'Avengers: Endgame' plot holes that (sort of) ruin the movie
What's the story
As great of a spectacle as Avengers: Endgame was, it isn't really the smartest time travel film out there.
The script is riddled with plot holes, which makes you wonder if they should have let the cast read through the original script before they started filming. Perhaps they could have edited this ludicrous plot.
Here are some of the major plot holes.
[MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD]
Number 1
How did 2014-Thanos even get to 2023-Earth?
"Time travel, duh!" I know! But, early on in the film, it is established that one Pym particle can transport one person through time once. Additionally, you also need those quantum suits to time-travel.
2014-Nebula only stole one of those Pym particles and quantum suits, which she used to bring herself to 2023. So how did Thanos' entire army arrive in 2023?
Number 2
How did Captain America return all the infinity stones?
So, in the end, Captain America takes the burden of returning each infinity stone to its original timeline. However, as we learnt earlier in the film, the Avengers had limited Pym particles, which they exhausted while retrieving the infinity stones.
So, how did Cap manage to visit 1970, 2012, 2013, 2014, without any Pym particles? If he had them, where did he get them?
Number 3
Speaking of Captain America, how is he old now?
"Time travel, duh!" B**ch, I KNOW! But, Bruce explains that reverse time-travel doesn't affect the current timeline, and creates a new timeline altogether.
So, Cap could've only returned to the original 2023-timeline through the quantum realm. But he didn't do that.
Since he stayed back with Peggy, he should've disappeared from the current timeline, and existed in an alternate one with two Captain Americas.
Do you know?
If Steve can get old, here's what else should've happened
To explain with an example, if changing the past could affect the current timeline in MCU, Nebula should have died. When 2023-Nebula shot 2014-Nebula, 2023-Nebula should have ceased to exist, triggering a grandfather paradox. If 2023-Nebula never existed, who shot 2014-Nebula?
Number 4
How did Captain America even return the soul stone?
Since retrieving the soul stone requires a soul sacrifice, shouldn't you get a soul back when you return it? "A soul for a soul," right?
How did Cap even return the stone? Did he just toss it off the cliff on Vormir? Did Black Widow just reanimate and fly up the cliff when he did? What happened? Why don't they explain any of this?
Number 5
With no infinity stones, how will the current timeline survive?
When Bruce demands that the Ancient One give him the time stone, she explains to him that removing any infinity stone from its timeline would mess with the flow of time causing "millions to suffer."
But in the current timeline, there are no infinity stones. Zilch. How is the world functioning then? And if millions are, in fact, suffering, again, why wasn't this addressed?
Number 6
Were space, mind stones replaced without the Tesseract, Scepter?
When the Avengers steal the space stone from 1970 and the mind stone from 2012, they were disguised as the Tesseract and the Chitauri Scepter respectively.
However, when Cap replaces them, he carries them in a briefcase, in their naked infinity stone form, thus revealing their existence way before time, and yet again, altering a past event, but apparently, there were no consequences. How?
Number 7
Avengers couldn't just hold hands while using the gauntlet?
In Guardians of the Galaxy, when Quill grabs the power stone, Drax, Rocket, and Gamora link hands with him to share the burden of the infinity stone and then use it to beat Ronan.
Why wasn't this applied to when literally anybody had to use the infinity gauntlet? Seriously, Iron-Man would be alive right now if people had just thought to hold his hand.
Number X
The list of questions left unanswered is endless
How can Captain Marvel breathe/talk in space? Why didn't the Avengers just go to 1970 and steal more Pym particles?
Since Iron-Man wish to erase Thanos' whole army, didn't 2014-Gamora die too? And if she did, didn't she deserve a proper on-screen death?
Why didn't Dr. Strange just use the time stone to bring Tony back like Thanos did with Vision?
All in vain.