Avengers: Infinity War has finally arrived, and somehow, despite having to juggle dozens and dozens of characters, it is pretty great. I pity the movie critics who have to review it as this is much more than a movie; it is a pop culture landmark for an entire generation of geeks who never thought that was even possible. A movie made by geeks, for geeks, starring almost every character that Marvel could cram into two hours and forty minutes? You gotta love it.

But what is the secret to the movie's success? For that, you would have to read Vanity Fair's cover story for their Holiday 2017 issue. In that story written by Joanna Robinson, she interviews Kevin Feige, the architect behind the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In that story, Feige says that the secret to great comic book movies is that the answers are "always in the books."

We can see in this movie more than ever that Feige is taking this to heart. At numerous points in this movie, astute fans can look at a frame and point out exactly where they remember that scene in the comics. For those who didn't read the books, that's where I come in. Not only will I be showing you the references to the original comics, but also any other references to pop culture and other Marvel movies that you may not have seen. Here are 21 Easter eggs that only true fans caught in Avengers: Infinity War.

21 What Is It With Billionaires And Boys?

via comicbook.com/wired.com

The pairing of Spider-Man and Iron Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe has been divisive to fans. Some people feel as if the pairing of these two works, as they are both scientific geniuses and Peter Parker constantly craves a father figure in his life. Others have been put off by the fact that Peter's primary purpose now is to impress Tony Stark instead of wanting to be his own man. But Doctor Strange has a new take on their partnership, which brings to mind another comic book pairing.

After Spider-Man and Iron Man enact their plan to save the Master of The Mystic Arts from the clutches of Ebony Maw, Dr.Strange finally meets the wall-crawler. Doctor Strange's first impression is thinking that Spider-Man is Iron Man's "ward." This is a reference to the classic duo of Batman and Robin, where Robin is often referred to as Batman's ward. For those who don't know, a ward is a minor is under the guidance of a guardian who isn't their parents. Perhaps when Doctor Strange peered into the millions of futures, he saw one where Spidey was Stark's adopted son. It's comics; anything is possible.

20 Hulk's Smashing Entrance

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In the opening of Avengers: Infinity War, we see one of the bleakest scenes in the history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. As we saw at the end of Thor: Ragnarok, Thanos and his crew attacked the spaceship housing all of the remaining Asgardians and oh boy, did he do a number on them. Nobody seemed to be a match for them as even the mighty Thor was reduced to a crying mess by The Mad Titan. But luckily, Loki points out that they have a Hulk... who is promptly defeated by Thanos as well.

Luckily, the defeated Hulk is beamed down to Earth where he crash-lands in the house of Doctor Strange creating quite a noisy mess. This image of somebody crashing into the Sanctum Sanctorum is a call back to the Infinity Gauntlet storyline where The Silver Surfer (a character which doesn't belong to Disney... yet) falls in the same manner as Bruce Banner. The idea behind it is the same nonetheless; two of the most powerful heroes in the Marvel Universe imploring his fellow heroes to prepare for the coming of the most terrifying being in the universe. It's a nice parallel between the movie and the comics.

19 Who's That Captain In The Sky?

via: makers.com

With the end of Avengers: Infinity War looking so bleak and depressing, it really makes people wonder how in the world the heroes of the MCU are going to take down the Mad Titan Thanos. Sure, Captain America, Iron Man, Black Widow, and the rest of original Avengers are alive, but what can they do to even touch Thanos? Even if Thanos is lacking the power of the Infinity Gauntlet, as it may have been diminished by his finger snap, it's doubtful they can beat him. However, perhaps the addition of a new hero is what they need because Nick Fury sure thinks so.

Captain Marvel will be the final movie before Avengers 4.

In the film's sole post-credits scene, we see Nick Fury and Maria Hill driving through New York as they feel the effects of Thanos' final action. After Fury sees Hill fade into oblivion before his very eyes, he rushes into his coat pocket to pick out a transponder signal and manages to click it just in time before dropping a Samuel L. Jackson "mother..." as his final line. The signal he sent out? It was to none other than Carol Danvers, a.k.a. Captain Marvel. Her solo film is set to come out in February 2019 but it takes place in the 1990s, meaning that we will find out where this uber powerful Captain has been for all this time. I can't wait.

