#MCU Avengers are basically cops

[theaudiovore]

really don't like DPxMCU crossovers

except ones where Danny hates the Avengers

[joker-daughter]

So, my friend sent this tiktok (I’m gonna reblog with the link) about Spider-Man, they were pointing out how Peter Parker's way snarkier and less of an innocent "teddy bear" in the comics. And that’s true (but tbh it’s not the only characterization of Comic!Peter atp but I digress) but when we’re talking about MCU Spider-Man we gotta be careful about Peter’s characterization and here’s why:

The movies aren't standalone-ish, like the Raimi or Webb movies could be; they're super tied into the whole MCU universe which totally shapes how Peter acts (no matter how much people want to deny this), albeit this is somewhat of an obvious fact, it needs to be said tho.

Think about Far From Home and No Way Home; they're basically part 1 and 2 of a bigger story happening over just a couple months. And all of it is kicking off after Endgame. Like I said, you can't ignore Peter's time in the Avengers movies; it's all part of his arc and important for understanding Peter's headspace. You have probably heard countless times that he's “written better” in Civil War, IW and Endgame but why’s that? And no, it’s not bc of the damn Russos; it’s because he’s not weighed down by immense trauma/stress yet. He's just locked in, quippy, and giving it his all to help hence why his “true” personality can shine through. But then IW happens, and boom; he's snapped away for five years, comes back to a messed up world, has to fight in this insane battle and Tony dies. No wonder he's not cracking jokes left and right in FFH. The guy's dealing with loss and way too much responsibility for a teenager, and all of these aspects get EVEN worse in NWH, hence why we see a very dark and angry Peter, and almost uncharacteristic side, in the last fight

This is where my theory comes in, and it has a lot to do with those deleted scenes from FFH and NWH. Take the To-Do List sequence from FFH; Peter's using his wit and tech to get his passport faster, selling his toys for cash, bantering with Mr. Delmar. He’s broke, smart and sassy; quite true to the comics basically. Then in NWH, there's that extended interrogation scene where he's snarky with the cops and more crime fighting where he interacts with citizens (also known as the deleted Harry scene lmao). These scenes scream comic-book Peter and are almost reminiscent of HoCo as well which we also know some love to call the more “accurate” movie out of the trilogy, but here's the kicker; these scenes didn't make it into the movies. Some of them are so short, like the interrogation bit, that cutting them for time just doesn’t make much sense to me. Also the To-Do List sequence includes that Iron Spider fight scene in a restaurant (pretty sure he’s taking out a gang there), the DVD version has fewer quips even than the extended version that was shown in theaters, and you can even tell that they edited them out; Peter's moving like he's talking, but there’s no sound. It's almost like this was done on purpose…👀 (I mean, duh…)

So, why cut all this stuff? Sure, runtime's a thing, and yeah, extended cuts are cash grabs, but I think there's more to it. My theory is that the whole trilogy wasn't about showing us the "true" Peter; the smart and therefore borderline arrogant hero we know from the comics. It was SOLELY about putting him through the wringer and showing his struggles. Those deleted scenes? They're like little hints of who Peter really is at his core, but Marvel and Sony held back on putting any emphasis on them so the focus could stay on the bs he’s going through. It also explains why some fans feel so overprotective of him and project this “cuddly” personality onto him; the guy in the tiktok is blaming Raimi’s version, which I also agree with but the MCU trilogy’s chosen narrative has also contributed to this. It's like they're saving the “full, comic-accurate” Peter for later; where he's finally past all this mess and can just be Spider-Man, quips and all. The last part of the NWH’s script also strongly suggests this: “Soars over the Rockefeller Christmas Tree with a newfound sense of freedom. Liberated from having to juggle two lives. Peter Parker is no more, but Spider-Man lives on…”

All of this is also why I think it’s unfair to judge MCU Spider-Man’s personality too much before this next movie comes out; it’s like in real life, you’d rather look at an adult version of a person to judge their character instead of the minor/teenage version of them. Especially when you know that that latter time of their life was filled with chaotic and horrific events that were also character defining for them.

I could be totally off, and I definitely don’t want to give Sony nor Marvel/Disney too much credit. They’re greedy mfers after all. But the way these deleted scenes consistently show a more “classic Peter” and how they're saved for special releases, feels very intentional in hindsight and again, I hate to admit this. Like they know fans eat this stuff up and it’s almost like they were dangling it over everyone’s heads like “we know this is accurate but you’ll have to wait a bit more to see it in its’ full glory :))”

Anyway, that's my take. Could it be a reach? Yes, absolute but one thing is definitely true; the trilogy was all about Peter growing up through insane challenges. And if it was possibly setting the stage for a future where we'll see him as a mature and more comic-accurate Spider-Man will be revealed when the next movie drops. Fingers crossed the writers and Destin respect the ending of NWH and have those deleted scenes at the back of their minds cause they're right there, most of us have seen them and most importantly; we liked what we saw.

[high-five0]

•FIC MASTERLIST•

So this is basically every fic I’ve reblogged so I can access them and see them organized! (Also kind of a fic recommendation post) If there’s any recommendations of what I should read please let me know!

Most of these fics will be platonic!

-Formula One-

•Platonic Grid•

“Martins Grid walk” -taking over the grid walk is not for the faint of heart

“Slow Down, Red Flag” -what the reader does when the racing comes to a stop

“Pure Chaos 2, 3” - amazing multi part smau

“Caffeine of Choice” -a few drivers don’t get your choice of energy

“Golden (Son)” -Prema driver with OP81 as a grid dad

“Early Risers V. Night Owls” -some just don’t understand the morning grumpies

“Line Up” -Pole position equals pissy fans

“Dear Spa” -the Belgium track takes another (read for a good cry)

“Reality” -the cameras not capture everything

“Grill the Kid” “Grill the Grid” -two fics based on the quiz show

“Annoying little brothers” -self explanatory

“Grid Kids”

“Monopoly”

•MV1💙•

“Block Out the Haters” -Max defends his teammate

•CL16❤️•

“Don’t get Squeezed” -Charles little sisters position at the Chinese GP has her worried

•CS55❤️•

“Human Shield”-podium celebrations can get messy very quickly

“You don’t like spicy food?”-trying to play mermaids with chili

•DR3🩶•

“Be your Wingman” -a little crush on a sky sport reporter has someone being a tease

•SV5💚•

“Films of Anger” -Racing incident has too childhood friends explode at eachother (very brocedes core)

“Learning how to Drive” -she can driver at over 200 mph but not on a normal road

•KR7❤️•

“Very Sleepy One Bed” -long races and sharing hotel rooms

“Future world Champ” -a talk with Kimi and Seb about the new driver

“Giddy Goodbyes” -ending the season can be sad but a helmet swap can make it a little better

•LS2🩵•

“Team USA”-Logan supports his girl competing as an Olympic surfer SMAU

“Rookie Reflections” -Logan befriends the new rookie (first f1 fic I’ve ever read)

•OP81🧡•

“Rewatching love” -a group of old Prema drivers watch their old f2 videos

•LH44🖤•

“Driver Headcannons”

•PA17🤍•

“Crash Into Me” -enemies to lovers with the one bed trope what’s not to love?

