Marvel’s Avengers: Infinity War was everything fans wanted. It was a decade in the making, a culmination of a whopping 18 movies, dozens of incredible characters, and some of the best storytelling we’ve ever seen. In the past ten years, many of us who hid our geekdom behind textbooks in high school finally found ourselves flying our nerd flags high as we proudly wore our Iron Man, Black Widow, and Captain America shirts, discussing the merits of superpowers versus super gadgets with people who’ve never read a comic book. In a word, it’s been beautiful.
Even so, the movie could never live up to its own hype after that many years of marketing, merchandise and mania. It would never be able to accommodate that many characters (indeed, some were missing entirely) in a perfect story, let alone fit in all of the Marvel characters in the comic Infinity Wars.
While we knew that Thanos had to win in order to move the story forward, and we knew we’d have to be disappointed in order to let that happen, some of our heroes’ worst mistakes left us reeling. Our favorite heroes let us down as they made one mistake after another, proving that no matter how powerful they may be, they remain as human as we are. While that’s what makes Marvel so fantastic in the first place, it didn’t make it any easier to witness. Some left us screaming in fury while others brought us to tears.
With seas full of spoilers ahead, here are the 20 Most Insane Mistakes The Avengers Made In Infinity War.
Spider-Man Hitching That Ride
One of the hardest losses to take was that of the fresh-faced Peter Parker, whom we all fell in love with during Spider-Man: Homecoming.
As a teenager, Parker was already the youngest member of the team with the odds especially stacked against him. Iron Man made it clear that Spider-Man was to stay on Earth even if he proved to be a helpful presence, but Peter didn’t listen and put himself right in harm’s way with the rest of the team.
While we can’t blame him, we mourn him. Since it’s unclear how Thanos’s division of disintegration truly measured out, he may have passed away on Earth anyway. The loss of life certainly wasn’t equally distributed between the survivors of the Battle of Titan.
Doctor Strange Forgot How To Teleport
Doctor Strange made several key mistakes in terms of Avengers: Infinity Wars, but the most obvious question we have is why wouldn’t he use his ability to teleport in order to get out of Dodge when it came to Ebony Maw’s ship in the first place? That would have certainly postponed your painful acupuncture treatment, Doc.
Did he forget how to teleport? Was Maw’s magic too strong for Strange to fight? Even if this were the case, Marvel has a history of washing plots in murky waters, muddying details to the point where fans either don’t know what’s going on or don’t fully understand the rules. Some clarity here might help people forgive Strange for this obvious mistake.
Hulk Becoming A Scaredy Cat
Do the writers at Marvel truly want us to believe that there is no adrenaline serum in Wakanda to help The Hulk pop out of Banner? They have everything in Wakanda.
Sure, a fan theory that the big green guy just doesn’t want to be used anymore has recently been confirmed, but it looked much more like after battling Thanos once, the monster simply feared entering battle again. Why else would we witness him get a beating before refusing to emerge again and offer his services to the team?
It also feels like a big cop-out. We get that “We have a hulk!” gets tedious as a defense strategy and things need to be shaken up, but it was clear that Banner’s alter ego was no match for Thanos anyway.
Loki’s Direct Attack on Thanos to Save Thor
There are a number of “what were they thinking?” moments in Avengers: Infinity War, but one of the most blatant examples occurred when Loki directly attacked Thanos.
Since when does Loki directly attack anyone?
Loki is the master of deceit; the background Trickster god who always knows what’s happening and is two steps ahead of everyone at all times. Writers pretty much had to get rid of him because he stood a good chance at winning over Thanos with some scheme or another, but it was completely out of character for Loki.
Still, it was an honorable goodbye since it was in an attempt to save his brother. Hasn’t Disney already set a precedent with sacrifices like this? According to Elsa and Anna code, Loki should have frozen and come back to life, right?
Gamora’s Secret Knowledge of the Soul Stone
Of all of the mistakes made during Infinity War, too many of them are orchestrated by one of the most ruthless and efficient assassins comics have ever seen: Thanos’s own adopted daughter, Gamora.
Seeing her execute so many errors is frustrating, especially after fans have seen how capable the Zen-Whoberi is.
Gamora’s first mistake was keeping the secret location of the Soul Stone in the first place.
There are a number of solutions here. Gamora could have shared the secret with someone unknown to Thanos and had that person hide the Stone elsewhere. She likely knows someone who could have even wiped her memory of the location. Any scenario to get rid of the secret could have worked in order to protect both Gamora and the stone.
No Rhinos In Wakanda
Apparently they don’t have everything in Wakanda, as was evidenced by the lack of fierce warrior rhinos that totally ruled a battle in Black Panther.
