MCU: Your Thoughts About The Infinity Stones (SPOILERS INSIDE)

[metaphysician]

Conspiracy mentality!

Exactly. If you are reduced to saying "no evidence against!", please. Step back, look at your arguments, and reconsider.

 

[DrCosmic]

Those end of credit scenes aren't meant to be taken too seriously. Apart from the Winter Soldier one.

Was the Avengers eating schwarma an important part of the narrative? Or the Jotunheim monster running around London? Or Howard the Duck showing up?

It's all just for ****s and giggles so what is the point of over analyzing it and trying to link it to the overall narrative? James Gunn said it himself "pure joy".

Nope. Loki had control of Svelwig from before Avengers 2... after credits says so!

 

[Mike Murdock]

Those end of credit scenes aren't meant to be taken too seriously. Apart from the Winter Soldier one.

Was the Avengers eating schwarma an important part of the narrative? Or the Jotunheim monster running around London? Or Howard the Duck showing up?

It's all just for ****s and giggles so what is the point of over analyzing it and trying to link it to the overall narrative? James Gunn said it himself "pure joy".

Assuming this is limited to Phase 2 (and Avengers) because, certainly, Iron Man 1, Iron Man 2, and Thor's post-credits scenes are meant to be taken seriously.

Even in Thor, you mentioned the Jotunheim monster, but Thor returning to Jane Foster was in that scene and is meant to be taken seriously.

 

[cherokeesam]

Exactly. If you are reduced to saying "no evidence against!", please. Step back, look at your arguments, and reconsider.

*steps back, looks at arguments, does not reconsider*

Hell, I'll *give* you "evidence." The "evidence" is that there's no way in the Nine Hells that Thanos would've allowed Taneleer Tivan to openly gather Infinity Stones in direct opposition to Thanos' own plans. There has to be a reason he suffers The Collector to live and "steal" Infinity Stones from him.

 

[Spider-Fan]

Likely because he doesn't deem the Collector a threat, and if he gathers them for his collection he knows that he isn't a threat to use the stones for anything. He will just have them. Makes it easier for him to go wreck his house up and steal them.

 

[Marvelocity]

The Infinity Gems could either be a gift or a curse to this franchise. They have a great opportunity to use them to tie this universe even closer, but it takes smart writing well in advance, and I'm worried we're not getting that. Half of us think Loki's scepter had the Mind Gem; half think Thanos would never let him have that. I think it's a terrible idea to introduce other methods of mind control when you have the Mind Gem for that. And they obviously had plans for the Gems prior to Avengers or they wouldn't have put Thanos in the post-credits. There's a lot of talk in general about how Thanos wouldn't allow so-and-so to touch an Infinity Gem. Well, he definitely sent two pawns after them already, so he's obviously willing to run that risk. And we haven't seen any show of power from Thanos.

As long as there are well-thought-out and delivered reasons for this, I'm cool with it. But I don't want to see another "Thor can't get return to Earth in one movie, yet one movie later he can since we don't have a clever way to write it into the plot" type of situation where they use a throwaway line to completely undermine the events of a previous film. Look, we can all say Avengers is a great movie, but having Thor just immediately show up on Earth absolutely ruined his noble sacrifice to destroy the bridge at the climax of Thor (2011). That's awful writing and Marvel should do better.

 

[Mike Murdock]

Do we even know Loki told them to deliver the Infinity Stone to the Collector? Maybe it was one the last acts of Odin before he was replaced.

 

[Hyde]

*steps back, looks at arguments, does not reconsider*

Hell, I'll *give* you "evidence." The "evidence" is that there's no way in the Nine Hells that Thanos would've allowed Taneleer Tivan to openly gather Infinity Stones in direct opposition to Thanos' own plans. There has to be a reason he suffers The Collector to live and "steal" Infinity Stones from him.

Holy ****, right.

You are a big intergalactic genocidal maniac terrorist. You are insanely powerful and influential and pretty much everyone in the universe is absolutely terrified of you and the amount of power you wield. Unbeknownst to the majority of them, you're currently planning to collect and wield six enormously powerful items called 'Infinity Stones,' which only a handful of people know exist who in turn understand the immense danger we could all be in if they were collected in one place. Eons ago, someone understood this and locked them in some kind of shell or casing (except the Aether) and hid them away across the universe so that they would never trouble anyone ago. My personal opinion is that this was the work of ancient Asgardians.

