Avengers: Endgame Encore Makes One Avengers: Doomsday Challenge Look Almost Impossible
Since 2019, Kevin Erdmann has been one of Screen Rant's Senior Staff Writers, covering all kinds of Superhero and Star Wars media with Easter egg breakdowns, theory pieces, breaking news, and more. A huge Star Wars & MCU fan, Kevin also loves Batman (because he's Batman), but could talk for hours about why Nightwing is DC's greatest hero.
With 8 years of total experience covering entertainment and pop culture, Kevin has gotten the chance to interview top creatives and talent, and has also attended major media events like Disney's D23 convention.
Majoring in Cinema Studies with a minor in Comics and Cartoon Studies from the UofO, Kevin lives in Oregon with his wonderful wife, adorable dog, and sinister cat who is no doubt currently plotting his demise.
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Avengers: Endgame Encore releases in theaters this week, a re-release of the major 2019 MCU crossover featuring additional footage and new ties to Avengers: Doomsday, releasing at the end of the year. As fun as it is to revisit the epic ending to the Infinity Saga, Encore also highlights what will no doubt be one of Doomsday's biggest challenges by far.
Like the Avengers movies of the past, Avengers: Doomsday is set to feature a large ensemble of MCU heroes who will be assembling to prevent the end of the multiverse itself and take on the major threat of Robert Downey Jr.'s Doctor Doom. However, Doomsday will be facing an uphill battle when looking at the specific ensemble of characters compared to past MCU crossovers.
Ultimately, Avengers: Endgame's new re-release is absolutely highlighting the fact that as exciting as Doomsday looks, the biggest trick it has to pull off will be uniting its various characters to culminate a saga that has been far more fragmented in comparision to the original Infinity Saga.
The Infinity Saga Always Had The OG 6 Avengers At Its Center
Across the board, the original six Avengers gave the Infinity Saga a consistent and ongoing emotional center and core group of characters. Although Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Hulk, Black Widow, and Hawkeye weren't always together, audiences repeatedly saw their relationships develop across multiple movies and team-ups.
By the time Avengers: Endgame arrived, the characters didn't need lengthy introductions or explanations for why they cared about each other. The audience already understood it. Tony and Steve had spent years disagreeing and eventually repairing their relationship, Thor had fought alongside the team while dealing with his own family and identity, and Natasha and Clint had a friendship that stretched back long before the Avengers were assembled.
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01
The Avengers first assembled in Marvel Comics in 1963. In the original comic, the team formed to battle a villain who had been manipulated by his adopted brother. Which villain brought the original Avengers together?
✓ Correct! In Avengers #1 (September 1963), Loki manipulated the Hulk into going on a rampage, which led Iron Man, Thor, Ant-Man, and the Wasp to band together. They defeated Loki and decided to form a permanent team — the Avengers were born.
✗ Even the Hulk couldn’t smash that answer! The correct answer is Loki. In the original 1963 comic, Loki tricked the Hulk into a rampage, which brought together Iron Man, Thor, Ant-Man, and the Wasp. Ultron came later, Thanos is a cosmic threat, and Kang is a time-traveling villain.
02
In the MCU, Tony Stark famously declared “I am Iron Man” at a press conference, breaking the superhero tradition of secret identities. In which year’s MCU film did Tony Stark first appear as Iron Man?
✓ Correct! Iron Man (2008) launched the Marvel Cinematic Universe and starred Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark. The film’s post-credits scene with Nick Fury teased the Avengers Initiative, kicking off the most successful film franchise in history.
✗ Even the Hulk couldn’t smash that answer! The correct answer is 2008. Iron Man premiered on May 2, 2008, directed by Jon Favreau and starring Robert Downey Jr. It was the first film in the MCU and set the stage for everything that followed.
03
Thanos, the Mad Titan, sought to collect all six Infinity Stones to achieve his genocidal goal. In Avengers: Infinity War, he succeeded in his plan. What did Thanos do with the completed Infinity Gauntlet?
✓ Correct! With a single snap of his fingers, Thanos wiped out half of all living creatures in the universe. Known as “The Blip,” this devastating act erased trillions of lives and set the stage for the Avengers’ desperate time heist in Endgame to undo the damage.
✗ Even the Hulk couldn’t smash that answer! The correct answer is that Thanos snapped away half of all life in the universe. His twisted philosophy of “balance” drove him to commit universal genocide with a single snap, making it one of the most shocking moments in cinema history.
04
In Avengers: Endgame, Captain America proved worthy of wielding Thor’s enchanted hammer during the final battle against Thanos. What is the name of Thor’s hammer?
✓ Correct! Mjolnir, forged in the heart of a dying star, bears the inscription “Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor.” Captain America wielding it in Endgame was one of the most celebrated moments in MCU history.
✗ Even the Hulk couldn’t smash that answer! The correct answer is Mjolnir. Stormbreaker is the axe Thor forged in Infinity War, Gungnir is Odin’s spear, and Jarnbjorn is an axe Thor used in the comics before Mjolnir. Mjolnir is the iconic enchanted hammer.
05
Black Widow, born Natasha Romanoff, is one of the founding MCU Avengers. Before joining S.H.I.E.L.D., she was trained as an assassin in a secret Soviet program. What is the name of this program?
