Microcontroller Thunder* The movie won’t be able to recreate the team’s best comic book twist, so Marvel will have to find a new way to match it. The MCU’s Thunderbolts will officially launch in 2025 and include several veteran anti-heroes from the MCU. Yelena Belova, Bucky Barnes, John Walker and others will team up under the guidance of Valentina Allegra de Fontaine to complete a mission for the US government. Although the Thunderbolts are new to the Marvel Universe’s timeline, the group has been around in Marvel comics for a long time.
The Thunderbolts made brief appearances in other Marvel comic series before their first solo release in 1997. Created by Kurt Busiek and Mark Bagley, thunderbolt The comics followed the team after the apparent deaths of the Avengers and Fantastic Four during the Heroes Reborn era. The Thunderbolts step up to fill the void left by the heroes on Earth, but their true identities are revealed in a shocking final page. It’s an iconic plot twist, but it’s almost impossible Thunder* to complete it.
Marvel’s Thunderbolts Team Always Linked to Big Twist
Thunderbolt Has One of the Greatest Twists in Comic Books
In the comics, Thunderbolts is considered one of the best comic plot twists of all time. The Avengers and Fantastic Four were thrown into an alternate universe and presumed dead by the public, so Raiden decided to step up and protect Earth in their absence. Made up of MACH-1, Techno, Atlas, Songbird, Meteorite and their leader Citizen V, this team becomes the heroes Earth needs. However, the final page of the first issue reveals that Team Thunder is actually a disguise for the villainous group the Masters of Evil.
Marvel Comics Thunderbolt Members | Master of Evil Identity |
|---|---|
Citizen V | Baron Helmut Zemo |
MACH-1 | beetle |
technology | retainer |
atlas | goliath |
songbird | Screaming tits |
meteorite | moonstone |
Citizen V follows Baron Helmut Zemo as he reunites his supervillain allies from the Masters of Evil to form a superhero team. Their plan is to gain the trust of the public and the government so that they can establish a position of power and gain access to the valuable secrets of the Avengers and S.H.I.E.L.D. This was a very well-hidden surprise from Marvel, as no information about Raiden’s true identity has ever been revealed, making it one of the most shocking twists in Marvel comics.
Raiden* Impossible to Repeat Comic Book Twist
The identity of the MCU Thunderbolts has been revealed
Although the original thunderbolt A plot twist that would lead to a stunning screen adaptation that would be nearly impossible for the Marvel Cinematic Universe Thunder* Do this. With the exception of Zemo, none of the original members of the Thunderbolts from the comics have appeared in the Marvel Universe, which is why the movie uses characters that audiences are already familiar with. Having an established cast of characters is much better than introducing an entirely new team of unknown members, but it does prevent the MCU from delivering on the exact plot twist that made the Thunderbolts famous.
Related All 9 Noteworthy MCU Projects to Learn About Thunderbolts
With Marvel’s Thunderbolts set to hit theaters soon, there are certain chapters in the MCU that will be crucial to getting to know the members of the team.
Since fans have already seen the backstories of most of the Thunderbolts, Marvel now has no way of hiding their identities and portraying them as villains cosplaying as heroes. The Thunderbolts have all appeared in previous Marvel movies, ranging from villains to anti-heroes, and their bad guy identities are already well known. While the film does treat the Thunderbolts as a group of heroes, each member realizes that they’re not heroes in the traditional sense, and that’s what binds them together.
How will the MCU honor Raiden’s “shock-and-twist” legacy?
Some team members can still hide their true intentions
With Thunderbolt’s name becoming synonymous with plot twists in the comics, the Marvel Universe needed to find a way to honor their legacy. They may not be able to recreate the exact twist that was popular in the comics, but there’s still a chance the movie could have a surprise. While some titles are more popular than others, Marvel has never shied away from including shocking twists in its projects. With the diversity of characters in the play Thunder* Actors, there are opportunities there.
The Marvel Universe has been pretty transparent about the Thunderbolts’ true identities so far, but the movie could still put a twist on one of them. The team will definitely clash at first, so Marvel may have one of the characters hide their true intentions while working with the team. It could also be revealed that the U.S. government is using the team for malicious purposes, dividing the morals of its members under the guise that they are helping in some way. Thunder* While they couldn’t repeat the comics’ biggest twist, they could still pay homage to its legacy.
Director Jack Schreier
Release date May 2, 2025