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MCU Catch-Up (Part 3)

Marvel’s latest blockbuster “Captain America: Civil War” opened in theaters this weekend and intertwined multiple Marvel cinematic universe (MCU) stories. The plot brings back the usual Avengers gang (minus Thor and the Hulk) while introducing new members Black Panther, Ant Man, and Spiderman.

Because the conglomeration of these stories can be a bit confusing, staff writer Heather Clark and guest writer Lily O’Connor have written summaries of every Marvel movie leading up to “Civil War” in chronological order. “The Pulse” will be posting these summaries over the next couple of days to help refresh your mind before seeing “Civil War”, or to help you connect missing links you hadn’t caught after seeing the movie for the third time.

Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)

In the 1980s, a young Peter Quill is kidnapped from Earth. Years later, he is part of a band of intergalactic thieves and goes by the name Starlord. While stealing a mysterious artifact, he is targeted by two bounty hunters—Rocket, a surgically enhanced raccoon, and Groot, a humanoid plant. An assassin Gamora, working for terrorist Kree leader Ronan, also wants the artifact, the Orb. They are all captured by authorities and sent to a space prison, where Gamora is attacked by an alien called Drax the Destroyer, who is seeking revenge for Ronan killing his family.

Quill manages to convince them all to work together long enough to escape the prison and deliver the Orb to a buyer. They agree, but when they prepare to sell the Orb to a man known as the Collector, the Orb is revealed to contain one of six Infinity Stones, which also include the Tesseract and the Aether. The stone causes an explosion and the group realizes it needs to be given to the Nova government authorities, but Ronan has tracked them to the Collector’s home. In the battle, Ronan takes the Stone and Quill and Gamora are captured by Quill’s old employers, the space thieves, the Ravagers. Quill convinces the Ravagers to help him get back the stone, and they ally with the Nova fighters to stop Ronan. The stone is recovered and Ronan is destroyed, but Quill discovers that he is not entirely human. He and the others decide to continue working together.

Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)

While taking down Hydra outposts, the Avengers discover Loki’s scepter as well as two enhanced siblings. While fighting against Hydra and the Maximoff twins, Clint Barton is shot and is airlifted to Helen Cho, a doctor who works closely with the Avengers. Meanwhile, Stark is attacked by Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch, who has the ability to manipulate the mind, causing Tony to see a horrible future. The Avengers are able to retrieve the scepter and return to Stark Tower, which has been renamed Avengers Tower.

Tony begins scientific experiments on the scepter, which he discovers has a computer inside. His attempts to link it to J.A.R.V.I.S. are eventually successful, although the new intelligence proves to be an adversary to Stark and his companions. The creation, named Ultron, takes over Tony’s collection of Iron-Man suits and attacks the Avengers, later disappearing into the internet when he is defeated.

The Avengers travel to Africa to meet with an arms dealer about a supply of Vibranium, the same metal that makes up Steve’s shield, which Ultron wants so he can build an infallible body. They arrive too late, and the Hulk, under the influence of Scarlet Witch, wreaks havoc on the city of Johannesburg, South Africa. With nowhere else to go, Clint takes the Avengers to his safe house, where they discover that Clint is married with children.

The Avengers try to figure out what to do next, and eventually realize that Ultron is attempting to build a flesh body for himself with the help of Helen Cho, whom he took control of with the use of the mind stone, an infinity stone contained in Loki’s scepter. The Avengers steal Ultron’s body before he can be fully integrated into it, and Tony decides to input JARVIS into the body instead. This creates the being known as the Vision. The Avengers, plus Vision, hurry off to Sokovia, the home-country of the Maximoffs, to face Ultron one last time.

The Maximoffs, realizing Ultron only wants war and death, switch sides and team up with the Avengers. In the midst of trying to evacuate the city is forced into the air, and S.H.I.E.L.D. sends help to save the civilians. During the battle, Pietro, one of the twins, is shot saving Clint’s life and dies. A grieving Wanda is able to destroy Ultron’s body, but he narrowly escapes. He is eventually defeated by the Vision. The movie ends with Steve training a new set of Avengers, including Tony’s friend Rhodey, Sam Wilson, and Wanda.

