A new theory suggests that Thanos himself could be the hero of Avengers: Endgame - and that he could undo the snap himself. The MCU’s Thanos of the MCU is very different to the comic book character. In the comics, Thanos is besotted with Lady Death, and seeks to prove himself a worthy suitor. As such, he’s dedicated to committing as many horrific acts of genocide as possible, and he ultimately gained possession of the Infinity Gauntlet in order to win her favor. The snap was actually an act of blind love, an attempt to woo Death itself. In contrast, in the movies Thanos believes himself to be a servant of life. He’s convinced that exponential population growth across the universe will eventually lead to a Malthusian nightmare that wipes out all life in the cosmos. As such, he views the snap as a necessary sacrifice; as Thanos put it, “a small price to pay for salvation.”

Avengers: Infinity War was a twisted version of the classic Hero’s Journey, with Thanos as the hero on a quest to bring salvation to the universe by gathering the Infinity Stones. Although Thanos was successful, he paid a fearsome price, with all of his trusted lieutenants killed in battle with the Avengers, and his armies reduced in number dramatically. But for Thanos, the most painful moment was undoubtedly when he was forced to kill his beloved daughter, Gamora, in order to earn the Soul Stone. As he reflected at the end of the film, in a vision state in which he communed with Gamora inside the Soul Stone, the snap had cost him everything.

Thanos’ role in Avengers: Endgame is still uncertain. So far, merchandise leaks have suggested that the Mad Titan will learn of the Avengers’ plan to somehow avert or undo the snap, and that he’ll launch an attack on the Avengers Compound in order to stop them. But given his significance as a character, it’s pretty much certain that Thanos will have an arc all of his own. It’s possible that his supreme ideological self-confidence will be challenged - and that, having seen what harm he has done through using the Infinity Gauntlet, he’ll choose to put the universe to rights.

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The Snap Would Have Caused Chaos On A Cosmic Level

There are a lot of logical problems with Thanos’ insane strategy. But one of them - that’s received scant attention from fans - is that his method causes a maximum of chaos and confusion across the entire universe. When Thanos attempted to persuade his daughter Gamora of the validity of his plan, he used the example of her homeworld, which he claimed had become a paradise since he stripped it of half its population. But the people of Zen-Whoberi knew what had happened to their world; they knew that a marauding Titan had invaded them, and slaughtered many of their number. They had been able to move on, and rebuild.

But the impact of the snap - which Marvel has called the Decimation - isn’t like that. It’s a completely unprecedented event, and only a handful of beings - most on the backwater planet of Earth - would even know that Thanos was responsible for it. How can anyone possibly move on from this? Warlike races like the Kree would understandably assume that an aggressor had just used a powerful weapon against them, and no doubt ancient conflicts would flare to life once again across the galaxy. Meanwhile, it has to be remembered that the snap was random; half of every race was wiped out, but that doesn’t necessarily mean half of every ethnic group was. On some worlds, ethnic tensions would have been reignited, and there would have been new campaigns of ethnic cleansing. Worse still, nobody has any way of knowing whether or not the Decimation will happen again, so everything would have a horrific sense of urgency to it.

Thanos has wiped out half the life in the universe. But in doing so, he’s brought every race to a crisis point, one that they cannot truly understand. It’s not hard to imagine things going into a downward spiral, rather than heading towards the paradisaical future that Thanos envisioned.

Page 2 of 2: Thanos Damaged Reality & How He Can Fix It

The Avengers: Endgame Synopsis Hinted That Thanos Has Damaged Reality Itself

But one plot synopsis for Avengers: Endgame has suggested things could get even worse than that. Here’s the synopsis in full:

Understandably, most attention was drawn to the second half of that synopsis, to the idea of “sacrifices.” But frankly, that was a foregone conclusion, given several key Marvel contracts are coming to a close. The most interesting part is really the hint that reality itself is somehow “fragile.” It suggests that the snap didn’t just wipe out half the life in the universe; it damaged the fabric of reality itself. Certainly there’s evidence that the snap involved a tremendous release of energy, so great that it damaged the Infinity Gauntlet and badly injured Thanos. As Joe Russo told Collider, “You’ll notice his arm is damaged post the snap, the gauntlet is damaged post the snap, it’s the incredible energy required from it and only because of his strength is he able to survive actually using the gauntlet in that capacity.” What’s more, Thanos briefly entered a dream state in the aftermath of the snap, where his consciousness transcended reality and entered into the Soul World. All this suggests that the snap could have done even more damage than Thanos imagined.

“A culmination of 22 interconnected films, the fourth installment of the Avengers saga will draw audiences to witness the turning point of this epic journey. Our beloved heroes will truly understand how fragile this reality is and the sacrifices that must be made to uphold it.”

Is it possible, then, that Thanos will come to reconsider his insane philosophy? Avengers: Endgame is known to involve some sort of time jump, which could well be long enough for Thanos to realize that the universe isn’t moving towards a new balance after all. Worse still, he could begin to see evidence that the fabric of reality itself has been harmed. If that’s the case, Thanos could unwittingly have set the cosmos on a course towards universal extinction. While the comic book version of Thanos would find that entertaining, the MCU version would be horrified.

How Thanos Could Prevent The Snap

But, assuming Thanos does have a change of heart, how could he put matters right? If the snap did damage reality, then there’s no way Thanos is going to be able to use the Infinity Gauntlet to snap again and restore all the lives he has taken; that approach would only worsen the damage. Besides which, it’s unlikely Thanos would be able to do that anyway; the Infinity Gauntlet is damaged, and Thanos himself is a lot weaker due to the injuries he sustained.

There’s just one possible solution; there’s abundant evidence that Avengers: Endgame is a time travel story, with the Avengers traveling back in time to somehow rewrite history and prevent the snap. Thanos could initially oppose them, but gradually come to realize that they’re right. Thus his only recourse is to join the Avengers on their quest back in time, and prevent his own past self from ever snapping his fingers. The damage to reality would be averted, the lives lost would be saved, and Thanos would truly become a savior. His story would have come full circle.

More: How Captain Marvel Connects To Avengers: Endgame

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