Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D IV: Oh, the Inhumanity!

[theNater]

There's going to be time travel? Do you mean because there's going to be a Time Gem at some point?

Yup! Time Gem in the comics allows time travel. They may change it for the movies, of course.

For bonus conversational value: if the MCU does have time travel, who should take a trip, and to when should they go? Who's got ideas?

[3SecondCultist]

Yup! Time Gem in the comics allows time travel. They may change it for the movies, of course.

For bonus conversational value: if the MCU does have time travel, who should take a trip, and to when should they go? Who's got ideas?

I'd love to see Iron Man go to the 1940s, to go and get Captain America (if, for some reason, modern day Cap isn't available). All of the Fish Out of Temporal Water reversed back on him! That would be really fun, something for Infinity War maybe?

[Kitten Champion]

Yup! Time Gem in the comics allows time travel. They may change it for the movies, of course.

For bonus conversational value: if the MCU does have time travel, who should take a trip, and to when should they go? Who's got ideas?

I think Captain America to 1945, because the question of whether or not he'd return would be an interesting conflict for him. Iron Man meeting his father in his prime would be interesting as well, particularly if Tony works the time travel angle to his advantage to start a project in the past that would eventually be used in the present against Thanos.

Though I think there are some more likely options - Black Panther has the Time Gem already and has been using it to literally talk to his ancestors throughout time and predict the future to justify Wakanda's utopic status, or it's going to wind up being in the Guardians of the Galaxy sequel as an essential plot element that's going to tie into Peter Quill's mysterious father somehow.

[Hytheter]

I hope the Time Gem doesn't do time travel just because time travel tends to make a mess of alternate timelines and/or turn plots into sponge. It can be done right, but it's safer to to leave the whole thing alone.

I could see it speeding or slowing time relative to the user though. Or perhaps allowing someone to experience another point in time without literally going there, as a compromise to my above concern. Obviously anything done "in the past" in that case won't have a tangible effect on reality, but it could be useful to gain information.

edit: Oh, a limited rewinding of time could also be workable.

[Rogar Demonblud]

Yup! Time Gem in the comics allows time travel. They may change it for the movies, of course.

For bonus conversational value: if the MCU does have time travel, who should take a trip, and to when should they go? Who's got ideas?

I figure it's at least even money they'll use the Time Stone to bring Pietru back.

[lord_khaine]

Isnt there other of the gems that can also ressurect the dead?

And is it not certainly also something Thanos can do?

[lt_murgen]

From a cinematic perspective, a Time gem that allows the user to see the 'currents of time' would be effective.

See all past decisions by everyone, and how they interacted to bring everything to the 'current' point in time, and then all potential futures flowing out from that point.

That way, the user could NEVER make the wrong decision, driving the universe towards his/her desired future. Combined with the space gem to travel anywhere in the universe instantly, and the power/mind gem to make their decisions instantly and perfectly enforcable, and Thanos would be able to literally create his utopia in short order without resorting to 'Travel to the past to change X' which has been so over-done in movies.

[meltodowno]

Meh, thanos is overated.

Spoiler: related comic

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And MCU is likely to get access to an easier way to bring back dead characters, what with Dr Strange just around the corner and the bag of magical worms that will open for shield to have to deal with in addition to aliens.

.... I'm really hoping they don't go down the 'magicians are aliens' route ....

[Fiery Diamond]

I had a bizarre dream last night that turned into a crossover of Agents of SHIELD and Nanatsu no Taizai. The Kree rock turned Simmons into Diane somehow. Fitz had to come rescue her and restore her memories (because currently in Nanatsu no Taizai Diane has had her memories erased). Also, I was involved somehow.

Much less realistic than the dream I had back when I was watching Season 1 where I was a Gifted who had sidestepped into an alternate reality that was based on MCU and got the welcome wagon treatment by Coulson's team, who had a flying giant truck instead of a plane. May was suuuuper suspicious of me when I could identify them all by name despite never having met them, because I came from a reality in which they were TV show characters. She did not buy that explanation at all.

[Orrmundur]

Though I think there are some more likely options - Black Panther has the Time Gem already and has been using it to literally talk to his ancestors throughout time and predict the future to justify Wakanda's utopic status

That... that would actually be really cool. I'd like to see that so long as Dr. Strange will not involve the Soul Gem, having two of the Infinity Stones already be on Earth of all planets in the universe seems a bit too convenient.

