10 Surprising Details In The MCU That Marvel Never Talked About Enough

Some of the most interesting details in the world of the Marvel Cinematic Universe haven’t been given enough attention by Marvel Studios. Marvel’s world-building since the dawn of the MCU in 2008’s Iron Man has been outstanding, as the version of the world in the MCU, dubbed Earth-616, is incredibly believable and as close to real life as it can be when inhabited by all manner of superpowered beings. Marvel Studios has fleshed out an entire history for the MCU, which includes some interesting facts and surprising details.

Over the last 17 years, Marvel Studios has crafted a vibrant and complex world, and interwoven its adapted characters through every fiber of it. The world of the MCU is, of course, wildly different and far removed from the real world, so while many historical events are the same in both, in the MCU, they come with a twist. New historical events in the MCU also have an impact on the franchise’s modern-day stories, creating a fabricated history and timeline that deserves to be investigated further in the MCU’s upcoming projects.

10

Loki Is D. B. Cooper

Loki Season 1 (2021)

The premiere of Multiverse Saga series, Loki, saw Mobius recount the major events in Loki’s life prior to his escape from the Avengers during Endgame’s Time Heist. One of these events revealed Loki as the enigmatic D. B. Cooper, which was a hilarious and brilliant detail to include in the Phase 4 series. D. B. Cooper is a real unidentified man who hijacked Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 305 in November 1971, demanding $200,000 and four parachutes. To this day, Cooper’s identity has never been uncovered, presenting the perfect opportunity for Marvel to play.

Loki season 1, episode 1, “Glorious Purpose,” revealed that Loki had hijacked the airplane and stolen the ransom money after losing a bet to Thor. The Bifrost was used to remove Loki from the Earth after he jumped from the plane, explaining why D. B. Cooper was never located and identified. This was not the last time Loki explained a real world mystery with one of its variants, most notably as Casey appeared as Alcatraz escapee Frank Morris in Loki season 2, but Loki as D. B. Cooper was the most intriguing.

Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)

The Howling Commandos first appeared as Captain America’s formidable and courageous team of soldiers during World War II in Captain America: The First Avenger. This original team comprised Steve Rogers, Bucky Barnes, Dum Dum Dugan, Jim Morita, James Montgomery Falsworth, Gabe Jones and Jacques Dernier, and the prominence of the Howling Commandos in the MCU has had a lasting impact. Most notably, Jim Morita actor Kenneth Choi appears as the Howling Commandos member’s grandson in Spider-Man: Homecoming.

Known only as Morita, Kenneth Choi portrays the principal of Midtown School of Science and Technology in Spider-Man: Homecoming. In his office, memorabilia from World War II and a picture of his grandfather can be seen. More connections like this should be established in the MCU, as this is currently the only instance something such as this has happened in the MCU’s main timeline. Agents of SHIELD did reveal that Antoine Triplett’s grandfather was also a Howling Commando, perhaps Gabe Jones or Agent Carter’s Happy Sam Sawyer, but Agents of SHIELD is not considered canon to the MCU.

8

Kate Bishop Destroyed Stane Tower In Hawkeye

Hawkeye (2021)

Hailee Steinfeld’s debut as Kate Bishop in 2021’s Hawkeye was very exciting, as it set up the next chapter for the Hawkeye mantle in the MCU. Hawkeye established many connections to the MCU’s history, but the first was seen in the name of the clock tower that Kate inadvertently destroys while performing a dare to her college friends. By firing an arrow at the bell inside, Kate destroys Stane Tower, a landmark named after none other than original MCU villain Iron Monger, a.k.a. Obadiah Stane.

Stane Tower was the oldest university bell tower in the United States, originally completed in 1725 and rededicated to Obadiah Stane in 2006, two years before the events of Iron Man. At that time, Obadiah Stane was a well-respected man, having been the interim CEO of Stark Industries before becoming Tony Stark’s second-in-command. The destruction of Stane Tower underlined Obadiah Stane’s own downfall several years prior, and was a fun callback to the MCU’s history in Phase 4’s Hawkeye series.

