The document provides an overview of the Marvel Cinematic Universe from Iron Man to Avengers: Infinity War. It summarizes the plot and characters of each movie phase, noting character interactions that continue in later films and the introduction and roles of the Infinity Stones. The summary concludes that the document mapped the interconnected stories and Infinity Stone plot across 19 Marvel movies leading up to the events of Avengers: Infinity War.

1. Marvel Cinematic Universe
FROM IRON MAN TO AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR
PRESENTED BY RANDYE JONES
JUNE 9, 2018

2. It’s a Complicated Universe… 2
A map of the motion pictures and television series that form the entire MCU

3. Character Interaction & Infinity Stones 3
With the release “Avengers: Infinity War,” there are now 19 movies in the MCU universe. If you haven’t seen them all, or just don’t remember
what happened, let’s keep things simple and focus on two aspects of the films: character interactions that will affect subsequent movies
(recurring characters listed in bold) and how the elements known as the Infinity Stones become a major factor within the MCU--concentrating
only on those 19 films. This presentation will also feature the post-credit scenes that regularly foreshadowed upcoming movies. WARNING:
SPOILER ALERTS!!

4. Phase 1: Captain America: The First
Avenger (2011)
 Protagonists:
Steve Rogers/Captain America
Peggy Carter
Bucky Barnes
Howard Stark
Nick Fury
 Antagonists:
Johann Schmidt/Red Skull
Arnim Zola
4

5. Phase 1: Captain America: The First
Avenger (2011)
 Introduction of the Tessaract (Space Stone)
 Meet Steve Rogers and Bucky Buchanan
 How Steve Rogers becomes Captain America
 Captain America confronts Red Skull, Arnim Zola,
and HYDRA
 Captain America meets Nick Fury
 Post-credit scene: Cap gets his first S.H.I.E.L.D.
assignment (advanced clip from The Avengers)
5

6. Phase 1: Iron Man (2008)
 Protagonists:
Tony Stark/Iron Man
James “Rhodey” Rhodes
Pepper Potts
Nick Fury
 Antagonists:
Obadiah Stane
6

7. Phase 1: Iron Man (2008)
 Meet Tony Stark
 Tony’s change of heart
 Tony’s blossoming romance with Pepper
 Tony brings Rhodey into Ironman’s world
 No direct Infinity Stone reference
 Post-credit scene: Tony meets Nick Fury, learns about
S.H.I.E.L.D.
7

8. Phase 1: The Incredible Hulk (2008)
 Protagonists:
Bruce Banner/Hulk
Betty Ross
 Antagonists:
Emil Blonsky/Abomination
Thunderbolt Ross
8

9. Phase 1: The Incredible Hulk (2008)
 Meet Bruce Banner
 Confrontation with “the Other Guy”
 Conflicts with Ross
 No reference to Infinity Stones
 Post-credit scene: Ross discusses S.H.I.E.L.D. with
Tony Stark
9

10. Phase 1: Iron Man 2 (2010)
 Protagonists:
Tony Stark/Iron Man
Pepper Potts
Natasha Romanoff/Black
Widow
James “Rhodey” Rhodes/War
Machine
 Antagonists:
Ivan Vanko/Whiplash
Justin Hammer
10

11. Phase 1: Iron Man 2 (2010)
 Tony gets to the heart of the matter
 Tony’s and Pepper’s personal and professional
relationship changes
 Tony and Rhodey become friends in deed
 Tony learns that Natasha is a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent
 Tony declared unsuited for S.H.I.E.L.D.’s Avenger
Initiative
 No Infinity Stone reference
 Post-credit scene: Phil Coulson reports finding
hammer in desert
11

12. Phase 1: Thor (2011)
 Protagonists:
Thor Odinson
Jane Foster
Erik Selvig
Heimdall
Odin
Phil Coulson
 Antagonists:
Loki
12

13. Phase 1: Thor (2011)
 Meet Thor Odinson, Odin, and Loki
 Thor Meets Jane Foster and Erik Selvig
 Romance begins between Thor and Jane
 Thor earns his hammer
 Loki “dies”
 No reference to Infinity Stones
 Post-credit scene: Selvig meets Nick Fury, Loki’s still a
trickster
13

