BONUS EP: 'Avengers: Endgame' Review **SPOILERS**

You have seen her words on Playboy Polygone The Hollywood Reporter teen Vogue. She was here for our Captain Marvel episode. It is Joel Monique. O, what's up. I'm so excited to talk about this movie critic. Yes, you've been through it for a few We did Aunt Man in the Wash Marvel. Yeah, we've did all the movies after Infinity War up until it's true I mean your Marvel person, and I feel really special about that. Yeah, so when I have many times have you have you seen it

once now? Or I have seen it once? Okay, but it was a lasting experience and I haven't talked about I haven't stopped talking about it since like even Game of Thrones day, I was still talking about Avengers. So I feel good about it. I know it really sat I mean it also sat with me as well. It was something that honestly, even though it was three hours, didn't feel like it not at all, didn't feel like three hours. UM. So I guess we could just dive right into it. How did you feel? How did you

feel about it? Compared to all the other m c U films. So I went back and watched most of the m c U films before, and then every film that was very specifically inside of this film I watched again afterwards, and I felt, so this movie has we're wrapping up so many storylines that it has like this very like lovely prominent place, like it's the end of like the Great Tony Stark, like um emotional daddy drama saga, and then also you get the end of Captain Marvel's

like sacrificial journey. Um. But in the same way that I feel like Ultron left people with a lot of questions, this movie left me with a lot of questions. However, I will say I rewatched Ultron and I have those questions anymore because Ultron is setting up questions to be

answered later. It's hard to judge a series in the middle, like as an end of a chapter, you're like so good, Like I feel like we got where we needed to be, you know, have questions about some of the deaths, but overall it's like, you know, this is a really solid place to land. Um, we'll have to see where they pick up some of the strands some of the questions later. It's hard to sort of judge the film in a series when you don't know how it's going to end.

I think it did a great job closing the book on just kind of the the original MCU crew, like you know, Cat you know, wrapped that story, which is was beautiful to me as a fan of the comics because that doesn't happen in the comics. In the comics, Cap just keeps fighting, you never he he never gets

that back. So for him to be able to get that back in the movies was like an extra surprise it didn't see coming, uh, and that it makes sense for him to rest the decision Captain in America to make Iron Man, you know, finally getting wrapped up, which you know was great. I think I called that, I said they were both couldn't die. I mean, they both didn't die, but they both kind of got wrapped, their

stories wrapped. And you know, it seems like they're gonna kind of bunch thor with Guardians maybe, which is which is the interesting thing? Uh Black Widow Dad, I think she's gone. I think they they smoked her. The the movie that's on the docket as a prequel, Like that's

so they're just gonna do the prequel. It it does seem to do a prequel, yes, but I mean I feel like a prequel coming after time travel, knowing that the zones soul stone is an exchange, and that Captain went to place all the stones back exactly where they picked them up, she could easily pop back up. I just don't think that it's necessary, though sometimes I feel I sometimes I feel like it's okay too. It's like real life. It's okay sometimes to retire or lose our heroes.

That happened in real life. We lose people that we care about in real life. And um, it's funny that you I know that you wrote for um Playboy. I just wrote a thing, a piece for them on how Endgame tackles failure. And mortality and mainly how I when I watched this movie, I watched it as someone that has depression, seeing how they were put into this bleak world where they suddenly found themselves purposeless. They suddenly had

no purpose anymore. They were so lost and didn't did know how to carry How do you carry on when you feel like you have no more purpose? How do you carry on after grief? How do you carry on after loss? And so that to me when I walked out and everyone's like, how do you like? How did you like it? And to me it was like, oh my gosh, it spoke to me from that place of it was the most vulnerable I had ever seen them.

That to me is decide that I that I wanted to see And yeah, they've all we've had Lost and other and other films, but this was the first time where it was really like this might not work out. A five year jump is what really kind of screws with your head at the beginning, because at first it's like, Okay, well we're picking up and we're gonna find oh, like

there's nothing. That was a great moment, and there were just lots of good bread crumbs within all that be like you know Cap saying how he this is a second loss firm because he had that loss, and it really did. There were a lot of setups that were great. There was some little heavy handed like I don't think Tony Stark needed to say and don't die in the process. It was like, all right, this is this is but but I always say those ones are for the people

in the back or what's gonna happen. It's like, oh uh, there's something that's been making ways recently that didn't ping for me. But it seems like a lot of people feel a certain way and it's about fat thor I love person. I love that that's and that's my thing too, is like you know, I saw no problem because they didn't have any fat jokes. And then at the end of the like really him being fat felt like it was an effect of his like depression which he had.

He was depressed because he felt that he couldn't save people. And then when he gets good, he doesn't get skinny. It's not like he gets lightning zapp his body and

then they're saying like, oh, fat is depressed. It just was an effect of it, and he just was totally He gets to say the line like I'm still worthy while he's fat, Like he gets his back, like it's not and it's not anything that anybody makes fun of him for, you know, they're mostly just concerned about like so you're drinking a lot and that needs you to come back to earth and like that's your job. I pointed that out in Candy Dinner, that there there was

no like direct fat jokes. It was just all his drinking like that's and yet like there seems to be this big, you know thing, and I can't control how anybody feels about it. But it gets to the point where it's like people are kind of like, you know, him being fat as a fat joke, as like at some point it's like you're almost like not allowing people

to show people larger on screen. I don't know. I split hairs with it and say this, On the one hand, like you have to be media literate, you need to like look at things and see like how they're portraying it and and to that effect, like no, I I personally don't think that anybody's making fun of Thor's body. On the other hand, I know there's a lot of frustration as we watch a lot of very thin people put on body suits and portray fat people. And there

are a lot of factors who could be doing these roles. Um, this is not one of them, though, Like we couldn't replace You're not gonna this is never gonna happen. So, um did the body Sily greet? No, we don't see a lot of fat bodies. I think we're still trying to figure out how to portray them in a way that with dignity essentially and not play it for jokes.

