Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania has fully brought Kang the Conquerer to the MCU after his variant debuted in Loki. The antagonist is a foe who’s positioned in the same role that Thanos had during the Infinity Saga. As the overarching villain of the Multiverse Saga, Kang has all the makings of a scary enemy.
Thanos’s MCU legacy remains intact, but he might just be given a run for his money by Kang. The latter’s reach extends further and is set up to battle all the heroes in Avengers: The Kang Dynasty. As a result, the villain’s potential should be stacked up to see what makes him so dangerous.
10 Kang Can Harm People Without Contact
The slaying of Kang has to Ant-Man’s biggest accomplishment in the MCU since the former had so many powers. Unlike Thanos, who relied exclusively on hand-to-hand and melee combat, Kang is capable of harming people from a safe distance.
Kang can use telekinesis and projectiles to savage foes from afar. This means that Kang doesn’t have to engage an enemy since he can just use his ranged attacks against them. Thanos could be outrun, but Kang is someone who can freeze people’s bodies with a single thought.
9 Kang's Variants Are On The Same Page
Thanos never met any of his variants but wasn’t the type to team up with anyone else either. Meanwhile, Kang’s variants are shown planning their multiversal rampage at the end of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. The heroes had to only contend with two Thanos variants, while they’ll have to battle more than several Kangs.
It’s a scary prospect for the MCU heroes, who aren’t even a team at this point, to go up against versions of the same villain. Kang’s variants possess unique abilities that are already significant on their own, but they’ll be uniting these powers for their conquest.
8 Kang Already Defeated Multiple Iterations Of The Avengers
Thanos defeated the Avengers with relative ease, but that was mainly because they didn’t know he was coming. Kang also has a similar advantage, yet he’s already defeated multiple Avengers. He’s killed so many that Kang had to ask Ant-Man specifics to identify which versions he’d slain.
Thanos avoided engaging the Avengers after Loki’s failed invasion, while Kang wants the opportunity to defeat the Sacred Timeline Avengers. Kang has a reputation that precedes him, which seems to be well out of the Avengers’ reach when all the villain’s feats are taken into consideration.
7 Kang Has Infinite Knowledge Of The Multiverse
Fans were introduced to Kang’s variants through He Who Remains in Loki. The character warned that his counterparts are much more dangerous than anyone can comprehend. This is due to their knowledge of the multiverse, which grants them access to unlimited resources.
Thanos either didn’t know about the multiverse or didn’t care since his goal was to only eradicate the universe of half of all life. Kang has seen it all in the vastness of multiple universes, which makes Thanos’s mission seem minuscule in comparison. As seen in several MCU works, every reality has different characteristics – Kang can hone all of these.
6 Kang Has No Weakness For Love Or Mercy
Thanos was a warlord, but he wasn’t devoid of love. Kang genuinely did love Gamora as his daughter, while he also respected the heroes enough to spare many of them. Kang hasn’t displayed any level of attachment toward anyone but himself, meaning he has nothing that can be used against him.
Kang doesn’t have any mercy or compassion within either, as seen when he decided to kill Ant-Man’s daughter when he didn’t need to. He’s not someone who cares about wisdom or the value of life as Thanos did, possessing a Machiavellian need for dominance.
5 Kang's Intentions Are Complicated
Thanos’s mission ended after he completed the Snap because he never had intentions of domination. While Thanos did bring worlds to ruin, it was simply to cull half of their population. Kang’s plans are more complicated because there isn’t just one of him.
The Council of Kangs all have different thoughts and personalities, which means their goals far exceed invasions. The Kang from Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania wanted to dominate everything there ever has been, which is terrifying considering there are so many realities out there. Kang’s large-scale evil plans are such that every person in the multiverse is under threat.
4 Kang Is A Threat After Death
Scott is right to be scared of Kang’s return at the end of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. That’s because a past version of the antagonist could very well appear. Kang revealed that his life hasn’t been linear, and he’s been to the past and future.
Thanos appeared after his slaying, but that was a variant from a different reality. Kang could very well be the same one that Ant-Man interacted with, back from some time in his timeline. This means that even killing Kang doesn’t entail his erasure, so the heroes can never be at peace.
3 Kang Is A Genius
Thanos relied on his underlings like Ebony Maw to deal with the science aspect of things. While Thanos was a charismatic figure with leadership skills and a sharp mind, he wasn’t a genius. Meanwhile, Kang does possess a superior intellect that enabled him to harness the power of the Quantum Realm.
Kang doesn’t have intrinsic levels of durability like Thanos, but he’s crafted tech with such power that he’s essentially superhuman. Variants like He Who Remains ended up creating the entire TVA to control the universe, while all of them together can navigate the multiverse.
2 Kang Plays The Victim
Thanos’s intimidation factor is obvious because of his massive frame and cold personality. This makes a surefire threat, but not one who can manipulate people for clandestine operations. Kang is someone who can play the innocent role long enough to further his own goals.
He was able to fool Janet Van Dyne to trust him, which allowed Kang to repair his machine to escape the Quantum Realm. The He Who Remains variant was also amiable and friendly in conversation, yet it was impossible to tell if he had malicious plans in store. This uncertainty around him brings a different level of intimidation altogether.
1 Kang Is Impossible To Predict
Kang doesn’t have an objective that’s clear-cut like Thanos, who posed no harm once he had eradicated half of his targets. Kang can’t be predicated because there isn’t one of him – his variants alter plans to fit their needs, making him a foe who’s constantly evolving.
Kang also lacks the moral code that Thanos abided by; he will dispose of a person once they stop being useful. While Kang promised he wouldn’t harm Janet’s reality, it was proved that his word didn’t mean a thing when he reneged on his deal with Ant-Man. The combination of so many variants who are willing to unleash their wrath is a grim reality the heroes will have to face.