[Joran]

That... that would actually be really cool. I'd like to see that so long as Dr. Strange will not involve the Soul Gem, having two of the Infinity Stones already be on Earth of all planets in the universe seems a bit too convenient.

Spoiler: Vague spoiler from Age of Ultron

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I remember someone remarking it being very odd that all the Infinity Stones were appearing as if someone was planning something <cuts to teaser of Thalnos saying "Fine, I'll do it myself" and grabbing the Infinity Guantlet>

[Kitten Champion]

That... that would actually be really cool. I'd like to see that so long as Dr. Strange will not involve the Soul Gem, having two of the Infinity Stones already be on Earth of all planets in the universe seems a bit too convenient.

Meh, this is Marvel, Earth's the convenientest place in the universe.

[Rakaydos]

I think the time stone will slow time, or speed it up, not time travel. But we'll see.

I suspect Thanos will get the time gem at the climax of Infinity war part 1, but the gem was booby trapped, freezing Thanos in time for 1 year. 1 year to prepare for Infinity War pt 2...

[Reddish Mage]

That... that would actually be really cool. I'd like to see that so long as Dr. Strange will not involve the Soul Gem, having two of the Infinity Stones already be on Earth of all planets in the universe seems a bit too convenient.

Meh...

Spoiler: Avengers 2: Age of Ultron Post-Credits

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we already know that Thanos is turning his attention to Earth, thanks to Earth having the mind gem (which, incidentally, it only has because Loki brought it there). Having two infinity stones is not incredible next to the notion that Thanos is going to bide his time for three movies or so before making his move on Earth.

I agree that time travel involves a lot of nonsense and camp (Doctor Who anyone?). I would note, however, that Marvel has taken A LOT of nonsense and made it work in the context of the more "adult" current crop of movies while managing to keep a more realistic and grounded feel...

but Age of Ultron and Guardians of the Galaxy are really starting to mess with that...

I don't think the audience assumption there matters as much as you suggest here. The scene between Rocket and Drax is still powerful on repeat viewings, even though we the audience know about baby Groot dancing in the credits. The assumption on the part of the characters matters, but our knowledge isn't theirs.

Reading your whole post, I think we are now in total agreement on everything regarding death and the cheapness there of. I thought you were aiming at something about background facts not mattering much (agreed). One final nit though, as it is my Guardian of Galaxy pet peeve:

Groot's sacrifice would be even more meaningful if, when Rocket asked Groot: "But you'll die.....why Groot, why are you doing this!?"

"[because...]I...am...Groot..."

[Olinser]

The direction I'm hoping they go with the Time Gem is FUTURE travel, rather than backwards travel.

That could be a great plot for Guardians of the Galaxy 2 - the Time Gem sends them X years in the future, where they see that it has been conquered by Villain Y, and then everything they do is attempting to avert that future.

That eliminates the problem of multiple continuities and the general headache of trying to keep time travel consistent throughout a movie.

[Olinser]

That... that would actually be really cool. I'd like to see that so long as Dr. Strange will not involve the Soul Gem, having two of the Infinity Stones already be on Earth of all planets in the universe seems a bit too convenient.

Uhm, dude, there were actually THREE Gems on Earth at the same time. The Aether, The Tesseract, and the Mind Gem were all on Earth for Avengers 1 (they just didn't know about the Aether or the Mind Gem).

In terms of time the Aether and the Tesseract were on Earth together for several hundred years.

[Grey_Wolf_c]

Uhm, dude, there were actually THREE Gems on Earth at the same time. The Aether, The Tesseract, and the Mind Gem were all on Earth for Avengers 1 (they just didn't know about the Aether or the Mind Gem).

In terms of time the Aether and the Tesseract were on Earth together for several hundred years.

I thought the Aether (assuming that's the black stuff from Thor 2, if not, ignore my rambling) was in some pocket dimension that was only accessible due to the alignment? It wasn't really on Earth, or anywhere else, really.

Grey Wolf

[Orrmundur]

I thought the Aether (assuming that's the black stuff from Thor 2, if not, ignore my rambling) was in some pocket dimension that was only accessible due to the alignment? It wasn't really on Earth, or anywhere else, really.

