While the latest preview for The Avengers: Age of Ultron gave fans plenty of new, exciting material, as with most superhero movies trailers, there were also a ton of new questions raised to chew on. What exactly does Ultron have planned? Are we getting Black Widow flashbacks? Will Marvel show all of the Hulk vs. Hulkbuster fight in commercials before the movie is actually released? Is Hulk suffering from spring allergies? Okay, that last one might just be me. However, the most intriguing head scratcher comes at the 0:33 mark, where a mysterious woman is shown disrobing in a cave.
Fans have been speculating all over our social media pages and comment sections about who she might be, and if there's one thing comic book fans love, it's figuring out who someone is before the movie studio gives us a name. It’s possible that we won't know for sure who she is until the movie hits theaters in May, but we have a few guesses regarding her identity. Take a look at the prospective candidates!
5. Moondragon
In the comics, Moondragon - originally named Heather Douglas - was kidnapped by Thanos' forces and trained to be a living weapon. In addition to being a talented martial artist, she was able to tap into her psionic potential and become a powerful telepath. Like Gamora betraying Thanos, Moondragon eventually turned against Thanos' father, Mentor, and made it her mission to defeat the Mad Titan. Admittedly, we're mostly considering Moondragon because of the woman's bald head, and with all the new super powered people in the cast already, including a human who was raised by aliens that can kick ass and control minds might be overkill. One benefit of including Moondragon would be her giving us another degree of connection between Earth and the cosmic side of the Marvel Cinematic Universe beyond Thanos and the Infinity Stones, but it’s still a bit of a stretch.
4. Hela
Based off the original Norse god Hel, Hela is the Asgardian goddess of death in the Marvel universe. Originally appointed by Odin to rule over the dead in the realms of Hel and Niffelheim, she tried to expand her power to Valhalla, but was defeated by Thor. This led to her embracing the life of villainy and frequently clashing with the God of Thunder and many other Asgardians. However, just because this might be her in the Avengers: Age of Ultron trailer doesn't mean she'll actually be real. As we pointed out yesterday, Scarlet Witch likes to create illusions, so maybe Thor's personal nightmare has him going up against the goddess. Perhaps the new Marvel character is digging through his memories and reminding him of a powerful, dark truth from his past. It’s hard to argue that it would be a rather incredible introduction for the character into the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
3. Jocasta
If Ultron can be described as a Frankenstein-type creation, then Jocasta is Marvel's version of Bride of Frankenstein. In the comics, her brain patterns are based on those of Janet van Dyne, the wife of Ultron’s own creator Hank Pym. Like a lot of pop culture monsters, Ultron built Jocasta so that he can have a mate. Unlike the megalomaniacal robot, Jocasta did not have aspirations of world domination, and has primarily been an ally to the Avengers and other Marvel heroes. Given that Ultron is a one-of-a-kind type of artificial intelligence, he may decide to build her to fill that companion role that his mindless drones just aren't filling properly. Then again, with genocide being his main mission in the film, he may not be thinking about settling down and meeting "the one" just yet.
2. Dora Milaje
Judging by her African-style clothing, this woman looks like she could be a member of the Dora Milaje, the personal bodyguards of the Black Panther - Wakanda’s leader. While Black Panther isn’t officially debuting in the Marvel Universe until Captain America: Civil War, it’s been speculated that Wakanda will be one of the locations visited because of its vibranium supply, potentially used by Ultron to upgrade his body. If The Avengers follow him there, it’s not too hard to believe that they’ll run into one of these warriors. This idea is further backed up by another appearance from Andy Serkis’ mystery character, who is believed to be Black Panther villain Ulysses Klaw. The Avengers: Age of Ultron might be setting up Klaw for his next appearance in the Black Panther movie, and you can be damn sure that if he is in Wakanda, he’s trying to steal vibranium. Unfortunately for him, he might have to deal with one of the Dora Milaje during the theft.
1. An Original Character
This may seem like a cop-out answer, but this mysterious woman wouldn't be the first MCU character that didn't originate from the comics. Avengers: Age of Ultron is already introducing Claudia Kim as Dr. Cho, so it wouldn't be completely weird to throw another original character into the mix . Perhaps she's an adversary that the team has to deal with during their globe-trotting, or maybe she'll help them out during one of their adventures. The woman could still have connections to locations like Wakanda or Asgard, or even to one of the protagonists, but considering that we don't get too many original MCU characters in the movies, it might be nice if she is someone who isn’t someone that we can easily identify by flipping through a comic book or browsing through Wikipedia.
