If anything, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has given audiences several of the most iconic moments in superhero movie history, some of which seemed like they could never be taken from the yellowed pages of old comic books to the silver screen. But alas, the MCU continues to deliver crowd-pleasing moments like “Avengers, assemble” and absolutely gut-wrenching scenes like the Avengers: Infinity War ending.
But sometimes, these amazing moments from different Marvel movies have been revisited from an alternate perspective that adds to the overall story, one way or another. We’ve seen this in movies like Spider-Man: Homecoming and Avengers: Endgame as well as shows like Loki and Hawkeye. Here are a handful of the times the MCU has showed alternate perspectives of major events and what they achieved.
The Battle Of New York Through Kate Bishop’s Eyes (Hawkeye)
Marvel fans got a lot of cool MCU moments in 2021, including the opening sequence of Hawkeye, which offered a new perspective of the first time Earth’s Mightiest Heroes assembled, aka the Battle of New York from the Avengers. Unlike the first time the big event was first revisited in Avengers: Endgame, this time around we were given a fresh perspective from the eyes of a young Kate Bishop as she is saved from being killed by a Chitauri warrior thanks to an accurate shot by Hawkeye.
This beautifully shot moment shows the Avengers’ actions could inspire seemingly normal people, and in the case of Kate Bishop, set them off on their own hero’s journey. This whole sequence is effective in that it offers an on-the-ground look-up at Hawkeye and his fellow Avengers, and makes the Battle of New York seem less like an isolated incident and more like part of the bigger picture.
The Blip As Experienced By Yelena (Hawkeye)
One of the biggest questions after Black Widow was answered in the opening moments of the penultimate episode of Hawkeye when it was revealed that Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) was one of the victims of Thanos’ snap. The scene picks up a couple of years after the Black Widow ending where Yelena set off to free the other Black Widows, only the former assassin she attempts to rescue reveals she was never brainwashed. To compose herself, Yelena goes to the bathroom to wash up, but is “dusted” midway and reappears five years later in a house that looks very different.
There had been mentions in pretty much every post-Avengers: Endgame movie and show that talked about the effects the experience had on characters, but most of that was told after the fact and not in the middle of it. In this moment we not only see the confusion on Yelena Belova’s face (she presumably had no idea about Thanos and his quest), but also shows the passage of time (and how the world moved on) during the Blip.
The Airport Battle As Seen By Peter Parker (Spider-Man: Homecoming)
There is a case to be made for Captain America: Civil War’s epic airport battle being one of the MCU’s best action sequences, especially with how it would set the course for the future of the franchise. One of the best moments from the whole spectacle was the on-screen debut of Tom Holland’s Spider-Man (his Peter Parker appeared just a few minutes earlier). The following summer, Spider-Man: Homecoming not only showed how Peter Parker ending up on the runway through his hilarious blogs (that also showed him getting his new “Stark Suit”), it also offered a glimpse at the action from his point of view.
This hilarious series of clips does a couple things really well. First, it offers a new look at the iconic action sequence that gives a more comedic spin on it. It also further expands Tom Holland’s Peter Parker/Spider-Man without having to release a full-on origin story. Plus, it establishes the Happy Hogan/Peter Parker relationship that would continue to grow in subsequent films.
‘Smart’ Hulk Watching Hulk Smash During The Battle Of New York (Avengers: Endgame)
Even though it doesn’t go through every Marvel movie, Avengers: Endgame does a great job of revisiting the MCU’s biggest moments during the whole “Time Heist” portion of crossover event. During the second act of the three-hour epic, “Smart” Hulk, Captain America, Iron Man, and Ant-Man go back in time to the Battle of New York in order to obtain three of the six Infinity Stones. But before they branch off on separate paths, Hulk encounters a younger and less sophisticated version of himself doing what the big guy does best: smashing.
It’s a brief moment and is played mostly for laughs (especially with Hulk embarrassed by his old self), but it really shows how far the character has come since then. No longer torn between his two personalities, Bruce Banner and Hulk have become one. However, he does smash, reluctantly though.
Nebula And War Machine Watching Star Lord’s GOTG Introduction (Avengers: Endgame)
Later on in Avengers: Endgame, War Machine and Nebula travel back to Morag where they steal the Power Stone before Star-Lord can take it for himself (and set in motion the plot of Guardians of the Galaxy). When we first see Star-Lord, aka Peter Quill, he’s doing the whole dancing and singing number we first saw back in 2014, but there are times where it cuts to how the two Avengers see him: a fool of a man singing to himself in all its awkwardness.
This is not an attempt to take anything away from Star-Lord (he’s been beaten down enough), but this brief (and hilarious) scene shows the difference between how Peter Quill sees himself and how the rest of the MCU sees him. And like the Hulk moment just a few minutes earlier in the movie, this scene is played mostly for laughs, though it does lead into one of the movie’s most harrowing chapters.
Variant Loki Watching How The Main Loki’s Fate Unfolds (Loki)
The version of the God of Mischief featured in Loki isn’t the one who had a great redemption arc before being killed by Thanos, but instead the 2012 variant that escaped with the Tesseract following the revisited Battle of New York in Avengers: Endgame. That being said, this variant Loki doesn’t have the memories of his mother’s murder, father’s death, bonding with his brother and eventually being choked to death. That is until Mobius M. Mobius opened his eyes to the main Loki’s fate in the season opener.
Even though we, the viewer, have seen each of these events unfold over the years, this version of Loki hasn’t, and so we get to relive those memories (both joyful and tragic) through his eyes. If you go back and watch the scene, it mostly shows Tom Hiddleston’s face and the raw emotion painted upon it. This not only makes the character more interesting, it also sets in motion the events of the gripping series.
Each of the examples of major events being shown with a different perspective do a great deal of adding to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. And who knows, maybe some of the upcoming Marvel movies will offer a new take on a classic moment from the franchise’s past.