18 Cap's Final Stand

via comixology/indiewire.com

On paper, Thanos vs Captain America is one of the biggest mismatches in comic book history. In reality... well yeah, it's still an incredible mismatch that should end with Captain America being split into a million tiny bits of red, white and blue. However, while one might question the physical limitations of the Super Soldier, you cannot deny the mental willpower and fortitude of Captain America.

I'm glad this scene from the trailer wasn't cut from the movie.

As we saw in the trailer and in the final movie, Captain America takes it upon himself to be the last line of defense against Thanos on Earth. By holding off Thanos even if just for a few seconds, Cap is able to buy Scarlet Witch some precious moments that she needs to destroy the Mind Stone implanted inside of Vision's head. Of course, anyone who's seen this movie knows that it's all for naught, but it's still impressive that Steve Rogers is able to do that much by himself as it is. Captain America is driven not only by his want to save his planet, but also to save those who he holds dear.

17 Thanos' Rest

via Comixology

In Christianity, it is said that after the deity created the heavens, the Earth, sea creatures, humans, and all that jazz, he rested on the seventh day. Well, on the other hand, Thanos got the six Infinity Stones, wiped out half the life in the universe with something you do while dancing, and only then did he rest. How did he do it? He went to a grassy field and just sat and smiled as he had done what he set out to do. But it should be noted though that even if he would have lost, Thanos would have likely ended up in the same spot.

What would you do after wiping out half the universe?

At the end of the Infinity Gauntlet 1991 storyline, Thanos has failed in his mission, as he lost the Infinity Gauntlet to Adam Warlock and attempted to take out the heroes via self-destruction. In reality, that was just to ensure that he wouldn't be followed as he retired to become a farmer. Seriously. After Warlock finds him, he decides to leave Thanos alone as he feels he needs him. So the moral is: whether or not Thanos succeeds, he always winds up on a farm.

16 The Cameos Keep A-Rollin

via: comicbook.com

So this was obviously one that everybody saw coming. Ever since Bryan Singer's original X-Men movie back in 2000, Stan "The Man" Lee has made a cameo appearance inside of most Marvel films. Did you really think that in the biggest Marvel movie of all time with a cast filled with dozens of A-list actors and a beefy 2 hours and forty minutes run-time that they would forget about Lee? Of course not. Not the best Stan Lee cameo, but not bad either.

Unlike many other Marvel movies where Stan Lee makes an appearance fairly late in the film, this cameo takes place pretty early on in the film.

When Thanos' black order is invading Earth, Peter Parker is stuck on the school bus as we saw in the trailers. What we didn't see in the trailers was the driver of said bus, and yup, it's Stan. As all of the high schoolers are flipping out about the spaceship looming in the sky, Lee says "What's wrong with you kids, haven't you seen a space ship before?" The funny part is that in MCU canon, Lee isn't lying. Remember that he was in Guardians of the Galaxy 2 conversing with the Watchers. He has definitely seen a spaceship before.

15 Teenage Groot's Training

via geektyrant.com/pinterest.com

For all of those who loved Baby Groot in Guardians of the Galaxy 2 or even have fond memories of the original adult Groot in Guardians of the Galaxy, prepare to be disappointed in Avengers: Infinity War. As we were shown at the end of GOTG 2, Groot is now a moody teenager who is no fun to be around and plays video games all day. Well, I should really say video game because he only plays one game throughout the entire movie. That being the 1981 arcade classic Defender.

While there isn't much "story" to go on about in these old arcade shoot em ups, the brief story that there is to this game is an easter egg. In Defender, the player has to save people from aliens who are seeking to invade. Maybe Star-Lord and the rest of the Guardians should cut Groot a break because after all, he was just playing that game over and over again in order to prepare for the coming threat of Thanos. Right, just like all the kids who play Call of Duty, in case they ever decide that they have to go to war? Okay, maybe Groot is just that annoying child on Xbox Live that everybody wishes they could shut up.

14 Thor Brings The Pain To Thanos

via nerdist.com/Comixology

If it wasn't already evident from Thor: Ragnarok and the other MCU movies, Thor is the most powerful hero inside of this universe. With his godly physiology, centuries of combat training, and weapons that would make even the most powerful of villains tremble in their boots, Thor is not a hero that should be toyed with. While the Hulk refuses to come out after being decimated in quick fashion by Thanos, Thor is the one who conjures a new weapon called Stormbreaker and strikes a near fatal blow to the Mad Titan. Just like he did in the Infinity Gauntlet storyline. "You should have gone for the head."