7

Jim Hammond’s Human Torch Exists In The MCU

Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)

One of the most exciting additions to the MCU back in Phase 1 has actually never been addressed since. 2011’s Captain America: The First Avenger debuted the Human Torch in the MCU, but not Joseph Quinn’s Johnny Storm, rather the original Human Torch android from Marvel Comics making his live-action debut. The Human Torch android was the first character ever featured in Marvel Comics, making his first appearance in 1939’s Marvel Comics #1, and he saw massive developments in the years since, eventually adopting the human name James “Jim” Hammond.

The Human Torch android appears as an exhibit at the World Exposition of Tomorrow in Captain America: The First Avenger, where Howard Stark first presents his prototype technology for a flying car. He is renamed the “Synthetic Man” for this appearance, perhaps because 20th Century Fox owned the film rights to the Human Torch title in 2011. Nevertheless, the appearance of the android may have confirmed the existence of Phineas Horton and teased Victor Timely’s debut a decade early, so deserves more development in the MCU’s present day.

6

The Hand Caused The Chernobyl Disaster

The Defenders (2017)

The Hand was introduced as an ancient and powerful organization who posed a threat throughout Marvel Television’s Defenders Saga. Its leaders stayed young by ingesting a substance taken from the bones of deceased dragons, a technique they learned while residing in the mystical city of K’un-Lun. This allowed them to live through many eras of the Earth’s history, and, in some cases, even make their own impact on these periods. In The Defenders episode 4, “Royal Dragon,” Stick reveals that the Hand was responsible for several major tragedies, including the destruction of Pompeii and the Chernobyl disaster.

In the world of the MCU, the Hand destroyed these sites because they had dragon skeletons buried beneath them. This was a fantastic way to tie some major calamities in the real world into the sometimes-outlandish mythology of the MCU, and also elevated the Hand as a formidable and seemingly unstoppable threat in The Defenders. Since the Defenders Saga is now canon to the MCU, it’s possible that the Hand’s history could be explored further, perhaps even revealing the organization to be the cause of even more disasters.

5

WHiH World News Reports On Major MCU Events

The Incredible Hulk (2008) Onwards

First seen during the battle at Culver University in 2008’s The Incredible Hulk, WHiH World News is the most popular in-universe news station in the world of the MCU, having reported on a great many events over the entire history of the MCU. WHiH has never been the focus of a story in the MCU’s mainstream media, but has reported on events including HYDRA’s uprising, the war in Sokovia, and the Battle of New York. WHiH was also the subject of WHiH Newsfront, a webseries released prior to Ant-Man and Captain America: Civil War​​​​​​​.

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Falcon & Winter Soldier Used An Ongoing MCU Continuity Trick

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier brings back its in-universe media outlet, WHIH, effectively establishing continuity throughout its four phases.

It makes sense that the world of the MCU has its own news station, but it’s a shame that WHiH World News, primarily helmed by reporter Christine Everhart, hasn’t seen more attention in the MCU. WHiH would make the perfect subject of a grounded, street-level Disney+ series focused on the reporters of the MCU, but WHiH has only made brief appearances throughout the franchise. With more focus being given to the MCU’s street-level stories in Daredevil: Born Again and beyond, WHiH could have a much more prominent presence.

4

The Winter Soldier Assassinated JFK

Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)

Pretty much every superhero franchise has put a twist on the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in 1963. In the DCEU, the Daily Planet reported on JFK’s death soon after it occurred, in Fox’s X-Men franchise, Magneto tried to save the mutant Kennedy, explaining the bullet turning in the air, and the MCU even has its own explanation. Arnim Zola revealed to Steve Rogers and Natasha Romanoff in Captain America: The Winter Soldier that Bucky Barnes’ Winter Soldier himself had killed JFK on the orders of HYDRA and the Soviet Union.

