Marvel Studios’ Eternals came with galaxy-sized ambition, suggesting it would dig deeper into the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s mythology and herald a new type of superhero narrative. For established fans of Jack Kirby’s original comic book series, the movie wasn’t merely about introducing a new set of eternal characters—it was an opportunity to delve to the furthest extremes of Marvel lore and possibly lay the groundwork for epochal changes throughout the franchise.
The movie reimagines the Eternals as old godlike guardians commissioned by the Celestials 7,000 years ago to protect the world from the monstrous Deviants. Though the comics tend to portray the Eternals as having a similar set of powers, the movie approaches them in a more personalized manner, with each Eternal being assigned a unique expression of cosmic energy.
This change, along with considered gender-flips—like Salma Hayek’s Ajak reimagined as the group’s matriarchal leader—brings much-needed depth and representation. Makkari is the MCU’s first deaf hero, and Kingo’s reimagining as a Bollywood icon brings comedy and cultural richness.
Even so, for all its creative concepts, Eternals departs with a withered bouquet of lost potential and unresolved issues.
The Deviants, serving as the main villains, are all but reduced to generic CGI monsters. Kro, their emerging leader, is the only one who suggests an underlying story.
In the comic books, Kro has a complex, even romantic relationship with Thena, and the Deviants themselves are tragic characters—defective creations trapped in a cosmic test. The movie touches on this but never capitalizes on it, leaving a more emotionally resonant plot untold.
At the same time, the shadowy presence of the Celestials opens up intriguing possibilities. The god-like figures behind the genetic experiments that, in comic history, create mutants—providing a potential backdoor for the introduction of the X-Men—are of concern.
Fans had expectations that Eternals would bring the first true breadcrumb to this evolution. But beyond suggestive references to human evolution, the film falls short of linking mutants or their legendary enemies, such as Apocalypse or Mr. Sinister, directly.
There are, however, certain compelling trinkets and beginnings scattered around. The Ebony Blade, hinted at in Dane Whitman’s arc, sizzles with macabre possibility. The whispering, darkling nature of the weapon perhaps ties into the Necrosword, Knull’s blade—the ancient god of darkness and author of the symbiotes. Eternals doesn’t conclusively establish the connection, but the visual and auditory hints feed theories, particularly with such figures as Gorr the God Butcher (who appeared in Thor: Love and Thunder) and Venom already on the cusp of the MCU.
The post-credits sequences escalate the cosmic soap opera. Harry Styles makes his surprise debut as Eros, aka Starfox, Thanos’s charming but complex brother. Meanwhile, Dane’s fateful encounter with the Ebony Blade is interrupted by a mysterious voice off-screen, igniting fan theories: Was it Blade? Nick Fury? Or someone else entirely? These teases—along with the suggestion that Shang-Chi’s Ten Rings may have ties to Eternal tech—fuel ongoing speculation about a shared cosmic thread weaving through Phase 4 and beyond.
But the movie raises so many unanswered questions: What are the Eternals, and how do they find each other after all these centuries? Why was Sprite created differently, and does she still have powers? What is the real nature of the Deviants—and might they change beyond their monster status in coming tales? Is Ikaris dead, and what happens to Tiamut’s half-forged body now lodged on Earth? Where did Arishem lead the rest of the Eternals, and will cosmically massive titans such as Galactus ever get their long-teased debut?
And perhaps the most critical question for die-hard fans: why didn’t someone ever get to say, “Eternals, assemble”?
Though it got a mixed response for pacing and complicated mythology, Eternals undoubtedly opens the MCU’s cosmic scope further. It’s a movie that poses grand questions regarding purpose, identity, and destiny—if not always providing the answers. And in typical Marvel style, it sets up further stories that can reshape the universe.
Ultimately, Eternals is more about possibility and less about resolution. It’s a swing for the fences that buckles the MCU formula and reminds audiences that in a universe as big as this one, the story is always just getting started.