14. Phase 1: The Avengers (2012)
 Protagonists:
Avengers (Tony Stark/Iron Man,
Steve Rogers/Captain America,
Natasha Romanov/Black Widow,
Bruce Banner/Hulk, Thor Odinson,
Clint Barton/Hawkeye), Nick Fury,
Phil Coulson
 Antagonists:
Loki
Chitari
Thanos
14

15. Phase 1: The Avengers (2012)
 Loki, who isn’t dead, uses staff holding Mind
Stone to control Hawkeye and Selvig, steals
Tessaract (Space Stone)
 The Avengers gather
 This Helicarrier ain’t big enough
 Battle in New York
 Tessaract taken to Asgard for safekeeping
 Post-credit scene: Thanos learns that the
battle for Earth was lost
15

16. Phase 2: Iron Man 3 (2013)
 Protagonists:
Tony Stark/Iron Man
Pepper Potts
James “Rhodey” Rhodes
Harley Keener*
 Antagonists:
Aldrich Killian
Maya Hansen
Trevor Slattery/Mandarin
* Rumored to return in “Infinity War” sequel
16

17. Phase 2: Iron Man 3 (2013)
 Tony’s bad attack of nerves
 Hot Pepper
 Tony destroys suits
 No reference to Infinity Stones
 Post-credit scene: Tony tells Banner all of his troubles
17

18. Phase 2: Thor: The Dark World (2013)
 Protagonists:
Thor Odinson
Jane Foster
Frigga
Erik Selvig
 Antagonists:
Malekith
Algrim
Loki
18

19. Phase 2: Thor: The Dark World (2013)
 Thor misses Jane, who finds Aether (Reality Stone)
 Death and destruction on Asgard, Thor’s mother is
killed
 Thor Frees Loki and, with Jane, confronts Malekith,
Loki dies(?)
 Thor, Jane play tag with Malekith on Earth
 Odin(?) gives Thor blessing to return to Jane
 Post-credit scene: (1) The Aether is given to the
Collector for safekeeping; (2) Thor returns to Jane
19

20. Phase 2: Captain America: The
Winter Soldier (2014)
 Protagonists:
Steve Rogers/Captain America
Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow
Sam Wilson/Falcon
Nick Fury
Sharon Carter
 Antagonists:
Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier
Alexander Pierce
Arnim Zola
20

21. Phase 2: Captain America: The
Winter Soldier (2014)
 Cap Meets Sam
 Nick Fury attacked by Winter Soldier
 Cap, Nat and Sam learn about HYDRA plan
 Cap faces an old friend
 Nat outs HYDRA and S.H.I.E.L.D.
 No Infinity Stone referenced
 Post-credit scene: (1) HYDRA scientists have Loki’s
staff, see MaximoffTwins for the first time; (2) Bucky
visits Cap museum exhibit to help regain memory
21

22. Phase 2: Guardians of the Galaxy
(2014)
 Protagonists:
Peter Quill/Star Lord
Gamora
Drax
Rocket and Groot
 Antagonists:
Ronan
Nebula
Thanos
Yondu
22

23. Phase 2: Guardians of the Galaxy
(2014)
 Quill steals an orb (Power Stone) everyone wants
 Quill, Gamora, Rocket and Groot jailed on Xandar
 Escape to Knowhere to sell orb
 Collector explains the Infinity Stones
 Guardians Leave Infinity Stone with Xandar’s Nova
Corps
 Post-credit scene: Collector and Howard the Duck
sit in storeroom remains
23

24. Phase 2: Avengers: Age of Ultron
(2015)
 Protagonists:
Avengers (Tony Stark/Iron Man,
Steve Rogers/Captain America,
Natasha Romanov/Black Widow,
Bruce Banner/Hulk, Thor Odinson,
Clint Barton/Hawkeye), Nick Fury,
Vision, Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch,
Pietro Maximoff/Quicksilver
 Antagonists:
Ultron
Ullysses Klaue
24

25. Phase 2: Avengers: Age of Ultron
(2015)
 Avengers attack HYDRA base to retrieve
Loki’s staff and its Mind Stone
 Ultron and Twins confront Avengers
 Hawkeye’s hideout full of surprises
 Ultron acquires Wakandan vibranium for
nefarious uses
 Vision is created using the Mind Stone
 Avengers and friends destroy Ultron at
Sokovia
 Hulk disappears and New Avengers
begin training
 Post-credit scene: Thanos takes up the
gauntlet
25