JFK’s assassination is such a milestone moment in real world history that it makes sense superhero franchises would put relevant spins on this heinous act. In the MCU, this cemented just how brutal and brainwashed Bucky Barnes had been as the Winter Soldier, and demonstrated the power and influence that HYDRA had throughout history. This detail was only shown in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment, however, though it would be great to see what other world events the Winter Soldier was involved with in the MCU’s past.

3

Tønsberg Has Always Been Important To The Asgardians

Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)

Avengers: Endgame revealed that the Asgardian refugees had made the Norwegian town of Tønsberg their new home, setting it up as New Asgard following the destruction of Asgard at the hands of Surtur in Thor: Ragnarok. This wasn’t the first time Tønsberg had been seen in the MCU, however, as this was, most notably, the site of Odin’s death in Ragnarok. This is perhaps why Thor chose Tønsberg as the site of New Asgard, given his strong relationship with his father, but the town has deeper significance in Asgardian history.

Centuries prior, the Frost Giants of Jotunheim waged war on humanity after arriving in Tønsberg and freezing everything in sight with the Casket of Ancient Winters. Odin, aided by the Eternals, fought them off, and perhaps grew an affinity for the town. In Captain America: The First Avenger, Johann Schmidt searched for the fabled Tesseract, and tracked the Infinity Stone to a church in Tønsberg. The Church Keeper died protecting the Tesseract, which was hidden behind a mural of Yggdrasil, the World’s Tree from Asgardian mythology.

2

Phastos’ Interference Led To The Creation Of The Atomic Bomb

Eternals (2021)

Although divisive, Eternals is one of the MCU’s most ambitious and expansive projects ever, detailing several previously-unseen events in the MCU’s history, such as the establishment of the city of Babylon, the height of the Gupta Empire in India, the fall of Aztec capital city of Tenochtitlan and, in 1945, the bombing of Hiroshima. In Eternals, it was Brian Tyree Henry’s Phastos who blamed himself for this world-changing event, and he was right. Phastos is the master of invention, and his interference in human progress no doubt culminated in the atomic bomb being developed.

Eternals’ exploration of key moments in the MCU’s history was incredible to see, not least because it fleshed out thousands of years worth of history that had never before been touched. It would be great to see even more of this exploration in future MCU projects, perhaps even follow-ups to Eternals now that the movie has been receiving more retrospective admiration. Who knows what other major real world events have been caused or impacted by the interference of the Eternals throughout history.

1

The Pym Van Dyne Foundation Solved World Hunger

Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania (2023)

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Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania might be one of the MCU’s lowest-rated projects, but the Phase 5 sequel did include one major event that seems to have been completely forgotten in the MCU in the years since. After taking over Pym Technologies following the Blip and the repealing of the Sokovia Accords, Hope Van Dyne set to work on using Pym Particles for good. She transformed Pym Tech into the Pym Van Dyne Foundation, and used Pym Particles to enact real world change, including restoring forests, creating affordable housing and increasing food production.

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Effectively, Hope Van Dyne singlehandedly fought to bring about world peace, which isn’t such a tall order when she has an unlimited supply of Pym Particles at her disposal. An ad for Pym Van Dyne appeared in the new trailer for Daredevil: Born Again, so it’s possible the Foundation could be revisited in the MCU, even though Evangeline Lilly has now retired from acting. The Pym Van Dyne Foundation is one of the most promising and transformative organizations newly-introduced to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and deserves far more than just a throwaway line in one of Marvel’s most-hated movies.

Marvel Cinematic Universe

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is a multimedia superhero franchise that began in 2008 with Paramount’s Iron Man starring Robert Downey Jr. The franchise quickly grew in popularity, with Disney eventually buying out Marvel Entertainment in 2009. The MCU consists of dozens of movies and TV shows, most notably Avengers: Endgame, WandaVision, and Loki.

Upcoming MCU Movies