-Women’s Basketball-

•PB5•

“Courtside”- “what are you doing here? I thought you had to study”

“Teammate Headcannons”

“Sleepyhead”

•KA2•

“Dating Headcannons”

•KM20•

“While we’re young” -the aces play the liberty and 2 lovers are joined together

“I wanna listen to the sound of you breathing” -just 5 more minutes

-FC Barcelona-

•Braça Femeni•

“Head in the Clouds”

“Scrubber” -la Roja debute”

“First” -Scoring your first club goal

“Priorities” -being late to practice opens up a new can of worms

“Numb” -nobody likes a rough game

•ML4•

“Protection” -injury on the field

•JF11•

“Joao with a formula 1 driver”

-Call of Duty-

•Task Force 141•

“Ain’t that a kick in the head” -just some Headcannons of new recruit

“One hell of a first mission” -your first mission goes sideways

“Migraines”

•Ghost•

“Right Behind you” -Ghost wants to keep his distance but can’t (first cod fic I’ve ever read)

“Headcannons”

“A Bedtime Story” -it’s not your fault ghost has a soothing voice

“Like Riding a Bike” -ghost finds out you never learned to ride a bike

“Picture Perfect” -snoring on the plane home

“Rodan”

-Top Gun-

•Dagger Squad•

“Friendship Bracelets”-making brackets for your squad

“Rookie” - not everyone a fan of the new recruit

•Rooster•

“Personal Space” -you like your personal space, a certain aviator likes it too

•Iceman•

“Blood in the Water” -a crash scares everyone

-MCU-

•Deadpool and Wolverine•

“Two pease in a pod”

“Troublemaker” -Wolverine seems to be there for you more times than anyone else

“The Spiderling”

“Oscar Worthy Performance”- the cops cannot be called, so you find one man to vouch for you

•Moonkight•

“Recruitment gone right?” -the avengers sent you to recruit a mercenary

•Daredevil•

“They’re Gonna Taste my Venom”- Venom and his host stumble upon a lawyer

•Spider-Man(s)”

“Art with Hands”- Hobie is the best sign language teacher

-Star Wars-

•The Clone Wars•

•Fives•

“Smugglers” -stealing treats from another commander

“Food Fight”

•104th Battalion•

“Cuddling the 104”

“Mama Wolffe” -Wolffe was grump and unnerving… to most

•Delta Squad•

“Headcannons”

•The Mandolorian•

“Come and Get Me” -Din will always come back for you

-The Last of Us-

“So Far From It”-you get into some trouble but know exactly who to call

“Carved Over the Door” - Joel finally figures out your secret

“The Tunnel” -not a very good get away driver

-Na’vi-

“Angry Spirit” -doing anything for your siblings

•Neteyaem•

“Golden Child” -A battle for the paise of your parents

“And your Brother is Here”

-Random-

•Arcane•

“Stumbled Upon” -Silco stumbled upon one of Vanders Kids

•The Hunger Games•

“Swear” - Finnick helps the new victor

[sciderman]

Hey, sorry to bother you, but I need an advice. A while ago, you said that the MCU made the Avengers cops, which is so right, btw. I want to write a marvel fanfic, but my first introduction to Marvel was the MCU. How can I avoid making them cops?

bless you! okay, it's not fair to say the MCU made the avengers cops. they've been cops for a long time. in the comics they're cops too. i think as soon as you make the avengers an institution that has been assembled and backed by a governmental power then - then they're cops. i think the only way to avoid the avengers being cops is to keep them as individual operators who don't report to a higher authority.

like a boy band. make them a indie boyband. no record label - they're just vigilante buddies that hang out. no strings attached, no salaries. these guys don't make a dime. unless it's a heroes-for-hire sort of a situation. that's cute. but that's basically like being a mercenary. but cuter.

[builder051]

Is Matt basically grown up Peter Parker?

I’m not sure how to answer since I don’t know your background or context.

At the risk of sounding rude, I can clarify that Matt Murdock and Peter Parker are two different people, and they exist tangentially in the MCU official timeline. (The 2012 Avengers battle for New York is canon in the Daredevil tv show, but the earlier seasons came out long before Spider-Man made his Marvel debut in Civil War), but don’t exist in each other’s specific ‘verses/spinoffs. Daredevil is associated with the Defenders, and Peter Parker with the Avengers. I’m very sorry if that came across as preachy or nit picky, but, again, just trying to give a thorough answer.

While there are some similarities in Matt’s and Peter’s backgrounds (broken homes, male non-parent mentors, excelling at school, morally driven to right wrongs (especially in their specific boroughs), I don’t think Peter would grow up to be like Matt.

I can see one possible (and quite canon divergent) manner in which Peter could turn into a dark vigilante type, and that is pure speculation regarding Peter’s status post-No Way Home. After experiencing so much loss in such violent circumstances, he may choose to turn grief and rage into a major force against criminals.

I think that’s unlikely, though. Peter is soft-hearted, and my personal guess for him post-No Way Home is that he’ll hang up the mask for a while. But not forever. As Tony’s “heir,” I think he’ll return as perhaps an angrier neighborhood Spider-Man.

Matt, on the other hand, was raised kind of brusquely with little acknowledgement or care. I think he grew up building walls to suppress trauma, and he was constantly given the example that violence solves problems (be it in the boxing ring or with use of a long stick). As a lawyer, Matt shows extreme motivation to put things right without physical fighting, but there’s only so long one can be satisfied with spending days of editing technicalities on a piece of paperwork and making little to no progress toward the goal of defending the victim and convicting the offender. Though Matt isn’t so much a practicing Catholic, he shows a lot of consideration for good and evil and whether it’s ok to do evil as a power of good. That’s pretty clear when he speaks in confession.

Now, Peter Parker also goes through a stage of uncertainty directly after Ben’s death where he “gets used to,” for lack of a better term, using violence against other people. Peter’s been taught by Ben and May that violent retaliation isn’t a great idea, and he carries that with him through school bullying, etc. until he gets the “great power requires great responsibility” line. Even then, he avoids the cops and generally picks up the little stuff or supernatural stuff that the police aren’t equipped to deal with. Though he often saves the day acting against police advice and/or at a danger to himself, things always seem to smooth out after the dust falls following the final battle.

While Peter treats his patrol as an after-school activity, Matt seems to treat his vigilantism as a calling of sorts. He was much older than Peter when he started doing his Daredevil antics, and he went in knowing the gravity of his actions, the depth of his powers, and that what he did would have grave consequences. Even though he also avoids law enforcement, Matt’s knowledge of the legal system gives insight into what stuff the cops might bite on and what they may cover up. He’s rarely concerned about getting caught or getting in trouble. Matt’s ability to compartmentalize, likely strengthened due to childhood trauma, allows him to largely separate Daredevil mode from social and lawyer modes.

Obviously, as Peter Parker ages, his feelings, emotions, and outlook on life will change dramatically. Depending on your preferred canon or headcanon, anything can happen. I do think, MCU-wise, Peter will forever feel that connection to Tony (and Ben and May, for that matter) and continue doing what he does because it’s important to him. (And, if you prefer the Spiderverse backstory, Peter might grow up to be a divorced bachelor with a thing for pizza.) :)

I say again, this is my opinion from my information and perspective, and it’s not meant to shut down ideas or prove any points.

