Yes, Captain Marvel Does Need the Avengers to Beat Thanos in Endgame

WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Captain Marvel, in theaters now.

When Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige indicated Brie Larson's Carol Danvers wouldn't just be the new face of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, she'd also be the strongest person in it, fans were a bit skeptical as to how this would happen. But Captain Marvel succinctly showed why this is the case after revealing Carol is basically a living extension of the Tesseract/Space Stone.

With that in mind, and given the powers we saw her unleash in her first solo outing, it leaves us wondering why exactly Carol would need the Avengers if she alone can take out Thanos in battle.

Captain Marvel was touted as Marvel Studios' equalizer to the Mad Titan in the wake of Avengers: Infinity War, especially as it got closer to her release date. And watching her in action in the final act of the film really cements why she's such a powerhouse.

She harnesses the energy of the Tesseract via her photon blasts, acts as a one-woman army when she blasts through Ronan's Kree armada in space and she's more or less a cosmic god on par with Superman when the final scene depicts her in orbit without a breathing apparatus, ushering the Skrulls across the vast reaches of the cosmos.

What really makes her a heavy-hitter, though, is in the Captain Marvel post-credits when she simply teleports from across the galaxy to meet the Avengers on Earth, indicating she has mastered everything the Space Stone has to offer.

With all these abilities integrated into just one hero, what's the reason for having folks like Thor or Hulk on board? The addition of such power players like Carol is a familiar issue we often see in superhero comics. An overpowered hero joins the rest of the team, which comes off a bit unnecessary: Superman with the Justice League, Thor and Doctor Strange with the Avengers and so on.

But in the case of Avengers: Endgame, given what we've witnessed from Carol thus far, she alone should be enough to save the universe at first glance. But we know this was never an option because it's not Captain Marvel 2, after all.

Admittedly, her presence makes it a bit tricky for the Russo brothers, as Earth's Mightiest Heroes and whatever remains of the Guardians of the Galaxy do appear to have a big advantage with her on their team. But that's just on the surface level when you consider a leader needs soldiers alongside them for more than just hitting their opponents.

NEXT PAGE: Thanos Has Brawn, But His Greatest Asset is His Brain

Remember, Thor already has Stormbreaker and he would have surely killed Thanos in Wakanda if not for his arrogance. Taking that into account, it's apparent his presence alone is enough to turn the tide. Captain Marvel coming in as a glass-breaking contingency plan Nick Fury cooked up may seem like overkill and skew favor back toward the heroes in a big way.

But, as was the case in Infinity War, Thanos isn't just about brawn, he's about brain, too. This is why Carol will need the Avengers, especially because we don't know if she's taken on enemies on the Mad Titan's level since her exodus from Earth in the '90s. Not to mention, as a soldier, she knows better than anyone that you need to know your enemy intimately, something Jude Law's Yon-Rogg instilled in her.

It's worth noting that Thanos also has the other Infinity Stones in his damaged gauntlet that he might be able to tap into, even if just a little. Changing reality is a whole different ball game compared to being a walking bomb like Carol.

She'll need Thor's might to help her out if Thanos can work the Power Stone, and maybe even use the Odinson as a distraction or as part of a one-two knockout punch. Tony Stark's genius would be essential in figuring out how to undo the Decimation, which dives deep into the space-time continuum, the Quantum Realm or time travel.

Honestly, all of these feats are out of Carol's league. Last but not least, just as Agent Coulson, Fury and her friends back home inspired her before, Carol will need the heart of Steve Rogers when the going gets tough. He motivates like no other and represents the purest symbol of what it means to be a hero and a leader. Undoubtedly, she'll need to learn from him to accept the torch being passed.

Sure, she's got energy-powered fists and is a more physical threat than the Hulk, but Captain Marvel isn't that dumb Mary Sue cliche trolls love throwing around, where she's the answer to everything. Carol works, adapts and overcomes, drawing spiritual guidance externally from those around her, and that's why she's gone higher, further and faster. With warriors, soldiers, scientists and brilliant tacticians alongside her, learning from their mistakes and picking up their strengths will help her take up the baton of the MCU.

We can agree she'll have to dig deep to defeat Thanos, because as seen when he was fighting on Titan and in Wakanda, it really does take a true team effort to topple him. You can have a Hulk, a Thor or the Tesseract personified in Carol, but eventually brute strength and intelligence from different personalities will be required to end his galactic tyranny, not just one hero alone.

Directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, Captain Marvel stars Brie Larson as Carol Danvers, Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, Jude Law as the commander of Starforce, Clark Gregg as Phil Coulson, Lee Pace as Ronan the Accuser, Djimon Hounsou as Korath the Pursuer, Gemma Chan as Minn-Erva, Ben Mendelsohn as Talos, Lashana Lynch as Maria Rambeau, Algenis Perez Soto as Att-Lass, McKenna Grace as a young Carol Danvers and Annette Bening as the Supreme Intelligence.

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Does Captain Marvel Even Need the Avengers to Defeat Thanos in Endgame?

NEXT PAGE: Thanos Has Brawn, But His Greatest Asset is His Brain