Ant-Man (2015)

Recently released from prison, burglar Scott Lang is trying to work and live a normal life while attempting to get visiting rights for his daughter. When he loses his job, some of his old friends talk Scott into robbing a safe in a mansion. The only thing in the safe is what looks like a motorcycle suit. However, after trying the suit on, Scott realizes it has the ability to shrink a person to the size of an ant. Freaked out, Scott tries to return the suit, and is arrested for breaking and entering. He is able to escape jail by using the suit, which was given to him again, and he discovers that his ‘release’ was caused by the suit’s owner, Dr. Hank Pym. Dr. Pym used to work with Howard Stark until he tried to get Pym’s shrinking particles to be used as a weapon.

Pym’s protégé, Darren Cross, is attempting to recreate the particle, something Pym is trying desperately to stop. With the help of Scott, and Pym’s daughter Hope, Pym plans to steal the prototype suit. In order to steal the suit, Scott needs to break into the new Avengers facility to get a part and ends up fighting with Sam Wilson. He is able to escape and heads back to the Pym household. He enlists help to break into Cross’s facility, but is unable to steal the suit before Cross takes it out of storage. Scott must then fight Cross, which alternates between normal size and ant size in Scott’s family’s house. He is eventually able to defeat Cross. The movie ends with Sam Wilson asking around about this new “hero.”

By Heather Clark and Lily O’Connor

MCU Catch-Up (Part 2)

Marvel’s Avengers (2012)

S.H.I.E.L.D. is conducting experiments on the Tesseract at a secret facility when the cube opens a portal and Loki arrives through it. He takes the Tesseract and takes control of some S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, including Clint Barton/Hawkeye and Eric Selvig. After Loki escapes Nick Fury sets the Avengers Initiative into action. Tony Stark, Bruce Banner, Natasha Romanoff and Steve Rogers arrive on the S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier, where a search is being conducted for Loki.

Iron Man and Capitan America capture Loki, only to have him stolen by his brother, Thor. After a fight, the team discovers Loki is planning to lead an army of aliens called the Chitauri to take over Earth. Loki manages to break free during an attack on the helicarrier which causes the Hulk to appear and Thor to be thrown out of the ship. Natasha and Clint fight and she hits him in the head, causing Loki’s mind control to break. Together with the help of Steve and Tony, they realize that Loki is planning on using Stark Tower to power the portal and race to New York. Loki has already created the portal when they arrive, and they are forced to battle the aliens. S.H.I.E.L.D. tries to send a nuclear missile into the city to destroy the aliens, but Tony sends it through the portal and Natasha is able to close the gateway. The aliens are defeated and the team splits up, with Thor returning his brother to Asgard for punishment.

Iron Man 3 (2013)

Several years before the events of the first “Iron Man” movie, Tony attended a New Year’s party in Bern, Switzerland where he met Aldrich Killian and Maya Hansen. In the present, Tony suffers from PTSD after the Battle of New York, and also faces the new threat of a terrorist called the Mandarin. After an attack by the Mandarin puts Tony’s bodyguard in the hospital, Tony challenges the Mandarin and his house is attacked. Tony is assumed dead and is able to go after the Mandarin covertly. In the meantime, Pepper is kidnapped by Killian, who along with Hansen has been developing a serum to create super healing, which he calls Extremis. Tony attacks the Mandarin’s mansion only to discover that the man called the Mandarin is an actor hired by Killian to cover up accidental explosions from the unstable Extremis. Killian kidnaps the President of the United States and Rhodey and Tony attack the oil tanker Killian is using as a base and rescue the president and Pepper. Later, Tony undergoes an operation to remove the shrapnel from his heart and throws away his arc reactor after destroying all of the suits he created.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013 – current)

Agent Phil Coulson, an agent who was killed by Loki during the attack on the helicarrier in the “Avengers”, is mysteriously revived, puts together a team of agents, and begins to investigate alien occurrences and a growing threat from inside the agency itself.