I appreciate the interest and stimulating conversation. It makes me think. My brain likes that.

[musclesandhammering]

Unpopular Phase 4 & 5 Opinions

Quantumania is the worst Phase 4/5 movie. And it wasn’t even because “kang got beat by ants.” (I liked kang in this movie). It’s just that the Spy Kids aesthetic & bad acting & overall weird vibes just weren’t for me.

Love and Thunder is no worse than Ragnarok. I would argue that it’s better in a lot of ways, actually. I really liked it.

Taika Waititi ruined thor with bad humour all the way back in Ragnarok tbh, but y’all weren’t complaining about it then 😒.

BuckySarah is better than sambucky every day of the week.

The Marvels was a good ass movie & they’re one of my favorite teams in the mcu. I’ll never forgive cbm sites & online dudebros for killing the hype from the moment the film was announced.

I adore America Chavez & Kamala Kahn and I want to see them in everything. They must be protected at all costs.

Multiverse of Madness had shitty characterisation & basically just copy-pasted the ‘grief made me go off the deep end & hurt people, then I realised and stopped myself’ storyline from Wandavision… but Wanda was extremely selfish & apathetic to other people’s suffering from the time she was introduced in the mcu. MoM didn’t make her like that.

Wanda should’ve been looking for Vision (her actual real life boyfriend whom she spent years with irl) in MoM instead of the kids that weren’t even real that she spent like a week using as characters in her sitcom.

Making everyone forget Peter Parker wasn’t profound or poetic in any way- it was just frustrating and needlessly cruel.

I’m begging marvel to understand that heroes don’t have to be in constant suffering to be heroic & villains don’t have to sacrifice themselves to achieve redemption. Let characters heal and atone, you absolute weirdos.

What If…? is the most boring show ever. I’d rather watch Secret Invasion or She-Hulk.

Season 2 of Loki is, in a cinematic & artistic sense, the best marvel project period.

Loki season 1 was meh- more of a fun au than anything because his characterisation kinda sucked. Season 2 fixed it, though, and made it way easier for me to incorporate this version of Loki back into the larger mcu.

Having Steve stay in the past with Peggy was stupid af.

I don’t hate Peggy (or Captain Carter), though. I actually think she’s pretty cool.

I don’t really love Steve. He’s arrogant & they never really let him have flaws & something about him being a perfect metaphor for the American military industrial complex (and marvel painting that as a good thing) doesn’t sit right with me.

The Illuminati got done dirty and the only reason they went down so fast was because Wanda had all that plot armor.

I thought the retcon of having Wanda be “destined” to become the Scarlet Witch since birth was an annoying cop-out. Her powers originating from being experimented on with an infinity stone was way more interesting.

Loki & Wanda have almost the exact same powers.

Nebula deserved a bigger rule in killing Thanos & everything else moving forward.

I love Kathryn Newton but her acting as Cassie Lang was the worst acting I’ve ever seen in the mcu, like it was outrageously bad.

I’m glad Sam is the new Captain America and not Bucky.

The fact that Bucky probably isn’t gonna be one of Thee lead characters in the upcoming avengers movies feels sick and twisted.

Secret Invasion was actually passable until the G’iah scene at the end. That ruined it. And Nick Fury deserved way better for his solo series.

Kang is so much more interesting than Doctor Doom. I really hope they just recast him.

Carol Danvers does NOT deserve the hate she gets.

I actually disliked Carol until The Marvels. That movie made me a stan.

The way people treat Monica as Wanda’s little inferior pet creation or smth & then brag about it is uhh very sus.

I don’t like sylvie (bc she’s an amalgamation of 3 different comic characters- which killed any hopes of them appearing individually in the mcu, the creators used her existence to butcher Loki’s genderfluid rep, & she was written poorly) & I HATE sylki (bc it’s weird & unnecessary).

Marvel isn’t dead. I actually love where they’re taking things. But that’s just me.

[velvetvexations]

I saw a post recently deriding the take that superheroes are inherently fascist, but I think it's complicated.

They DID all come from that seed of vigilante bullshit where they all practically worshipped the cops (except early Superman who didn't spit on them but neither was he especially respectful) and warred against vague Crime as a concept, often represented by "the Underworld" conceptualized in a way that's very familiar to anyone whose seen people rant about antifa.

However, they started to inch away from that in the Bronze Age. It was a very, very gradual process, with some regressions like how post-Crisis Batman swung hard into Gotham being a nightmare of New York at it's worst in the 80s (although that came with plenty of criticism of the cops and elite), but by the time of the MCU it's notable that none of the Avengers fought crime. We could get into how it used a modified version of the Ultimates-set up (which was explicitly designed to be a little fucked, which is something I love about the first two Ultimates minis and especially the second) and that version of Hawkeye and Black Widow who are basically heroic CIA ("wOrLd SeCuRiTy CoUnCiL") assassins played totally straight that then shifts to being a billionaire's world shaping pet project, but at least in terms of vigilantism it takes until Spider-Man for someone to be like, going out at night to stop muggings like a "classic" superhero and I think his age does a lot to dial down the eyebrow you can raise at the fact that he's going up against a gang of ordinary criminals doing ordinary criminal things (just, you know, with scavenged alien tech).

Then we get Daredevil, which takes pains to portray the Kingpin as a very rich man gentrifying neighborhoods and terrorizing the underprivileged. Then season two introduces the Punisher, who I really thought would have already been absolved if you just limit his crusade to the specific mafiosos who killed his family, but despite killing a bunch of mafiosos anyway it still turns out to have been at the behest of a rogue element of the US military - I guess because they just needed a twist. It's hard to stretch out a Punisher story for too long for obvious reasons. Then in season one of the Punisher it's a PMC (including yet more rogue US military).

I didn't watch season two of the Punisher because I'd heard it was going to adapt The Slavers and got really excited, but then it turned out to not adapt The Slavers and I lost all interest. But that makes sense and fits into my thesis here, because even aside from how soul-crushingly bleak The Slavers was, THERE IS NO FUCKING WAY Netflix or Disney or ANYONE would EVER do the window scene, or at least not without changing it to a guy and that really feels like it'd drain the scene of half it's impact. But here we again see concern for optics.

Luke Cage was interesting because by starring an underprivileged Black man on the run for crimes he didn't commit, he was able to fight criminals without it being weird, and what's more they were Black criminals, reinforcing Black people are perfectly capable of being both villains and heroes in a narrative without white people one way or another. This was crucial, since racism is another common element of the problematic soup of traditional superhero narratives.

But while I haven't really been paying attention to cape stuff at all lately, other than that I don't really think there's been a lot that wasn't total sci-fi fantasy bullshit, including the following two Spider-Man movies.

Except, I guess, The Batman (2022). But that movie fucking RULED so it's fine.

[jarita123]

I do want Tom to go and do other things than Marvel. He is so talented it would be a shame if he didn´t. I am incredibly excited for The Life of Chuck and we definitely need more of The Night Manager.

But at the same time, I want to see him more as *this* Loki. He got an awesome new clothes, absolutely fantastic new powers, and we barely saw him use both. And he could still have so many stories to tell. Only looking back into comics which offfers possibilites for the God of Stories himself.

