Speaking to Rotten Tomatoes (via CBR), directors Anthony and Joe Russo explained how they decided to have the victims of the snap turn to dust. Joe Russo shared that they thought about the “elemental aspect of your body and what happens to it”, so the vanishing was a way of “accelerating the decomposing process”.
Prior to Infinity War, most of Thanos' screen time came in 2014's Guardians of the Galaxy. This film more firmly establishes his role as a shadowy power player on the intergalactic scene, as well as his habit of raising women like Gamora and Nebula to be his fiercely loyal assassins.
For the most part though, you can SKIP it if you're cramming for Infinity War (and Endgame). Make it a point to come back, though. You'll be glad you did. Black Panther (2018).
You'd think he'd be the ideal guy to take down Thanos, but you'd be wrong. In the opening sequence of Infinity War, Thanos doesn't just beat Hulk down, he makes it look easy. The defeat breaks his will. We never see Hulk again in the film, no matter how hard Banner tries to bring him out.
1 Scarlet Witch/Wanda Maximoff That was enough to consider her near the top but Wanda Maximoff, known as Scarlet Witch, is the officially most powerful Avenger now.
There are six Infinity Stones: The Space Stone (blue), the Reality Stone (red), the Power Stone (purple), the Mind Stone (yellow), the Time Stone (green) and the Soul Stone (orange).
Ant-Man and the Wasp* Even more than it's predecessor, this film is an easy one to skip. Yes, it expands on the Quantum Realm, but again not enough to make it essential viewing.
As Ant-Man, he serves as an Avenger for years, until he is killed during the Avengers Disassembled storyline. Years later, he is resurrected in the Avengers: The Children's Crusade mini-series.
Although Endgame is the highest-grossing Avengers movie, its predecessor Infinity War is arguably a slightly stronger work of cinema. The first Avengers film was a fun comic book adventure that successfully integrated the characters together, but the ambitious sequel Age of Ultron bit off more than it could chew.
Powers and abilities Heimdall possesses the powers of a typical Asgardian, including superhuman strength, stamina, speed, agility and durability. However, he is generally stronger and more durable than all but a few Asgardians, such as Odin and Thor.
The Mad Titan appears. During the first post-credits scene, Thor and Loki talk about the future of the Asgardians, when suddenly they're interrupted by the arrival of a gigantic ship. We never find out who, exactly, that ship belongs to, but it's pretty clear that it's Thanos' ride.
He utters a last heartfelt prayer, "All-Fathers, let the dark magic flow through me one last time." The line is a deliberate callback to The Avengers, where Loki claimed "dark energy" could be used to summon the Bifrost.