Here’s How ‘Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ Tied Into ‘Infinity War’
Marvel fans the world over are still reeling from Avengers: Infinity War, but can the TV side keep up? Friday’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. finally confirmed a direct tie-in to the Marvel blockbuster, and may clue us into the MCU’s pre-Avengers 4 plans.
You’re warned of full spoilers for both Infinity War and Friday’s “The One Who Will Save Us All,” but last week’s “weird stuff happening in New York” wasn’t the only allusion Agents planned for The Avengers. This week finally dropped the T-bomb, as the alien “Confederacy” confirmed the Earth was currently under attack by Thanos; the first instance of the name being spoken in Marvel’s TV universe. The exchange occurred after Glenn Talbot flexed his Graviton powers to secure a position in the Confederacy’s leadership, as Craig Parker’s “Taryan of the House Kasius” (yup, that Kasius) warned Talbot they’d never be able to fend off Thanos. We’ve transcribed the moment below:
TARYAN: The way you handled yourself today was quite admirable, though I fear your Earth faces a far more pressing threat than anything posed by our Confederacy.
TALBOT: Is this the attack Qovas warned might be coming?
QOVAS: It shall be the end of your planet.
TALBOT: That’s why Hale had a deal with the Confederacy to fight beside us.
TARYAN: The confederacy never intended to honor this agreement, nor could it even if it so desired. It was merely a deception to extort the resources from your planet before time ran out … which now, it has.
TALBOT: What are you saying?
TARYAN: Thanos and his forces have begun an assault on your world, even as we speak.
TALBOT: Well then I’ve got to get down there with the Avengers and take on this … Thanos?
TARYAN: Thanos’ strength is unrivaled. You will lose, even with your powerful friends fighting alongside you. Though perhaps there might still be a way.
Granted, the events of Avengers: Infinity War tell us conclusively that Adrian Pasdar didn’t enter the fray and start tossing gravitonium around Wakanda, but he did share a potential solution with Coulson. After informing him of Thanos’ attack, Talbot revealed the Earth has deposits of gravitonium beneath the surface that could be used to enhance his powers even further. Again, the movie tells us none of this will come to pass before Thanos does his big disappearing act, but it’s more than likely Talbot’s plan to mine the Earth for gravitonium is what causes its destruction in the first place, thus fulfilling the time loop begun with Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 5’s premiere. Trippy, we know.
But here’s where things get weird. The fact that Thanos’ attack is still taking place as of “The One Who Will Save Us All” may tell us the season’s final two episodes take place over a compressed timeline, thus avoiding the consequences of Thanos’ snap entirely. We also still have no guarantee a sixth season will even get to explain away half the universe’s population being obliterated by the Infinity Gauntlet, but we do know showrunners have talked about a “new playground” the movie theoretically opens.
The insistence on acknowledging Thanos’ attack also seems to confirm the Agents will succeed in breaking the time loop of Earth’s destruction, even if we still have no idea where Ant-Man and The Wasp falls against any of this, or how any subsequent movies will pick up the damage. When a spatula-chinned demigod is walking around rewriting history with a Time Stone, it’s safe to say things are pretty fluid.
We’ll see if the final Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. episodes acknowledge Infinity War any further, so stay tuned.
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