It's the end.
Friday spells the culmination of a monumental cinematic universe that has inspired millions across the world for more than a decade.
With the 'Endgame' releasing in a matter of hours in the subcontinent, the nostalgia factor is running hot. Catching on the heels of the 'Infinity War,' and starting exactly where it left off, the 'Endgame' will be the 22nd instalment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), which commenced with a flick of the wealthy business magnate and industrialist Tony Stark in Iron Man (2008).
The emotion train has been running high ever since Thanos, the formidable supervillain snapped a finger to wipe out half of the entire universe, after tracking down the infinity stones to fix on a glove, called the Infinity gauntlet, channelling the power of these six stones.
Box office collections had soared ever since the movie, like previous Avenger ensembles, premiered making it one among the greatest grossing movies of all time.
The 'Endgame’ is no exception, ringing cash registers way ahead of its release. Ticketing websites like BookMyShow which had crashed when the initial sale of tickets had begun, claims to have sold 18 tickets per second for the movie.
The MCU has inspired both the young and old alike. Students and college goers where the first to pre-book tickets for the biggest Marvel showdown of the year. Most of the theatres across Kerala are expected to be running full house on the first three days of screening in the least.
Joshua James, an engineering student at St Joseph’s College, Pala has been an ardent follower of all things Marvel since the very beginning of the cinematic universe.
“The Endgame signifies the end of an era. The end of phase three and the beginning of a brand new phase four. I’ve felt that the Infinity War was at the top of its game with such a distraught and grand ending. It had me to the edge of my seat.”
On being asked of whom he’d wished to see in its epic culmination, “ I’d want to see Stan Lee, in his cameo for the last time,” he says.
Sandeep Salmon, engineering student and a self acclaimed TV buff says that Marvels foray into the Indian market was highly unprecedented.
“Marvel would have risked being an entrant into an industry where sci-fi movies hardly caught up, while the three most common superheroes known for decades where Spider-Man, Superman and Batman.
We must really appreciate how Stan Lee, along with his many creators and those at Marvel really took their time and weaved a storyline spanning timeless timelines and diverse galaxies.
They knew how to churn a masterpiece, and were the best at it. I believe the introduction of post credit scenes were a huge contribution to today's cinema, keeping the audience hooked in anticipation to the very last minute and in an eager wait for the next instalment.”
But what kept him intrigued to the series is its humane connection.
“Iron Man, though being an arrogant billionaire and philanthropist was still a good man at heart. Captain America rose from being bullied in the streets, to standing up against wrong, upholding his ideals. Though he was no match for being a super soldier, his determination and hard work had brought him to where he is. Thor, being of a royal origins, was sent to Earth to teach him what it was to actually live life, and Spiderman, an orphan, had us crying towards the end when he bid farewell to Tony Stark, whom he'd considered a fatherly figure.”
It is perhaps these larger than life scale and impact of these movies that inspired a whole generation of movie goers to come back to the theatres every time another movie released.
Aljie Alex, a final year student at St Theresa’s, Ernakulam, got lucky enough to watch the movie way before it’s Indian release while at Muscat on vacation.
“I have no words. It's like the whole cinematic universe has come full circle.
I’d been introduced to the X-Men and Spiderman movies when I was probably 4 or 5 years of age. But it is maybe the birth of the MCU in 2008 that had really struck a chord. What it made it so different from the others was that apart from being funny and having a good story line, it had heart. The movies one after the other had soon become my great escape.
It has never been about the good guys fighting bad guys. There were basic human emotions and values being carefully interwoven into each of these instalments. I will forever be grateful to the creators of not only the cinematic universe, but also the brilliant minds like Stan, Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko and the others for giving life to such strong characters for generations to look up to.”
Burning questions like “How does Stark make it home from space?”,“ Will Iron Man or Captain America die?”, “ Which of the avengers would resuscitate to life?”, and most importantly, “How will Thanos' snap be undone?”, will all be answered tomorrow as the final puzzle in the jigsaw, Avengers: Endgame, hits theatres across India on 26th April 2019.