We have seen two examples now of you using pawns to achieve these Stones, and both times they have failed. Or have they? Why are you bothering using others to get what you want when you can just do it yourself?

It seems a lot of your thoughts on the matter on Thanos and the Infinity Stones are contradictory. You question why the Collector is allowed to gather Infinity Stones, yet are a champion of the theory that Thanos wanted Loki to fail and get the Tesseract in Asgard. So, that means Thanos is allowing Loki to live and "steal" Infinity Stones from him. The idea that Thanos would want Loki to fail so the Tesseract ends up on Asgard and the idea that he's using an intergalactic David Bowie with a hoarding problem to gather the other Stones don't mesh. Why is it okay for that theory to work for Loki but not Ronan or the Collector?

He doesn't care that the Collector is trying to gather the Stones because he's arrogant and confident enough in his own abilities and plan that he won't even get close to succeeding. Your Loki theory counts on Thanos knowing he would fail and that the Tesseract would be taken to Asgard, and I agree with it. Would it be cool if he succeeded and got the Tesseract? Sure, in his book, but the plan works just as well either way.

There's also the fact that he doesn't want to draw attention to himself. All these powerful lords and gods know who he is and they know how dangerous he is. If they see that he's out collecting Infinity Stones then they'll amass all their collective power and destroy him for good. He could also be playing chessmaster just because he's arrogant, and likes to come across as smart and cunning. It could impress a certain Lady Death.

He likely also knew that Ronan would turn and keep the Orb for himself, and that's okay because now it's on Xandar. Before, he didn't know where the Infinity Stones were but now he knows where three of them are. The Collector has the Aether, Asgard holds the Tesseract and Xandar/the Nova Corps holds the Orb. He didn't need to waste time and resources searching and getting them in the first place because now he knows where three Infinity Stones are, and he didn't even ****ing do anything! By the time he has the locations of all the Stones he can gather an army, get some warships and invade each place and take the Stones easily. The Collector is an even better deal, because he wants all the Stones, not just one. If he gets his hands on two or three more Infinity Stones than Thanos has to waste even less resources picking them up. The Collector isn't exactly powerful, just knowledgeable. He doesn't command any armies or big weapons. Thanos could probably walk in there himself and take the Stones.

So, there is your reason for why Thanos is allowing the Collector to assemble the Stones.

They are not working together.

 

[metaphysician]

*steps back, looks at arguments, does not reconsider*

Hell, I'll *give* you "evidence." The "evidence" is that there's no way in the Nine Hells that Thanos would've allowed Taneleer Tivan to openly gather Infinity Stones in direct opposition to Thanos' own plans. There has to be a reason he suffers The Collector to live and "steal" Infinity Stones from him.

Has it occurred to you that Thanos is, perhaps, *not already omnipotent*? And perhaps he "allows" the Collector to gather them because *he doesn't necessarily have the resources to stop him, without dire consequences*?

 

[cherokeesam]

The Infinity Gems could either be a gift or a curse to this franchise. They have a great opportunity to use them to tie this universe even closer, but it takes smart writing well in advance, and I'm worried we're not getting that. Half of us think Loki's scepter had the Mind Gem; half think Thanos would never let him have that. I think it's a terrible idea to introduce other methods of mind control when you have the Mind Gem for that. And they obviously had plans for the Gems prior to Avengers or they wouldn't have put Thanos in the post-credits. There's a lot of talk in general about how Thanos wouldn't allow so-and-so to touch an Infinity Gem. Well, he definitely sent two pawns after them already, so he's obviously willing to run that risk. And we haven't seen any show of power from Thanos.

As long as there are well-thought-out and delivered reasons for this, I'm cool with it. But I don't want to see another "Thor can't get return to Earth in one movie, yet one movie later he can since we don't have a clever way to write it into the plot" type of situation where they use a throwaway line to completely undermine the events of a previous film. Look, we can all say Avengers is a great movie, but having Thor just immediately show up on Earth absolutely ruined his noble sacrifice to destroy the bridge at the climax of Thor (2011). That's awful writing and Marvel should do better.

Yeah, that's the problem with this whole Thanos Quest saga in the MCU --- either Thanos is brilliantly manipulating supervillains and superheroes without their knowledge, and maneuvering the Stones into one place where he can make his final bid to assemble them and harness their power; or else we're just looking at inconsistent writing from movie to movie and filmmaker to filmmaker, and the whole IG saga is going to wind up looking like a cluster**** in Avengers 3. Right now, I'm still betting on the former; that's why I keep championing theories that make Thanos look like the smartest guy in the room, instead of a complete dumbass.