In that comic, Thor (who actually was using the body of a human named Eric Masterson as a vessel) is still in possession of Mjolnir and throws it right into the chest of Thanos. This sends the villain into the ground in a broken heap and is easily the greatest strike anyone got on Thanos in that entire storyline. But leave it to Doctor Doom to mess things up, as he tries to pry the gauntlet off of Thanos but doing so snaps him out of his stupor and nearly destroys Doom.

13 We Have A Hulk

Via Youtube.com (ComicsExplained)

If all of the Asgardians were prepared to fight against Thanos, they might have stood a better chance then they did. Taken off guard, the remaining Asgardians who survived the end of Thor: Ragnarok were utterly obliterated by the Mad Titan and his Black Order. However luckily for them, they had a Hulk.

Loki sure has come a long way from the first Thor, hasn't he?

While people who are new to the MCU may not have gotten the significance of Loki saying the line "We have a Hulk", that is actually a callback all the way to the original Avengers movie back in 2012. In that movie, Loki leads an army of aliens loaned out to him by Thanos in order to invade Earth. While verbally jousting with Iron Man, Loki brags that he has an army but Stark replies that Earth has a Hulk. Loki's arrogance bites him in the butt later as Hulk is to one smash Loki into defeat. While we're sure that the Trickster God thought that the Green Goliath was going to hand Thanos a trashing, even the Hulk cannot stop him. The Avengers may have a Hulk, but what good is he if he decides not to help out in the fight, eh?

12 Who Is Morgan Stark?

via comicvine.gamespot.com

Somehow despite Tony Stark being an unbearable bundle of snark and bravado, his relationship with his one-time secretary Pepper Potts has stood the test of time. After proposing to her at the end of Spider-Man: Homecoming, Stark and Potts are set to be married, but Tony is already thinking ahead to having children. The name he proposes for a son that he saw in a dream (oh, that Tony Stark and his wacky dreams) is none other than Morgan. Tony calls him a crazy uncle and while that might be the case in the MCU, there's a slightly different story to him in the comics.

In the original comics, Morgan Stark is actually the cousin to Tony's real uncle named Edward Stark. Morgan sold his share of Stark Industries to Tony's dad Howard as he wanted to get out of the business but once he saw the money Tony was making, he got super jealous. This led to him becoming a villain to Tony as he tried to make him insane, turn all plant life on earth into synthetic beings and even pose as Tony. Somehow, I gotta imagine that none of that happened in the MCU because if Tony wanted to name his kid after that guy, he would have some issues.

11 What Is Ebony Maw's True Identity?

via buzzfeed.com/comicbook.com

Tony Stark is one of the busiest characters in the Marvel Universe. Constantly buried in his work, Stark's idea of a good time is designing new suits of armor that he could fly around and help the world in. When he isn't working, he's likely going to be enjoying the company of his lovely lady Pepper Potts. He definitely doesn't seem like the kind of guy who is going to be sitting around watching SpongeBob SquarePants. But yet, here we are in Avengers: Infinity War and Tony Stark is cracking jokes about one of Thanos' generals.

Even at his most evil, Squidward is nowhere near as wicked as Ebony Maw.

During a confrontation between some of Earth's heroes and Thanos' Black Order, Stark quips and calls Maw Squidward, the cranky and snobby neighbor of everyone's favorite yellow underwater sponge. If anything, this seems like a line meant for Spider-Man but was given to Stark for whatever reason. Well, it's good to know that Stark has good taste in cartoons at least. Now, if Maw busts out a clarinet in a deleted scene later this year on Blu-Ray, then I'm going to giggle like a school girl and give Iron Man a high five.

10 Pop Goes The Strange Weasel?

via ultimatecomiccon.com

Alright so this one is admittedly a bit of a stretch, and the pay off of this was likely never going to happen because of the movie being PG 13 and not R, but just for a moment in the theatre... I thought maybe...

If you faithful viewer remembers in the first battle on Earth between the Black Order and the Science/Magic boys, you should know that at some point Doctor Strange ends up being strangled by Ebony Maw. Using cables that he pulled from the ground courtesy of telekinesis, Maw started to choke the life out of the Sorcerer Supreme. Luckily, the wizard is kept alive because Maw needs to torture him to give up the Time stone. Strange got off easy because if it would have followed his fate in the Ultimate Universe, things could have gone south really fast.