And also, Kevin Feige *must* know that Tom is one his biggest assets right now and probably rains money on Tom. Yes, the new Deadpool trailer is hyping again but I saw more excitement about TVA appearing, or Hugh returning as Wovlerine than Deadpool himself. It is a big unknown and could backfire. Or could be a hit. But the truth is that there are only a few core characters carrying the MCU now, and Loki is one of them.

I would like to see Tom back for Secret Wars (where he will be 99%), but also finally reunite with Chris. If he appeared in Thor 5, I would not mind at all.

And most of all, him and Owen are gold. Their chemistry even on stage, watching the two of them interacting and talking, was absolutely stunning. They obviously share a lots of creative ideas, have similar hobbies and I think given Owen´s invention and Tom´s way of thinking everything through, created a unique duo. I could imagine them doing a projct outside of Marvel, if I am perfectly honest. And I would not mind watching another season of the two of them doing the time cop budies schtick.

And I loved the finale, I loved how the arc wrapped but the more time goes by, the more I think possible S3 could work. Maybe use those thousand years Loki was going back to learn physics. I am sure he was not just doing that...or maybe just give them more time in the Avengers movie.

But mostly, him and Mobius should just reunite. I am not a shipper or don´t really care about romance, and if Loki would end up NOT kissing anybody, I could care less. But it would be shameful not to use them in the future. If they are smart at Marvel, they must see it.

And lastly....I am NOT dissing Sophia di Martino here. To see all three of them on stage was a delight and she obviously loves what she is doing. But the Loki/Sylvie thing really did not work for me. I don´t care about selfcest or whatever people came up with. This thing does not even exist in real life as it is a fantasy concept. We have seen a movie where the character had a child with his former female self and the child was...him. So really, it is a sci-fi and everything is possible. I just think the sort of sibling or friends chemistry worked much better. And...to be honest, I am not sure I need to see her in the future MCU by just herself. Sylvie for me personally is not that interesting because in season 1, she was basically a plot point and a love interest, where Waldron threw something on the wall like: "Hey, have Loki to fall in love with himself and we can figure out her personality later!", dropped her on us midway through and asked us to care for her.

Obviously clueless what to do with her, because Waldron left without leaving any notes what he was going to do with her - if anything except the "fall in love with himself" thing, they decided to write her as anti-Mobius. So she has no real agenda, wants to be left alone then changes her mind, then gets in the way and then hangs around the TVA "to help" only to just...being there, doing nothing, just stating the obvious. And at the end, she was the only one happy because she finally got what she wanted all along. So I am honestly not even sure what more her character has to offer - but I will be gladly surprised. I just think she is, at this point, the least interesting from all the Loki characters, and I count even OB and Casey to that equation. But again, I will be happy if they surprise me and will make her a character that is more than just angry and vengeful and lectures people around about what she thinks is right and wrong. Please, surprise me, Marvel, here, as well.

I think B-15 and Ravonna were in S2 served far better, however they were not as present as Sylvie but B-15 had a beautiful arc and Ravonna was an awesome antagonist whose intentions were obvious - however she found a cruel way how to reach them (kudos to Gugu).

So I would not mind seeing them ALL back for more, I loved them as a bunch, the whole group and the way they all were together from episode 4 on was great.

But really, we just *need* Loki and Mobius together once more, even if they at least should say a proper goodbye to each other because they did not have the chance.

[clovexei]

I thought I was over Marvel, but I read The Reign of the MCU (by Joanna Robinson, Dave Gonzales, and Gavin Edwards) and getting annoyed all over again.

Iron Man was the first planned Marvel movie because an Iron Man toy was apparently the one focus-group kids were most excited to play with. I guess that's fine, but then the reason there weren't any mainline female superhero movies for SO LONG was ENTIRELY because the Marvel CEO/Lead of the Creative Committee didn't think anyone would play with female superhero toys.

The Russo brothers signed on for a third Captain America movie that would have wrapped up a planned Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes trilogy, but it was thrown off the table to make room for Civil War.

For deciding who survived the snap, the writers wrote all the characters' names on cards and each card had "either one dollar sign or up to five dollar signs" to indicate how much the actors were paid as well as the actors' contracting status with Marvel.

After Infinity War, the writers had written themselves into a corner by making Thanos so powerful and they were struggling to figure out how the heroes could beat him. "They briefly considered giving the Avengers a time machine before rejecting that idea as a cheap cop out" BUT THEN THEY WENT AND DID THAT ANYWAY.

The deletion/erasure/exclusion of queer characters (and even queer flags in the background) was absolutely about keeping Marvel movies in theaters in China. There was pushback on this from Marvel movie directors and employees, including an entire VFX team who refused to edit out queer content. (The editing was just outsourced to another VFX team, but at least they tried.)

Some less aggravating tidbits:

Paul Rudd helped rewrite the initial Ant-Man script, and he gave Evangeline Lilly more hand-to-hand combat scenes and a more complex relationship with her on-screen dad. Lilly had been on the verge of walking away from the film, but she read the rewritten script and signed on.

Black Widow's role in Winter Solider was originally filled by Black Widow and Hawkeye, but Jeremy Renner was off filming something else, so Hawkeye's lines got absorbed by Black Widow.

The Russo brothers wanted to use as many practical effects as possible for Winter Soldier so it has some of the least CG of any of the Marvel movies.

Tom Holland was so bad at NOT leaking upcoming movie secrets that Benedict Cumberbatch was assigned as his interview partner, basically to babysit him so he wouldn't reveal any spoilers.

[besttropeveershowdown]

The Best Trope Ever Showdown: Round 1, Side A

You Did Everything You Could

Propaganda:

it's iconic. we've all heard it before and it can still bring the angst! simple, yet effective.

The Team

Propaganda:

when there's an actual team that actually knows each other and works well and has difft strengths (see: not the MCU avengers) it's magic!!

[theconstitutionisgayculture]

Superheroes question

People say that Bruce Wayne and Tony Stark should use their money better.

But why no one asked the spacefaring aliens or the other advanced civilizations such as Wakanda and Atlantis to help humanity?

I mean for Batman he need to stop joker from blowing up a kid hospital every Tuesday and Tony basically the avengers and shield sugar daddy 80% of the time.

Thoughts?

You're right. People are very quick to blame certain characters for not being "better", but make constant excuses for others. And people who make this kind of commentary don't understand the characters they're talking about, real world economics, or basic storytelling.

It's been talked to death before, but Bruce Wayne absolutely uses his money to fund multiple charities and provides jobs for disenfranchised Gothamites, including criminals he's stopped as Batman. Tony Stark I don't follow as much, but even just in the MCU he basically bankroles the Avengers and created a clean, renewable energy source with the intention of sharing it with the world. But nobody wants to hear that, because it's "not enough". Because to them, all rich people should have all their wealth confiscated and then put directly into their bank accounts used to fix everyone's problems.

And this is where the economic illiteracy comes from, because that's just impossible. Even if the governments of the world would use that money purely for good instead of just embezzling it or using it for their own gain, all that would accomplish is temporarily alleviating a few societal ills. One that money is gone, there's no more money to confiscate from the super rich, because most of the money that rich people have is tied up in their businesses and investments. Once that money goes, so do those businesses (and the jobs they provide) and whatever industries or initiatives were being propped up by those investments. It's a childish power fantasy that if the right people were punished then all the problems of the world would just disappear. Which is ironic, considering point number three.