Thor: The Dark World (2013)

While investigating gravitational anomalies occurring around the world, Jane Foster comes in contact with a mysterious substance that invades her body. Thor takes her to Asgard to try to find a cure, and they discover that the substance is known as the Aether, a weapon of the Dark Elves, who want to use it to turn the world to darkness using the Convergence, which causes gravitation anomalies. To remove the Aether from Jane’s body, Thor enlists the captive Loki’s help to travel to the Dark Elves’ world. The leader of the Dark Elves, Malekith, removes the Aether, but steals it for himself and Loki is stabbed in the battle. Believing him dead, Thor and Jane return to Earth and battle Malekith in London, finally managing to retrieve the Aether. Thor returns to Asgard to tell his father that he cannot be king because he has chosen to guard Earth. Odin agrees, but when Thor leaves, Odin is revealed to be only an illusion covering up the real person on the throne, Loki.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)

Steve Rogers, who had moved to Washington D.C. after the Battle of New York, is still working for S.H.I.E.L.D. when he is assigned to infiltrate a captured ship. While retaking the ship from pirates, Steve realizes that Natasha Romanoff, on the mission with him, is secretly gathering information from the onboard computer for Fury. When Steve approaches Fury, the director shows him the new Helicarriers being built as part of Project Insight, a new weapon designed to take out threats before they begin. Fury, however, is concerned about the project and asks senior S.H.I.E.L.D. official Alexander Pierce to postpone the project.

After his request, Fury is ambushed on the road by a group led by the Winter Soldier. Fury escapes and hides in Steve’s apartment, but is killed by the Winter Soldier after giving Steve information on Project Insight. Steve and Natasha follow Fury’s directions to Steve’s old army training camp, where they discover an underground bunker filled with supercomputers. When they access the computers, they discover that Hydra was not destroyed after the Red Skull’s death in “The First Avenger” but instead has been infiltrating S.H.I.E.L.D. ever since.

Returning to D.C., Steve and Natasha ask Steve’s friend Sam Wilson for help, and they are attacked by the Winter Soldier whom Steve recognizes as his best friend Bucky. When S.H.I.E.L.D. tries to take them prisoner, the three are rescued by Agent Maria Hill and taken to a bunker where Fury reveals himself to be still alive. Steve and the others realize that Pierce, the Hydra leader inside S.H.I.E.L.D., is planning to use the Insight Helicarriers to take out threats to his own group. Steve, Natasha and Sam break into S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters and destroy the Helicarriers, although Steve fights Bucky and is thrown into the Potomac. Bucky drags him to safety and then disappears. Afterward, Steve and Sam begin to search for Bucky, with S.H.I.E.L.D. having been completely dismantled.

By Heather Clark and Lily O’Connor

MCU Catch-Up

Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)

Brooklyn native Steve Rogers participates in a scientific experiment designed to create super-soldiers. When the program’s creator is killed by German Hydra agents, Steve, the only one to complete the program, is considered a test subject and relegated to selling war bonds under the title of “Captain America.” When he travels to the warfront to perform for the soldiers, he discovers his best friend’s company has been captured by Hydra. Steve disobeys orders and with the help of Agent Peggy Carter and inventor Howard Stark, travels into Nazi territory where the men are being held for scientific purposes. The territory surrounds an energy source Hydra has discovered, called the Tesseract. Steve liberates the POWs and several of them form a unit to fight Hydra. On one of their missions, Steve’s friend, Bucky Barnes, falls off a train to his apparent death. Steve then goes head-to-head with leader of Hydra and arch nemesis, Red Skull, and must crash the airplane they are in into the ocean to save humanity from destruction. This causes the Tesseract to be lost for many decades, until Stark finds it while searching for Steve’s body. Almost 70 years later, Steve’s body is discovered in the ice, still alive. He later wakes up in modern day New York and is approached by S.H.I.E.L.D. director Nick Fury.

Agent Carter (2015 – current)

After the events of “The First Avenger” Agent Peggy Carter is now working for the Strategic Scientific Reserve (S.S.R) and Howard Stark has been branded a fugitive for allegedly selling weapons to American enemies. With the help of Stark’s butler, Jarvis, Peggy is set on a mission to clear Stark’s name. While going behind the back of her superiors, Carter’s mission leads her to discover a remaining Hydra faction bent on revenge.