They got pretty close for for someone who hit to eighty and hit two eighty muscular, that was that was one thing that people are like, oh, that looks weird. It's like, no, that's like I have a picture in my phone of my body looking but look kind of plastic. That I feel like that's just the limitations of like the Uncanny Valley with like we make alien faces, we

should be able to make believable that. I think. I think he the one that I've saw people point out was that his mom told him to eat a salad. You know, at some she was, I can please an a salad, but for me also he just she said like when she looks at him, because he is depressed. Like you said, if he's intoxicated, he is has become an alcoholic, like he as someone that has depression. He hasn't showered like and so to me, it's almost like she when she cresses his face and she's like, you know,

the future hasn't been good to you. I think she's just looking at the hardship that he is, you know, not necessarily his body, but just him as like your soul has been crushed. You're intoxicated. My child here is like severely depressed, you know, like please take care of yourself. I think like that might be the commentary more there. It's a very mom thing to say, like take care

of yourself, please don't down a bunch of corps. Like it certainly wasn't like, oh my god, no one's gonna love him still, And the thing was that she still, she loved him so much. She knew like this is my son, you know, and you're not and you would never you know. It was interesting because she did say you are a failure, but and he was like that's harsh. But it was so fascinating the way that it's like

it's okay to fail. It's okay to fail you know, that doesn't mean you're not worthy, and that's why when he reached for Milnoir, he was still able to get it like you are still valid definitely. I mean, like I think I've made this comment before, like aren't always is going to affect people differently. People are gonna get it differently, and you know, no one knows the intent, and you just sometimes you just see something a certain way and you know that's how you feel about and

I can't argue that. But that did kind of like shake me a bit because I I think it shook me more, like maybe it feels something that I just was like hunt and moved. I think it shook me more because I came out of it thinking like, oh they they did a good job with not doing the hacky thing and really kind of really letting it be the effect of his depression and not have it. But I think Joel just knocked it out the park on that, uh story wise, you know, yeah, I think just hidden,

like everyone said, didn't feel like three hours. It really just flowed. It kept giving us everything we needed, and as a like finale to eleven years of movies, I gotta say I love that, just like as a writer.

It was kind of like almost just storytelling point that you ind the you You go back to one of the most prolific moments in The Avengers two thousand twelve The New York when we first meet the Avengers and we just have essentially these developed characters, but like having Steve Rogers from two thousand twelve fights Steve Rogers now so you can actively see but the way they tease like this isn't like I talked to a bunch of people who are like, well, I've seen all the movies

and I still feel them like this is a movie designed for people who watch these movies like six times, because the little like when Steve gets in the elevator and you're like, are we gonna point to they build that tension for fans of being like, we know what you want to see. Now he learned his lesson. It's just a simple hale Hydra and he thought. I was like, this is so effing good. And a thousand little moments

like that word like one of the coming. One of my favorite things was getting to see Bruce first, like how much the Hulk has changed? He out of every one, I would say him and Nebula's story arc are my favorite.

Like Bruce so to have the fact that he went back in that time when we first saw the Avengers, and now he has rectified this part of himself that he hated so much that he has now learned to live with and and seeing as now a strength something that he and I don't know if you remember, in the first Avengers he actually said that he tried to kill himself. I mean, that's really dark. He says that he shot a bullet in his mouth and that the

whole spit it out. And now, um, there's a scene it's so it's so pretty where nat is like you know where Natasha where Black Widow, where he Um, Bruce is nervous about the time travel and she says, well, um, you did this. And she's talking about him being able to be Bruce and the Hulk at the same time, and she says, I remember a time when that was

almost impossible. And so for me it's like, oh my gosh, the fact that this man has finally been able this like tormented soul has finally been able to come to terms and like be both of these things at the same time, and you're really able to see that by

these flashbacks, like how how much of our heroes have evolved. Well, also, it's great because it's just such a metaphor with so many things where you try and fight this part of you, just try and fight you use like I want to be, not this I this part of me I don't want to be. And finally learning to love that part of yourself and be one with it and see how it complements you as a human. That is just a beautiful

message within itself. And I mean this The time stuff was real cool, mostly because the pacing of it was great. We got the fun of the two thousand and twelve and then we almost forget that they went to Vormier Vormier or with Vormier. Yeah, we almost forget. They time it so perfectly for it to be the last one. We forget the one thing that they taught us about Vormier in the last movie, because we had all this

stuff happened. And then you see red Skull and you're like, oh, oh no, see I didn't forget and I knew immediately. So one of these two people is going to have to die. And I feel like it is really challenging because like if we look at the way um Houlka like Hulk is the exact opposite mental space as literally everyone else. The writers did a really great interview with The New York Times where they took everybody's like most

pressing questions asked the writers and they responded. So one of them was talking about, like, you know, when did you guys decide to take this route with the Hulk because his story he hasn't had a solo story. It's chopped up amongst like about four different stories to make this arc happen for him. And if you remember any trailers for Infinity Wars, you have Hulk in the Hulk Buster running around instead of just Bruce Banner inside of the Hulk Bolster with his tiny head, giant metal body

thing going on. Originally they were going to put that storyline at the end of this movie, at the end of Infinity Wars. He was going to have that transformation and be kind of like reached this equilibrium. Then the snap would have happened, and then we would have come back here, but she wouldn't given his character a lot to do. So it's really smart of them to put

it here. I really wish we had had more of that formation, that thought process with Nat who was also a character who has yet to have a solo movie, who hasn't had her story really spread out, She hasn't had a great arc across Like you're introduced to her in uh iron Man Too, Tony hires her as an assistant. Then you know she's in Avengers and we get a lot more of her backstory. We get a little bit of a teaser of like what her life was like

in Ultron. Then she's kind of hanging out with Cap and being like, you should date again, that would be fun for you, right, and we hear kicked total ass, which is awesome. Nothing happens to her and all this time, and the writer said that in this one, she's supposed to be reclusive. Did you get that kind of I

mean she did. I felt like she has out of everyone, she's the one that had her walls up, that she she felt like she had to remain strong because remember, like it was clear everybody was like are you okay? Everyone kept like, you know, like checking in on her and for and I remember there was a scene where Cap was like she was like if I don't do this,

who's going to do this? And he was like, maybe no one needs to do this, you know, And for me it was just like she I know what you're saying though, and I feel like, um should I just lost my train of thought, but um, I soon say. As they've explored other like mental disorders or disabilities, and and they've explored them so well in such a short amount of time, agoraphobia is presented in a lot of different ways, and they sort of hinted at it, but again,