Yeah, that was how I understood it. Meaning that The Tesseract/Space Gem was the only one that was purposely stored on Earth for any significant period of time. That we know of, anyway. Which makes sense as both it and the Aether were seemingly put in their hiding places by Asgardians and they've stated that they feel like no two Infinity Stones should be kept near each other.

[Rakaydos]

Yeah, that was how I understood it. Meaning that The Tesseract/Space Gem was the only one that was purposely stored on Earth for any significant period of time. That we know of, anyway. Which makes sense as both it and the Aether were seemingly put in their hiding places by Asgardians and they've stated that they feel like no two Infinity Stones should be kept near each other.

Doesnt wakanda in the comics have a link to an alternate dimension called the Beastlands? And that's where most of the Vibranium is?

How would you make that fit the MCU?

[BRC]

The Aether (Confirmed as Reality Gem) was hidden somewhere, the Convergence just happened to open a portal between london and its hiding place.

Apparently Thanos had the Mind Gem, he gave it to Loki.

Asgard stashed the Space Gem on Earth.

The Power Gem was hidden on that one planet out in space.
currently no sign of the Soul or Time gems.

As of right now.

Asgard is holding onto the Space Gem.

The Reality Gem is in the hands of the Collector (he may be shady, but if you want something to sit and never be used ever, giving it to The Collector isn't a bad move).

The Power Gem is being protected by the Nova Corps.

The Mind Gem is currently powering The Vision.

My guess is that the Soul Gem may show up in Captain Marvel, to replace the Psycho-Magnetron (AKA Exploding Alien Wish Machine) as the source of her powers.

[LaZodiac]

currently no sign of the Soul or Time gems.

Asgard is holding onto the Space Gem.

The Reality Gem is in the hands of the Collector (he may be shady, but if you want something to sit and never be used ever, giving it to The Collector isn't a bad move).

The Power Gem is being protected by the Nova Corps.

The Mind Gem is currently powering The Vision.

My guess is one of them is the MacGuffin that Antman has to steal, but something happens that gets it lost.

You listing the current locations of all the gems is basically also listing "all the places/faces Thanos is going to destroy" and that's kind of sad honestly.

[Malimar]

I have a fear that the Time Gem will just wind up being used to reboot the MCU after Phase Three, like time travel in the X-Men films, or the JJ Abrams Star Trek.

[Kato]

I have a fear that the Time Gem will just wind up being used to reboot the MCU after Phase Three, like time travel in the X-Men films, or the JJ Abrams Star Trek.

Aha, this gives me a genius* idea: the time gem is... Kitty! Seriously, how else do you go from "phasing through stuff" to "sending minds through time"?

My guess is one of them is the MacGuffin that Antman has to steal, but something happens that gets it lost.

You listing the current locations of all the gems is basically also listing "all the places/faces Thanos is going to destroy" and that's kind of sad honestly.

Hm... putting a gem into the Antman movie seems a bit too mundane to me, maybe? Like having it appear in AoS or Daredevil... (wait, DD isn't part of the MCU, is he?) Nothing against Antman but I think he's too low key at this point to be involved with an infinity gem. From this POV and from a "Earth's just a random planet and not disproportinate many gems need to be on Earth" point... Strange? Some hell dimension thing might be a decent place for one of the gems to hide... maybe.


Could he do it, though? I mean mostly, Asgard? Yeah, he's more powerful than Thor but the whole of Asgard's might and Odin... oh, wait...


*Yes, I'm always very humble.

[LaZodiac]

Hm... putting a gem into the Antman movie seems a bit too mundane to me, maybe? Like having it appear in AoS or Daredevil... (wait, DD isn't part of the MCU, is he?) Nothing against Antman but I think he's too low key at this point to be involved with an infinity gem. From this POV and from a "Earth's just a random planet and not disproportinate many gems need to be on Earth" point... Strange? Some hell dimension thing might be a decent place for one of the gems to hide... maybe.


Could he do it, though? I mean mostly, Asgard? Yeah, he's more powerful than Thor but the whole of Asgard's might and Odin... oh, wait...


*Yes, I'm always very humble.

Daredevil is part of the MCU. You see a newspaper talking about the New York attack in it. The Hell's Kitchen of Dare Devil can only exist BECAUSE of the alien attack, even. I get what you mean though. What I mean however is that, the thing Antman has to steal is something that contains the gem, and we only learn that during the credits stinger when Dr Strange shows up to obtain it as it was stolen for him, and WE learn the truth, but Antman has no idea.

