# Poll for people who've seen Avengers \*SPOILERS\* **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 24, 2012, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897 "2012-05-24T00:20:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897/1 "2012-05-24T00:20:37Z")
Just from your own knowledge, before asking anyone else or looking it up on the internet, did you know who the guy in the ending “stinger” was? ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897/2 "2012-05-24T00:27:58Z")
I had no fucking clue who **ANY** of these people or things were, except Thor (and consequently Loki and Dr. Selvig) and Captain America (and consequently the tesseract) because I saw their individual movies, and Hulk because I remember his TV show. I was pretty impressed by how well the movie got across to me considering how little I understood of its various backstories. I still don’t know who the guy at the end was, I haven’t been through all the Avengers threads here and don’t remember everything that I did read. If anybody wants to let me know who he is so I know what to expect in the sequel, I’ll appreciate it. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897/3 "2012-05-24T00:29:01Z")
No, never heard of him. Did some digging and Googling afterwards and found out more: [Thanos - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thanos) ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897/4 "2012-05-24T00:33:45Z")
No idea. Zero. Apparently, he’s a big villain in the comics and it’s a big deal that he was behind the stuff in the movie. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897/5 "2012-05-24T00:36:37Z")
I wasn’t sure until Wesley said “to do that would be to court Death”… ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897/6 "2012-05-24T00:37:09Z")
Nah, I guess not. I thought it was the Super-Skrull. (So why does [Thanos](http://media.comicvine.com/uploads/4/43469/934621-thanos_reigns_by_artofneff_super.jpg) look so much like the [Super-Skrull](http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_aKebXIe9evs/TUcJ-JMQ2_I/AAAAAAAAAe4/KSB87wNfVxE/s320/Super-Skrull.png), anyway?) ---
**Author:** ![Lasciel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e79b87/32.png) [@Lasciel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lasciel)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897/7 "2012-05-24T00:45:26Z")
The “court Death” thing did it for me also. I wasn’t totally sure until I checked online afterwards, but I was pretty confident that it was him. I’ve got a weird thing with images and representations of Death, so while I’m not a huge comics geek, I did know of Thanos and his continuing pursuit of Ms. Death. ---
**Author:** ![Apollyon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/apollyon/32/4238_2.png) [@Apollyon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apollyon)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897/8 "2012-05-24T00:55:54Z")
I actually did think “Darkseid” at first. Second thought being: “Wait a minute… he’s a DC character… so who’s the Marvel guy who _looks like_ Darkseid?” 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Foggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foggy/32/1082_2.png) [@Foggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Foggy)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897/9 "2012-05-24T01:33:30Z")
> [@Spoke](#): > > Nah, I guess not. I thought it was the Super-Skrull. > > (So why does [Thanos](http://media.comicvine.com/uploads/4/43469/934621-thanos_reigns_by_artofneff_super.jpg) look so much like the [Super-Skrull](http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_aKebXIe9evs/TUcJ-JMQ2_I/AAAAAAAAAe4/KSB87wNfVxE/s320/Super-Skrull.png), anyway?) This is what I thought. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897/10 "2012-05-24T01:42:20Z")
Of course I did. But I’ve been reading comics since 1973. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897/11 "2012-05-24T02:29:42Z")
I did. But I was once a big fan of the Jim Starlin-era _Warlock_, so there you go. ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897/12 "2012-05-24T02:35:05Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > No idea. Zero. > > Apparently, he’s a big villain in the comics and it’s a big deal that he was behind the stuff in the movie. Honestly, he’s probably the ONE villain Marvel fans are honestly scared of–and the whispered tones of “Thanos” from the comic geeks in the theater bear that out. It’s not just the raw power (though he does have plenty of that). The guy is a complete nihilist. He would just as soon destroy the universe as rule it. Top-tier power + honestly doesn’t give a damn = probably the most formidible character they could have gotten. Compared to this guy, Dr. Doom is Terra-Man. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897/13 "2012-05-24T02:45:52Z")
I was all “Uh-oh! Uh-oh! It’s Thanos!” And the only comic I’ve ever read with Thanos in it was the dreadful _DC vs Marvel_ miniseries. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897/14 "2012-05-24T03:05:52Z")
I recognized him…although it took a moment to register his skin was reddish, not green, since the aliens being Chitauri primed me to expect a Skrull… ---
**Author:** ![Top\_Hat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b487fb/32.png) [@Top\_Hat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Top_Hat)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897/15 "2012-05-24T03:09:15Z")
Being a Marvel Zombie since 1980 when my Mom bought a six year old me a copy of Savage Sword of Conan and got me hooked on comics… I knew who he was from the “court Death” statement and recognized his face when he turned. Thanos… tier 1 power + insane… or rather more than sane if you like. ---
**Author:** ![Top\_Hat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b487fb/32.png) [@Top\_Hat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Top_Hat)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897/16 "2012-05-24T03:24:08Z")
Michael Fassbender would make a pretty good Starfox! ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897/17 "2012-05-24T04:06:14Z")
Okay, not to distract anyone from the polling, but so, what’s this guy gonna do? I presume he was a set-up for a sequel where he’s going to be taking a more direct role in the villainy, right? If he’s all that powerful then why **doesn’t** he just destroy the universe and call it a day? [/annoying yapping from clueless comics non-reader] ---
**Author:** ![Wolverine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ba9def/32.png) [@Wolverine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolverine)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897/18 "2012-05-24T04:51:08Z")
> [@Kimstu](#): > > Okay, not to distract anyone from the polling, but so, what’s this guy gonna do? I presume he was a set-up for a sequel where he’s going to be taking a more direct role in the villainy, right? If he’s all that powerful then why **doesn’t** he just destroy the universe and call it a day? [/annoying yapping from clueless comics non-reader] Thanos doesn’t care about the fate of the universe. It’s fine where it is, but it could also be gone tomorrow. What he cares about is impressing and wooing Death, [a female embodiment in the Marvel Universe](http://marvel.com/universe/Death_(embodiment)). Unfortunately, she is not very clear on what she wants (death to all or a balance). Thanos is very powerful but not omnipotent. By collecting certain gems and assembling them in a special gauntlet, he can become omnipotent and theoretically worthy of Death. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897/19 "2012-05-24T14:02:43Z")
Though I was a big Marvel comics fan from, say, 6th grade through high school, I hadn’t read any Marvel comics in about 30 years before seeing the movie. I didn’t recognize Thanos when I saw the movie, and only vaguely remembered him after I looked him up. ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897/20 "2012-05-24T14:03:19Z")
> [@Wolverine](#): > > Thanos doesn’t care about the fate of the universe. It’s fine where it is, but it could also be gone tomorrow. What he cares about is impressing and wooing Death, [a female embodiment in the Marvel Universe](http://marvel.com/universe/Death_(embodiment)). Unfortunately, she is not very clear on what she wants (death to all or a balance). Thanos is very powerful but not omnipotent. By collecting certain gems and assembling them in a special gauntlet, he can become omnipotent and theoretically worthy of Death. **Wolverine** , that is just one arc that Thanos was involved in. During an earlier storyline, Thanos sought omnipotence via the Cosmic Cube, which the film has renamed the “Tesseract”. I should expect this storyline to be the backbone of _Avengers 2_. I do doubt that there will be another intermediary used. Once you’ve invoked Thanos, you don’t go back. Or, as Leo Durocher once said, “Never save your best pitcher for tomorrow. Tomorrow it might rain.” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-whove-seen-avengers-spoilers/622897.md?page=2)