Where were those majestic trained rhinos in the battle for the Earth’s safety? Did they all venture out to the watering hole just in time? Maybe Strange did attempt to open up a portal but he miscalculated and it ate up all the rhinos instead.
It makes zero sense to introduce them in Black Panther and then abandon them when they could have provided a better defense during the invasion.
It also makes zero sense for a military as fierce and strong as the Wakandan forces to ignore any resources at their disposal.
Mantis Told Star-Lord What Happened to Gamora
We get that Mantis isn’t known for her tact, but that doesn’t change the fact that it was a huge mistake to tell Quill that Thanos had sacrificed Gamora for his maniacal plan for universal perfection.
The Guardians were only seconds away from stopping Thanos for good, along with Doctor Strange, Iron Man and Spider-Man in a brilliant and effective plan that frankly surprised many fans, given the fact that the rest of the heroes on Earth proved to be powerless against him, often due to their own mistakes.
Quill is ultimately to blame for his own actions, but had Mantis’s revelation been delayed for mere seconds, the film could have ended right there.
Not Aiding Nidavellir/Stopping The Gauntlent’s Creation
Some argue that Thor, Loki, and Heimdall had a lot on their minds during the destruction of Nidavellir, which may have occurred either while Hela was executing Ragnarok or afterward, but given that the fake Infinity Gauntlet that Odin possessed was likely crafted after its original, the destruction of Nidvellir had to have occurred long before Ragnarok.
Why did the Asgardians not only not know about the destruction of Nidavellir, but not send aid to help them in the first place?
Wouldn’t Heimdall have known about it happening and alert them of this impending doom?
It’s a plot hole that begins well before Infinity War but we’re not privy to it until hearing about the events from Eitri.
Gamora Asking Peter To Off Her
It was a valiant effort, but requesting Quill to end her life was a huge mistake on Gamora’s part. He’s the person least likely to be able to carry out the deed given their not so unspoken thing.
Had she truly wanted to protect the Soul Stone, she should have asked Rocket or Drax to carry out her wishes - or simply do it herself as soon as she saw Thanos on Knowhere. She could have even taken the burden off her family by telling Thor and asking him to take her out.
Gamora’s sacrifice, as terrible and tragic as it was, could have been the one thing that saved the entire galaxy instead of the thing that made Thanos able to destroy it.
Thor Should Have Gone For Thanos’ Hand
It was really one of the dumbest moments of the movie, making us wish that Thor hadn’t gone to visit Tyrion Lannister to make Stormbreaker in the first place. What a waste of time to use such a gorgeous tool so stupidly, and it’s another rookie mistake that seemed so obvious to anyone watching. The hand, Odinson!
You need to take out the source of power, something that Thor definitely should’ve known by now.
Thor’s only excuse here is that he was already exhausted and, like the rest of his team, under extreme pressure, which is really at the heart of most of these mistakes. We don’t doubt that our heroes are doing their best but a little common sense goes a long way.
The Guardians Seeking The Infinity Stone
It’s like the Guardians of the Galaxy regressed in their mission. They’d already spent two movies finding, getting rid of, and then completely ignoring an Infinity Stone for other, more lucrative conquests.
Why would they hand the Power Stone over to Nova Corps in the first film only to seek out the Reality Stone when Thor advises them that Thanos has become more powerful and is ready to destroy half of life everywhere?
Gamora should know better than to head somewhere Thanos may be since she knows the location of the Soul Stone. Knowing that this was always going to be a threat, why did the team wait so long to deal with it in the first place?
Under-using Scarlet Witch
Scarlet Witch is one of the most powerful beings in the Marvel universe. We’re talking about the person who was able to wipe out mutantkind with three simple words. Yes, she’s in love with an android, but she’s had worse love interests in the comics.
Wanda has proven herself over and over again to be a much more formidable foe than any other Avenger, yet she’s constantly taking a back seat because she doesn’t have the star power.
Those mind tricks that Thanos used? Wanda can do all of that without Infinity Stones.
Any day, any time. Why did the Avengers not use that to their advantage? The only good argument here is that she was otherwise occupied while worrying so much for Vision’s life.
Gamora Even Getting Close To Thanos
She makes the drastic pact with her boyfriend to ensure her destruction by his hand if Thanos catches her, then takes the team directly to Thanos.
It makes zero sense and the most dangerous woman in the galaxy should definitely know better.
Argue that the team had another goal in mind all you like, but Gamora knows Thanos better than anyone and should have expected the ambush. She did, in fact, expect something nefarious to happen since she made her plea to Quill right before their arrival.
Had she stayed away from the obvious trap she could have prevented Thanos from succeeding alone. Of course, she had no way of knowing that it was not only her knowledge but her sacrifice needed for his plan.