Do we even know Loki told them to deliver the Infinity Stone to the Collector? Maybe it was one the last acts of Odin before he was replaced.

The order wasn't given until Asgard had secured the Aether; i.e., after Malekith's defeat. Loki appears to have replaced Odin while all that was going on. Besides, if Odin had given the order "posthumously," Loki would have caught wind of Sif and Volstagg heading off to Knowhere with it and would have stopped them. So, it's 99.9% clear that Loki had to be the one to send the Stone to Tivan.

Has it occurred to you that Thanos is, perhaps, *not already omnipotent*? And perhaps he "allows" the Collector to gather them because *he doesn't necessarily have the resources to stop him, without dire consequences*?

Tivan is a pawn broker who runs a museum on Intergalactic Vegas. It was easy enough for the Guardians to get in; it was easy enough for Carina to wreck his ****. Thanos would be able to wipe out not only Tivan, but all of Knowhere, without even breaking a sweat, if he so desired. He clearly does not so desire. And that is passing strange, considering that Tivan is, on paper, stealing Thanos' thunder, quite literally. That would only make sense if Tivan is either a pawn or a servant of Thanos.

 

[Loki882]

Or Thanos is waiting for all SIX stones to be found (since they were clearly hidden) so he'll know they're locations. Then he'll just attack those places and steal them. And if the Collector can get his hands on most of them, then it's even easier since Thanos would only have to attack one place. He basically just lets others do all of the hard work for him, and he swoops in a steals all of the rewards. The point is that there are any number of reasons why Thanos hasn't moved yet, without the Collector turning out to be his lackey.

 

[DrCosmic]

Yeah, that's the problem with this whole Thanos Quest saga in the MCU --- either Thanos is brilliantly manipulating supervillains and superheroes without their knowledge, and maneuvering the Stones into one place where he can make his final bid to assemble them and harness their power; or else we're just looking at inconsistent writing from movie to movie and filmmaker to filmmaker, and the whole IG saga is going to wind up looking like a cluster**** in Avengers 3. Right now, I'm still betting on the former; that's why I keep championing theories that make Thanos look like the smartest guy in the room, instead of a complete dumbass.



The order wasn't given until Asgard had secured the Aether; i.e., after Malekith's defeat. Loki appears to have replaced Odin while all that was going on. Besides, if Odin had given the order "posthumously," Loki would have caught wind of Sif and Volstagg heading off to Knowhere with it and would have stopped them. So, it's 99.9% clear that Loki had to be the one to send the Stone to Tivan.



Tivan is a pawn broker who runs a museum on Intergalactic Vegas. It was easy enough for the Guardians to get in; it was easy enough for Carina to wreck his ****. Thanos would be able to wipe out not only Tivan, but all of Knowhere, without even breaking a sweat, if he so desired. He clearly does not so desire. And that is passing strange, considering that Tivan is, on paper, stealing Thanos' thunder, quite literally. That would only make sense if Tivan is either a pawn or a servant of Thanos.

That's a lot of work to naysay Avengers 3 before it's even written. The villains have limits. Loki has to keep cover and Thanos can't fight everyone right now. There's different ways to tell the story. You're overcomplicating it, imho.

 

[Mike Murdock]

The order wasn't given until Asgard had secured the Aether; i.e., after Malekith's defeat. Loki appears to have replaced Odin while all that was going on. Besides, if Odin had given the order "posthumously," Loki would have caught wind of Sif and Volstagg heading off to Knowhere with it and would have stopped them. So, it's 99.9% clear that Loki had to be the one to send the Stone to Tivan.

"Appears to" is blatant speculation. All we know is that Loki had the form of Odin when he talked to Thor (hell, technically, we don't know that he's replaced Odin, just that Odin wasn't physically in the same room when Loki spoke to Thor. However, I agree that it is likely he did). We know this occurred after Malekith was defeated, but we don't know how long after Thor spoke to Loki. We don't know if this was before or after Sif and Volstagg departed to Knowhere, if Loki had the capacity to call them after they departed, if Loki could have stopped them (had he caught wind of their plan) without blowing his cover, if Odin even told them to give the Aether to the Collector, or if Loki is still working for Thanos and would prefer it reach Thanos. In short, there's just too much we simply don't know to dismiss alternate explanations out of hand.

