The man can be without the shield. However, it is impossible to separate him from what the shield symbolizes.
Earlier today, we saw the initial teaser trailer for Avengers: Infinity War which gave us the first hint of the kind of battle that lies ahead for the superhero team. Spider-Man jumped into the battle, Thor met the Guardians of the Galaxy, and above all, we saw Thanos start making his ambitious Infinity Gauntlet. Although the trailer was breezy and devoid of any real hints about the story, we could figure out a few things about the narrative, especially in relation to the fragments that Captain America: Civil War had left us with.
When the Captain America: Civil War ended, Steve Rogers gave up the responsibility of being Captain America and became a fugitive from the government. By doing so, he abandoned his dear friends and team members – Avengers, who had stood by him during the discord about Sokovia Accords. Last time we saw Steve Rogers was when he was in Wakanda with the Winter Soldier, being guarded by King T’Challa, the Black Panther.
It is the Infinity War trailer where we see the bearded and rugged Captain America who is surviving after these incidents. He doesn’t have his beloved shield on the shoulder, and his suit is neither bright nor shiny, but, he still shows that he is the leader that he always was when he is seen flanked by his troops “Secret Avengers” as he charges into battle against the invading army of Thanos.
Since he was being chased by the government and was hiding in Wakanda, Steve’s activities must have been quiet, low-key and secretive. Courtesy a leaked photograph of the movie; we knew that Sam Wilson aka Falcon was going to be at Steve’s aid through all the scenarios and the blonde Black Widow who is also living under a new identity will join those two.
However, there are some new names on the list. After all, this is a battle that needs as many combatants as available. After fighting against each other in Civil War, we now see that the Black Panther, despite being a king is ready to follow the Captain America into this battle. However, he is not the only one from Wakanda to join Steve. The leader of the Dora Milaje, Okoye is also there, and we will see him first in the Black Panther solo movie in February. Bucky aka former Winter Soldier who was also previously spotted in Wakanda, going into a cryogenic sleep aimed at erasing the HYDRA programming from his mind, will also return to action and assist in guarding Wakanda (with the help of a new Vibranium arm!).
However, the last two on this list are the most noticeable members of the team: Hulk and War Machine. Hulk’s appearance means that the green monster didn’t only return to Earth after Thor: Ragnarok, but, he immediately went to Wakanda for reasons that we don’t know yet. Last, but, not the least is the appearance in Wakandaof Colonel James Rhodes, who was a strong opponent to Steve during the Civil War, a battle which ended with him getting crippled.
Seeing him join this bunch of Avengers is surprising, and we wonder how War Machine became a supporter of Captain America’s efforts to protect Wakanda from Thanos after he was trying to hunt him in his previous appearance.
Captain America, Black Widow, Okoye, Black Panther, Winter Soldier, Hulk, War Machine and Falcon have all joined hands to fight a common enemy. Despite their previous disputes, they are standing together to defend Wakanda. The only thing that didn’t make a comeback yet is the red, white and blue shield.
A Joe and Anthony Russo directorial venture, Avengers: Infinity Warfrom Marvel stars Robert Downey Jr., Josh Brolin, Mark Ruffalo, Tom Hiddleston, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Jeremy Renner, Chris Pratt, Elizabeth Olsen, Sebastian Stan, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Bettany, Samuel L. Jackson, Cobie Smulders, Benedict Wong, Zoe Saldana, Karen Gillan, Vin Diesel, Dave Bautista, PomKlementieff, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Holland and Anthony Mackie. The film will release on May 4, 2018.
