What If Phase 1’s Originally Planned Avengers Had Fought Thanos?

The Marvel Cinematic Universe originally had vastly different plans for its Phase 1 heroes, but could this initial lineup for The Avengers have defeated Thanos? Debuting in 2008 with Iron Man, the MCU took a gamble with solo movies for heroes of varying levels of obscurity before ambitiously tying together its first phase in 2012 with The Avengers, changing the superhero film genre and the pop culture landscape virtually overnight. While Phase 1 was largely focused on establishing a team of Marvel superheroes through comic book-like interconnected continuity, the following two phases set up the growing threat of Thanos, culminating in 2019’s Avengers: Endgame, which closed the book on the first three phases (now dubbed The Infinity Saga). Thanos has been the Avengers’ most challenging opponent thus far, but how would the originally-planned lineup have fared against him?

Thanos faced off against several different sub-teams of Avengers (and the Guardians of the Galaxy) in Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame, prevailing against the heroes more often than not. With his lethal combination of superpowers, ingenuity, and a steadily-growing collection of Infinity Stones, Thanos was more than a match for some of the MCU’s most powerful heroes. Some heroes came frustratingly close to defeating the Mad Titan several times in each film, with Tony Stark finally killing Thanos and his army by stealing the Infinity Stones, but even this was a narrow victory that came at the cost of Stark’s life. As shown in Infinity War and Endgame, Thanos can be defeated by coordinated attacks from The Avengers’ most powerful heroes.

Before their successful launch of the MCU continuity and Avengers film franchise, Marvel’s in-house movie division, Marvel Studios, had different initial plans for its first solo films, which would have culminated in an original Avengers lineup containing only two heroes who ultimately debuted in phase 1. The rest debuted in future phases, MCU TV shows, or have yet to make their first appearance in the MCU. What was the original lineup, and based on their feats from both the MCU and comic source material, would they have been powerful enough to defeat Thanos, assuming that they followed a similar arc to the Infinity Saga?

MCU Phase One’s Original Plans Were Much Different

Marvel was struggling in the 1990s, licensing out many of their most iconic characters to other film studios rather than using their in-house film division. This led to the widely successful Blade, X-Men, and Spider-Man films, which were the first truly successful Marvel superhero films, giving the genre somewhat of a renaissance. Sam Raimi Spider-Man trilogy specifically proved that fully embracing the comic source material with earnestness would be met with success among critics and moviegoers alike. By 2005, however, Marvel Studios began developing films for the Marvel heroes who hadn’t been licensed out to other studios, coming up with an at the time lofty plan for superhero films that were connected by a shared continuity, just like the comics they’re based on.

There were initially ten film franchises planned for Captain America, Nick Fury, Black Panther, Ant-Man, Doctor Strange, Hawkeye, Cloak & Dagger, the Power Pack, and Shang-Chi, which would culminate in The Avengers. Reportedly, Doctor Strange was initially going to have a similar role to Iron Man, initiating the shared movie universe and serving as the connective tissue between the other solo franchises that were still being established. While not nearly as comic-accurate as the eventual 2012 lineup, it did include classic Avengers mainstays and would presumably still give Nick Fury an Ultimate Comics-inspired role. All of these properties have become major MCU franchises by now, save for the Power Pack, whose MCU debut is reportedly in its early stages of development.

How Powerful Would Phase One’s Superhero Team-Up Have Been?

In both the comics and the MCU, The Avengers have a rotating lineup of heroes, but the initial 2012 team consisted of Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Hulk, Black Widow, and Hawkeye. Given Nick Fury’s SHIELD leadership and the fact that the Power Pack is already a team, they likely wouldn’t be part of the original lineup, though their involvement in the crossover film would have been likely. This new lineup would have had eight members, with more varied abilities, compared to 2012’s. Captain America and Hawkeye, the only 2012 team members in this lineup, would have been the least powerful members of this iteration, interestingly.

Black Widow and Shang-Chi are both extremely skilled martial artists, but the latter may also use powerful equipment, such as the Ten Rings, augmenting his superlative fighting skills. Black Panther might finance the Avengers with his vast wealth like Tony Stark, in addition to having comparable fighting skills to Captain America and Shang-Chi and near-invulnerable armor like Iron Man. Cloak and Dagger control potent abilities, such as teleportation and the creation of constructs, respectively. Adding to this is Doctor Strange, who can bend the very fabric of time and space in addition to having a vast arsenal of spells. Ant-Man’s Pym Particles may be one of the most dangerous items in the Marvel universe, as demonstrated in Marvel’s What If…?, where a vengeful Hank Pym assassinates nearly all of the Avengers with ease. With a greater variety and more potent powers and gear, the original Avengers lineup would have been more powerful than 2012’s.

Could The Original Avengers Have Beaten Thanos?

Thanos notably had several close calls in the MCU, barely averting defeat or death in Infinity War and Endgame. Most of the heroes who came the closest to defeating him, however, are not on the 2005 lineup. Captain America, when wielding Mjolnir, nearly killed Thanos several times during their brief bout, with multiple lethal strikes missing the Mad Titan by mere inches. Without the power of Thor, however, Cap posed little threat to Thanos, as shown in other fights. Doctor Strange and Black Panther didn’t fare well against Thanos in one-on-one fights either. While it’s unlikely that any of the 2005 heroes could best Thanos on their own, they could potentially beat him if they worked together.

Thanos came frustratingly close to being defeated when facing off against the Guardians and Iron Man’s sub-group of Avengers. With their combined powers and coordination, they nearly separated the Mad Titan from the Infinity Gauntlet. A similar scenario involving all of the 2005 lineup’s heroes is possible, with most of the heroes subduing the Mad Titan so that Dagger, Hawkeye, or Ant-Man could kill Thanos. As was the case in Infinity War and Endgame, context is extremely important, with the heroes’ emotional states and the status of Thanos’ forces being a deciding factor in the battles’ outcomes. Under the right circumstances, the Marvel Cinematic Universe‘s original planned lineup of Phase 1’s The Avengers could have fought and won against Thanos.

About The Author

David Miller
(628 Articles Published)

David Miller is a staff writer for Screen Rant, indie comic writer, and life-long lover of all things Star Wars, Marvel, and DC. He was born and raised in New York and has a degree in English from Rider University. He relates to Peter Parker maybe a little too much.

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