These people have zero idea how fictional stories work. Especially serial fiction. Stories need drama. Stories need conflict. Stories need characters who react to events in character to drive the plot along. If Bruce Wayne used his money to end all crime and poverty in Gotham, then there would be no more Batman stories to tell. Batman can't exist without Gotham being what it is. Because Batman isn't a 500k slowburn coffee shop slice of life story. It's a superhero story. Specifically, it's a superhero story about a traumatized boy who vowed to clean up the massively corrupt, crime ridden city that killed his parents. He knows his mission is futile. He knows he'll never succeed. But he still tries. He struggles against impossible odds that he will never beat, and we root for him and we keep reading about his struggles because it inspires us to face our own impossible problems. Or at least gives us an escapist fantasy where we can live vicariously through someone who can take on the impossible and triumph. Because even though his overall mission is impossible, he still racks up wins along the way. He saves lives that wouldn't otherwise be saved. He stops evil criminals and corrupt politicians and bad cops. He forms a family from people just as broken as he is. He struggles to live up to his own moral code and to balance his life's work with his interpersonal relationships. That's what makes Bruce Wayne interesting to read about. Having him write a check and cure all the worlds problems isn't just boring or unrealistic, it's lazy. No one can relate to that because there's no allegory to anything we experience in our own lives. It's an unearned victory. And in storytelling, unearned victories are flat and unsatisfying.

[springonmytraptillicomeback]

okay apologies for the sudden rant I tried to put this all in the tags but it just. Wouldn’t let me.

okay I completely jinxed myself saying i wasn't into the MCU. new hyperfixation should've seen that coming. I was also disappointed with the way they took the movies, mostly a nostalgia thing for the first time I had an MCU hyperfixation (when I was like 10 maybe??) and I loved the "domestic avengers" stuff— it gave me the same joy that Slenderman's mansion did. but I was like whatever, movies aren't gonna always cater towards fan service(?) and that's okay. I think it's important to let the writers play it out as they intended. and then Tony died and like. woah that was sorta bold. iron man one of the most popular marvel characters. but whatever they have a plan. then......: 

shudders 

no way home 

oh my god, what a dumpster fire of a movie. relying on the most complicated miscommunication plot and endless nostalgia bait. and then

destroying basically all character dynamics, arcs, and development relating to Peter. like what the fuck are we supposed to care about now. that was not only a dumb idea marvel wise but just generally movie wise??

there's nothing regarding peter we care about anymore. how are you supposed to come back from that without some probably stupid cop-out

there’s nothing wrong with wanting to push out a new era of marvel. they just did it far too quickly. there is a SINGLE spiderman movie between endgame and no way home. a SINGLE movie we get to explore Peter’s grief and new dynamic. and then his identity gets revealed. and then may dies. and then everyone forgets about him cause why not!!!!! its just so frustrating but whatever. This is far too long and I’m so sorry to put this in ur notes lmao

I feel weird because there’s so much happening in the MCU rn and the avengers aren’t there anymore. Like what do you mean there’s no more Steve Rogers ? Where’s Natasha ? What’s gonna happen to Clint ? and Bruce ? And Thor who’s gonna be so alone ?

I can’t believe Reed Richards is never gonna meet Tony Stark because he’s dead.

They’re dead and nothing happened.

Like we had two avengers movies before civil war, before they just broke up and everything started falling apart.

Two movies, it’s nothing.

We saw them as friends, as a family, as a team for one movie. A single movie.

It’s not enough. It was nothing. So much potential and they’re just gone.

Don’t get me wrong, I love marvel movies, still do. I love our Captain America, I love Yelena and I think she’s going to be an amazing black widow and ofc I love Riri Williams and I loved her for years but I miss my avengers, I miss how different and fun and sad they were. I miss my team and I wish we had more of them.

I’ll stick to fanfiction and reread comics ofc but it’ll never be the same.

I wish they did more. I wish they were the found family we needed and I’m forever disappointed that they weren’t.

It ended too fast.

I’m watching the Thunderbolts trailer and the tower is empty. There’s no one there anymore as if they were never there before.

It breaks my heart it truly does.

I miss them, they deserved to be a family more than anything ❤️

[britesparc]

Weekend Top Ten #661

Top Ten MCU Movies 2024

To celebrate the finale of Agatha All Along on Halloween, I was always going to do something MCU-related this week. In fact, I was going to look at everything they’d made – every movie, special, show, or short – and rank them all in a decisive MCU Master List. But then I realised I haven’t actually just done a list of movies since 2018. Six years ago! Before the big Avengers double-whammy and the (temporary) most successful movie of all time! A lot has happened since then.

So, for the next two weeks, we’re going to take a trip down Marvel memory lane, as I revisit an older list and rank my current favourite MCU films; before making a new list that ranks my favourite MCU TV shows (which will include one-off specials like Werewolf By Night). And then at some point next year I’ll return once again – inevitably – to the topic to whack it all in a blender and do, as promised, a ranking of Marvel Everything.

So, with no further ado, a simple challenge: from 2008’s Iron Man up until 2024’s Deadpool & Wolverine, Marvel Studios have released 34 films. And here are my ten favourites. Er, eleven favourites. It’ll make sense soon.

Iron Man 3 (2013): MCU films tend to either be vast and epic or small and personal; this is definitely the latter. The best-written MCU movie, with a great cod-film-noir narration from Downey, it manages to be a meditation of trauma and Tony’s personal struggles, a mystery, a buddy cop film, and action movie, and a comedy. Great moments, great action, the best twist in the franchise, and created the best “who is that?” moment in Avengers: Endgame. I love it, and if you don’t, you’re a div.

Captain America: Civil War (2016): the Cap movies are the best, overall, that Marvel has produced. And this one is not only a personal Steve story, it’s also basically an Avengers movie too. The action is great, it’s well-written, it’s got thorny issues to deal with, all that jazz; but what I love most is how economical it is, how much character is conveyed though action, how it uses its iconic heroes to make big, swinging points. Contains my favourite scene in the entire MCU.

Avengers: Infinity War (2018) / Avengers: Endgame (2019): yes, I’m cheating, I’m sticking them both here. And, of course, these are the ultimate examples of Marvel as epic. But they’re the ultimate examples of Marvel as epic. To build a decade’s worth of films towards this point, draw in multiple characters and pay off arcs and tie up plot threads… to not only stick the landing, but also deliver just a drop-down incredible piece of action cinema… I mean, Jesus Christ. I still can’t believe they did it. Also has my second-favourite scene in the MCU.

Captain America: The First Avenger (2011): yep, I love the Cap films. This is a really great, relatively simple origin story; it leans into the derring-do, almost Indiana Jones-style wartime antics. It does what it set out to do almost perfectly; but then – but then! – we add in all this phenomenal nuance and heartfelt, earnest characterisation. The flag scene! The “good man” scene! The bit about dancing! Steve Rogers is just a wholeheartedly great bloke, and this film is full of tear-dropping examples. I could watch it all day.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014): everyone else probably ranks this the highest of the three. Yeah, it’s excellent; its pseudo-seventies conspiracy thriller vibes are brill, making a big difference from Marvel’s usual action-y MO. The twisty plot and, well, huge plot twist is terrific; it gives great moments for many characters, and on top of all that delivers some of the best, crunchiest, street-level action in the MCU. Who else repeatedly watches the lift scene on YouTube?

