Avengers: Endgame premiered in theaters this April, projected to be one of the largest box office openings in movie history. Aside from the massive collection of hardcore fans, many casual moviegoers are thronging to go see the final installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe that will feature the original Avengers. Set after the catastrophic finger-snap by Thanos, Endgame sees the Avengers racing to reverse the universal wipe-out of half of all life.
Thanks to their sheer willpower (and technical know-how), the Avengers figure out a way to change what happened. As a result, audiences are treated to glimpses of favorite characters we never thought we would see again. Read on if you want to know who we gladly saw on the big-screen again, and who we wish would have made even a slight appearance. But be warned. There are spoilers ahead.
Valkyrie's fate was left in ambiguity during the events of Avengers: Infinity War. Thor: Ragnarok saw her departing from Asgard with all of the Asgardian refugees alongside Thor and Loki. And yet, when Infinity War opened with Thanos' attack on the Asgardian ship, she was nowhere to be seen.
Avengers: Endgame reveals that she took a large portion of the Asgardians to Earth during the attack, saving their lives while Thor remained behind to contend with Thanos. She did not fall victim to the Snap, and she joins in the final fight against Thanos and his forces on a flying steed. Seeing Valkyrie alive was a relief; seeing her in battle once again was glorious.
Over the years, many beloved characters joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Our love for these side characters is what made the Thanos Snap so horrifying. For months, we fretted over their unknown fates. Even though Endgame resolved the Snap issues, several of our favorite characters did not make an appearance.
One of these characters was Luis, Scott Lang's talkative partner and long-time friend. Luis' van (the one with the annoying horn) showed up, but Luis was nowhere to be found. Though perhaps it's a good thing he didn't come out in Endgame. His retelling of his past experiences would have greatly added to the movie's runtime.
The Avengers' plan to reverse the effects of the Snap involved going back in time and retrieving the Infinity Stones before Thanos obtained them. Bruce Banner, the Hulk, was tasked with finding the Time Stone. Before the Time Stone came into Doctor Strange's possession, the Ancient One held custody over it.
The Ancient One, the original Sorcerer Supreme, thus makes an appearance in Endgame. When Bruce goes back to the past, he has to convince her to give him the Stone. She is at first reluctant, but when she finds out that Doctor Stephen Strange himself allowed it to be taken in the future, she relents. Her trust in Strange is touching, as is her appearance in the film.
When the Avengers finally managed to reverse the Thanos Snap, everyone who had been turned into dust came back into existence. However, the fate of those that he straight-up offed is left in doubt. That includes Loki, Gamora, and Vision. While Loki and Gamora got to be seen in the past (and in the present), Vision was noticeably absent from the proceedings.
The only real mention of his passing comes from Scarlet Witch. She attacks Thanos with a vengeance in the final fight and references the fact that he took everything from her. We wish we could have seen Vision at least one more time in Endgame.
Valkyrie was not the only person on the Asgardian ship to survive Thanos' attack. Korg, Thor's rock-like, fellow arena fighter made it out alive, presumably with Valkyrie's help. They both arrived on Earth and set up residence in New Asgard. Korg also lived through Thanos' Snap.
When we next see him, he's living in a small house with Thor and Miek. The house is more of a shack than a house, but it comes complete with a monitor and gaming set-up from which Korg can play Fortnite. Korg provided some much-needed levity for Endgame's mostly somber beginning. His presence cheered us when we needed it most and was a welcome sight.
During the Avengers' time travels, we ran into many characters we thought were long gone. Unfortunately, the Avengers did not get the chance to run into Yondu. There was a small chance they might have been able to when Nebula and War Machine traveled back in time to collect the Power Stone. Shortly after Peter Quill stole it in the first Guardians of the Galaxy, Yondu and the other Ravagers showed up to claim it as well.
Nebula and War Machine could have run into him then. While Endgame was already stuffed to the brim with character cameos, an appearance from Yondu would have been welcome. Yondu was a delightful character who played an important role in Peter Quill's life. Having him help the Avengers would have been icing on the cake.
Scott Lang did not succumb to Thanos' Snap as the Avengers thought he did. Instead, he was stuck in the Quantum Realm for those five years. When he got out and discovered the catastrophe that had befallen the universe, the first thing he does is check to see if his daughter is alive.
Thankfully for him and us, Cassie Lang survived the Snap. However, five years passed between the Snap and Scott's escape from the Quantum Realm. Cassie aged during that time. What took an hour or so for Scott was years for her. While that gap in time was sobering, it was still a sweet reunion, and we're happy we saw her character once again.
Heimdall played an important role in many of the Thor movies, but that did not garner him an appearance in Avengers: Endgame. We last saw Heimdall at the beginning of Avengers: Infinity War. He opened up the Bifrost in order to transport Hulk back to Earth so he could warn the Avengers of Thanos' coming. Once that was done, Thanos stabbed him in the chest.
What that unfortunately means is that Heimdall's return was not guaranteed when the Avengers reversed the effects of the Snap. Since he passed away beforehand, he was not one of the heroes brought back. We did not even get to see him when Thor and Rocket traveled back in time to Asgard.
Happy Hogan, in case you were unaware, is Tony Stark's long-time friend and bodyguard. Played by Jon Favreau, Happy has been in the MCU since the beginning. While it remains unclear whether Happy was affected by the Snap, he makes a return after the Avengers reversed its effects.
He attends Tony Stark's funeral, along with all of the other Avengers. Seeing him again was heartbreaking. His appearance was a reminder of Tony's former presence in the MCU. And watching Happy interact with Tony's young daughter made every single fan of the Marvel movies think back to the first Iron Man movie that started it all.
Captain Marvel not only introduced us to the character of Carol Danvers. It also introduced us to Goose, an adorable cat/Flerken and the reason behind Nick Fury's missing eye. Goose ended up being quite the little powerhouse, capable of swallowing an Infinity Stone and surviving.
It's a crying shame then that Goose was not included in the final fight against Thanos in Avengers: Endgame. Nothing would have pumped fans up more than seeing him racing alongside the other heroes, taking names and kicking...well, you know how it goes.
