Fan theories abound when it comes to the upcoming Avengers 4. While some may seem far-fetched, others are looking a lot more likely and this is one of those theories that we should be paying attention to.
A fan theory that the Avengers 4 plot and storyline involve time travel appears to have been confirmed by recently released official Infinity War and Avengers 4 concept art. The first recently published concept art sheds more light on comments by Thanos during a conversation with Doctor Strange in Avengers: Infinity War when he tried to justify his madcap mission to “save” the universe by eliminating half its population.
Thanos revealed to Doctor Strange that with the six Infinity Stones in his possession, he could wipe out half the population of the entire universe with a snap of his fingers. The horrified sorcerer supreme then asked the Mad Titan what he planned to do after successful completion of his genocidal mission.
Thanos replied that he planned to retire in peace to contemplate with contentment and satisfaction the end results of his mission to “save” the universe.
Thanos eventually achieved his goal at the end of Avengers: Infinity War. After Thor drove his Stormbreaker into Thanos’s heart, the Mad Titan snapped his fingers and turned half of life in the universe into dust. The ending scene then shows him apparently in retirement, contentedly contemplating the scenery in a new world.
Fans began conjecturing about Thanos’ location at the end of Infinity War. Some suggested he was inside the Soul World, an alternate dimension or universe within the Soul Stone.
Others said he might have returned to his home planet Titan. But some pointed out that it was unlikely Thanos would seek peaceful retirement in his ruined home planet Titan which was devastated ages ago by the pressures of overpopulation.
However, Marvel concept artist Pete Thompson recently appeared to confirm the fan theory that Thanos retired to Titan when he featured a set of Avengers: Infinity War concept art on his website. One of the concept art, which shows an idyllic world with a neatly terraced landscape, was titled “Titan Thanos farm.”
Infinity War Concept Art of Thanos’ Farm May Confirm a Fan Theory https://t.co/iDDKPKvnWc pic.twitter.com/Y0kYIw8anF
— MCU Cosmic (@MCUCosmic) July 3, 2018
The concept art immediately sparked a debate among fans because Thanos’ home planet Titan — as revealed at the beginning of Avengers: Infinity War — was devastated when overpopulation led to the depletion of its resources. Thanos revealed early in the movie that his home planet has been a depopulated wasteland for ages.
The contradiction between what we learned at the beginning of Avengers: Infinity War about conditions on Titan and the suggestion that the Titan to which Thanos returned at the end of the movie was an agricultural paradise led some fans to suggest that the concept art provided a strong clue that time travel would play a key role in Avengers 4.
Thanos has the Time Stone, and according to fan theory, he might have used it to travel back in time to an idyllic period before the people of Titan exhausted their planet’s natural resources and drove themselves to extinction. The look of tranquility and peaceful contentment in Thanos’ face as he contemplates the terraced landscape could be due to a sense of satisfaction that his actions have helped to prevent Titan’s destruction in the future.
However, a less popular fan theory suggests that instead of traveling back in time, Thanos might have used the Reality Stone to restore his devastated planet.
A second Avengers 4 concept art which shows the superheroes advancing together into battle suggests that part of the storyline of Avengers 4 will be set in the future, according to fan theory. The concept art, which shows Captain Marvel, the Black Widow, the Hulk, Captain America, and Tony Stark in his Iron Man armor, holds clues that the superheroes depicted are older versions of their present selves, according to some fans.
Regardless of the details, many fans are convinced there is enough evidence that the Avengers 4 plot will involve time travel. The time travel theory seems even more likely in the light of expectations that the Avengers who died in Infinity War will eventually be restored.
Time travel appears to be the only way to undo the death of several Avengers superheroes in Avengers 3.
According to current fan theory, the surviving Avengers travel back in time to undo the deadly effect of Thanos’ snap. Thanos’ decision to retire to an idyllic era of his planet’s past after accomplishing his ghastly deed gives the Avengers the opportunity to hatch and implement their plan. When Thanos realizes that the Avengers are trying to undo his actions, he leaves retirement to confront them.