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023): the Guardians films have always been really good but, for me, just outside the top ten (er, apart from in the very first MCU list I did). Vol 3 changed things, giving us an incredibly deep, rich, beautifully layered character study. By now we’ve fallen in love with these oddballs, their comic shenanigans making us warm to them immensely. Putting them through the ringer the way this film does really amplifies our feelings. And there are so many terrific character beats or set-pieces; and it has a great ending.

Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021): you could strongly argue that it’s the nostalgia talking (I almost teared up when Matt Murdock appeared) but the film also manages to be a feature-length articulation of the argument Peter espouses during Civil War; essentially, that if you can help, you have to help. The use of classic villains and heroes reinforces not only “our” Peter’s strength, but also the strength of all Spider-Men, and their relationship to loss and sacrifice. It’s great!

The Avengers (2012): in a way it feels like the film that started it all; did anyone predict it could go so big? Whedon – whatever his other faults – marshals his cast superbly, giving them all characterful moments and nice bits of action and comedy. It’s really funny, it has some tremendous action scenes, it has a really tragic character death, and it has “mewling quim”. They nailed it.

Thor: Ragnarok (2017): I had a big discussion with myself over this. Because I’m one of the three people who really loved Thor: Love and Thunder, and part of me was tempted to place it about Ragnarok. But I’ve only seen L&T once, so I’ve reverted to the mean and picked this: a barnstorming, bonkers comedy that leans into great, extravagant bits of comic lore. It’s silly in a way that makes sense, and probably hangs together better than its sequel, even if it doesn’t approach its emotional heights.

The Marvels (2023) : is it recency bias that puts this one so high? I’m not sure, but by cripes I adored it. A slimline, propulsive, good-natured and very funny action movie, with three characters just bouncing off each other in dramatic fashion. Has the best needle drop in the MCU. It feels a bit like it’s been chopped up in post, but generally speaking it’s a delight.

I’m sure there’s some minor controversy in here, especially if you’re one of the fools who hates Marvels and Iron Man 3. The first half of the list almost wrote itself, but really I could have swapped the last handful of films for anything in the next group of five – Black Panther, Ant-Man, Deadpool. What I’m saying is, Marvel have actually made a lot of good films.

[reallyunluckyrunaway]

I thought I'm the only one who hate TFATWS. Show's a dumpster fire. I wish it never existed in the first place. Never mind,the show's not even canon no matter how much they try to force it to be. Movie MCU looks like it's trying to stay away from TV MCU as much as possible. I'm not the only who think this way. People on Reddit think this will be the case as well. Like it's not obvious that the TV shows are just mindless cash grabs courtesy of Disney milking an already succesful franchise dry. Avengers : Endgame being the 2nd highest grossing films of all time wasn't enough for them. That's what greediness gets you. I was strongly against it when they announced that we're getting MCU TV shows. Just leave the ending as it is. No need to milk it. Wandavision is the only MCU TV show made by the same group of people who worked on movie MCU and they still even refused to acknowledge the show in movie MCU. The characters from the show who appears in the movie were shown as if they're introduced in the movies and not in the show because they know that not everyone has the time to watch everything they churn out. Too much to keep up with and we have better things to do with our time. That's basically the pattern for every TV MCU shows. Made a show,make a movie because of it but will barely acknowledge the show,if ever at all so that people don't have to feel like they have to watch the shows on top of the many movies MCU is churning out already. TFATWS felt like a show unrelated to the MCU to me and the characters were inconsistent. They don't feel like the characters I know from TV MCU. That's what happens when you have two different groups of people who are supposed to be writing the same story and characters,there'll be inconsistencies. Also,they gave such a huge,complex and badass introduction and background story of Bucky only to make him play second fiddle to Sam. They did him so dirty in the MCU and he'll have bit parts too in Thunderbolts. If they wanted to make a Falcon show,why not just make a Falcon show then? Don't use Bucky as prop to uplift Sam. He can do that on his own. I wish they would just retire Bucky's character after Endgame if they're just going to keep doing him dirty like this. Many people don't consider the show canon (cause it's not) or consider it not related to movie MCU at all and won't be acknowledge in movie MCU at all. So don't worry,anything that happens in that non canon show didn't happen in the movie MCU which is the actual and only canon here. Thus none of it (TFATWS "plot") won't be acknowledged in movie MCU,cause you know,it didn't happen in the actual canon.

I agree and differ with some of this. I liked the first couple of episodes for what they were, but a lot of the marvel shows tend to become incredibly disorganized and underwhelming towards the third and second acts.

US Agent had the potential to be an interesting antagonist, but they neutered him before he even had the chance to shine as an actual villain. And it came across as a cop out... And for whatever reason, they had him play second fiddle to not only the gang leader character— but also (arguably) the most laughably “meh” twist “villain/antihero” ever… (ahem, Sharon Carter.)

It felt... rushed. The resolution was off, and you're right in saying that Bucky's storylines were almost completely sidelined, his past as an assassin, his transition into: The White Wolf, even his confession to the father of the son he killed. They had a couple of decent scenes too, and I enjoyed Zemo’s unhinged return, to an extent. But the decent scenes were overshadowed by the mediocrity and derisiveness of the rest of the show, and its haphazard pacing.

I do agree that Disney's decision to make the shows obligatory watching to understand the movies, was an incredibly stupid choice. It basically makes it so that you have to buy a subscription to Disney+ just to understand the gaps in-between films, and at some point, people just don't think it's worth it anymore... Especially when each and every show is cranked out, back to back. I don't think the idea of having TV shows along with the movies, is inherently bad… but they should have had them serve as extra content for hardcore Marvel fans to check out if they felt like it, (ie. Agents Of Shield). Rather than mandatory viewing for people who like the MCU. Then maybe they could put more time and focus on creating a good product, rather than pushing them out factory style.

And PS. If I'm being totally honest, I think Wandavision kind of fell apart towards the end too. I think Monica's hero-turn was sudden, and Agatha's “I did ALL of it” was kind of clumsy… maybe it would have worked better for me if she was just a slimy, power hungry person who saw an opportunity to exploit (and therefore later blame) a normally strong minded hero, trapped in a particularly vulnerable mental state. I would have liked to see her conniving and a natural approach with subtle hints throughout set her up as the ultimate big bad, before the reveal actually happened.

[musclesandhammering]

I don’t have much to add to this because you basically said every single thing I’ve been trying to articulate about Infinity War for the past 6 years.

But yeah Cap thoughtlessly trading (or at the very least gambling) tons of innocent people’s lives just to save one or two of his friends’ lives is legitimately an established character trait for him now.