Regarding the last point, Loki's deal was seemingly in exchange for an army so he could rule Earth. If Loki had taken over Asgard, he wouldn't need Thanos because he would have gotten something better.

 

[Hyde]

Ignoring my length response to you because it rebuttled all of your points. Sigh.

 

[cherokeesam]

Or Thanos is waiting for all SIX stones to be found (since they were clearly hidden) so he'll know they're locations. Then he'll just attack those places and steal them.

He already knew the location of the Tesseract on Earth at the JDEM/SHIELD facility, and of the Power Stone on Morag. How could he possibly have known about those...? We don't know, of course, since nobody's ever explained that. But is it unreasonable to assume that Thanos has some kind of psychic connection to the Stones, which means that he probably already knows where ALL of the Stones are?

He *definitely* knows that the Power Stone is now on Xandar, and he never showed any fears or qualms about vaporizing that particular planet before. Odds are that he knows that Tivan has the Aether on Knowhere, and that the Tesseract went back to Asgard, too. Why would Thanos hesitate to attack those planets, either?

Holy ****, right.

You are a big intergalactic genocidal maniac terrorist. You are insanely powerful and influential and pretty much everyone in the universe is absolutely terrified of you and the amount of power you wield. Unbeknownst to the majority of them, you're currently planning to collect and wield six enormously powerful items called 'Infinity Stones,' which only a handful of people know exist who in turn understand the immense danger we could all be in if they were collected in one place. Eons ago, someone understood this and locked them in some kind of shell or casing (except the Aether) and hid them away across the universe so that they would never trouble anyone ago. My personal opinion is that this was the work of ancient Asgardians.

We have seen two examples now of you using pawns to achieve these Stones, and both times they have failed. Or have they? Why are you bothering using others to get what you want when you can just do it yourself?

It seems a lot of your thoughts on the matter on Thanos and the Infinity Stones are contradictory. You question why the Collector is allowed to gather Infinity Stones, yet are a champion of the theory that Thanos wanted Loki to fail and get the Tesseract in Asgard. So, that means Thanos is allowing Loki to live and "steal" Infinity Stones from him. The idea that Thanos would want Loki to fail so the Tesseract ends up on Asgard and the idea that he's using an intergalactic David Bowie with a hoarding problem to gather the other Stones don't mesh. Why is it okay for that theory to work for Loki but not Ronan or the Collector?

He doesn't care that the Collector is trying to gather the Stones because he's arrogant and confident enough in his own abilities and plan that he won't even get close to succeeding. Your Loki theory counts on Thanos knowing he would fail and that the Tesseract would be taken to Asgard, and I agree with it. Would it be cool if he succeeded and got the Tesseract? Sure, in his book, but the plan works just as well either way.

There's also the fact that he doesn't want to draw attention to himself. All these powerful lords and gods know who he is and they know how dangerous he is. If they see that he's out collecting Infinity Stones then they'll amass all their collective power and destroy him for good. He could also be playing chessmaster just because he's arrogant, and likes to come across as smart and cunning. It could impress a certain Lady Death.

He likely also knew that Ronan would turn and keep the Orb for himself, and that's okay because now it's on Xandar. Before, he didn't know where the Infinity Stones were but now he knows where three of them are. The Collector has the Aether, Asgard holds the Tesseract and Xandar/the Nova Corps holds the Orb. He didn't need to waste time and resources searching and getting them in the first place because now he knows where three Infinity Stones are, and he didn't even ****ing do anything! By the time he has the locations of all the Stones he can gather an army, get some warships and invade each place and take the Stones easily. The Collector is an even better deal, because he wants all the Stones, not just one. If he gets his hands on two or three more Infinity Stones than Thanos has to waste even less resources picking them up. The Collector isn't exactly powerful, just knowledgeable. He doesn't command any armies or big weapons. Thanos could probably walk in there himself and take the Stones.

So, there is your reason for why Thanos is allowing the Collector to assemble the Stones.

They are not working together.

No, Hyde, you didn't "rebuttle" (lol) any of my points here; I didn't address you specifically because I had already "rebuttled" your points in other posts, here and in other threads, directed at other posters.

In summary in reply to your post:

*Thanos already knows where the Stones are. He knew the Tesseract was on Earth; he knew the Power Stone was on Morag; there's a damn good chance he therefore knows where *all* of them are, since there's no evidence whatsoever that some spy or lackey is going around and finding these Stones for him. i.e.: Thanos can *sense* the Stones, and see them across the Universe.

