Avengers: Endgame was a huge production that included dozens of characters and the ending of many MCU storylines. While the MCU isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, this movie did end the story arcs of many of the original Avengers and wrapped up some storylines to set other characters in new directions going forward. For some of these characters, the events of Endgame and the direction the story took made them better people, but for other characters, it felt like more of a backslide.
Here are the characters who came out of the movie looking better as well as those that came out looking worse than before.
Better: Natasha Romanoff
Natasha’s character development is a bit of a complicated point because she was one of the few characters to die in this movie. This is rather unfortunate as many people felt her death didn’t do the character justice and also that it was bad timing given that she died before her solo movie was ever released.
While this might have been a poor storytelling choice, Natasha being selfless throughout this movie and caring deeply for her Avengers family did make her look like the caring, committing person she is at her core.
Worse: Gamora
This is another character on this list whose ending is rather complicated. The reason that Gamora comes out of Endgame looking worse is that we get the Gamora from the past.
Gamora of the present died in the events of Avengers: Infinity War, but with the time travel elements bringing her old self back to the future she is back in the picture. However, this older version hasn’t gone through the same character development and so it’s like she has to go through all of that all over again.
Better: Tony Stark
Tony Stark is a rather complex character. While many people love him and his arc over the movies, others feel that he isn’t deserving of a lot of praise.
Despite his faults, there’s no denying that he does care about being a hero and trying to save the world. While there have been many other instances where Tony has been willing to sacrifice himself to save the world, Endgame saw him do this once again at a time where he had even more to lose since becoming a father.
Worse: Bruce Banner/Hulk
One of the most unfortunate character arcs from the movie was that of Bruce/Hulk. Instead of giving us a meaningful exploration of how Bruce Banner could merge his two selves in a realistic, deep way, this version was clearly just all for laughs.
Having a character who has dealt with some pretty severe mental health issues turn into a full-time Hulk who likes to dab just feels tonally off. It didn’t seem to serve the character well, and it was a bad long-term choice.
Better: Nebula
Nebula is another character whose ending in the movie is somewhat complicated. This is another instance where things get complicated because of the time travel elements.
While old Nebula appears because of time travel and really messes things up, the future version of Nebula continues to show how much character development she’s gone through and that she’s one of the good ones.
Worse: Thor
The way that Thor’s character development was handled in Endgame was rather unfortunate. Many people pointed out that the way Thor being overweight was turned into some big joke was rather unfortunate.
But, that’s not the reason why his character became worse. Instead of continuing with the arc from Thor: Ragnarok where Thor was becoming his own person and really taking on the mantle of leadership, this all went out the window. It seemed totally out of line with Thor’s character and what his arc had been building up to.
Better: Valkyrie
While Thor might have shirked the mantle of leadership in Endgame, Valkyrie did just the opposite. While she was a wonderful character in Ragnarok and went through character development there, she became even more of a hero.
By choosing to work hard to help take care of the people of Asgard and lead them on Earth, it showed that she was getting more in touch with her original roots. It’s just a shame we didn’t’ get to see more of her taking on this role.
Worse: Clint Barton
One character that clearly became a bit of a monster in the film was Hawkeye. While many people lost their loved ones and families in the snap, Clint was the only one to become a murderous vigilante.
The depths of how dark he took things weren’t really explored, and he was quickly given a pass. He seemed to be redeemed right away and the dark road he went on wasn’t given all that much thought. The fact that he was the one to live on Vormir instead of Black Widow made many fans upset and for good reason.
Better: Scott Lang
Scott Lang has always been a rather likable character in the MCU who has a really good heart overall. The area where he really shines is as a father, and it’s clear that he’s a very caring parent.
Seeing him lose so much of Cassie’s life when he was stuck in the Quantum Realm was extremely sad, but the events that transpired helped make him an even more dedicated and loving person. While he’s still goofy and comedic, he also seemed to become a little more serious in a mature way.
Worse: Steve Rogers
Of all the character arcs that people have criticized from Endgame, Steve Rogers gets talked about the most. Many people were extremely disappointed with how his story was handled and argued that it was out of character. Instead of having Steve stick around to help his friends and rebuild the world, and continue to fight for what was right, he basically gave up and went back in the past.
He seemed to give no thought to how this time travel situation could mess up things for Peggy as well as basically the world. Also, he left his best friends behind, and the creators made it clear that Steve wouldn’t try to change anything in the past which means he would have been fine sitting around while bad things happened that he knew about. This doesn’t seem like something Captain America would do.
