The Avengers: Infinity War trailer took the internet by storm with its multitude of characters and the big baddie Thanos. While the threat of Thanos in his search for the Infinity Stones is definitely fascinating, but, the icing on the cake would be Steve Rogers/Captain America finally donning a full beard. Though currently, Captain America is in exile, it’s obvious that he has a major role to play. From his disappearance to the company he’s been keeping, the Avengers: Infinity War trailer has raised a lot of questions regarding the First Avenger. While we do see Captain America back in the leadership role, but is his team really the MCU version of the Secret Avengers?
But who are the Secret Avengers?
Following the events of Civil War and the subsequent fallout between #TeamStark and #TeamCap followed by the ‘Secret Invasion’ storyline, Captain America had to be reinstated to service after breaking with the government over the Superhero Registration Act.
The new team led by Steve Rogers consisted of Black Widow, Agent 13, War-Machine, Nova, Ant-Man, Valkyrie, and Beast. Later, Hawkeye, Mockingbird, Hulk, Maria Hill and Agent Coulson were also inducted into the team.
Basically, the Secret Avengers act like a Black-Ops team who had a proactive approach towards neutralizing threats in contrast to the traditional way of reactive approach, which was still followed by the original Avengers.
But where do the Secret Avengers stand in the current MCU?
As the Avengers: Infinity War trailer revealed, Steve Rogers was called to battle by Tony Stark by using the same phone Steve had left with Tony at the end of Captain America: Civil War. Though the status of the rocky relationship between the billionaire and the patriot is yet to be addressed, Avengers: Infinity War trailer has shed some light on it. In Spiderman: Homecoming, it was seen that Tony Stark had been working on a prototype shield which was based on the original shield used by Steve Rogers. It might be a possibility that Tony Stark has sanctioned the creation of the Secret Avengers while maintaining a facade with the government.
One of the most iconic scenes from Avengers: Infinity War trailer was the final shot where the Winter Soldier/Bucky, Black Panther, Black Widow, War Machine, Falcon, and Hulk are following Cap’s lead, possibly into the battleground. Currently, Scarlet Witch and Vision’s status are yet to be revealed, but it has been known that both War Machine and Vision were sympathetic to Cap’s cause while still siding with Tony Stark in Captain America: Civil War.
Whether Vision and War Machine were already aware of the Secret Avengers or Avengers: Infinity War will spend some time on a not-so-friendly re-union that is yet to be addressed.
Coming back to the original Secret Avengers from the comics, the team also had Valkyrie, Nova, Moon Knight and Beast. While Valkyrie has been a surprising hit among the fans, thanks to the spectacular performance by Tessa Thompson in Thor: Ragnarok, Moon Knight and Nova can be added to the team earlier than you expected.
The Nova Corps was shown in Guardians of the Galaxy (2014). If rumors are to be believed, MCU has grand plans for Moon Knight in the upcoming years. And, if the deal between Fox and Disney gets finalized, we might finally witness Beast joining the legions of the Secret Avengers.
After Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 and Part 2, MCU can also showcase the different divisions of the original Avengers. With Secret Avengers, the road can be paved for the New Avengers, West Coast Avengers and even, the Uncanny Avengers! The Secret Avengers acting as a Black-Ops team dealing with espionage is a very interesting venture which can be easily exploited by the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Avengers: Infinity War opens in theatres on May 4, 2018.
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