Infinity War
Avengers: Infinity War is a huge film that’s absolutely jam-packed with stuff. Dozens of characters, enormous action set-pieces, quips upon quips upon quips, not to mention a universe-spanning plot 10 years in the making. With all of that going on, it’s only natural that some things would take a second or third viewing to really sink in with viewers.
Now that Infinity War is on-demand in my home, however, I’ve come to appreciate some of the subtler points of the film that I was unable to absorb during that first time in the theater. There’s one scene, however, that I simply can’t stop watching and re-watching, because I think I’ve uncovered a huge, hitherto unnoticed easter-egg (“did you really just say ‘hither-to’?“).
RiRi Is That You?
Specifically, it’s the roughly 5 seconds of footage in the lead-up to the battle in Manhattan–Tony Stark rushes out of the sanctum followed by Bruce Banner, Doctor Strange, and Wong to find carnage on the streets. Immediately after going outside, we see people rushing by, including a college-age young lady, with huge hair, who’s helped up by Tony Stark. Check it out.
This tiny portion with the girl has been rewatched so much in my house, that I feel like Kevin Cosner playing the Zapruder film in JFK. Because I contend it’s actually the first appearance of huge, universe-altering character to the MCU. I believe that this seemingly insignificant moment marks the introduction of Marvel’s next Iron Man: Ironheart herself, Riri Williams.
In the comics, Riri is a 15-year-old, African-American engineering student and kid-genius. She’s smarter than Stark, but shares his drive to improve her work and the world around her. Though she starts building a new version of the armor on her own, an A-I version of Stark becomes her mentor, and helps guide her in upgrading her invention as well as becoming a hero in her own right.
I mean, look at this!
Why I Think The Above Picture Is Ironheart
I hear all you nay-sayers. The next Iron Man would have a larger introduction. This is just a random coincidence. Nope.
Hear me out, though:
- Robert Downey, Jr. and the rest of the “original” Avengers are rapidly reaching the end of their multi-picture deals. While I doubt that means we’ll never see any of them appear in future films, it’s far more likely that they’ll serve more as supporting characters, akin to Nick Fury going forward. As such, it only makes sense to begin introducing the next generation of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes sooner than later.
- Marvel has done this kind of thing before. Remember the seemingly random child in the mask during the climax of Iron Man 2? He was later confirmed to be none other than Peter Parker.
- Both the film and comic units of Marvel have been (slowly) becoming increasingly diverse. It’s a welcome change for a world that has often felt far too monochromatic and unrepresentative of the people who love it. The current comics feature heroes of all faiths, colors, and orientations, and frankly, the sooner the films can reflect that the better. I think Black Panther‘s enormous success was the much-needed eye-opener the film industry needed.
In Closing
I know some people have been lobbying for Shuri to take over as the next Iron Man, and sure–I can see why. She’s charismatic, genius, snarky, and an absolute scene-stealer. But I think she’s better served as the comedic foil to Chadwick Boseman‘s, noble and earnest Black Panther, perhaps taking over as a truly bad-ass Queen of Wakanda in her own right.
I have argued a lot with people over who could replace Robert Downey Jr. in the Marvel Universe, and the answer is: no one. That’s not what they should be trying to do. You’re not going to find someone able to step into Iron Man’s armor as snugly as Downey has; rather, you find the next great actor and match them to a different character. There’s no next Michael Jordan or Mickey Mantle–there are only different, but equally great players we haven’t yet met.
Do it, Marvel! Let’s make Riri Williams the MCU’s next great superhero.