they didn't give not anything to do. They had all these characters sort of reacting to her. But I'm sorry, yeah, no not but like, let's see her try to maybe go after Clan because that's the only really clue I got was when they're like, someone's going should go after him and I'm like, well, it's name was like something back what I should be able to take care of

pretty easily. Like that's sort of how they met. It's weird that she's not doing it, but it to me, it never got to that again, that fully fleshed out point. And I feel like that's her whole problem in the entire saga Infinity saga is that we never get to know her as a person. Well, I was going to say. One of the saddest scenes when she does pass and and Cap it was like, how do your friends not even know you? Because Cap was like does she have

any family? And they said, yeah, us And I was just like, how do you not know if she has? But that I mean it did up in that with the soul Stone when Clint says something about her dad's name and she's like, I didn't know it, you know, So it's clear that she I know what you're saying. It seems like maybe she was the one that she didn't really get. Her death is probably one of the saddest because it was like she didn't really get to reconcile a lot of that or you know, the funeral.

I feel like the I kind of feel the same way there. But now it's kind of fun now now that you pointed out that exchange thing and she might be back. I'm like, oh, that that's a good point. But there is like that element where I was hoping Clint would go because I'm like, Clint is wrapped up. He had his rown in. We showed how cool he is. He has you know, his family. Yeah, they're gone, they'll

be they'll be fine, you know. It's so like so like when it was like her getting smoked, it was because I was like, damn that, even though we did get more back before, before we got that moment, uh, that real moment of having her back, I was like, damn,

we lost two women in this same thing. Um, but you know that, you know, I totally forget that when we have that super you know, dope woman moment uh in the final battle, which I was like, oh y'all, y'all did it like it was like when it was when it went super fan service E And I was like, oh man, I don't care how many people are going

to complain online about this. This is what I needed is just seeing all of this action pop off and then just that anime style fight with Captain Marvel and Than I was just the anime like I'm a headbutt you was like, that didn't do anything. But then also that I thought it was a cool sequence of even than I was doing the switch up of grabbing the power stone to punch her like he needs. Yeah, it's

just so much the fight sequence all that. Uh. Yeah, this was you know, big big moments if you if you have a daughter, man that they really came at you. It was like boom right at the top with Scott Lang and his daughters like ouch boom. Then you see Iron Man with his daughter's like oh this moment, ouch boom. Then you get the moment, uh you know Clint when he misses his daughter out just back to bed and his daughter on you just oh, kill me now, like

how how how do you miss it? How do you miss And you tore her literally apart like it was crazy. But to go back to your earlier point about like the female and how like just Gimla Wilson is really that doll? If you is probably inappropriate to call her, but I'm so sorry. But she she was awesome. Uh. She created the eight Fource, which is the all female Marvel team Super Dope. She Hulk has a really prominent role in a lot of characters that we haven't yet

gotten to in the Marvel universe. But seeing these women that we've been like traveling with, and especially you kind of got like a little moment of this Infinity War with the Natalie Adkia fight scene. Um, no Scarlett Witch fight scene, but here like seeing all like six eight of them like just tearing ship down. It was amazing. They were wonderful. I would see that moment, like I really just want to see the fight over and over again. I mean, just that mom We're like, Scarlet Witch is

straight up about to murder who you are? Just he was about to die. He was about to die until it and but it was so funny because like this is where the nerve brain gets in my way again, because I'm like, you're still so much stronger in the comets. You can literally be you. You can snap without at which is why they didn't do it in the movies, because that's that's what they do an X men. They make their women too powerful and then they have to come.

They're always like, oh man, we made the too powerful, we have to kill them. But I feel like the cool thing about the way the m c you set up is that we could get that snap eventually, Like yeah, give it like ten to fifty Scarlett Witch, Okay, that's at one point, and it eliminates like all of everybody with the ex GENA. Yeah, she she doesn't even she says no more mutants, just speaks the word and no more mutants, and almost all of mutants are so good.

Read House of Him if you haven't read it, yet it leads up to that it's so good because it and that's kind of why, like everyone's like, I don't know why you need the X Men, uh, but like the stuff like House of Him and Avengers versus x Men is you have these two super teams like so far, and what we've learned in this movie is the Avengers go uncontested, but in a world where X Men exists, there's a whole another team that if they feel like the Avengers step outline could go toe to toe with him.

And that's what House of m was about, is want of maximum off. She has this break from reality and just like, yo, we gotta do something about that, and we have to kill someone. And they're basically having this discussion of whether or not to kill her in the X Men or like, she's our people, so this is our decision and they're having this fight, and the fight

eventually it's it's it's very beautiful. It's the rising tensions with that pisses Wanda off so much that she's just like you you all these problems and everyone's trying to have control over her. It's like, like, really looking back on it, it's really just a kind of interesting look like she's just tired of all these like people in her life trying to tell her what to do, and she's like, no more mutants and people lose their powers.

I want to say it was so I think. I was like, yeah, I think that they're going to introduce new characters. And then when I saw the roster, like when that final scene happened, of just how many characters they had to bring back to really wrap this up, I'm like, oh, yeah, so it makes sense that they

didn't introduce and because like maybe they'll I didn't. I don't know, maybe one of the new Avengers, like maybe I don't know who at the times, don't bring back Quick Silver, who we really need, Yeah, Aaron Taylor Johnson back to them. But I wasn't even like, I don't know, maybe America Chavis will show up in here. They're trying to get more you know, um, queer representation, and I was like maybe, And I just now when I looked at the whole I was like, I don't think they

were going to do that in endgame. Being unrightfully dragged by Hector in our previous U episode when he pointed out I was complaining about the civil war fight. This is what I wanted. That fight when they rushed towards each other looked like a comic book spread. I was like,

this is it. I almost like I had all those dad tears and I almost burst into tears of just pure nerd happiness, because you know, you're the theater of your mind when you read these comics, you make something so exciting when you see these pictures come to life in your head, and you would think, you're like, this would be so cool as a movie, but they would

never be able to do it. And to see it, like to think ten years ago that Fanos like like, look, I know Fanos is a household dame now, but Thanos, even in comics, was this cosmic level hero. Like I was explaining like the levels to like Marvel heroes to someone because they're because I was like, it's crazy because Thanos is a cosmic hero and they're like, what, cousin. I was like, oh, yeah, no, you have cosmic Marvel.