[Kitten Champion]

Daredevil is part of the MCU. You see a newspaper talking about the New York attack in it. The Hell's Kitchen of Dare Devil can only exist BECAUSE of the alien attack, even. I get what you mean though.

Why? I mean, Hell's Kitchen exists, although like in the comics it's depicted like it's still the 1970/80's in terms of being a crime-ridden slum despite the transformation it underwent in the 90's. The only significance the alien invasion had on the district is that the local crime syndicate were actively stealing from the public reconstruction fund.

[LaZodiac]

Why? I mean, Hell's Kitchen exists, although like in the comics it's depicted like it's still the 1970/80's in terms of being a crime-ridden slum despite the transformation it underwent in the 90's. The only significance the alien invasion had on the district is that the local crime syndicate were actively stealing from the public reconstruction fund.

Eh, it's someone who's seen the whole series said. I think the idea is that they're stealing the public reconstruction fund is what causes the increase in crime which makes Murdock do what he did.

[Reddish Mage]

Daredevil is part of the MCU. You see a newspaper talking about the New York attack in it. The Hell's Kitchen of Dare Devil can only exist BECAUSE of the alien attack, even. I get what you mean though. What I mean however is that, the thing Antman has to steal is something that contains the gem, and we only learn that during the credits stinger when Dr Strange shows up to obtain it as it was stolen for him, and WE learn the truth, but Antman has no idea.

The deal with Marvel is that Daredevil is MCU but there will be no cross-overs, no use of Marvel's other characters...

[LaZodiac]

The deal with Marvel is that Daredevil is MCU but there will be no cross-overs, no use of Marvel's other characters...

Except for Iron Fist, and Jessica Jones, and whatever the third guy in The Defenders is. And then The Defenders. And so on.

But I get what you mean, it's "The Netflix guys", they won't overlap. Though I hope Daredevil gets at least a mention in say, Civil War, since Daredevil is a vigilante.

[Kitten Champion]

Eh, it's someone who's seen the whole series said. I think the idea is that they're stealing the public reconstruction fund is what causes the increase in crime which makes Murdock do what he did.

Nah, it's just where the series begins, which was clever. They went with something that was synergistic with the MCU to ensure the audience knows where they're at with this series while being a logical continuation of those events (Government money would most certainly be sent to Manhattan, and more than a little would be misused by corrupt elements, no suspension of disbelief really necessary despite it ultimately being caused by an Alien Invasion) while working perfectly well with the plot they wanted to tell.

It wasn't like the clunky season one Agents of SHIELD bits where they make an off-handed reference to Agent Romanov or something, which just seemed like they're forcing a connection between the show and the movies but without putting any money or effort into it.

Speaking of, it's really amazing how much I'm enjoyed AoS on its own merits this season. That how it tied into Age of Ultron came off more as a mild distraction from its own more interesting internal ongoing plot.

[Reddish Mage]

Speaking of, it's really amazing how much I'm enjoyed AoS on its own merits this season. That how it tied into Age of Ultron came off more as a mild distraction from its own more interesting internal ongoing plot.

I'm not sure I would call it mild. Those elements ran through the show all season (theta protocol! What's this big secret Coulson's hiding?), we got several appearances of an actual villain from the movie and a lot of talk about Baron Strucker, and finally, in the penultimate episode, they raid Hydra in this huge Hail Mary play that makes the next time they go in alone (the very next episode) blaise. During that mission, Coulson undertakes a secret mission of his own and then contacts Maria Hill to talk about it and sets up "the next phase."

The events of Age of Ultron was built up as this grand climatic event that would "change the world forever," involve this all important secret "theta protocol," and bring to a culmination all the drama with Hydra...and then...there's nothing. AoS had absolutely nothing to do with the movie, nor did the movie impact what happens next with AoS, we don't even get to see the look on Gonzales face when he learned that the secret Coulson was keeping all this time was a HELICARRIER, no one from the show is even on the bridge!

Seriously, could you not have shown fitzsimmons in the background or something!?

What happened to Fury, and the helicarrier, and how did SHIELD featuring so prominently in saving the world from Ultron affect their iffy reputation?

Age of Ultron is not a mild distraction, its a gap in the storyline, and its large enough to fly a helicarrier through!