26. Phase 2: Ant-Man (2015)
 Protagonists:
Scott Lang/Ant-Man
Hope Van Dyne
Hank Pym
Luis
 Antagonists:
Darren Cross/Yellow Jacket
26

27. Phase 2: Ant-Man (2015)
 Pym takes his particle and quits
S.H.I.E.L.D.
 After “stealing” Ant-Man suit, Scott
connects with Pym, begins training
with Hope
 With Luis’ and Ants’ help, Scott stops
Yellowjacket sale to HYDRA
 Ant-Man, Yellowjacket Battle in the
bedroom
 No reference to Infinity Stones
 Post-credit scene: Cap and Sam talk
about need for help (advance scene
from Civil War)
27

28. Phase 3: Captain America: Civil War
(2016)
 Protagonists:
Cap’s Team (Steve Rogers/Captain America,
Sam Wilson/Falcon, Clint Barton/Hawkeye, Scott
Lang/Ant-Man, Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch,
Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier)
Tony’s Team (Tony Stark/Iron Man, Natasha
Romanov/Black Widow, T’Challa/Black
Panther, James “Rhodey” Rhodes/War Machine,
Vision, Peter Parker/Spider-Man)
Sharon Carter
Everett Ross
 Antagonists:
Helmut Zemo
Brock Rumlow/Crossbones
Thunderbolt Ross
28

29. Phase 3: Captain America: Civil War
(2016)
 Avengers split over “Sokovia Accords”
 T’Challa and the world are after Bucky as accused
assassin
 Major confrontation between Avengers
 Cap, Bucky, Tony, and T’Challa chase real assassin
 Tony learns Bucky’s role in his parents’ deaths and
fights Bucky and Cap
 Cap breaks his team out of prison after sending a
message of recollection to Tony
 No direct reference to Infinity Stone
 Post-credit scene: (1) Cap has taken Bucky to Wakanda
for treatment and warns T’Challa that others would be
after Bucky; (2) Peter Parker discovers a feature on his
new Spidey suit
29

30. Phase 3: Doctor Strange (2016)
 Protagonists:
Doctor Steven Strange
Wong
The Ancient One
Christine Palmer
Karl Mordo
 Antagonists:
Kaecilius
Dormammu
30

31. Phase 3: Doctor Strange (2016)
 Famed surgeon Steven Strange, whose hands
are severely damaged in a car accident,
studies the mystical arts with The Ancient
One and Mordo
 Strange learns of the Time Stone and uses it
to help defeat Dormammu and Kaecilius
 Mordo, disillusioned by learning the Ancient
One’s secret and by Strange’s actions, leaves
to find his own path
 Strange becomes the protector of the New
York sanctum
 Post-credit scene: (1) Strange and Thor talk
about Loki and the search for a missing Odin
(advanced scene for Thor: Ragnorok); (2)
Mordo confronts another sorcerer
31

32. Phase 3: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.
2 (2017)
 Protagonists:
Guardians of the Galaxy (Peter Quill/Star
Lord, Gamora, Drax, Rocket and Baby Groot)
Yondu Udonta
Mantis
Nebula
 Antagonists:
Ego
Ayesha
Taserface
32

33. Phase 3: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.
2 (2017)
 Quill meets his biological father and learns his unique nature
 Quill and the Guardians destroy Ego, and Yondu sacrifices himself
to save Quill
 Only minor reference to Infinity Stones (Power Stone)
 Post-credit scene: (1) Yondu’s former colleagues reunite; (2)
Sovereign leader Ayesha creates a being to take on the Guardians
33

34. Phase 3: Spider-Man: Homecoming
(2017)
 Protagonists:
Peter Parker/Spider-Man
Harold “Happy” Hogan
May Parker
Tony Stark/Iron Man
 Antagonists:
Adrian Toomes/Vulture
34

35. Phase 3: Spider-Man: Homecoming
(2017)
 Peter’s challenge to balance his life as
a teenager with his secret life as
Spider-Man
 While he proves himself to Tony Stark,
his conflict with Toomes/Vulture
comes with consequences
 No references to Infinity Stones
 Post-credits scene: (1) Toomes
encounters another prisoner who
wants revenge against Spider-Man; (2)
Cap does one more inspirational ad
35