*Thanos' power is already so vast that he should have no fear whatsoever of utterly crushing Xandar, Asgard, and Knowhere (the Stone locations we actually know about). The idea that he's "just biding his time" doesn't hold water, since he's already threatened to destroy Xandar and Asgard (to get at Loki).

*If Thanos is trying to be discreet about his Stone-hoarding fetish, he's failed miserably already, after the events of The Avengers and GOTG. Asgard sure as hell knows by now that Loki was working with Thanos (that would have been the first question in Loki's trial), and Xandar sure as hell knows he tried to get the Power Stone. Tivan sure as hell knows he's trying to gather the Stones; if The Collector is trying to do this to *keep* the Stones from Thanos (as some postulate), then would he keep this information secret, or try to enlist as much aid as possible to fight Thanos?

*The only excuses that you or anyone else can come up with for Thanos delegating authority in his Thanos Quest is that either he's (a) lazy, or (b) trusting to a fault, or (c) he's trying to keep it on the down-low (wrong: see above). (c) is just wrong, as I already outlined; and neither (a) nor (b) even remotely describe Thanos with any degree of accuracy. ALL of his henchmen fail at every turn, betray Thanos at every turn, or get killed. There is no possible reason Thanos could see delegating authority to incompetent fools as a GOOD idea.

If there's *any* justification for the way the writers have made Thanos look more like Boss Hogg from "Dukes of Hazzard" than a Mad Titan who can wipe out half the universe with a mere wave of his hand, then it has to come down to some kind of physical/magical restraint that keeps him from gathering the Stones on his own.

 

[Xrathe]

I'm not going to say it's not impossible that the staff is the mind gem, I just don't see it as likely. They could write up any fiction that explains why it has the power of mind control. Current cannon deems it unlikely as it was in the same time and place as the tesseract so it's either powered by the tesseract or not a gem altogether.

We may not get introduced to another one until phase 3 as Ant-Man And A:AoU are both heavily based in technology.

I would expect the Guardians of the Galaxy to again deal with another gem along with Adam Warlock as his closed and then open cocoon was clearly visible in The Collector's museum.

I wouldn't be surprised to see one used to bring Dr. Strange or Black Panther into the fold. Possibly even both if it's discovered a stone is on Earth during phase 3. Avengers 3 could certainly deal with Thanos' continued plan to collect the stones and him attempting to retrieve one from Earth. Would make for the perfect introduction of The Avengers to GotG. I fully expect us to run into a death and replacement in here due to a contract expiration.

Thanos doesn't really care who possesses the individual gems because he has absolutely no fear of any of them, certainly not when they are separated. Most beings cannot wield their power. Thanos' power level makes it pretty easy for him to take one by force if necessary or he would have never risked Ronan keeping the stone. Ronan keeping the stone was a mere inconvenience.

I figure we go into phase 4 where Thanos knows the location of or possesses 4 or 5 stones along with the gauntlet. At this point our heroes are actively trying to prevent him from assembling the gauntlet.

Maybe we see a fully powered up Thanos' by Avengers 4. Marvel seems to be thinking pretty long term here based off the length of the contracts newer cast members are signing.

They may even get FF4 rights back by then if we are lucky enough to have FF4 bomb, which it certainly appears to be on trajectory to do so.

Thanos strives on chaos, death, and destruction. Why would he do it easily when he gains enjoyment of seeing other beings kill themselves while he moves the chess pieces in the background?

Clearly we're at least based on the comics to an extent or we wouldn't have 6 stones, a gauntlet, or Thanos going after them all. One can only assume all of this is for the adoration of Death as was hinted at in the Avengers post credits.

 

[Hyde]

No, Hyde, you didn't "rebuttle" (lol) any of my points here; I didn't address you specifically because I had already "rebuttled" your points in other posts, here and in other threads, directed at other posters.

In summary in reply to your post:

*Thanos already knows where the Stones are. He knew the Tesseract was on Earth; he knew the Power Stone was on Morag; there's a damn good chance he therefore knows where *all* of them are, since there's no evidence whatsoever that some spy or lackey is going around and finding these Stones for him. i.e.: Thanos can *sense* the Stones, and see them across the Universe.

*Thanos' power is already so vast that he should have no fear whatsoever of utterly crushing Xandar, Asgard, and Knowhere (the Stone locations we actually know about). The idea that he's "just biding his time" doesn't hold water, since he's already threatened to destroy Xandar and Asgard (to get at Loki).