That's all space stuff. I was like, you get a taste of that from Guardians, but there's a whole level of that. Then you got your Avengers level, and then you got your street level, which was cool because they were building it out with all their Netflix shows. You had your street level heroes, then you had the Defenders, and now we're gonna see what happens with that. You know, uh, Disney Plus in five years, so totally in a different form.

But Disney Plus about to take over well, and I guess now Sony too, because um, Chris Miller and Philip Lord are now doing Marvel TV series with Sony. Yeah, they just create like a nine figure deal. I'm hearing rumors that there's gonna be starting whole new departments of things over there for that. It's going to be wild.

I'm so cited. But like, looking to your earlier point about introducing new characters, when Peter went back to high school, I swear I was looking for Kamalic, like where are you? Maybe she's start. Well, I feel like they've really started to establish a group of young people you can start taking the lead in the next arc. So it'll be interesting to see. Well, that's what I feel like Monica Rambo was. That's what I feel like she's going to be.

When they introduced her, I mean she has to be five year time jump to yeah, because she's she's an adult now it's been If it was the nineties, then she would be we have to take a really quick break. We're going to hop back into endgame in just a minute, and we're back. Yeah. So I also loved seeing um that moment between Peter Parker and Tony Start. That was another two your moment for me. And honestly getting to have Pepper have her moment in the suit, like truly

loved having Rescue finally show up. That was beautiful. I mean there was so much, oh my gosh, there was so much just dope moments sprinkled in, but I think rescue is one of the biggest moments because I remember that meme going around before the movie where they're like, what is Pepper Pot's going to do? Because yeah, up until this point, we've totally forgot about Rescue if you think about how long ago Iron Man three was, so for her to show up, it's like, I'm gonna show

y'all what I'm gonna do. Yeah, They're like dual moment on the battlefield was really dope. That was beautiful. I like the door combo with Iron Man's suit, and of course the scene that everybody can't stop talking about the scene that I was at the press screen and you know how I have you know how people try and be there. I was there at one okay, I was at the nine o'clock. But you know, you know how people at press green is trying to be all professional.

They never never laugh. That did not happen at this because in mind, there was no like all the funny moments. There was just like like really, yeah, there was a dude next to me clacking loud on his keyboard like it was like straight up, yeah, you're typing the reveal in the movie. Yes, yeah, so but everyone's trying to be professional. When I say Cap got that hammer and everyone just erupted, it just made it more I'm glad people were trying to keep it together because it made

that more powerful. That everyone forgot that they were trying to, you know, out here trying to pretend like they're professional. We went wild. Cap grabbing the hammer is something It's crazy to me because I feel like I'm working on article right now about what changed and Cap that made him worthy to carry the hammer versus in a vender's wine.

When they all tried to pick up the ham, right, it was only Thor who was worthy, which sort of makes Thor like the only pure hero from the start, which really changed your perspective, Like Thor changed so much from Ragnarok to write the f now that I feel like there's so much more. The character has blossomed so beautifully into himself. And now we've had three people carry the hammer, Thor Captain America, and then Vision carrying it

for a brief moment in Ultron. I think, Um, so what what what is your If you don't mind what changed? What do you think changed? He was honest with Tony the fact because he knew about Um the Winter Soldier and killing Tony's parents, and so he was lying and keeping a secret. And I think that I'm not even sure if the Hammer had a problem with it, but I think the Cap had a problem with it, and could would never have seen himself truly worthy Um because it was the only it was his only secret from

the Avengers. It was really his only betrayal of the Avengers ever, and every time after that he's just very straightforward with him. It literally caused the Civil War between that, so that was mess. I think him coming clean about that, him kind of restoring things with Bucky, which we'll get to that in a minute. I think that his conscience is clear and he's good to move forward now. Nice I felt it was. My thought was that he's prideful.

I feel like, yeah, I feel like Captain America has a lot of pride because it takes a certain level of pride for him to just like anything. I think he like, you know how you can be prideful and that's fine, but you just have too much pride. There's a confidence. And he never took an owl, you know, he never took an owl frozen and ice for eighty years. That's more. That's more of a pause. Like I mean, he like as far as for him fighting for justice, never took an owl, and Thanos handed him that l

and it made him reevaluate everything he is. But I like yours better. I didn't like seeing Tony at the top in group therapy. The idea of like a man from that generation, and especially a guy that like a lot of maybe less well man kind of feels like the manliest man for him to be like and therapy talking to dudes about feelings and being like, you know, we should open up and talk and this is what

I'm going to process my grief at those point and important. Yeah, speaking of which, I'm gonna touch on that moment, like, for a hot second, it was real. For for a hot second for me, it was real cool that, you know, one of the Russo's did that cameo and openly talked about a gay relationship, and then it fizzled out when I was like, oh, that's just another off screen gay relationship. Okay.

So I have two really strong feelings about So. As a queer person, I think any attempt to celebrate this moment like it's our first gay character, sit, sit your whole last down. Uh. Netflix has had gay characters in your Marvel series, and to overlook them is a travesty. They did really awesome work. They had on screen relationships, They were complicated, They were much more than just being

gay in a five second moment. However, I think that by the one of the User brothers playing the character himself is making a statement of like, we would really like to make strides in this. This is a global company. Disney has to please many, many, many, many many markets. Uh, you can still be killed for being queer in some places. A lot of places will not screen your movie if there is even one gay character in it. It's not it doesn't feel like a win here, but this movie

screening everywhere. I feel like it's a win other places. And so yeah, I definitely people were like, no, it's great. It's like breaking down boundaries, like be excited. I'm not

excited about it. But as far as Rouster Brothers being like, you know, we want to do more of this and we think it was important to try to fit something somewhere in here, like hats off to that, and yeah, and I definitely don't want to take anyone's double away, like if you feel great, by great, I just you know, I just want to hold the bar up a little hot welcome. I will welcome, I will welcome any you know,

anything like this. I do want to say that we've talked about men crying in media, and I did appreciate how much they had of that, not only that scene with Joe Ruso talking about how he cried, and to me, it was like not even sad, it was kind of a beautiful thing to have someone you know sitting across from you that cries and then you cry too, and it's kind of like, this is just a state of where we're at and I feel like it is relatable to our world sometimes today with some of the horrors

going on. But then Thor repeatedly crying like you know, getting to see and he's cried before, but just so openly, like you said, like the god of Thunder, this like super hyper masculine person, and that moment that he has with Hulk where Hulk is even like, um, you know you're in a rough spot and I've been there too, and you know who pulled me out of it? You did. I saw this movie yesterday. That's why I remember so

much of these lines. Um. But it's seen these two super hyper masculine like men that are saying it's okay to cry, dude, I'm here for you. And I feel like a really I mean, they're super broly, especially with especially with Bruce and his new like, um, you know Haynes fitted teas and uh, which was funny. We got to we got two super hulked out men in essentially like Calvin Klein um soft cotton shirts which was fanos in his little cottage. I'm like, what is he doing?

