Ant-Man 2 is just as fun and funny as the first, even as it starts to introduce darker themes.
However the first of two end credit scenes drastically changes the tone, leaving the audience shocked.
It’s not just the dramatic twist that is important, though, it is what has just happened, the very specific timing of it and what it reveals about Avengers 4.
Ant-Man and the Wasp may be Marvel’s smallest and sweetest franchise but it packs a giant punch at the end, with major ramifications for the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe.
WARNING MAJOR SPOILERS FROM HERE
The huge shock is that Hank and Hope Pym, along with the newly restored Janet Van Dyne, all turn to dust in The Snap while Scott is on a mission to the Quantum Realm.
But this is not what is truly important.
Kevin Feige has already clarified that being in the Quantum Realm did not save Scott, he would have been one of those to survive Thanos’ final blow anyway. What is important is the timing of the moment, and the fact that time may be at the core of everyting in Avengers 4.
Is this one of the key moments that Doctor Strange saw in his vision of the only way to defeat Thanos?
It is clear that Scott had to be trapped in the Quantum Realm. A few seconds either way he would have been on Earth just before or after his misson.
The Quantum Realm is increasingy expected to play a major role in the Infinity War sequel, but also traditionally has connections to Captain Marvel.
In the very same scene, Janet very blatantly refers to the Time Vortex, warning Scott to avoid it or they might not be able to bring him back.
Why mention it if it has no relevance to what comes next?
This, combined with the casting news that an actress has been hired to play an older version of Scott’s daughter Cassie, points again to concepts of time and cements rumours that Avengers 4 will be set some years after the Snap.
Clearly Scott will find the Time Vortex. Most likely, it will sweep him forward in time and he will emerge to a post-Snap world where Cassie is now five or six years older.
A more intriguing option is that he will travel back and meet Captain Marvel in the 1980s, where her upcoming movie is set. Or even emerge in the battle of New York from the first Avengers movie, since set photos have show Ant-Man, along with Iron Man and Thor back in that setting.
Whatever happens, Ant-Man is at the heart of it…
ANT-MAN AND THE WASP IS OUT ON AUGUST 3.