*If Thanos is trying to be discreet about his Stone-hoarding fetish, he's failed miserably already, after the events of The Avengers and GOTG. Asgard sure as hell knows by now that Loki was working with Thanos (that would have been the first question in Loki's trial), and Xandar sure as hell knows he tried to get the Power Stone. Tivan sure as hell knows he's trying to gather the Stones; if The Collector is trying to do this to *keep* the Stones from Thanos (as some postulate), then would he keep this information secret, or try to enlist as much aid as possible to fight Thanos?

*The only excuses that you or anyone else can come up with for Thanos delegating authority in his Thanos Quest is that either he's (a) lazy, or (b) trusting to a fault, or (c) he's trying to keep it on the down-low (wrong: see above). (c) is just wrong, as I already outlined; and neither (a) nor (b) even remotely describe Thanos with any degree of accuracy. ALL of his henchmen fail at every turn, betray Thanos at every turn, or get killed. There is no possible reason Thanos could see delegating authority to incompetent fools as a GOOD idea.

If there's *any* justification for the way the writers have made Thanos look more like Boss Hogg from "Dukes of Hazzard" than a Mad Titan who can wipe out half the universe with a mere wave of his hand, then it has to come down to some kind of physical/magical restraint that keeps him from gathering the Stones on his own.

1. He didn't know where the Tesseract was. At least, it didn't come across as if he did. Avengers opens with dialogue from the Other saying "The Tesseract has awakened... It is on a little world, a human world." He's TELLING Thanos where the Tesseract is. If the dialogue went, "We were right! The Cube's on Earth! Let's go, boss!" then there would be more proof that he knows where the Stones are. So far, the only evidence that he has some kind of psychic connection to the Stones is because Korath and co went to Morag immediately, and the Orb's location could have been acquired off-screen by whatever means. Yondu and Quill knew to go there the information must be out there. And if your theory that he can, uh, *sense* the Stones is true then it makes even less sense; if he 100% knew where all the Stones were and that he is the only one who can control them because of this magical psychic link then why wait until now to go and get them? Why bother with lackeys at all?

2. Yes... Yes, I know, which is why he doesn't care that those factions hold the Stones. I don't recall any threats to destroy Asgard/Xandar. He threatened to kill Loki, and gave Ronan the thumbs up to lay waste to Xandar if he got him the Orb but at that point he didn't really give two ****s about Xandar most likely, so it's irrelevant.

3. The result would be the same if Loki/Ronan had succeeded. Word would reach Odin, Nova Prime, the Elders, Celestials, whoever, that the real reason why the Infinity Stones are coming back is because Thanos is trying to get them and they would bring together all their forces to blast him into anti-matter. We can only guess that Odin knew; if he did then he would probably consider it a big freaking deal and he would have mentioned it once or twice during The Dark World. My bet is on him not knowing. As for the Nova Corps, they don't know. Ronan, Nebula, Gamora and Korath are the only ones who could have told them Thanos wants the Orb. Ronan's dead, Nebula escaped the battle, whether Gamora told them is up in the air and Korath is dead I think. And if Gamora DID tell them then they probably would have mentioned it at the end of the movie, which they didn't. So again the evidence is against people knowing Thanos is behind it.

4. Yet he does. Twice now, and this probably won't be the last time he assigns a lackey either. So I assume you're thinking he does it for ****s and giggles? He clearly thinks it's good idea otherwise he would never have done it in the first place.

So, more contradictions. You are a champion of the theory that Thanos wanted Loki to fail so that the Tesseract would end up on Asgard, however the same logic apparently cannot apply to Ronan. Working in the logic of your previous theory, he clearly does think that "delegating authority to incompetent fools is a GOOD idea," because he got what he wanted with the Tesseract in Asgard and he most likely got what he wanted again with the Aether and the Orb.

 

[Mike Murdock]

Regarding point number one, I think you just established that he can sense where the Tesseract was. Granted, he can only do it once it has "awakened," but the overall point is the same.