He's wearing this like Target brand whatever soft material loom h Someone pointed it out and It is hilarious when you think about it this way. But yet man's was just trying to make breakfast. He has spices, he has at Okay, I laughed out loud when he took the little salt and spices. I like laughed. It's such a

nice touch. And also like this idea of what I like most about Thanos as a villain, and I think what steered some people in a weird direction on Ultron, Like Ultron is born to do one thing and immediately like corrupts that And it's just really basic for a robot to be like, does not compute destroy all humans. But for Thanos, it was really like I've seen a lot of terrible crap, and there were less people we would have to deal with, less of this crap. It's

an awful utilitarian view of the galaxy. But it's also so justified in his mind that as a villain, you're like, crap. Yeah. Someone described to get away with this. Someone tweeted this and it made so much sense. Is Dan is a simple solution for a complex problem, which is essentially fascism. Like that and that is that he is a metaphor for fascism, a simple solution for a complex problem. Oh there's too many people. Just kill half of them, and I'm not gonna look so I'm being fair, are you? Yeah,

it's because you're not. You're not allowing yourself to be selected in that you're not allowing any of your daughters to be selected. As a matter of fact, you didn't allow any of your homies to get snapped. You just said half of anyone except me. Although I think his homies all he would have their civilization and then pick his favorites. Yeah, yeah, I trually, I don't think that he cares. I mean, and also like sacrificing Gomra, he clearly doesn't. I mean, he does. He he has essentially

had to care for that to work well. But it's so interesting that part of it, because I was thinking that too. It was like sacrifice what you love? Um. The fact that Nat and Clint like that was so one. That could have been really awkward. Yeah no, but like what if one of them didn't like and it was like, oh, you didn't actually love them, so you didn't get the stone Hella awkward? That was wow. I would have been

Florida something like that happened. But it's also crazy to me because in Nat and Clint, the sacrifice was a self sacrifice. Yeah? Really did that work? No, I'm that's exactly what I mean though, is about like how because I was weighing this in my head, I was trying to understand this part, like what if they had done roads and Nebula had switched, Like what if they were the ones that we're going to the soul stone? Right? So I was trying to like wagh that in my

head of like how is this working? And essentially Nat pushed herself off although he saves her and she says let me go, right, and so he does have to physically do the letting go. No, she she like twisted her hand out of him and she kicked herself off. Of Anyways, we're getting really specific before and there's a lot of like little I was thinking of that exactly that like thought was in my head of like, oh,

how is this going to work? And does it need to be someone like as in Clint's wife, for somebody like his child or I guess it's just like a friend that he loves. Um, I think it's anyone you'd say I love you. It doesn't have to be I think. But also there's no relationship with anybody he has like he has with Nat, like his wife is his wife

and that's his his life partner. But not and him had both been through the grime, and he essentially turned into that after the Snap what she was doing like before she got into the Avengers, right, And so I think that they're the only ones who could fully understand each other's entire stories. Here's something that someone brought up in the discord that was something I did. Note. I even mentioned it in the Candy Dinner episode, so I'm just gonna mention it again. It was kind of weird

he was only going after major people of color. It's like like it was it was the card tell and then it was no, that's that for life. I was like, we have like homegrown white national care exactly. I'm like in Mexico, my guy Japan just killed people. But but in the end it was like those are like the

media cooler like ones. And obviously that's by design because of things like this, but it's like we all know Sicario and we all know Yakuza, and it's like all right, but I feel like they were like Japan makes a really cool backdrop. That's his total aesthetic because he's Ronan, remember, and he has let's have him have this samurai sword battle, my guy, you know, go toe to toe a little

bit and not get sliced up. Listen, here's my other problem is, like I don't feel like Jeremy Renner embodied like a Ronan very well, like even his like sword movements. I've just watched way too much like anime and like Japanese shows to be like this just doesn't feel right. It's like really stiff. I just don't. I didn't care for the storyline at all. I just don't. It might just be my issues with Jeremy. I just didn't like it. I didn't care Jeremy. I don't even have beef a

Jeremy Renner. I just don't enjoy him very much. If I'm kind of bland, how I thought Hawkeye had a lot of the same problems as Black Widow. It's just never really gotten fleshed out, and they get you with like it's his family, so it's going to be painful and everybody can identify that most people have a family, um except for Natasha. Natasha, So yeah, I don't know

it well. I honestly thought like a part of me was like, that's why she has to That's why they killed her because she doesn't have a family, you know. And so I thought that that was really fascinating not to go back to that scene. But I just I don't know why. It really just stuck out to me as like who's going to die? And Clinton was like it should be me, but he was the one that

had kids and a wife and kids. And then it was kind of a bad commentary about us that aren't married with kids, and it's like, yeah, and I'm not saying that, it was just was like something that I took as an unmarried woman of like, oh if I you know, when you're watching these scenarios, are like, oh, I guess if if it were us, I guess I should sacrifice myself because you have a family that um.