In the comics event Ultimatum, the world goes to complete hell because of Magneto tinkering with the Earth's magnetic poles. In the middle of the storyline, the Dread Dormammu (that entity which Strange trolled into submission back in his solo film) escapes and wraps up Strange in his own Cloak of Levitation. Dormammu squeezes him until he goes like a balloon in spectacular fashion. Good thing Maw needed the info, eh?

9 See No Colour

via comicbook.com

Most people I knew, including myself, had Vision pegged as the character most likely to go in Avengers: Infinity War. I mean, when you walk around with an item in your head that the big bad who has been teased for six years wants, it probably means that your head will not be intact by the end. Sure enough, Thanos plunges his hand into Vision and rips out the Mind Stone. This seemingly destroys Vision, leaving him a broken and perished heap on the floor. Or is he? If this reference is correct, we may see a very different Vision if he somehow survived.

I mean, he does look pretty cool in that shot at the end of Infinity War, right?

Back in the "Vision Quest" storyline from the comic books in 1989, Vision is captured by U.S. government agents who are being manipulated by a time-traveling alien (because comic books). Once captured, he is dismantled before being recovered by his pals the Avengers. Unfortunately, though, the man who "loaned" his brain patterns to form Vision's consciousness the first time refused to so this time. This resulted in Vision taking on an all-white appearance and being much more cold in his personality. He eventually gets back to normal, but who's to say he will in the MCU?

8 Keep An Eye On That Rabbit

via screenrant.com

When the dust cleared and all of Thanos' mission was said and done, all of the Guardians of The Galaxy were gone. Gamora was sacrificed by Thanos to collect the Soul Stone on Vormir, and the rest of them were all destroyed by the finger snap of doom in the closing minutes of the movie... except for Rocket Raccoon. However, you have to wonder if Rocket even wants to live in this world anymore. Not because Groot and the rest of pals have perished though, but because he'll never get a chance to claim the Winter Soldier's arm!

Thor is thankful for Rocket's love of stealing body parts. Bucky? Not so much. During the fight on Wakanda, Rocket and Bucky Barnes have a brief interaction on the battlefield where the raccoon (or is it a rabbit?) propositions to buy Bucky's awesome assault rifle. When Bucky says it ain't for sale, Rocket asks how much for the arm. For those who have seen the GOTG movies, they know that Rocket has an affinity for robotic body parts. In the original GOTG, he gets Star-Lord to buy a prisoner's leg and also tries to take somebody's eye. Well actually, I suppose he finally got an extra eye, didn't he?

7 Thanos: Trademark Of McDonalds?

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Darn that Peter Quill. Not only is he the worst member of the Guardians of the Galaxy (there, I said it), but he dooms half the universe in this movie due to him not being able to keep his emotions in check for a minute. But I suppose that we could let him off with a stern warning, because at least he called Thanos a funny name, right? Heck no, but it was a solid line. The only way Thanos can be scarier is if he had Ronald McDonald in his Black Order.

For people born before 2003, when McDonald's dropped Ronald McDonald and the rest of his supporting cast in their marketing, Grimace is a friend of that horrid looking yellow, white and red clown. However, he did actually start out as a "villain" whose evil deeds included stealing soft drinks and milkshakes. Thankfully Grimace's terror was put to an end because of a marketing decision. Ha! What can Thanos possibly do to compare to those sins by the purple monster? Oh, that's right, he wiped out half of the life in the universe with just a snap of his fingers. Rightttt. I don't think hoping Thanos wanes in popularity is an effective strategy against him.

6 The Web Slinger Vs. The Mad Titan

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Anyone who knows me knows that Spider-Man is my favorite superhero of all time. I think he has demonstrated over the years that he can take on foes far above his weight class thanks to a combination of his speed, agility, and ability to think on the fly. However, even I have to say that Thanos is somebody who could end Spider-Man without even a second thought. But Spidey tries anyway, and the way he contributes to the fight is an Easter egg taken straight out of the Infinity Gauntlet storyline.