36. Phase 3: Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
 Protagonists:
Thor Odinson
Loki
Bruce Banner/Hulk
Valkyrie
Heimdall
 Antagonists:
Hela
Grandmaster
36

37. Phase 3: Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
 Loki again gets caught being a
trickster
 Odin’s death has consequences
 Thor fights Hulk and befriends
Valkyrie
 To destroy Hela, Asgard must fall
 Post-credit scene: (1) Just as Thor and
Loki are thinking positively about
returning to Earth, their ship
encounters another far bigger ship; (2)
Grandmaster engages revolutionaries
37

38. Phase 3: Black Panther (2018)
 Protagonists:
T’Challa/Black Panther
Nakia
Okoye
Shuri
M’Baku
Everett Ross
 Antagonists:
Erik Killmonger/N’Jadaka
Ulysses Klaue
38

39. Phase 3: Black Panther (2018)
 Newly acclaimed ruler of Wakanda,
T’Challa discovers the consequences of
actions his father took decades earlier
 With the help of his sister, ex-lover,
mother, the leader of the Jabari trible, and
a CIA agent, T’Challa regains his throne
and learns that the centuries of
Wakanda’s seclusion must end
 No reference to Infinity Stones
 Post-credit scene: (1) T’Challa introduces
the real Wakanda to the world; (2) Shuri
talks to a recovering Bucky
39

40. Phase 3: Avengers: Infinity War (2018) 40

41. Phase 3: Avengers: Infinity War
(2018)
 Thanos begins gathering Infinity Stones,
attacking the protectors holding them
 Avengers, Master of the Mystic Arts, Guardians,
and Wakandans work together to engage
Thanos and his minions
 Thanos is nearly defeated, but he successes in
using the combined power to bring about the
deaths of half of the galaxy
 Many of those fighting Thanos die
 Post-credit scene: After seeing a series of
accidents, Nick Fury and Maria Hill both turn to
dust, just as Fury makes a call to Captain Marvel
41

42. Phase 3: Ant-Man and the Wasp (July
2018)
 Protagonists:
Hope van Dyne/The Wasp
Scott Lang/Ant-Man
Hank Pym
Bill Foster/Goliath
Janet van Dyne
 Antagonists:
Ghost
42

43. Future MCU Films*
 Phase 3: Captain Marvel (March 2019)
 Phase 3: Untitled Avengers Film (May 2019)
 Phase 4: Untitled Spider-Man: Homecoming Sequel (July 2019)
 Phase 4: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2020)
 Black Panther sequel ; Black Widow solo ; Doctor Strange sequel
announced
*based on “Here's a Complete List of All the Upcoming Marvel Movies,” Time, http://time.com/5167535/upcoming-marvel-
movies/, accessed 06/07/18
43

44. Lest We Forget: The Watcher
Informant, AKA Stan Lee
Captain America Iron Man The Incredible Hulk Iron Man 2 Thor The Avengers
Iron Man
Iron Man 3 Thor: The Dark World
Captain America: The
Winter Soldier
Guardians of the Galaxy Avengers: The Age of
Ultron Ant-Man
Captain America: Civil
War Doctor Strange
Guardians of the Galaxy,
Vol. 2
Spider-Man:
Homecoming Thor: Ragnarok Black Panther
44

45. Related Websites:
Marvel Cinematic Universe
http://marvel.com/movies/all
MCU Timeline Explained: From Infinity Stones to Infinity War and Beyond
http://collider.com/mcu-timeline-explained/
Tom’s Guide: Upcoming Marvel Movies: A Timeline of Release Dates
https://www.tomsguide.com/us/upcoming-marvel-movies,review-5381.html
The Complete Timeline of Marvel Cinematic Universe Movies, From ‘Iron Man’ to ‘Infinity War’
https://www.thewrap.com/marvel-cinematic-universe-complete-timeline/
Marvel Cinematic Universe Wiki
http://marvelcinematicuniverse.wikia.com/wiki/Marvel_Cinematic_Universe_Wiki
TIME’s “A Complete List of Who Lives and Dies in Avengers: Infinity War”
http://time.com/5252990/avengers-infinity-war-deaths/
45

46. Questions? 46
Randye’s First MCU Love

47. In Closing: 47