 

[cherokeesam]

1. He didn't know where the Tesseract was. At least, it didn't come across as if he did. Avengers opens with dialogue from the Other saying "The Tesseract has awakened... It is on a little world, a human world." He's TELLING Thanos where the Tesseract is. If the dialogue went, "We were right! The Cube's on Earth! Let's go, boss!" then there would be more proof that he knows where the Stones are. So far, the only evidence that he has some kind of psychic connection to the Stones is because Korath and co went to Morag immediately, and the Orb's location could have been acquired off-screen by whatever means. Yondu and Quill knew to go there the information must be out there. And if your theory that he can, uh, *sense* the Stones is true then it makes even less sense; if he 100% knew where all the Stones were and that he is the only one who can control them because of this magical psychic link then why wait until now to go and get them? Why bother with lackeys at all?

2. Yes... Yes, I know, which is why he doesn't care that those factions hold the Stones. I don't recall any threats to destroy Asgard/Xandar. He threatened to kill Loki, and gave Ronan the thumbs up to lay waste to Xandar if he got him the Orb but at that point he didn't really give two ****s about Xandar most likely, so it's irrelevant.

3. The result would be the same if Loki/Ronan had succeeded. Word would reach Odin, Nova Prime, the Elders, Celestials, whoever, that the real reason why the Infinity Stones are coming back is because Thanos is trying to get them and they would bring together all their forces to blast him into anti-matter. We can only guess that Odin knew; if he did then he would probably consider it a big freaking deal and he would have mentioned it once or twice during The Dark World. My bet is on him not knowing. As for the Nova Corps, they don't know. Ronan, Nebula, Gamora and Korath are the only ones who could have told them Thanos wants the Orb. Ronan's dead, Nebula escaped the battle, whether Gamora told them is up in the air and Korath is dead I think. And if Gamora DID tell them then they probably would have mentioned it at the end of the movie, which they didn't. So again the evidence is against people knowing Thanos is behind it.

4. Yet he does. Twice now, and this probably won't be the last time he assigns a lackey either. So I assume you're thinking he does it for ****s and giggles? He clearly thinks it's good idea otherwise he would never have done it in the first place.

So, more contradictions. You are a champion of the theory that Thanos wanted Loki to fail so that the Tesseract would end up on Asgard, however the same logic apparently cannot apply to Ronan. Working in the logic of your previous theory, he clearly does think that "delegating authority to incompetent fools is a GOOD idea," because he got what he wanted with the Tesseract in Asgard and he most likely got what he wanted again with the Aether and the Orb.

Except *I'm* not contradicting myself; *the writers* are. That's my point, and I'm asking the same questions you are, and trying to provide some reasonable answers. Why doesn't he just get the Stones himself? To me, the only logical explanation, when all is said and done, is that something *physically* prevents him that. Like some magic or mumbo-jumbo that was placed on Thanos in eons past because the Elders or whoever didn't trust him around Infinity Stones. I'm reading between the lines here and making assumptions about things that have never been explicitly stated in the movies, sure; but if I'm wrong about these speculative scenes (Loki confessing to Odin about Thanos; Xandar knowing that Thanos is gathering Stones; Loki giving the Aether to Tivan as a peace offering by proxy to Thanos), then we're left with massive plot holes and a total disregard for any sort of continuity on the Stones Saga. And I prefer not to think that Marvel is going to be that stupid or lazy.

 

[The Endless]

Why doesn't he get them himself?

Perhaps because it would draw a huge amount of attention to him.

Delegating the collection of the Gems to different disparate beings who have no connection to each other makes it all look a bit more incidental. Loki seemingly wants the Tesseract for himself. Ronan seemingly wants the Orb for himself.

Those two guys going after Infinity Gems, to the minds of everyone else, doesn't involve Thanos at all.

But if he himself made a play for the Gems then you can be sure all the forces in the universe, good/bad/neutral, will be opposing him.

At this point Thanos is still in the shadows, exactly where he wants to be. No one knows he wants to collect them all at this point. Maybe even his daughters just think he was after the Orb.

 

[KDM1986]

Why doesn't he get them himself?

Perhaps because it would draw a huge amount of attention to him.

Delegating the collection of the Gems to different disparate beings who have no connection to each other makes it all look a bit more incidental. Loki seemingly wants the Tesseract for himself. Ronan seemingly wants the Orb for himself.

Those two guys going after Infinity Gems, to the minds of everyone else, doesn't involve Thanos at all.

But if he himself made a play for the Gems then you can be sure all the forces in the universe, good/bad/neutral, will be opposing him.

At this point Thanos is still in the shadows, exactly where he wants to be. No one knows he wants to collect them all at this point. Maybe even his daughters just think he was after the Orb.

