The wait is finally over.
Avengers: Endgame is out in theaters, and fans are barging through those doors for such a cinematic treat. However, let's not forget how hyped we were for
Avengers: Infinity War last year. That was another case of epic proportions on a movie screen. Well, now that (hopefully) you've seen both, it only makes sense to compare these gargantuan films. Let's begin...
The Plot
Did
Infinity War even have a plot? It just felt like an energy shot of non-stop action. Well, brushing past the action scenes, I really enjoyed the plot and story of
Infinity War. Simply put, it was about Thanos trying to collect all of the Infinity Stones. With his quest on the horizon, the former Avengers have to shake off some rust to stop Thanos. That's basically it, and it works without a doubt. Our favorite heroes against an intergalactic warlord, all in a race against time to make sure these precious stones are out of his hands.
Too bad they don't win. We all know the rest. Thanos gets everything he wants, snaps his fingers, and everyone literally bites the dust. Such a unique ending, because we usually don't see the heroes lose. Definitely not on a huge scale like this anyway.
Now going to
Endgame, it's all about getting the band back together. Time travel ensues so things can be changed for the better, and a 2014 version of Thanos is on a new mission; destroy the whole universe to make a new one. The story for
Endgame was a lot more jam packed with ideas and characters. For the most part, it worked. However, I wasn't a fan of how they handled the time travel, nor thought the five year time jump was necessary. That being said, everything else was absolutely golden.
The Characters
Both films had so many, it's hard to keep count.
Infinity War devoted its screen time more to Spider-Man, Doctor Strange, and the Guardians of the Galaxy. In
Endgame, it was all about the six original Avengers, along with Ant-Man and Ronin/Hawkeye.
Infinity War did a great job of showing new hero interactions we've never seen before, and an even better job of structuring Thanos as a top notch villain. Endgame on the other hand was all about developing Iron Man and Captain America more, since this was more of a protagonist movie than an antagonist one.
The Hulk unfortunately was pretty much a no-show for
Infinity War, but had plenty of time to shine as Professor Hulk in
Endgame. Thanos was intimidating but sympathetic in
Infinity War. However in
Endgame, he felt more like a basic bad guy. I felt characters like Thor were treated better in
Infinity War than
Endgame, but someone like Captain America was the complete opposite.
The Russo brothers had so many toys to play with, yet they handled all of them well. If they didn't in one of them, they handled one better in the other.
The Action & Comedy
Another thing the Russo brothers are really good at; action. The choreography in the combat, the amazing effects and exciting set pieces. Watching these two movies is quite the adrenaline rush.
Infinity War definitely had more action scenes, so in result, the runtime felt so much quicker than it actually was.
Endgame on the other hand may have had less action scenes, but its final battle was better than anything Marvel has ever done before. It makes you want to get up and cheer, or heck, pick up a controller and play along.
Regardless, when it comes to the action, both of these films did more than a decent job. To say the least.
Now comedy is the least determining factor here, but we all know how funny Marvel movies can be. While both can be really dark,
Infinity War and
Endgame know how to lighten the mood with ease. Whether it's Tony Stark calling Ebony Maw "Squidward", or Cap admiring his own rear end. Bottom line, the quips are at full force in both films, and for the majority, it all lands.
Overall
You can't go wrong with either of these two films. Both are arguably the best comic book films of all time, so it's just a matter of preference.
Personally, I would give
Infinity War the slight (and I mean, very slight) edge. I was more satisfied leaving the theater in
Infinity War than
Endgame. However,
Endgame is about as perfect as a film of that caliber can get. It just made a couple decisions I wasn't down with. Like Iron Man dying instead of Captain America. Beautifully made scene, but I felt those two should've had their endings reversed.
All in all,
Infinity War is still the king of comic book films. However,
Endgame is only centimeters away from it, and if you think it's better, by all means. One thing we can all agree on is that Marvel has done themselves an incredible job making this universe. We can only hope more Avengers' films are in the works.