Marvel News & Notes

I haven't commented on the confirmation (almost a month ago) from Feige that Fantastic Four was on its way from director Jon Watts (who, presumably, will leave the Spider-Man franchise in order to do so). I'm not completely sold on Watts, because I thought Far From Home was a step down from Homecoming, but the former isn't bad by any means. I hadn't commented on it because we knew the film was coming in November, so the only news was the director. I'd heard the prediction that Watts would direct Fantastic Four before, but I can't find it in my archive, which likely means the prediction came from a source I don't typically take seriously (even Google couldn't resolve it). In terms of the scoopers, when Watts came up, it was usually in a Nova context (from Sutton in particular). Until we know about what kind of film this will be, there's not much to say about it.

An initial toy leak for The Eternals had an interesting connotation:

Gentle, charismatic and exemplary, Ikaris, in addition to flying, has super strength and casts rays of cosmic energy through his eyes. Gilgamesh, the strongest and kindest of the Eternals, and Thena became a couple after certain events in the past separated them from the other Eternals

This was followed by a much more comprehensive description from t-shirt company Redwolf:

Ikaris is the tactical leader and most powerful Eternal and takes pride in keeping the other Eternals safe. Moral, kind and charismatic, Ikaris boasts the power of incredible strength, flight and the ability to project beams of intense cosmic energy from his eyes. When the monstrous Deviants return after centuries, Ikaris leads the charge to unite the scattered Eternals to stop the new threat.

Sersi is the Eternal with an affinity for humanity. Sersi is as happy working as a museum curator as she is saving humans from the threat of the Deviants. Sersi has the ability to manipulate matter, changing the makeup of any non-sentient material she touches. She's also been in love with Ikaris for centuries, and helps him to recruit the Eternals for one last mission.

Ajak is the spiritual leader of the Eternals. Her wisdom has helped guide the team since they arrived here from their home planet to help defend humanity from the Deviants and to help humans advance to the modern civilization that they live in today. Ajak can not only heal humans and Eternals alike, but she is able to communicate with the Celestials as well.

Phastos is blessed with the power of invention. He is able to create whatever he can imagine provided that he has enough raw materials at his disposal. Over the centuries, Phastos has helped nudge humanity forward technologically while always keeping his brilliance hidden in the shadows.

Makkari is the fastest woman in the universe. She uses her cosmically powered super-speed to scout planets for the Eternals, and as the only deaf Eternal, the sonic boom that accompanies her cosmic running does not affect her.

Druig can use cosmic energy to control the minds of men. Druig has become withdrawn from the other Eternals because he disagrees with how they've interacted with mankind over the centuries. Aloof and powerful, at times it's hard to determine whether he's friend of foe.

Gilgamesh is the strongest and kindest member of the team. He becomes Thena's de facto partner when the events of the past exile them from the rest of the team. Capable of projecting a powerful exoskeleton of cosmic energy, Gilgamesh is a fierce warrior who has become legendary for his fights with Deviants throughout history.

Thena, a fierce warrior more comfortable in battle than any other place, she has the ability to use cosmic energy to form any handheld weapon she can think of. Often surly and aloof, she forges an unlikely friendship with Gilgamesh that spans centuries.

Kingo is the Eternal with the power to project cosmic energy projectiles with his hands. Over the centuries, he has become enamored with the idea of fame. In present day, he's a famous Bollywood star who must leave his life of wealth and celebrity to help the team repel the new Deviant threat.

And finally, there Sprite - who appears to be a 12-year old girl, Sprite has the ability to cast lifelike illusions. Her friendship with Sersi hides a world-weary sadness because she's been treated like a child by humanity for centuries. But Sprite is much stronger and cleverer than she appears, which will come in handy as while they battle with the Deviants.

What's interesting about the first leak is that we'd had no hint of a relationship between Gilgamesh and Thena, but the Redwolf descriptions make it clear this is simply a friendship. Otherwise there's not much to glean from this, outside of no mention of Black Knight and confirmation that we're getting the monstrous iteration of the Deviants. I'm concerned with the idea of the Eternals helping humans advance their civilization--I'm not a fan of taking historical invention and advancement and saying some imagined being was responsible. We also run into the Wonder Woman problem where we'll be wondering why the Eternals have ignored various calamities throughout human history (if, as implied, they are so involved with its development). I suspect the MCU will explain that away rather than ignore it, but it does need to be addressed.

In light of these leaks, K. C. Walsh (GWW) says he heard the Deviants are shapeshifters (which seems redundant given the Skrulls, but maybe they will be the ones responsible for Secret Invasion), and that the Celestials are the MacGuffin the Eternals are sworn to protect.

Carlos, a self-proclaimed scooper I've never heard of, says Agnes (ie, Agatha Harkness) and Nightmare are the villains of WandaVision. This is an old rumour and without anything further it's hard to put much stock into it.

Sutton echoes a Lauder report that:

[Keanu Reeves] undisclosed role is for "a series involving Ghost Rider." Last week I leaked that a Ghost Rider TV program was once again being discussed for Disney+, this time part of a planned merger with Hulu. Reeves as Ghost Rider, namely the '70s Johnny Blaze incarnation, would no doubt set the Internet aflame.

It's important to note that Sutton is speculating that Reeves is Ghost Rider, not Lauder. I've heard this idea before, but not from any of the usual suspects. The last time Sutton addressed Reeves in the MCU was in July when he said nothing had been decided about what role he would play.

Speaking of Lauder, he also claims Marvel is in talks with Jon Bernthal to return as the Punisher. This idea isn't unique to Lauder, although I believe this is the first time someone has claimed talks have occurred (the rights to the character won't return to Marvel until late January, so grains of salt required). I've gone over my own issues with bringing back the Netflix characters (the uneven quality mixed with the inchoate continuity), however, if we see Charlie Cox back then Marvel could go back to the well (assuming these aren't just memberberry cameos). The easiest way to avoid the aforementioned issues would be to make the characters different iterations via the Multiverse.

Daniel claims RDJ is being sought for a flashback or AI voice for Armor Wars. I can understand the MCU wanting him to do it, but will he? It's unclear. One of the major issues with RDJ, besides his level of interests, is his cost. It'll be interesting to see what happens.

Daniel also claims Young Avengers will have the biggest Disney+ budget--as a team-film it's hard to imagine anything else. It's going to be interesting to see what (if anything) will change her if the response to the various parts of the team is underwhelming beforehand (imagine if, for instance, Ms. Marvel is poorly received).

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)