✓ Correct! The Red Room was a covert Soviet training facility that turned young girls into elite spies and assassins known as Black Widows. Natasha was subjected to brutal conditioning and sterilization. Her escape and defection to S.H.I.E.L.D. was explored in the 2021 Black Widow film.
✗ Even the Hulk couldn’t smash that answer! The correct answer is The Red Room. HYDRA is a separate evil organization, the Winter Soldier Program created Bucky Barnes, and Department X is from the comics. The Red Room is the infamous Soviet program that forged Natasha into Black Widow.
06
The Hulk was created when Dr. Bruce Banner was exposed to massive amounts of radiation during a weapons test. What type of radiation transformed Banner into the Hulk?
✓ Correct! Dr. Bruce Banner was caught in the blast of a gamma bomb he designed, absorbing a massive dose of gamma radiation. This transformed him into the Hulk — a being of near-limitless strength whose power increases with his rage. Gamma radiation remains central to the Hulk’s mythology.
✗ Even the Hulk couldn’t smash that answer! The correct answer is Gamma Radiation. Cosmic Rays gave the Fantastic Four their powers, Pym Particles are Ant-Man’s shrinking technology, and Terrigen Mist activates Inhuman abilities. Gamma radiation is what created the Incredible Hulk.
07
In the MCU, after Steve Rogers retired as Captain America, he passed his shield to a new hero to carry on the legacy. Who became the new Captain America?
✓ Correct! At the end of Avengers: Endgame, an elderly Steve Rogers chose Sam Wilson — the Falcon — to carry on the Captain America legacy. Sam’s journey to embrace the shield was explored in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier series, and he fully took up the mantle as Captain America.
✗ Even the Hulk couldn’t smash that answer! The correct answer is Sam Wilson. While Bucky Barnes was Captain America in the comics, Steve chose Sam in the MCU. John Walker was temporarily given the shield by the government, and Isaiah Bradley was a forgotten super soldier from the past.
08
Ultron is an artificial intelligence who becomes one of the Avengers’ deadliest enemies. In the MCU’s Avengers: Age of Ultron, which Avenger inadvertently created Ultron?
✓ Correct! Tony Stark created the Ultron program as a global peacekeeping AI, using technology from Loki’s scepter (which contained the Mind Stone). The AI became sentient and immediately decided humanity needed to be eradicated. In the comics, Hank Pym created Ultron, but the MCU shifted this to Stark.
✗ Even the Hulk couldn’t smash that answer! The correct answer is Tony Stark. While Hank Pym created Ultron in the comics, the MCU changed this to Tony Stark. Bruce Banner assisted but it was Tony’s initiative. Vision was actually created from Ultron’s technology, not the other way around.
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That history made Endgame's reunion enormously powerful. The movie could immediately put these characters into a shared mission because audiences already knew what they meant to one another.
Doomsday doesn't have that same luxury. Marvel has to establish relationships between characters who have barely interacted, while simultaneously convincing audiences that they can function as a cohesive Avengers-level team.
The Multiverse Saga Has Not Had A Core Group of Heroes
The biggest complication is that the MCU hasn't really had a replacement for the original Avengers as its central group. Instead, the Multiverse Saga has spread its attention across an enormous number of characters and franchises. Sam Wilson has become Captain America, Yelena Belova has emerged as one of the MCU's most important younger heroes, Shang-Chi remains positioned for a larger role, the Wakandans have their own corner of the universe, and Thor continues to operate independently. Meanwhile, the New Avengers provide another potential team dynamic.
That's before adding the Fantastic Four and the X-Men, who introduce entirely different histories and relationships into the equation. The fact that some of these characters come from alternate realities makes the challenge even greater. At the same time, that fragmentation could become one of Doomsday's greatest strengths. Rather than trying to recreate the original Avengers exactly, Marvel can make the movie about different groups being forced to work together when their worlds collide.
The Fantastic Four, X-Men, New Avengers, Sam's team, Thor, Wakandans, and Steve Rogers could each bring something different to the conflict. The challenge is making those disparate characters feel like they belong in the same story.
That's the standard Endgame's Encore makes particularly obvious. Marvel doesn't need Doomsday to simply repeat the past, but it does need to recreate the feeling that everything is finally moving toward the same destination. After years of separate stories, making this new generation of heroes feel like one cohesive Marvel universe may be the movie's hardest task.
Avengers: Endgame Encore releases in theaters on September 25th from Marvel Studios.
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Avengers: Endgame
9/10
- Release Date
- April 26, 2019
- Runtime
- 181 Minutes
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Tony Stark / Iron Man
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Steve Rogers / Captain America
Avengers: Endgame, directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, concludes the Marvel Cinematic Universe's Infinity Saga. It follows the remaining Avengers as they attempt to reverse the destruction caused by Thanos.
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Avengers: Doomsday
- Release Date
- December 18, 2026
- Runtime
- 165 Minutes
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Victor von Doom
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Reed Richards / Mr. Fantastic
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Thor
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Vanessa Kirby
Sue Storm / Invisible Woman
Avengers: Doomsday is the fifth Avengers film and kicks off Phase 6 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. A stacked cast of heroes both new and old to the MCU — including members of the X-Men — will face off against Victor von Doom, revealed at San Diego Comic-Con in 2024 to be played by a returning Robert Downey Jr.
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