And so that but honestly, like it wasn't even a bad It was just like, you know, you put yourself in this scenario of this apocalyptic scenario of what I do this? Um, you have to go back to the New York Times articles the writers were talking about how they're like it would have just been way too melodramatic to introduces watch watch his family disappear and having like dark rage and die. Yeah, They're like it was just

too melodramatic. And you know the way they hit set up with you know, her being like a reclusive and like this is your only family, Like, it makes sense for her to want to do like one good thing. And I guess, for my money, I understood what nat was doing like this whole time. The only thing we had seen about her doing is constantly trying to be a part of the team, and it seems consistent that she was trying to convince herself more than anyone that

she was belonged here and part of the team. We saw Tryo and Nick when she was like you're gone, and that's not cool. You're essentially my surrogate father. I don't like that. Then we saw with Cap and she was like, no, we're gonna help get you acclimated this new world. You don't need to worry. We saw her all the time with Hawkeye, and so for her to be like, no, this is something I want to do, it makes sense for her character. I wasn't too upset at her death. I just wish we had more of

her before it happened. We have to take another break and then we're going to hop into the rest of endgame right after that. And we're back and I know that everyone has talked about time travel. I've seen a lot of conversations about it. To me, I think if we were talking to the discord, it kind of follows me, uh dbz time travel laws where you could just pop up and leave as you no no no where if you go into a different It was kind of what

um about her name? Who's um the bald? Yeah, the ancient one was kind of what the ancient one was saying, Um, if you affect this timeline like you're not. You might be helping your timeline, but you're gonna forever change the following the other timelines. Um. So this was my main question with even though cap win back and put all this the stones back, Gomra okay, so Gomra is dead in the current timeline. The one that we have is Gomra.

So that timeline that Peter Quill that we saw get punched out, he will never fall in love with Gomra and she stays in our time, which I think she will. I think she's going to be in the next Guardians. I think she's gonna I think Peter is gonna fall like I think she's gonna fall in love with Peter again. I think that she has no reason to go back to her sister is dead, her dad is dead. I think Nebula the current. Nebulas in this time, so current and go more. I think is going to stay in

this time. But what I'm saying is it's kind of sad for that Peter Quill who broke this down for me. So there's two There's two timeline theories they give you in the film, and that's why it's confusing and you had to be paying really close attention. So the first timeline theories when you projected the ancient one was like, listen, if you remove things, you're gonna f up and create a second timeline. That's what I was thinking about the

whole movie. But Ash Croftsman was like, yeah, okay, but remember when Banner is having the conversation about time travel, where essentially he says, whatever you change just makes a change. So like, if your past self comes to the future, then your future becomes your past, and now you've created a new arc for yourself. So it's the same reason

why Nebula isn't dead. Right now, which makes me upset because I cannot an astrophysicists and I can't quite write in my mind, you killed yourself, so you should be dead,

both of you. But no, she created a different timeline. Well, it's even more so, it's not necessarily creating a different timeline because that that is what I is gonna quote is basically what Hulk was saying, was this idea of you going back in time changing things and it affecting your future isn't true because that moment where you go back in time is now your future. So so it is not necessarily creating a new timeline. It's almost as if you started it and went back and added it

to your current timeline. So you experienced everything up until that point and came but everything that changes is just new if that makes But that timeline is still affected, the one that you have already lifted. No, the one that you pulled Gomra out of, she doesn't exist. She's not in anymore. If she stays in the present day, is there's not still a Gomra according to the Hulk,

the way he said, it already happened. So you're just pulling go more into two thousand nineteen, but twen, all the events are almost destined, they've already happened, so you don't interrupt that. So so basically my only question was, Okay, so Peter will still get to have a Goma, and he probably will also get this go more like. So, I do think that she's gonna This is my thing that I'm gonna project that we've talked a little bit in discord. I do think she's going to pop back

up in Guardians. I think that was a a little easter egg that they showed when it said searching for Gama at the very end, when you know, when Thor came onto the ship, um, when Peter was looking that was it said searching for he was looking for Goma. And I think that was an easter egg of she's going to pop up. She might not be leaving the ship with them with Nebula and Thor and Quill and Uh and Rocket and group, but I think that she will.

I think that was the best way for them to be like, she's not dead, how are we going to get her back in here? How are we gonna, you know, finish out this franchise? And I think that was the way. Also, i'd imagine like Goma, if you went back to two thousand and fourteen Gomre and she just got realized that she's in the future and she's into this guy. She's

not gonna just go back on the ship. I think she's like, I'm gonna leave, right, don't because like if you I go back and watch the Guardians, Like in the first one, it's all about, like we could be a team, and you know, if you want to go after your father, that's the thing we could do to like, but like, let's just try to figure this out. And then part two was all about, like we just have to admit that we love each other, Like can we just say the words and believe it it will be okay.

And so I think the next one will be about him trying to figure out how to get her in a way that isn't brought together by tragedy, which will be really interesting because More's entire life has just been like one long tragic event and now she's on her own and she's got this level of independence, and I think that Peter's gonna have to come to terms with that and give her like space and time to figure out what she wants before she could even possibly begin

to be in a relationship, Like what a crazy thing we pulled out of time, meet your sister, kind of become sisters, kill your father together, and then find out you have this entire life that you can't remember. It's just I just realized that we had two women that killed themselves, because Natasha killed herself and Nebula killed herself even though it wasn't like her, but she killed the

other version of herself. I thought the saddest part of that when they were like, you know, you can change, and she was like, he won't let me, and it was just so her her character arc is just so tragic, it really is, And so it's at least exciting even though that Nebula didn't survive that this new Nebula with the next Guardians, I'm excited to see what will become of her character. Yeah, it's cool. It's exciting because like, even though she died, she was really just killing off

a part of herself she never liked anyway. And it's to me, it's so much less tragic because it's something that she always wanted to shed. Even even the self who's like I can't change, desires to once to and so for her to be like, you know, this is gone and I'm just gonna be whoever I want to be. It's exciting and I hope we like I really like her in Guardians too, and she's like finally on her own and I'm gonna just sell these people and I'm

over it. She's so badass, and I think we're gonna get a lot of that kind of like fun, badass Nebula that we haven't had a lot of time with. I love, aside from the cap first cap fight, the Nebula Nebula fight and then when she smacks her and um, she's like you're weak and she's like I'm you and I was like, oh, that's such a good lie. That was so like such a put in your face. So

many of those. It was so good too, because there were so many like fun bread crumbs that are just you're basically a lot of decisions were made based off of as things established way long, like the fact like you can sit there and be like, why was it so easy for Gomorra to just switch sides? Or you can go back and watch the movies and know that she never was on his side was so eat, Like the moment like she was like, Yo, Dan is trash.

