Infinity War:
We know you must be thinking – Is this even a topic for discussion? Spider-Man is a neighborhood vigilante while Thanos is a planetary level villain. There is just no contest between the two. The odds are heavily stacked against the former. But if you are a hardcore comic book fan like us, we know that the fact that Spider-Man was so easily beaten by the Mad Titan is a subject of debate. Considering the fact that Spider-Man has almost always gone up against enemies several times his size, speed, strength, and intellect and has always found a way to bring them to their knees, the Thanos vs. Spider-Man fight in Infinity War rang all the wrong bells for all the right reasons.
Spider-Man, no doubt is powerless against Thanos, and yet in the comic books, his role has always proved instrumental in defeating Thanos. Yet he was just a liability this time, pretty much useless. Why was that? Presenting – Ever wonder how Thanos defeated Spider-Man so easily in Infinity War?!?! We have the answer to your question.
In the Marvel Cinematic universe, there is no superhero that is as agile, strong and smart as Spider-Man. Tony Stark needs his brains and suit but Spider-Man has all that as well as superpowers. That makes him a unique asset to the Avengers. In Infinity War, Spider-Man joined in the fight using his own Spider powers coupled with Doctor Strange’s portals to land multiple blows on Thanos. Later he joined in with the Guardians of the Galaxy members – Drax, Star-Lord, and Mantis to incapacitate Thanos, a feat in and of itself.
In the movie, Spider-Man used tandem combo movies with other heroes and never fully went into the fight on his own. Given that he was just a rookie and needed to learn how to fight the Big Bad Wolves the Avengers faced on a daily basis that much was understandable! When Spider-Man was not trading fists with Thanos, he was engaged in rescuing the other superheroes from falling victim to Thanos’ grasp. He was a worthy addition, undoubtedly.
The Doctor Strange-Spider-Man Combo strategy was the one we are actually bringing to the table right now. It was the most effective strategy against Thanos. Since he never knew where Spider-Man could come out of, Thanos was helpless against the Wall-Crawler’s relentless attacks. It was a good, calculated strategy and had they kept it up, Iron Man would have probably had the chance to get that Gauntlet off of the purple megalomaniac and return things to normal.
And that is where it went wrong – Spider-Man became a victim to his own habits.
Throughout the fight against Thanos, Spider-Man, every time he leaped out of a wormhole, screaming and letting go off his position. “Magic”, “More Magic”, Magic with a Kick”, Magic with a ..” Had Spider-Man kept his mouth shut, he would have still managed to hold the element of surprise to his advantage and the battle could have been won. Thanos predicted his next move, caught him and threw him off course. Spider-Man just could not keep his mouth shut and gave away his pattern of attack. The momentum of battle soon shifted in Thanos’ favor as he went on the offensive right after that scene.
But we are not saying Spider-Man should not crack jokes. Earlier, it was seen as a coping technique for Peter to deal with the death of Uncle Ben. Then he developed his motor-mouth trait into a full-blown technique to distract his enemies and catch them off-guard. His mid-battle witty one-liners have become one of his signature moves ever since.
What we are saying that he is still not there yet. To crack those jokes that might bring you to a disadvantage and give away your position and/or make your opponent unnecessarily angry, and manage to get away with it, you need to be extremely good at what you do. Remember Spider-Man still has not developed an efficient Spider-Sense.
In the comics, he has full faith in his hyper senses. In the movies, he is still learning. Had he trusted his Spider-Sense while dodging Thanos all the while using Doctor Strange’s Portals to attack Thanos from all directions, the game would have clearly shifted to the good guys’ favor. Up until Spider-Man actually realizes his shortcomings and works on them, he needs to put a leash on his mouth for the time being.
You can’t have your cake and eat it too, Spidey.