In The First Avenger, he led a team of non-serumed-up soldiers back into Red Skull’s labs to save Bucky (there was a whole unit there but let’s be real, he was there for Bucky), in Age of Ultron he risked Ultron murdering his team and every other human on the planet just to take a chance on then-homicidal-nazis Wanda & Pietro (because he saw himself in them volunteering for superhero experiments), in Civil War he wanted to risk the safety of every civilian in the world just so his friend Wanda didn’t have to be held accountable for murder, in that same movie he once again risked the safety of the general public just to protect his best friend (who, as far as cap knew at the time, had just bombed the UN), and in Infinity War he risked all of Wakanda plus 50% of the universe for Vision. It’s pretty much the one thing he can be counted on to do (that and give dramatic self righteous speeches).

And I’m sure some people would say that level of personal loyalty makes him a great friend, and sure it does! But it also makes him a shitty person. They’d probably also say it makes him relatable because most of us would couldn’t sacrifice our loved ones in those situations either, and to that I say you’re right! That’s why we should never be superheroes.

It’s the same as when people respond to cops shooting folks with “well can you imagine how much pressure they’re under? How much anxiety they must have in those scenarios? I’d probably be trigger happy too!” Yes…. that’s why you shouldn’t be a cop. You do not choose a job that has extremely high emotional/moral requirements with life or death stakes if you aren’t absolutely sure you can meet those requirements. If cap knew he’d let everyone else burn to save his own loved ones, he should’ve hung up the shield right then and there. But he didn’t. Because why should he? He makes the calls. And if he wants to gamble lives all day long, he can do it and no one’s gonna stop him. And that’s ultimately why he was so offended by the Accords.

Also, I would have lots of sympathy for Wanda’s decision in Infinity War- despite it being selfish- if it weren’t for the fact that every single other decision she’s made in her entire mcu run has also been selfish.

She volunteered to be experimented on by nazis in hopes that she’d get superpowers to murder Tony Stark with. She mind raped all the avengers when most of them hadn’t done anything to her, just to further the plan her genocidal ally concocted. She set the Hulk loose on a city full of innocent people just to further that same plan. She only abandoned Ultron & came to the good side when she realised he wanted to kill all humans, including her. She accidentally murdered people in Lagos just because she’d chosen to run around playing hero when she couldn’t even fully control her powers and then she refused to sign the accords, attacked her boyfriend, and tried to kill her teammates just so she wouldn’t be held accountable for said incident. Then she refused to kill her boyfriend to save wakandan lives and trillions of others. Then she held a city hostage to live in a suburban family fantasy and refused accountability get again when she finally relented and let them go. She read the Darkhold even though she knew it would corrupt her because she wanted power to kidnap children from her variants instead of just grieving like trillions of other mothers who’ve lost kids. She even tried to murder a child in order to further this plan. And then when she finally gave up and destroyed the Darkhold, it wasn’t because she saw the error of her ways or felt bad about hurting someone… it was because her kids rejected her.

This woman has never had a generous bone in her body, and maybe I’d be inclined to stan her as a villain if the narrative didn’t constantly insist she’s a hero.

Infinity War and how it made Sunflowerchester write meta no one asked for but she did anyway…

Hey gang! 

I rarely write meta anymore but I got so riled up after Infinity War that I rambled on and on in a Google doc after my 2nd viewing. So here, I thought I’d share it with my dash bc some have said they’re curious. sorry

I have 3 major issues with Infinity War, but lots of articles are touching on two of them, so I decided to cover the one left. I admit, this is honestly my biggest problem with the movie and it has to do with Captain America, so if you are a Cap fan and don’t like constructive, text-based criticism about him, you should probably not read this. I swear there is no hate present. I’m not trying to be a dick about anything but I’m sure to many, it’ll seem that way. 

Below are about 4 straight pages about why “We don’t trade lives” is a sham and why/how it causes all kinds of problems for a multitude of reasons in Infinity War. Cut for spoilers! 

Keep reading

[heliads]

Hi it is the previous anon from tasm Peter Parker’s avengers reader! I came up with a plot if u are still interested !!! How about tasm Peter Parker x tony stark’s daughter reader! Since they are a lot of mcu Peter Parker x stark reader!!! Thank u so much for this!!!! (Also I read the Thor and Loki’s sister one and it was amazing !!!) love u lots!!! 💚💚💚❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥

thank you so much for rewriting the ask, i really appreciate it!

masterlist

Peter Parker is staring up at a news broadcast. It’s displaying grainy, surveillance camera-type footage of a girl about Peter’s age. She’s clad in some style of metal armor plates, complete with a holographic visor display blocking her face from recognition.

Usually, Peter would pay no attention to this. She’s yet another one of a long line of superhero hopefuls, who usually don’t do much for Peter except get the cops to investigate them instead of him, which he always appreciates.

However, this girl, which the press have affectionately (or perhaps suspiciously) nicknamed Mecha, is different. For one thing, he’s seen her. There was an incident last night when they both ran into each other on the rooftops, both trying to stop the same robbery. She’d gotten hit by a rogue blast from one of the thieves’ energy weapons, and a chunk of her armor had come off.

It’s sitting at the bottom of Peter’s backpack right now, nestled in a hoodie he hasn’t worn in years. Peter’s tried to study it, but all he’s been able to make out is that it’s comprised of intricate metalwork and complicated wiring, far more advanced than anyone with a home lab should be able to make.

Peter has brought it to school in the hopes of being able to analyze it, either to identify the owner or to figure out how it works. Mecha’s suit was fantastically built, and Peter would love to see it up close. It’s a shame that the best shot he’s got at that is the piece that broke off last night.

So, he’s staying after school today to go poke around in some of the Midtown science and engineering labs. Hopefully, he’ll find something worth noticing, or at least he can pretend he did so he feels better about himself.

The bell rings, and Peter speedwalks out of class and towards the labs. The teacher sponsor nods at him as he enters, pointing towards a door leading to the next room.

“You can get a lab introduction from Y/N Stark, she’s in there. She can tell you all the rules.”

The teacher shoots him a suspicious glance as Peter walks by, like she’s mentally deciding whether or not Peter seems the sort to actually follow these rules.

Peter opens the door cautiously, closing it behind him as he goes. There’s another student at the far end of the room, bent over an array of gears and wires, although she straightens up when she sees Peter enter.

Peter recognizes her face from a number of telecasts, several overexcited publications, and most importantly, the halls of Midtown High. This is Y/N Stark, daughter of Tony Stark, and yet another one of the resident geniuses here at Peter’s school.

She looks rather surprised to see Peter here. “This is supposed to be a solo lab slot. I think some of the other rooms are open if you want to work, though..”

Peter scratches the back of his neck awkwardly. “Uh, I know. The teacher outside said I should go talk to you about the rules I need to learn.”

Y/N’s face clears. “Ah. That’s Ms. Brady, she pretends to be strict but I think she’s zoned out half the time, so you can basically do whatever. All you really need to know is that everyone typically books their lab spaces a couple weeks in advance to make sure they get the best rooms to themselves. Things get brutal around the time science fair starts. Oh, and if you break anything, you pay for it, but I assume that’s obvious. Basically, don’t do anything that might get the school sued for negligence.”

Peter flashes her a thumbs up. “Sounds good. Do you know what equipment we can use?”

Y/N nods, gesturing at the table behind her. “Just about everything in sight.”

