Jon Crunch: About That New “Avengers: Infinity War” Trailer

“Let’s talk about this plan of yours. I think it’s good, except it sucks...” — Peter Quill to Tony Stark in “Avengers: Infinity War”

Today, Marvel Studios dropped the new “Avenger: Infinity War” trailer online — the same day that tickets went on sale for the April 27 theatrical release.

This Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has been building up to this for the past decade.

Marvel movies have changed the box office landscape. They've redefined how blockbuster movies are structured. In the final sum game, they are the bond that holds together the movie-going experience.

Am I giving Marvel/Disney too much credit?

I don’t believe so. I believe the MCU is so integral to the movie business that you’d be hard pressed to imagine the industry without Marvel.

You can’t simply make a string of blockbusters (and requisite sequels) anymore. Quite the contrary, in fact.

If you look at the trend line on tentpole movies that garner theatrical releases, you see an interwoven framework where characters and storylines are blended in a multi-dimensional manner — creating a tapestry that is more like a graphic novel series.

While “Avengers: Infinity War” might very well stand on its own as a movie, part of the narrative is built on everything that has come before. It started in 2008 with the first “Iron Man” movie, and rose to a fever pitch last month with “Black Panther.”

I’ve intentionally stayed away from spoilers for “Avengers: Infinity Wars” — as I have with the entire MCU.

There have been some fan theories that this might be the “end” of the Marvel Cinematic Universe as we know it. What those prognosticators mean is anyone’s guess. Does it mean that Marvel will focus its efforts on developing a new slate of characters from their large catalog? Does it mean we might see “reboots” of popular characters in the next few years?

Some have even speculated that Captain America might meet his demise in this movie.

I don’t know. I don’t want to know. I just want to take a moment and savor how good this drink has been for movie fans.

In addition to the new trailer for “Avengers: Infinity War,” both Collider and “Entertainment Tonight” have “behind-the-scenes” features and interviews focusing on the making of the movie.

In this full interview from “Entertainment Tonight,” Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow) and Chris Evans (Captain America) talk about how the cast has changed over the years (most notably, the number of babies on the set). The interviewer also mentions the well-worn tidbit that the movie includes 64 Marvel heroes (including Brie Larson as Captain Marvel):

Collider has an exhaustive collection of “talking head” reactions (that seem to grow by the minute) about “Avengers: Infinity War.” In this feature, we learn that “Infinity War” takes place two years after “Captain America: Civil War” and five years after “Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2”:

Kevin Feige — seer and shepherd of the Marvel Cinematic Universe — stated in a 2017 teaser: “What we always try to do at Marvel Studios as we’re building the cinematic universe is we look at the big picture... how things relate across movies... and across years. ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ is the culmination of the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe as it started in May of 2008 with the release of ‘Iron Man’...”

Whatever Marvel is planning to do with the MCU, I’m looking forward to “Avengers: Infinity War” (and the yet-to-be titled sequel coming in 2019). I own the entire Marvel series on blu-ray (and 4K blu-ray), and make seeing each entry in the theater a priority.

Please check out the previous blog reviews I have written about Marvel Cinematic Universe movies:

Published July 22, 2017 - It’s “Spider-Guy!”

Published Nov 12, 2017 - “Thor: Ragnarok” Illustrates Disney’s Recent Emphasis On Humor

Published March 7, 2018 - Movie Review: “Black Panther”