Before starting this article, it seems necessary to recall one essential thing: what follows will largely reveal key elements of the end of the film, then the post-credits scenes it contains. So, if you haven't yet gone to see Thunderbolts* and you don't want to spoil the surprise, we advise you to go back and play the remastered of Oblivion.
Warning, last chance to turn back.
For those who are still with us because they don't care about being spoiled or because they don't have the remastered of Oblivion, here is what awaits you in the future of the New Avengers. Because yes, we suspected that the * at the end of Thunderbolts* announced an official name change for the team. Well, we had bet on "Secret Avengers" on our side.
We'll quickly return to the first post-credits scene because it doesn't really bring anything new, falling mainly into the traditional comic dimension of one of these bonus sequences.
After an opening credit sequence with a backdrop of press articles promoting or criticizing these new Avengers, we find this good Alexei / Red Guardian back to being clean and clean-shaven – except for the mustache – at the supermarket. He tries to attract the attention of a customer around a box of cereal with the image of the New Avengers on which he appears. Faced with his insistence, she ends up taking the package before putting it down a few meters further under the hero's disappointed eyes. A direct reference to a wish of the Russian super-soldier in the film, to soon see the Thunderbolts on cereal boxes. He who desires to regain glory and notoriety thus sees his wish granted, but unfortunately, he is still not recognized in public.
The Thunderbolts*, the real change for the MCU?
The second post-credits sequence is much more interesting and tells a lot. To begin with, it should be noted that it is particularly long and has no bonus sequence other than its place within the film. We find the New Avengers 14 months after their induction, having made the old Avengers Tower their HQ, with a change of decor in the process.
The entire team is reunited and discusses the formation of another team led by Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie). This follows the end of Captain America: Brave New World, where the new hero announced his desire to unite others to his side. Thunderbolts* informs us that he has achieved his goals, but without revealing who this other group comprises. The whole issue at stake here is which of these two teams is the true Avengers. For Walker (Wyatt Russell), it's clear that this discredits their group. Bucky (Sebastian Stan) reveals that he tried to talk to Wilson, but the discussion fell flat, suggesting a falling out between the two friends. Alexei suggests a marketing win by renaming himself AvengerZ. A fitting change of letter, as these former second-stringers realize they're likely to become so again.
Regarding the future of the MCU, this early sequence serves as a status update on the troops and affiliations before their return in Avengers: Doomsday. Thus, it's clear that the New Avengers are a legitimate government force, as the latter desired at the time of Captain America: Civil War. As for Sam Wilson's team, it's an independent group, undoubtedly made up of veterans like Ant-Man. It's amusing to see that Bucky, largely responsible for the dissolution of the original Avengers in Civil War, is now one of the leaders of the official Avengers.
A good way to imply that the two teams will be rivals—to begin with—in Doomsday, not to mention the presence of the X-Men. From there, it's easy to bet that the key to Doom's victory at the end of the film (an obvious assumption before Secret Wars) will be the inability of all these people to work together.
And since we're talking about teams, we can't ignore the rest of this post-credits scene, which shows the arrival of an unidentified flying object in space, spotted by the two Avengers groups. A mysterious interdimensional rocket that we've already seen somewhere recently... in the trailer for Fantastic 4: First Steps! A revelation that isn't a very long one, since it only takes a few seconds to see the logo displayed on the ship and, unsurprisingly, it's that of the super-family.
The end of Thunderbolts* is therefore an essential event for future MCU films: the Fantastic 4 have officially arrived in our universe, and the dimensions are starting to intersect before Avengers: Doomsday. As for how they got there, the answer will be on July 23rd... with X-Men in their post-credits scene?
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