You knew, like, oh, she's gonna turn like there was no and I like that they did honor that there there they didn't. They didn't add no extra convincing. She just needs to hear that one line from the future to confirm like every yeah, it's bad if he wins, because every all the other movies have confirmed that Goamrea never really was rocking with him, and Nebula has figured out how to talk to her sister in such a way that she would be able to convince her in

a couple of shorts. It did her so long to figure out, like how do I say I want to be your sister? You know you've hurt me so much. I don't know how to forgive you for that and also seek this relationship. But she's already lived on that and gotten over it, so she can just meet her

like right where she is, which is great. Yeah, sorry, I didn't mean to just so excited about the good storytelling, but just also the simple fact that all she needed to get Gamara on her side is to be like in the future, we're good because and that all that honors that. That's all Gamora wanting god Moa. It was. That's one thing I do like about Gamara Nebulous there because it's such a relatable sibling storyline of like, y'all both kind of want the same thing, but you're manag

each other and you don't know why. And you see so many siblings pitted together that way. You know, if you were the sibling that got better grades your sister, your little sibling hates you and you don't know why. You're just trying to be good and you're trying to connect and they don't want to connect with you because and it's all because of just how the parents kind of treat that. But you don't have any of that info, so you're just trying to communicate until you finally break through.

So the fact that like Nebula came into this movie with the information of like, oh, she does love me, she just doesn't know why I do not like her. So if I just tell her we're it was I just like that. It's just such a product of good storytelling, speaking a good storytelling and complicated siblings. Can we talk about Loki sneak Off? It was so it was, like I said, there's a lot of fan service in this movie, and that was the most low key fan service you

can do. And seeing him do be like okay, like the classic like oh my gosh, Bob Billion like creeper stock Off, like he's on tippy toes, hunched over, like sneaking out of frame. I'm like, this is comedic gold and it sets up so perfect, Like I feel like the way they left little threads for the Disney plus theory that give it give mels like even Scarlett, which is big moment we know that it should Is it Wanda Vision? Why didn't you call it Scarlet Vision? Disney?

I never understand your decisions, but one division is coming, and I feel like with the stones being placed back, we could be very close to having the like the resurrection of vision. Um. She had such a great line of just you know you've ruined my life. I know you have taken everything, and you know before we were getting towards the end of this and I do want

to wrap up one last thing. Another relationship thing that I thought closed up years almost got me in my fields was Tony and his dad, because that was it, like he just it was years of everything he thought about his father being cleared up. The moment he was like, I will do anything for that kid, and I'm just so consumed by my work that i cannot focus on them, but I do love that kid. I was like, oh

my god, he needed to hear that. You re watched the scene from Civil War at the top where he creates. He creates a thing called BARF, which is a binary automated something or other. Basically, it's the thing he creates that connects with his hippocampus and it projects his parents, and he gets to tell his parents it's the last

time he saw his parents. It's when they do the young Robert Downey jr. Uh And he gets to tell his parents like what he always wanted to say before they died, which was essentially Tony's actual words him were like, it's okay, dad, you did the best you could. Right, We're getting here. The last line he says to his dad is almost identical, but instead of just to walk off,

his dad gets to respond. And if that doesn't just give you the shivers, Like, I just wrote this article about the legacy of Tony Stark because it didn't strike me how much I liked the character until his journey ended. Because to me, I'm like rich entitled white douchebag, Like okay, it's fine, Like Robert Downey juniors is Junior is infectious. Like you love his performance, you want to watch him.

He's like a wonderful performer. But Tony Stark is constantly just running headlong into decisions and making giant mistakes and then really getting mad when people are like he wants to clean up his own mistakes, but he doesn't want to really take responsibility ever. You know, he's he's sorry that it happened, but like, I'll correct it and I'll

do it by myself and it'll all be fine. And that constant like tripping over himself is always causing problems, and it's what makes his final snap so peak perfect, because one he's got the assurance that this is the only way. And we've seen Tony constantly through every Iron Man movie, through every Avengers movie, put his body on the line. He's willing to die for this cause, but

it's never really been worth it. You didn't ever really have to You were never going to be the leader that Captain America just naturally was, but you didn't need to be. You are rebel in a patriot and that is so American and so close to the ideals that Captain America holds. Who was heart, It's so close to what your dad was always trying to achieve. Like all these heroes that he felt were so far away from

him gave him the respect. I mean, the fact that what Cap does with his life after is just value Tony's message and Tony's agenda, and it's like, I'm just gonna go and live a simple life because we all deserve to have that at some point. It is the most miraculous arc like it is. I hope that eventually we can get this with all of the characters. But the way they did it with Tony was perfect the most. I think the thing that made it the most perfect, the icing on the top, is the fact that Tony

ends the way the m C You started. The m C you started at the end of iron Man when he says, I am iron Man, and the last line that Tony Stark says in the m C You is I am iron Man. Just all just who I got to breathe a second or I'm a just reaction, Okay, you could just go. Let's talk about that performance. I I compared this this performance akin to Jaggie Oh during Kennedy's death, which if you don't remember or she don't,

you don't have to go look it up. I will explain what happens as she jumps to the back of the car and to grab a piece of his head. And when asked why, I was like, I didn't know. I just went into mode and I just thought it

would help. And there's something about seeing Pepper Potts just everyone's freaking out, and she's like goes into puts all her emotions aside because she's like, this is all he needs to hear right now, and the moment she passed away, then her real emotion comes in that performance and just the realness of that of just like yeah, in a crisis time, you're like, no, first business then me. Yeah.

And she has to stay strong because that's the last face that he saw, you know, she put her face like she moved Not that I don't love Peter Parker, but she moved Peter Parker to this side very much like gave him over, Like someone needs to take care of this kid. This is my time to be with my husband, Like this is my time to be with the one to be here right now. Peter like this is you don't see your mentor die. Yeah, this is, And so she made sure that is like so important.

