Fans are well into the fourth phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe at this point. With the MCU shows that were on Disney+, Shang Chi, and Black Widow already hitting theaters and coming home for viewers – we’ve noticed a trend with this new age of Marvel. Everything is a bit different. Yes, there are nods to the original Avengers throughout these shows and even mentions but every movie is so unlike the Marvel movies that we’ve been used to over the last decade or more and feel like they’re not connected at all to each other.
And now as Eternals hits theaters, this seems to be even more the case. The movie does bring in a couple of references to the Avengers and the Snap, but we don’t have any other characters we really know. Instead, it uses that as a base, but the movie feels like a sci-fi adventure that is all on its own. We know that in the long scheme of things, there will be a connection somewhere – but we don’t see it just yet.
The Graphics and Effects
When it comes to the graphics and the effects in the Eternals, you absolutely can expect Marvel top quality. The CGI and graphics in the movies have improved since the first Iron Man movie and they’re not going to go down now. From otherworldly creatures (Deviants) threatening the fate of Earth (again, always it seems) and Eternal and Celestial beings going to battle and even being created. There is one scene that the CGI that seems a little soft when Sersi is being shown how the Eternals are created. But this is just an image she’s being shown, it may not be a supposed to be crisp and an accurate depiction of what is occurring.
The Characters
Eternals is the first in a long series of movies about these immortal beings, and the movie takes a long time to introduce them. Over 2 and a half hours in fact. The whole movie is about introducing new characters, and that takes time. We don’t know a lot about the comic version of these characters, but the Eternals all have names that most viewers will recognize. Names like Sersi (Cerci), Ikaris (Icarus), Druig (druid), Sprite, Thena (Athena), and Gilgamesh may sound familiar since many people have heard them from Greek Mythology. The movie dates the Eternals to 7000 years old and explains that the mythos as stories that Sprite made up for the locals throughout history that they took as history and fact.
It is fun to see an alternative take on these characters and their stories from what we were taught growing up as well as their impact on history. The movie also moves back and forth in history including ancient Mesopathania and even the Lost Gardens of Babylon – giving history fans a look at places we’ve only read about.
A Movie of First
One thing Marvel doesn’t shy away from is bringing in changes in their movies. This time the Eternals is one of the first Marvel films to feature an openly Gay couple raising a child as well as a sex scene. Don’t worry for younger viewers, nothing graphic is shown in the sex scene, although we could argue it didn’t really add to the story and could have been left out completely.
Another huge first for the franchise is including a deaf superhero in the mix, with many moments happening in sign language (possibly ASL) adding another level of inclusivity to the story.
End Credit Scenes
This isn’t new, or really shouldn’t need to be said at this point – but stay through the end of the credits. There are two after-credit scenes. If you’ve made it to the theater without seeing any spoilers at this point, you’re lucky. But they’re both worth seeing to experience. We won’t spoil either of them for you but will say they open up the doors for many more movies as well as questions as to what’s to come in the next movies. Remember, Marvel plays the long game and they have the story arch already mapped out for the next several years, and we’re excited to see where these connections are made.
Marvel Studios’ Eternals will be in theaters everywhere on November 5th. The movie will be taking fans on a journey they haven’t experienced yet, but you may end up leaving with a lot of questions.
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About Eternals
Marvel Studios’ “Eternals” follows a group of heroes from beyond the stars who had protected the Earth since the dawn of man. When monstrous creatures called the Deviants, long thought lost to history, mysteriously return, the Eternals are forced to reunite in order to defend humanity once again.
Starring: Gemma Chan, Richard Madden, Kumail Nanjiani, Lia McHugh, Brian Tyree Henry, Lauren Ridloff, Barry Keoghan, Don Lee, with Kit Harington, with Salma Hayek, and Angelina Jolie
Directed by Chloé Zhao(MARVEL STUDIOS)