Let me first say that I've been a fan of Comicbookmovie.com for several years and figured it was about time I became a member. This is my first shot at writing any type of article for the site, so be gentle. These are just my ideas based on pure speculation on what has already happened in the Marvel Universe and what we already know about Phase 3. Feel free to agree, disagree and give me your thoughts. Well, here we go!
As I'm sure everyone knows by now, agent Phil Coulson was slain to death in The Avengers by the Asgardian God of Mischief, Loki. This event is what unified Earth's mightiest heroes and transformed them into the team known as The Avengers. ABC then launched the television series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. which picks up after the events of The Avengers and stars non-other than agent Phil Coulson. How you might ask? Well in Coluson's file it says that he was dead for a few seconds to a few minutes before they revived him. Coulson does not remember this, but does remember being in a "magical place" which he tells us is Tahiti. Throughout the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. show, we are give snippets of footage that give us some insight into how they actually brought Coulson back to life. We see Coulson lying on an operating table surrounded by all kinds of medical equipment, and then the scene pans up from Coulson’s torso to his head where we see some type of machine with multiple hands operating on his brain. The next bit of information we learn comes from a conversation agent Coulson has with one of his surgeons. He explains to Coulson that he was dead for several days, not seconds or minutes that is reported in his file. He tells him that Nick Fury ordered the procedures and moved, “heaven and Earth,” in the process. He assembled a team of doctors who conducted at least seven known surgeries on Coulson’s lifeless body to repair the “ungodly” injuries he sustained. The doctors worked around the clock, “using procedures that no good doctor would allow.” After Coulson was brought back to life, he constantly begged for death. While this particular surgeon wanted to oblige, the procedures went on anyway. They tampered with Coulson’s brain trying to remove the memories of his death and the unimaginable amount of pain he had endured during the resurrection process. The surgeon stated that, “After what you had been through, we wanted to restore the man you had once been so we gave you a pleasant memory of a beautiful island.” He tells Coulson, “You had lost your will to live. We tried to give it back.”
Now I believe that there are some hidden clues within the dialogue used that lets us in on what Marvel has planned next along with how Coulson was really brought back to life. Regardless of how good the team of doctors were on the team that Nick Fury put together, unless one of them was Dr. Frankenstein no one would be able to bring a several day old corpse back to life. There must be some otherworldly explanation. I know there has been a lot of speculation out there that maybe some Asgardian magic was used, which some of the phrasing and quotes support, but I don’t necessarily think so, although I do think it was magic. I think that the “ungodly” injuries he has sustained just relate to the fact that his chest cavity was mutilated by a demi-god. Others point to the fact that Fury, “moved heaven and Earth,” as being a reference that maybe Thor or Odin helped restore Coulson. While this could very well be the answer, I think it’s too easy. Marvel is never that obvious and likes to give us hints and Easter eggs about what is to come. Now what else could this “heaven and Earth” comment refer too. Well in a certain Marvel comic series there are multiple realms and dimensions, which include both heaven and Earth, and magic is a very prevalent theme. My theory is that the Sorcerer Supreme himself, Dr. Stephen Strange, is the one that truly brought Coulson back to life and this will be his entrance into Phase 3 of the Marvel Universe.
We all know that Marvel has announced that Dr. Strange will be a character heavily featured in Phase 3. It is believed that he will take over the mantle from Tony Stark aka Iron Man as the primary focus of the Marvel Universe after Robert Downey Jr.’s picture deal with Marvel expires. So what better way to introduce him into the Marvel Universe than having Dr. Strange be the one that resurrects Coulson. Let me give you some more examples. I think that Coulson constantly referring to Tahiti as a, “magical place,” is a red flag that points directly to Dr. Strange. The doctor that Coulson talks to who gives him some details about the things he endured told him that they used, “procedures that no good doctor would allow.” Before Dr. Strange became the Sorcerer Supreme, he was not known as the most ethical doctor in his specialty. Could this clue refer to Stephen Strange as that, “no good doctor”? And what was Dr. Strange's specialty again? That’s right, brain surgery! If Nick Fury wanted to rewire agent Coulson’s brain, wouldn’t he get the most talented brain surgeon in the Marvel Universe to conduct the surgery? We never see who is controlling the robot that is working on Coulson’s brain. All we see is another doctor/nurse holding a tablet like devise and asking him questions. I don’t think she is controlling the robot, instead maybe monitoring his vitals and taking notes. I think that Dr. Strange is the one who is controlling the robot and the one who rewires Coulson’s brain.
Another reason I think that Dr. Strange is the one who brings Coulson back to life is the fact that he has risen the dead before. He used his magical powers to resurrect his brother Victor in the comics. Granted, he read from the wrong book, turning his brother into a vampire, but resurrected him nonetheless. I could see Nick Fury using this experiment as almost like an audition for Dr. Strange to become a member of the Avengers. I’m sure Fury has Strange on his radar and has heard rumors about what he can do. What better way to test his abilities? If it doesn’t work, then Coulson wouldn’t be any worse off, but if Dr. Strange really does posses such great magical powers, then Fury gets a valuable member added to his team and one of his top agents back. I could see them introducing him as one of the after or mid-credit scenes after Avengers: Age of Ultron, using either a flashback scene of Fury contacting Dr. Strange (I know he hasn’t been cast yet, but it could just be Fury showing up in his house unannounced a la the first Iron Man movie, and talking to a shadowy figure) or Fury picking up a phone and saying something like, “Dr. Strange, we need your expertise again.” It may not even be revealed right away, but I think they could eventually reveal that he is the reason Coulson is a member of the team again.
Thanks for reading and leave any comments below.
And so it goes...