Iron Man (2008)

Stark’s son and weapons developer, Tony, is captured by a Middle Eastern terrorist group known as the Ten Rings. During the attack, he is too close to a missile and has fragments of metal blown into his heart. In order to survive this, Tony creates an arc reactor to prevent the metal from impaling his heart. To escape, he builds a metal suit and realizes its potential to become a line of defense. He improves the design with the help of his AI, J.A.R.V.I.S. When he discovers his business partner, Obadiah Stane, is selling Stark Industries weapons to the Ten Rings, he uses the suit to destroy the weapons. Stane builds his own suit to fight Tony, and although Tony is able to defeat Stane, the secret is out. Tony reveals himself at a press conference as Iron Man.

The Incredible Hulk (2008)

Scientist Bruce Banner is on the run from authorities in Central America after a failed Gamma ray experiment caused him to transform into a green monster when his pulse was elevated. He is seeking a cure and travels to visit his former love interest, Betty Ross, who was involved in the experiment as well. Betty’s father, General Ross, is obsessed with capturing Banner and creates his own monster in order to defeat Bruce. Bruce and Betty visit a scientist who believes he can cure Bruce from his affliction, but the cure fails and Ross’s monster attacks Banner. After their fight, Banner disappears, still on the run from the military.

Iron Man 2 (2010)

Tony Stark reinstates his father’s expo to bring together scientific minds. In the midst of the expo, Tony faces his own mortality as he realizes that the arc reactor keeping him alive is also poisoning him. Tony searches for an alternative power source while under investigation by the government, which wants to appropriate his suit as a weapon. Tony is then attacked by the son of his father’s former Russian coworker, Ivan Vanko. Vanko is arrested but Tony’s rival weapons manufacturer, Justin Hammer, recruits him to help create Iron-Man style suits. Stark hands control of Stark Industries to Pepper Potts and hires Natalie Rushman, who is later revealed to be S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow, as an assistant. At a party, Tony and his friend James “Rhodey” Rhodes get into a fight which ends with Rhodey stealing one of the Iron Man suits and Tony being put under house arrest by S.H.I.E.L.D. With the help of Nick Fury, Tony is able to manufacture a new element to power his arc reactor, saving his life. Meanwhile the suit Rhodey took has been modified by Justin Hammer, and Ivan has built an army of drones. The drones, when displayed at the Stark Expo, begin to attack, controlled by Vanko who is seeking revenge. Tony, Rhodey, Pepper, and Natasha team up to defeat the drones, Vanko, and Hammer.

Thor (2011)

Thor is about to be crowned King of Asgard when a rival alien species, Jotuns, break into a royal vault to steal an ancient weapon. Thor, angry that the Jotuns ruined the celebrations, decides to take his friends, the Warriors Three and Lady Sif, and his brother, Loki, to attack Jotunheim in retribution. When defeat is imminent, Odin comes to attempt to renegotiate a peace, but peace is lost. Odin takes Thor, Loki, and their friends back to Asgard, where he then banishes Thor for his ignorance in nearly starting a war. Thor is sent to Midgard (Earth), along with his mighty hammer, Mjolnir, and is immediately hit by a car belonging to scientists studying atmospheric phenomena.

Meanwhile in Asgard, Loki finds out that he is not actually Odin’s son, but instead was taken from Jotunheim, his home planet. His angry outburst sends Odin into a coma, and Loki takes control of the throne. Back on Earth, without his power or Mjolnir, Thor befriends scientists Jane Foster, Eric Selvig and Darcy Lewis. The Warriors Three and Lady Sif decide to travel to Earth to find Thor, and Loki sends a weapon called the Destroyer after them. In the ensuring battle Thor is wounded and sacrifices himself for the others. This sacrifice allows Mjolnir to return to him and his powers are reinstated. Thor defeats the Destroyer and returns to Asgard to confront his brother. This confrontation leads to the near death of Odin, apparent death of Loki, and destruction of the Bifrost, forcing Thor to remain on Asgard.

By Heather Clark and Lily O’Connor

Summaries of “The Avengers”, “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” and the slew of sequels coming tomorrow!

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