Monday, March 7, 2022

The Space travelers and Time travelers in the MCU

My kids have recently been watching the MCU movies and just caught up. One of them noted that a lot of the humans have been to alien planets but they don't make as big a deal of it as they should. Especially compared to how many times our neighbor talks about their "summer in Paris" (We get it. It was magical). We started to list them all and realized that it's not that many characters - in fact only 10 earthlings from the MCU movies have been to alien worlds - though many more from the show Agents of Shield have been. Here they are listed in chronological order. Spoilers below.

Alveus, by then transformed into the inhuman Hive, was banished to the planet Maveth over 5000 years ago, making him the first human to set foot on another planet in the MCU. Over the following millennia, an unknown number of humans were transported there as a sacrifice to Hive and for him to use as a host. Two such victims were Lord Manzini in 1839 and Nathaniel Malick in 1970.

Peter Quill/Star-Lord (who's only half human) was abducted in 1988 and then spent his life, except for a brief time on Earth during Endgame, in space and on alien worlds.

Capt. Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel - only 1 year later, Danvers becomes the 2nd Earthling (from the movies) to visit an alien planet when she is kidnapped by the Kree and taken to Hala where she lives until 1995 when the events of the Captain Marvel movie takes place. Afterward we're led to believe that she too visits many alien worlds. 

Will Daniels, S. Austin, Brubaker and Taylor - In 2001, Astronaut Will Daniels and three scientists were sent to Maveth as part of a NASA mission (and secretly as another sacrifice to Hive). 

Dr. Jane Foster -  Jane Foster traveled to Asgard and then Svartalfheim in 2013. In 2024, as the Mighty Thor, she traveled to The Moon of Shame in the Shadow Realm, Omnipotence City,  and the Gates of Eternity.


Dr. Bruce Banner/The Hulk* - Following the events of Age of Ultron, Banner commandeers a twinjet and flies it into space. Sometime by 2017 he passed through a wormhole that took him to the planet of Sakaar. After reuniting with Thor there in 2017, the two travel to Asgard (making him the 2nd, and last, human to visit). As Asgard is destroyed, Hulk escaped with the Agardians aboard their ship which was later boarded by Thanos. After fighting Thanos and being nearly killed he was transported back to Earth. 


Jemma Simmons, Leo Fitz, Grant Ward, Phil Coulson and unnamed Hydra troops - In 2015, Simmons was also transported to Maveth via the Monolith. Shortly thereafter Fitz traveled to the planet via the Monolith to rescue her. Later that same year, a Hydra team led by Grant Ward and guided by Fitz (who returned to Maveth) went through the portal to Maveth and Phil Coulson followed. Only Coulson, Fitz and Hive (using Ward's body) escaped.

Peter Parker/Spiderman, Tony Stark/Ironman* and Dr. Strange - After Ebony Maw comes to Earth in 2018 to retrieve the Time Stone, he captures Dr. Strange and takes him aboard his Q-ship. Parker and Stark try to rescue him and wind up onboard as well. The ship then takes them to Titan where they battle Thanos and lose.

Steve Rogers/Captain America, Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow, Bruce Banner/Hulk and James Rhodes/War Machine and Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel - In 2018 this group, along with Rocket Raccoon and Thor, travel to "the Garden" (aka Planet 0259-S) to find the Infinity Stones, but only discover that Thanos has destroyed them. Thor kills Thanos and the group leaves, seemingly defeated. 

Clint Barton/Hawkeye* and Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow* - During the 2023 "Time Heist", Barton and Romanoff travel first to Morag, to drop off another team, and then continue to Vormir to retrieve the Soul Stone. 

James Rhodes/War Machine* - During the 2023 "Time Heist", Rhodes travels to Morag with Barton, Romanoff and Nebula to retrieve the Power Stone.

Steve Rogers/Captain America* - After the Battle of Earth and the defeat of Thanos, Rogers travels to Morag, Vormir, and Asgard to return the Power, Soul and Reality stones. 


Kamala Khan and Monica Rambeau - After the Blip, when Supremor Dar-Benn disrupts the jump points, Rambeau switches places with Danvers and winds up on MB-418. Later all three of them travel to Tarnax IV and Aladna,  

But wait, there's more. Characters listed with an asterisk by their name are also time travelers, meaning there are six earthlings who have both travelled to another planet and travelled through time, of which four are still alive at the end of Endgame.

Some superlatives - Danvers and Quill obviously have been to the most planets of any earthlings and spent the most time in space (not counting the centuries spent on Maveth by Alveus), but we don't know which has been to more places. Quill had spent more time in space up until the snap, but it's likely Danvers beat him out by the time of the blip.  

Of the time traveling earthlings, Rogers went to the most planets - four, and Banner spent the most time in space/another planet (up to 3 years). Rogers also did the most time traveling. It seems that Barton spent the least amount of time on another planet.

In the movies Romanoff is the first (and only so far) human to die on another planet. But it was one of Hive's unnamed victims that holds that honor if we count that show.

So yeah, this post is stupid, but hopefully fun.