At one point in the fight on Titan, Spidey webs up the face of Thanos so he can be distracted if even for a brief moment. This is exactly what he does when all of the heroes fight Thanos on his makeshift battleground. Eventually though in the film, Spider-Man is slammed down by Thanos' mighty hand. This sort of happened in the original comic event as well with some differences. Firstly, that slam in the comic was done by Terraxia. Who is Terraxia? Basically, a female Thanos created by Thanos himself to be his mate after he was rejected by Mistress Death. Seriously. Also, that slam is enough to end Spidey's life, but in Infinity War he fights on only to perish into dust at the end. Personally, I would have chosen to go out by the slam.

5 Thanos' Art Projects

via Comixology

There are numerous times in Avengers: Infinity War where it seems like Thanos may actually be defeated. In reality, we know that he's not going to be beaten only halfway into the movie but when Gamora stabs Thanos with the knife that he gave her when she was a child, you can suspend your disbelief long enough to think she did it. She doesn't, of course, and then we see the true depravity of Thanos as he turns both Drax The Destroyer and Mantis into piles of blocks and ribbons. Like many other attacks Thanos uses in the movie, this is lifted straight out of the Infinity Gauntlet story.

Maybe Thanos is going to build a house for Mistress D. with those blocks?

While he was using those two attacks in battle, he turns people into ribbons and blocks in the comic for different reasons. Instead of Drax and Mantis, Nebula and Starfox are the victims of his display of power. Here he is simply hurting them in an attempt to get Mistress Death's affections, but she still spurns him as she isn't impressed with his displays of bravado. Remember, Thanos, showing off your strength is no way to a lady's heart, even if she is an embodiment of a concept that none of us truly understand.

4 Thanos Dealing With The Collector

via Comixology

For as mighty as Thanos is with the Infinity Gauntlet, whatever he does with that power isn't that impressive. I mean after all, anyone with that gauntlet could become omnipotent so what's the big deal? Now if you want to see Thanos at his most impressive and terrifying, you would have to read the comics storyline which preceded Infinity Gauntlet called "Thanos Quest". If you read that, you'll also understand an Easter egg in Infinity War.

In "Thanos Quest", the Mad Titan goes on a quest to assemble all of the Infinity Gems to destroy half the Universe. In the final issue of the series, Thanos pays a visit to the Collector to get the Reality gem, just like in the movie. While in the movie he takes the gem by force, Thanos is more devious in the comic. He appeals to the Collector's nature and since the Collector doesn't know what the Reality gem can do, he trades it for a baby who is actually one of the most powerful beings of the Universe. Once the deal is done though, Thanos uses his already collected Time gem to age the baby back into an adult who attacks the Collector for trying to put him in his collection. Damn Thanos, you are pure evil.

3 The Finger Snap Of Doom

via comixology

Quick, do me a favor right now and snap your fingers. It didn't do anything but produce a satisfying sound, right? Well, you would be correct, but that's just because you don't have the Infinity Gauntlet with a full set of gems. If you did, you would have done one of the most evil deeds a person could do; wipe out half of all the life in the universe.

Which is exactly what Thanos did at the end of Avengers: Infinity War. After Thor sunk his new weapon Stormbreaker deep into the chest of the Mad Titan, Thanos survived the attack long enough to finally do what he set out to do and obliterated half the life in the universe. But while Thanos did this in the movie of his own volition and was the final act in the movie, in the comics the deed went down slightly differently. Here, he committed the unspeakable action to appease his longtime love Mistress Death. Not only that, but this action really kicks off the storyline instead of ending it. Well, at least this action kicks off Avengers 4. Right? Well, we got to wait and see for that.

2 Now He's A True Spider

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We knew all the way back in the early trailers for Avengers: Infinity War that Peter Parker was finally going to get that new suit that was teased at the end of Spider-Man: Homecoming. Dubbed the "Iron Spider" suit, this suit turns Spidey into... well, actually, you know what, we don't really know too much about what it adds to Spidey's moveset aside from now being able to breathe in space. Well, that is except for the four additional arms that now can spring out of his back.

It was so cool it almost made you forget that it ruined the whole point of Spider-Man: Homecoming's ending.

In the trailers, we have seen the Iron Spider suit, but it went through a redesign that didn't show the signature legs. But thankfully in the movie we got them. They were used to save Mantis from a fall that would have definitely ended her life, so just right there their inclusion feels justified because I'll be darned if Mantis were to perish... oh, crap, she perishes in the finale along with Spider-Man himself. Well, now I'm super angry and so mad that I can just watch that movie again. Don't judge me, you know you will too.