Putting Vision’s Life Above The Universe
Equating one man’s life with the lives of half the universe is already a pretty dubious math sentence, especially if that man isn’t even a man but an android and is also a superhero who has pretty much agreed to sacrifice himself any day for the good of the world. When the Avengers chose to put Vision’s life above the possibility of saving half of all beings that exist in space and time, they made a terrible mistake.
Cap says “We don’t trade lives,” but then thousands of Wakandan soldiers sacrificed their human lives to protect Vision’s artificial life.
It’s one of those ethical problems they give you. Yes, it’s technically the correct choice in all fairness, but we’re not talking fair: we’re talking superheroes versus Thanos.
Taking The Battle To Thanos
Everyone knows the home team has the advantage. That’s basic superhero knowledge 101. So why on Earth would anyone go chasing after Thanos to take the fight to him when they could have spent all that time hiding or destroying the other Stones, perhaps in different areas of the multiverse? Strange could have even set a moment on repeat in time somehow to ensure he never obtained a Stone.
The argument that it’s preferable to destroy Thanos’s world rather than our own can obviously be made, but when you’re dealing with one of the most powerful beings in the universe you should probably do some prepping at home rather than, say, engaging in your own Civil War or something, only to chase Thanos later. It’s a complete rookie mistake.
Star-Lord Ruining The Entire Plan
It would be the elephant in the room if no one were talking about it, but everyone is blaming Star-Lord for the triumph of Thanos. And they totally should.
All Quill needed to do was follow through with the plan but his personal feelings overcame him.
He led the team straight into failure, resulting in the loss of half of population of the universe.
It’s not that we don’t get it. Many of us agree that we might behave the same way if given similar news (again, thanks, Mantis) during a pivotal moment in battle, but it doesn’t change the fact that Quill’s actions cost the team everything. That said, had none of the other mistakes in this list occurred, the heroes may have been victorious and even saved Gamora in the process.
Doctor Strange’s Ineffectiveness
As the Sorcerer Supreme, your powers ought to be pretty impressive, and Doctor Strange’s abilities are literally out of this world. So why didn’t he launch Thanos into a time loop without the stones or even slice the Titanian Eternal mutant in half?
Not only did fans of both the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Sherlock not get that coveted double, “No duh, Sherlock!” moment between Robert Downey, Jr. and Benedict Cumberbatch, but they also didn’t get to venture into the otherworldly realms that Doctor Strange is able to take us into.
The lack of the gorgeous visuals we experienced in his titular film was a huge letdown, especially when it could have been used against Thanos.
Thor and Loki Didn’t Use The Tesseract
It was there, right in his hand. Loki possessed the Space Stone in the form of the Tesseract and could have used it.
After witnessing the extermination of the Asgardians at the hands of Thanos and The Hulk’s own failure to harm the Mad Titan, Loki should have known that was his best chance. Even as Heimdall lost his life using the Bifrost to send the Hulk to Earth as a warning, we’re wondering why Loki didn’t employ the Tesseract to get himself and possibly his brother out of there.
Why not do it to save everyone in the first place and prevent the loss of their people?
Letting Thanos Get This Far In The First Place
It pops up over and over among all of the mistakes made: how did our heroes allow Thanos to progress this far without managing to execute any preventative measures or even instill a plan?
Every time an Infinity Stone pops up on the Marvel radar, it’s dealt with but then forgotten, when several key players should really know better.
It’s pretty gross negligence for people like Strange, Heimdall, Loki, and Gamora to not see what’s going on and say, “Hey, Thanos is after these things and he’s pretty tough, so let’s plan a way to stop him!” Even Odin probably had some inclination of it coming.
Sure, they’ve all been busy as we’ve noticed among their individual films, but can you really call yourself an Avenger, Guardian, or Sorcerer Supreme when you ignore the biggest threat in your universe?
Petty Team Disconnect
Grown-ups should be able to get along and play nice, no matter what kind of leotard, cape, or iron suit they wear. Had the teams in Avengers: Infinity War managed to put aside their petty differences in order to work better together they could have saved some crucial time. It felt as if they had plenty of time to prepare - a decade, if you’re going by rate of film release, but we don’t have any fourth wall breakers in this bunch - and then squandered what little time they actually used squabbling.
Where was the plan or secret weapon or anything to indicate they’d even thought about this, even after knowing Thanos was after the Infinity Stones?
Between Strange and Iron Man trading insults, Star-Lord’s jealousy over Thor and other goofs, there may have been some vital moments wasted.
Did we miss any mistakes the Avengers made in Infinity War? Let us know in the comments!