She was like this, she is the last face he's going to see and in order for him to rest and or he can't see her crying and feeling like everything is going to go, you know, he needs to see her okay, and she says we're going to be okay. But also in going in this great writing and constantly flipping the script, every single time that Tony has put his life on the line, he calls Pepper, and every single time she can't pick up the phone because she's

always trying to save him. She's always trying to get back to him to save him. So this idea of this is the last time we even see at the top of this film, and even after he dies, he leaves her a message. He's always trying to reach Pepper, and so this idea that as he's dying, he doesn't have to teach her he's right. She's right there for him, and she's one giving him the message of it's going to be okay, and you can be strong and you

can do what you need to do. It's it's just really beautiful, like their relationship as minimal as it's been his, it's been really lovely to watch. Yeah, And the thing, the last tiny thing I'm gonna say about Marvel in the m c U is just how awesome and dynamic not was it not only as a story of what it told, but also for Robert Downey Jr's career. Yeah, this m c YOU changed his life. He was like

the laughing stock burnout in Hollywood. And I mean he was on the rise, but but like he was, but he definitely like you know, and not not like trying to trash him. I'm just saying like that that's just where he was to like this untouchable superstar who seems like he might be getting ready to retire. He can if he wants, or he can do whatever movie he wants.

I just love just someone getting a second chance, like doing the work, getting a second chance and really showing us just how great he was, because not only was this a great movie, but his performance from when he's malnourished and this to coming back like you really it

was great. And I didn't get to tweet this out, but what I wanted to say is in game felt like everyone saw Black Panther get that Oscar nob and was like, oh all right, because everyone brought their acting game like it's it transcended a quote unquote superhero movie to like as an actor, it inspired me, I would.

I also love the fact that UM, Tony is so much of Robert Downey Jr. Like um, the fact that this man did get a second chance at life, Robert Downey Jr. Who was an alcoholic and he played an alcoholic and Tony Stark and like a man who's tormented do is pushed people away in his life to then come full circle in the way that I feel like, you know, Robert Downey Jr. Has UM I was told that and I didn't know one. He had to like fight to audition for this, and I know that John

Favre really believed in him. So he was a huge win. At the premier, John Favre when they announced him, like everybody like gave him a roaring applause because without him, I don't think that we would have UM. I didn't know that, and it makes happy and relationship UM. And then UM, I think that they wanted to go Marvel wanted to go with them, Tom Cruise, so that one man Um. I had this argument with Mark Ellis, who is a good friend of mine. He was on our

Infinity War review. I believe Um he's the one that told me that and um he was like what, no, don't try and I'm like, no, Mark. It was so funny. Someone tweeted and was like, the characters are not the the actors, like, um, Chris Hemsworth is not Thor and Mark Ruffalo is not Hulk, but Robert Downey Jr. Is Yeah, like he is him. Everybody else is just but he is he is one with Yeah. I mean I can't

imagine anyone. And yeah, Marvel made all of their all the royalty in the world we know people of color. Actually they're all black people. And it made me want to cry. H Valkyrie is King of Asgard right now. Uh. Nay More with a Koya was like, we're not worrying about those earthquakes. We don't do anything about earthquakes, don't check them out, don't look. I was like, Naymore is

coming the Mariners here, like the way again. They just set up so many like little threads and little things for us to be so excited about and then for them to not give us anything at the end just tells me that they are cooking and you cannot wait to see what the next phase is going to bring,

where their focus is going to be. But I think even as small as the queer representation was, uh, the amount of POC that had really like monumental positions in the Avengers now uh, including Sam getting Captain Shield, I feel like they're making a very strong statement at the end of the Infinity saga of like, yeah, we're coming for like disenfranchised people next minute. Our first half was very Caucasian, was very straight, but we see you and

we're going to expand. So I really look forward to it. Yeah, I think I think that's our that's it. Um, what did you have? Tweet? Adams? You know, in the discord were already got the conversation going, so Discord do g slash Salt Squad, spoiler chat. Danny was getting it in. I knew I miss. I think I came back to two messages. It was about the time travel thing. Yeah, everybody went it was good. More I was like, no, she's coming back, trust me, even though my original question

was like is she coming back? And then I was like, I thought y'all were gonna say she was, and this is why I need to prove to you that she is. Danny had charts and everything. Um, but yeah, you know me. If you want anyway, I F Y n W A D I D B E on Twitter and Instagram. This is out this week, So this Saturday, if you are in the Phoenix area, uh Me and the White Women guys will be performing at the Phoenix and Pro Fest,

So deaf pull up for that. As always, catch a boy on Twitch if D S, I F D E e Z. We're always doing some fun stuff in there. Carl has popped on for sports game Carl Tart of Culture King's comedy Bank Band all that you know, you never know. Danny's own pop on soon and you before you even know it, you'll be chatting with us when we play some Vigia games. But yeah, come through, drop that sub. Remember to which prime stubs You gotta come back every month unless you upgraded to a regular sub,

which we'll just do it automatically. If you're just like I want to support if you but I ain't got time to see you sit up yelling at the screen. I feel like there were a few people who stopped by and followed while I was in the middle of yelling about again. It was just me yelling mad. I think it was the final boss for far crying New dawnsting so mad. I was so mad. I was cursing, which you know if you listen to nartives and that's a whole new side of me that you're getting to learn.

People coming to my chat and they're like, can we curse here? It was like, yeah, yeah, sorry, I went on a huge tangent. Get again. That's okay. Um. The only thing that I was going to plug is I wrote a really personal piece on how Endgame tackled um failure, lost in depression as someone that has depression, and that is up on Playboy that you can check out and read. Um. I met miss Danny Fernandez, Joel. Where can everyone catch you? Yes? So many places. Colm join me on Twitter. I'm there

sixteen hours a day. I've addicted. I lived there Twitter. Yes, it's agile. Money gets so easy to find us. We're always there. Uh yeah. And also I'll be in Ontario, California doing uh commic Con Revolution. It's gonna be really awesome. I have four panels there. It's like Ladies of the Dark Side. We're doing a tribute to Stanley. I'm interviewing the guys of Um Samurai Jack and then also the voice of Darth Maul. So it's gonna be like a whole stacked Saturday. You could just calm follow me panel

to panel. Uh. It's a really great con. It's super small and most of the creators like hang out afterwards and talk to people. It's intimate and lovely. So if you see there, say if you're there, say hi, yeah, and that's it, Like we always say, stay nerdy, fade