Marvel Royally Screwed Over an MCU Villain That Even Thanos Respected

Regardless of the tricks Doctor Doom might play in ‘Avengers: Doomsday’, it’s challenging to imagine anything surpassing Thanos’ feats in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Thanos embarked on an extraordinary journey, amassing all Infinity Stones and decimating half of existence. Admittedly, he didn’t meet a heroic end, having his head severed by Thor, but his character leaves a lasting impact due to giving the Avengers a tough fight during the Battle of Earth. Despite feeling frustrated about his efforts being undone, Thanos displayed respect towards the MCU heroes, even allowing Captain America time to regroup before launching a full-scale attack with his forces.

Thanos, the Mad Titan, isn’t just fond of the ‘good guys’. He delegates important tasks to his team, such as the Black Order, who are assigned to retrieve the Infinity Stones on Earth – a job that he was capable of handling himself. However, there’s another MCU antagonist who shares a closer bond with Thanos, and the franchise seems to underrepresent them significantly.

Thanos Had A Partner in Crime During the MCU’s Early Days

In the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), Thanos subtly influences events even before his physical appearance. After Loki abandons Asgard at the end of Thor, he traverses the universe and encounters the Other, a mysterious entity. The Other supplies Loki with tools to conquer, including the Mind Stone’s spectral guardian and the Chitauri army. It is evident that the Other works for someone else, but Loki’s benefactor proves formidable enough to inflict great pain on Asgard merely by touching Loki’s head and making credible threats. Unfortunately, Loki fails to conquer Earth and loses the Tesseract, which angers the Other. However, Thanos views this as a promising chance, since there are now beings in the galaxy who could potentially pose a threat to him.

A few years pass, and Thanos assigns Ronan the Accuser the mission of obtaining the Power Stone. Unfortunately for Ronan, things don’t go smoothly as planned when Gamora – Thanos’ daughter – double-crosses him and snatches the gem. Later, The Other summons Ronan to confront Thanos, and their dispute escalates quickly when Ronan loses his temper and strangulates The Other, resulting in an immediate death. Although it doesn’t phase Thanos that his ally is gone, given his disregard for many things aside from his objective of preventing the galaxy from meeting the same fate as Titan, it’s still unfortunate that The Other didn’t survive to witness the reality that Thanos ultimately creates.

The Other Doesn’t Get to Witness Thanos’ Victory

Following Ronan’s fatal blow to the Other, Thanos remains seated on his throne, showing no signs of action. It isn’t until Earth’s strongest champions seize the Mind Stone that he stirs and prepares for conquest. His first stop is Xandar, where the Nova Corps are guarding the Power Stone, which he destroys ruthlessly. However, this event transpires off-camera, with Thanos not making his on-screen debut until Avengers: Infinity War. The Mad Titan swiftly defeats Thor and the Asgardians, acquires another Infinity Stone, and delegates the rest to his offspring. Initially, they falter, losing against Steve Rogers’ Secret Avengers and New York’s heroes. But before the Battle of Wakanda, they regroup, ready for their next challenge.

It would’ve been beneficial to have the Other with us then, as he never passed up a chance to reprimand those who let Thanos down. Sadly, he merely becomes a mere reference due to Marvel Cinematic Universe’s focus on recent accomplishments. The Mad Titan neglects to acknowledge his former companion and fails to even mention him as he approaches his objective – snapping with the Infinity Gauntlet. If the Other had stayed, he might have perished alongside the Black Order, but he would have gladly fought till the end if it meant fulfilling his duty.

The Avengers is streaming on Disney+.

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2025-07-23 02:11