Peter follows her movement with his eyes until he’s staring at the workspace still in use next to Y/N. It’s littered with small mechanical parts, although a lot of them look damaged from something, Peter can’t tell what. They might have been burned, and a lot of the pieces look as if they’ve been unhooked from some larger structure so Y/N can fix the broken edges. Some of them look as if they could have been from a plate-based system, something that was hit hard and maybe even shattered.

In fact, on closer look, Peter swears that he’s seen the exact same type of metal before. He wouldn’t know it unless he’d held it in his own hands, or unless-

Unless it’s currently weighing down his own backpack. Peter steps towards the table for a better look, and he just has enough time to confirm what he’s seeing before Y/N realizes what he’s doing and casually steps in between the table and him, blocking the metal from his view.

It’s too late to hide things, though, Peter already knows. The pieces of metal that Y/N is trying to fix are a dead match for Mecha’s armor, the stuff he’s seen both on the news and in person last night. If Y/N has Mecha’s armor, and is in a position where she can fix it because she’s likely the very same person who wears it every night and designed it in the first place, then it means-

Well, it means that Y/N Stark is Mecha. As in, Y/N Stark is the one in the metalloid suit who stalks the streets of the city every night to try and keep people safe, just like Peter. Honestly, Peter doesn’t know why he didn’t figure this out beforehand. Sure, the Mecha suit has a holographic visor to keep the owner’s face hidden, but she still moves like Y/N.

Looking back now, it’s obvious. However, it really shouldn’t be obvious to Peter Parker, someone who is definitely not Spider-Man. Thus, Peter has to hastily pretend as if he hasn’t just had the realization of a lifetime, as Y/N is starting to look at him strangely.

“Everything alright, Peter?” She asks, and Peter tries not to grin at the thought that she knows his name. He’s only half sure that he succeeds.

“Yeah, everything’s good. Thanks for helping me out with the lab stuff.”

She nods slowly, still regarding him with faint wariness. “Any time. See you later, I guess. I have to get going.”

Y/N starts to pack up her stuff, and Peter panics, because his best lead on the whole Mecha situation is literally walking out of his life as he watches. “Are you going to be in the labs tomorrow?”

Y/N glances back at him, surprised, then shakes her head. “Probably not. My dad’s been giving me crap about using school stuff instead of his labs, so I’ll have to start working there instead.”

This is bad, because if Y/N’s not coming to the labs, Peter doesn’t have any excuses to observe her for Mecha-like behavior. He casts about frantically for something he can say to make her stay for even a little longer. At last, just as her hand is reaching for the doorknob, something pops into his head.

“Does Tony know?”

Y/N stops moving, and turns to face Peter again. “Does Tony know what?”

Her tone is cold and questioning. Peter does his best to steady his nerves, and keeps going.

“Does Tony know that you’ve damaged your suit?”

Peter casts a meaningful look at the bag of armor fragments on Y/N’s arm, hoping she gets what he means. Y/N’s gaze shutters immediately, and she walks back towards him, tossing her backpack onto a chair. She pulls something out, some sort of device that beeps twice upon being pressed before glowing a bright LED green.

Y/N folds her arms across her chest, all hints of past friendliness forgotten. “The cameras won’t be recording any new footage for the next half hour. Spill.”

Peter gestures towards the device. “You had that ready pretty quickly. Have you been expecting to get caught?”

Or, perhaps worse, has she been wanting it? It must be stifling to live under Tony Stark’s empire every single day. As Mecha, she’s delightfully anonymous, but she won’t get the credit she deserves. Peter knows now, and some inner part of him tells him that this might do more to make Y/N his friend than anything else.

Y/N, however, still maintains an icy visage. “A part of my suit went missing, and until I track it down, I need to be alert. Can I assume that you have something to do with it?”

Peter nods, reaching into his backpack to carefully reveal the answering plates of metal. He holds it up, making sure Y/N can see it for what it is. “I just want to know why you started doing patrols in the city. Couldn’t you just join the Avengers if you wanted to fight crime?”

Y/N scoffs. “The Avengers are my dad’s dream. It doesn’t work for me.”

Peter can detect a fair amount of bitterness in her voice. Evidently, this has been a significant cause of strife in the past. “And doing solo patrols, that works for you?”

Y/N cocks her head to the side. “I assume you’ll be able to answer that for me, seeing as you apparently already know so much about what I want and what I do. I’ve got some questions, by the way. How did you get this?”

Peter carefully lays the armor fragment on the table in between them. Y/N doesn’t move for it, although he can see her eyes flicker back and forth between the metal and him, weighing her odds of grabbing it before he tries something.

Peter, on the other hand, is also contemplating a choice before him. At last, he sighs, does his best to bury his doubts, and reaches for something else in his backpack. When he puts this second item on the lab table, Y/N frowns at it in open curiosity.

“What’s that?”

Peter gestures towards it. “See for yourself.”

Y/N gives him one last suspicious look, then cautiously reaches out a hand to take the folded mass of red and blue cloth. She picks it up, and her eyes widen as she takes in the large white eyes on the mask, the black webbing design.

“My God, you’re Spider-Man.”

Peter can’t help but grin. “I’ll be honest, that is exactly the reaction I was hoping you’d have. I mean, surprised shouting and declarations of horror always work, but I like impressing people.”

Y/N snorts. “You’re insane.”

Peter smirks. “Maybe. What does that make you?”

Y/N looks back at him, and she’s smiling openly now. “Insane as well, I think. You’re really trusting me with this?”

Peter lifts a shoulder. “Why wouldn’t I? If you say a word, I’ve got a secret of my own, and I’m willing to bet that the press would be a lot more eager to hear about the double identity of a billionaire’s daughter than some kid from Queens.”

Y/N arches a brow. “They’re wrong for that, then. I’d be more interested in the Queens case.”

She tosses the mask back from him, using the opportunity to grab her broken piece of armor and put it back in the bag with the rest. “Why haven’t you sold me out, by the way? Mutually assured destruction can only take you so far. If you had information on Tony Stark’s kid, you could get whatever price you named.”

She says her father’s name with no small amount of spite. Peter, always emotionally savvy, takes this to mean that life in Stark Tower may not be the tech heaven he’s always glorified in his head.

“It would be an asshole thing to do, first of all. Also, I could always use a patrol partner, if you’re up for it. Besides, maybe I think you’re more than just Tony Stark’s kid. If I sold you out, I’d never get a chance to prove myself right.”

Y/N considers this, then smiles. “I like the sound of that. Not that I’m in the habit of giving people compliments, but I think being your partner would be an honor. It would certainly be nice to have someone in my corner.”

Peter grins. “Consider me fully in your corner, then. I’ll be the spider in your window whenever you’re feeling lonely. Follow any web to reach me.”

Y/N’s eyes shine. “That’s a very sweet thing to say, Peter.”

Peter shrugs. “I’m a very sweet guy. When I’m not trying to track down rogue armored heroes, of course.”

Y/N beams, and Peter thinks he could watch the way her entire form brightens forever. “I think I believe that.”

They have to part ways soon enough, of course, Y/N’s device will only block the cameras forever and she still has to get back to Stark Tower. That night, though, Peter turns up on the rooftops of New York City, and he isn’t alone. There’s a figure making her way towards him in the dark, and he can see the glow of her holographic visor even from across a few buildings. Looks like he’s got a chance after all.

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