You summed it up nicely here. Thanos doesn't want anyone knowing what he is up to. You don't accomplish your goals by letting everyone know what your up to. Time is on his side, he now knows where at least three of the stones are. I have a feeling he will get more hands on in the near future.

 

[cherokeesam]

Why doesn't he get them himself?

Perhaps because it would draw a huge amount of attention to him.

Delegating the collection of the Gems to different disparate beings who have no connection to each other makes it all look a bit more incidental. Loki seemingly wants the Tesseract for himself. Ronan seemingly wants the Orb for himself.

Those two guys going after Infinity Gems, to the minds of everyone else, doesn't involve Thanos at all.

But if he himself made a play for the Gems then you can be sure all the forces in the universe, good/bad/neutral, will be opposing him.

At this point Thanos is still in the shadows, exactly where he wants to be. No one knows he wants to collect them all at this point. Maybe even his daughters just think he was after the Orb.

Gamora was present at Thanos' throne when he sent Ronan after the Orb. Even if she wasn't aware the Power Stone was inside it, Tivan sure as hell made it crystal clear on Knowhere. Loki certainly knows Thanos was collecting Stones; and it's very disingenuous to think that Odin wouldn't have drilled/tortured that information out of Loki before he threw him in the dungeon.

And you keep saying that Thanos is trying to keep it all secret, because everybody would gang up on him if they knew the truth. So....effing....what??? He's THANOS. EVERYBODY in the universe HAS ganged up on him from time to time, and half the universe got killed off in the process. You think Thanos is afraid of them.....ANY of them? Xandar, the Guardians, the Avengers, Odin, whoever? Excuse me while I go back here and laugh my ass off for the next hour or two.

 

[Sexy Magician]

I think if the MCU has taught us one thing, its never to assume you know what coming next, Mandarin anyone? To be so defiant in what you think is going on is redundant when you could be completely wrong, who cares if its because he is trying to stay hidden or that he is lazy, I'm sure you will find out someday, just enjoy the ride until then.

 

[Spider-Fan]

Gamora was present at Thanos' throne when he sent Ronan after the Orb. Even if she wasn't aware the Power Stone was inside it, Tivan sure as hell made it crystal clear on Knowhere. Loki certainly knows Thanos was collecting Stones; and it's very disingenuous to think that Odin wouldn't have drilled/tortured that information out of Loki before he threw him in the dungeon.

And you keep saying that Thanos is trying to keep it all secret, because everybody would gang up on him if they knew the truth. So....effing....what??? He's THANOS. EVERYBODY in the universe HAS ganged up on him from time to time, and half the universe got killed off in the process. You think Thanos is afraid of them.....ANY of them? Xandar, the Guardians, the Avengers, Odin, whoever? Excuse me while I go back here and laugh my ass off for the next hour or two.

Yeah, half the universe died WHEN HE HAD THE GAUNTLET! Right now, he doesn't have them, nor the stones. Average day Thanos can't kill half the universe ganging up on him by himself.

 

[The Endless]

Gamora was present at Thanos' throne when he sent Ronan after the Orb. Even if she wasn't aware the Power Stone was inside it, Tivan sure as hell made it crystal clear on Knowhere. Loki certainly knows Thanos was collecting Stones; and it's very disingenuous to think that Odin wouldn't have drilled/tortured that information out of Loki before he threw him in the dungeon.

But do they know he's after every single one and wants to unify them?

And there is no evidence that Odin tortured Loki.

And you keep saying that Thanos is trying to keep it all secret, because everybody would gang up on him if they knew the truth. So....effing....what??? He's THANOS. EVERYBODY in the universe HAS ganged up on him from time to time, and half the universe got killed off in the process. You think Thanos is afraid of them.....ANY of them? Xandar, the Guardians, the Avengers, Odin, whoever? Excuse me while I go back here and laugh my ass off for the next hour or two.

No necessarily scared, but it'd be an inconvenience to him for everyone trying to stop him. So he delegates it to others, for now. It makes it all look more incidental. No one knows Thanos is trying to assemble the Gauntlet at this point. As far as everyone in the universe knows Loki wanted the Tesseract and Ronan wanted the Orb for their own gains. That's it.

Considering Thanos is way below the likes of Odin in the comics I don't know why you're laughing at the idea of Thanos not wanting to go up against the might of everyone in the universe without the Gauntlet. And it isn't just Nova Corps, Asgard, Avengers and Guardians... i'm talking about cosmic entities like Celestials who don't want one being in possession of every single Gem.