brightness: I’m happy with the closure he received with Frigga, fricken finally, but of course it had to be ruined by the ‘ eat a salad ‘ bit. Frigga would not give a rat’s ass about her child being fat, ffs. Steve wielding Mjolnir was magnificent and complies with my headcanons from years and years it makes my heart sing. Steve in general was a jewel in a sea of shit. The throwbacks to other movies were ingenious.
What We Needed But Never Received: A moment between Loki and Thor, at the very least, to offer some closure there as well. T’challa and his people being more than just canon fodder. Captain Marvel being used properly. Multiple characters just... being more than just screen filler.
In Conclusion: This topped my very disliked Ragnarok and that’s saying something. A proper synopsis will follow of course, and updates on the verses page per movie. As it stands I’ll probably be like 80 - 90 % canon divergent since the AoU era, and that’s frankly a-okay with me.
You know one of the things I'm most angry about Endgame? The moral of the story - if you go on a murderous rampage you deserve your happy family ending but if you stick around like Nat & continue to be an Avenger or you try to salvage your second chance (but still continue to plan for the inevitable attack coming) like Tony you die. How does that even remotely make sense?
For real. This has been eating me up all week (along with every other single stinky problem Endgame had) I mentioned it in my 2nd viewing review but I’ll say it again here: Clint should have died instead.
Their justifications for his murdering rampage is B.S. “Oh, well, this isn’t new, he was killing people back with SHIELD too so…” Like, NO. He let his grief consume him and took the law into his own hands. I don’t care if every single person he murdered was a horrible, evil rapist son of a bitch who deserved it. That’s not his place to take their lives. It only gets worse when you know he spent 5 years doing this. He spent 5 years killing god knows how many people while poor Nat stayed at the compound trying to make the world a better place with whoever’s help she could get.
“Oh, well, he was going to jump but Nat beat him too it so it’s the thought that counts, right?”
Again, no. The writers wrote it that way. The writers don’t get to excuse their bad writing as if they had no control over it. The pen was in their hand/the keyboard was beneath their fingers. They chose this for everyone involved.
If I was Clint’s wife, I’d divorce him A.S.A.P. And shame on him if he keeps this secret from her.
Both deaths in Endgame deserved to be swapped: Clint with Nat, Steve with Tony. They clearly went for the “shocking” ending and it just completely ruined years worth of narrative because of it.
Here’s my Endgame theory: they wrote so many fake scripts that they forgot which was the real one and actually filmed a fake one. Can we all agree to this? I will stand by this as fact. #notmyendgame
It’s super hilarious that you said that. Because 5 days after watching the film and I STILL feel like it was a fake script!! Or multiple scripts that were filmed and accidentally edited together – god, that pacing was so bad.
Seriously, I’ve seen it twice now and the more I replay it in my head, the less I believe its real. It didn’t feel AT ALL like an Avengers/Marvel movie…and not in a good way.
I’m reaching my point of acceptance for ignorance. Slowly, but surely. Just like Civil War, I pluck out my Irondad & Spiderson and carry it to my own head canon. Looks like nothing has really changed since then…shows how bad of a job the Russo Brothers way back in 2016.
Hi! I've just discovered your blog and now I'm following you and I've already liked/reblogged a shit-ton of posts, but i felt like I had to come thank you personally; so, thank you so much (and your friends too? whoever wrote those Endgame rants) for writing out and talking about everything I've felt about Endgame in the two days since I saw it. I never thought that it would actually be popular thoughts and I'm kind of fed up trying to convince my friends of my thoughts. So, thank you :)
No my friend, thank you for also coming forward and vocalizing your honest opinion about this! My biggest fear the weekend of Endgame was that fans would be so immersed and brainwashed by the years worth of hype leading up to the movie that they wouldn’t be HONEST with themselves about how they felt.
I get that; I was almost like that. In hindsight, my first viewing was spent dismissing A LOT because “This is Endgame. It’s good. It’s gunna be good. It has to be good. I need to love this.” But I know the moment in the film that broke the camels back, and I know the moment I said “Nah, fuck this.” I can’t let that go because it was an overly hyped movie and made 1.2billion opening weekend. I just can’t. I’ve watched a LOT of shitty movies/TV shows because I’m more than willing to dismiss certain flaws. But when the entire movie is one heaping flaw? Yeah, no. Especially when some of my absolute favorite characters were treated so dirty.
Also, I’m not ever this much of a negative Nancy, so pardon my blog for being flooded with these posts. Things should lighten up here once my ignorance stage kicks in :)
The people that are shitting on anyone that even so much as says one small bad thing about Endgame are assholes whom don't understand the concept of PEOPLE CAN HATE THINGS YOU LOVE. Pass it on.
Preach, friend. Preach.
Also, an odd thought – I can hate what I love.
I love Marvel and the MCU and all these characters. I don’t hate them for what happened in Endgame, I hate the writers who wrote all that trash and subsequently ruined 11 years worth of collective narrative film. It’s why I’m still in the MCU fandom, especially the Irondad side of things despite how that ended. I hate Endgame, but I love all that came before it.
It’s like me and my lovely Spidey comics. I fucking hated Superior Spider-man and didn’t buy one single issue during it’s run. But guess who returned once they fixed that nasty ass garbage of a storyline? Moi.
But yeah, we all don’t need to love the same thing. God, that would make life boring. The movie has already grossed 2 billion, it doesn’t need anyone to come to its defense.
