Thanos' Illness Theory Completely Changes Avengers: Infinity War

Thanos' Illness Theory Completely Changes Avengers: Infinity War
#Thanos was the main villain of the Infinity Saga, and while his plan and intentions were clear, a fan theory suggests Thanos was literally mad, all due to an illness introduced in Eternals, which completely changes his arc in Avengers: Infinity War. For over a decade, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has brought a variety of characters from Marvel Comics to the big screen – from heroes to villains and allies, from Earth and from other planets and realms. The first three Phases of the MCU, collectively known as the Infinity Saga, introduced the heroes that would lead this first part of #MCU history, and they all came together to defeat Thanos (Josh Brolin) in Avengers: Endgame.

Thanos made his MCU debut in the post-credits scene of The Avengers, and after that, the MCU slowly built his introduction as the main villain not only of the Avengers team but the MCU in general, as he had links to other characters, particularly the Guardians of the Galaxy. Thanos was on a quest from his very first appearance: acquire all the Infinity Stones, mount them on the Infinity Gauntlet, and with the power of the Stones, wipe out half of life in the universe with just the snap of his fingers. Although the Avengers, New Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy, and more joined forces in different places (and planets) to stop Thanos’ armies and the Mad Titan himself from doing the nap, Thanos eventually fulfilled his plans.

The reasons behind Thanos’ decision to get rid of half of life in the universe and through that bring “balance” to it were rooted in his traumatic past on his home planet Titan, and since his defeat in Avengers: Endgame, in which all those who vanished were also brought back, many people within the MCU have justified his actions with a “Thanos was right” campaign, while in the real world, some fans believe there was more to Thanos’ ideas than just an evil plan. A theory links Thanos’ plans to an illness introduced in Eternals, thus giving a different and somewhat deeper explanation to why Thanos did what he did.

Mahd Wy’ry: The Eternals' Illness Explained
Eternals introduced viewers to the title team, who were created by the Celestial Arishem and sent to Earth centuries ago with the purpose of getting rid of the Deviants, the Eternals’ evil counterparts. Once the Deviants were eradicated, the Eternals stayed on Earth to help humanity evolve while they waited for a sign to return to their homeworld, but it all turned out to be a lie. The Eternals were sent to Earth to prepare it for the Emergence, the birth of a new Celestial from the center of Earth, which would destroy the planet. As it turns out, the Eternals had already done this multiple times, and after each Emergence, their memories are erased, but all these memory wipes could have terrible consequences on their minds.

Thena (Angelina Jolie) suffered from an illness called Mahd Wy’ry, a dementia-liked condition that affects the Eternals as a result of the vast amount of memories they acquire due to their immortality and the constant memory wipes. Those suffering from Mahd Wy’ry forget where they are in time and thus can attack anyone near them, no matter their relationship. It can be triggered by sudden noises, violence, or threatening events, and they enter a trance-like state where they can’t differentiate between their present time and that of the memories they are living.

Is Thanos An Eternal In The MCU?
Eternals introduced another Eternal in its mid-credits scene: Eros/Starfox (Harry Styles), who to everyone’s surprise, was announced by Pip the Troll (voiced by Patton Oswalt) as the “Prince of Titan” and “Thanos’ brother”. This caused a lot of confusion not only because most of Thanos’ backstory is a mystery but because Eros looks like a normal human, just like the rest of the Eternals, while Thanos’ skin was purple and didn’t exactly look human.

In the comics, Thanos and Eros were born on Titan to two Eternal parents, but the children of two Eternals risk being born with Deviant DNA. Eros, then, was born without the Deviant gene, while Thanos was born with the Deviant Syndrome, thus why he’s purple and looks nothing like his brother. This means that, in the comics, Thanos is an Eternal, but in the MCU things change all the time, and “brothers” doesn’t always mean “biological brothers”. The MCU has already seen adopted siblings, like Thor and Loki and even Thanos’ daughters, Gamora and Nebula, so it’s possible that either Thanos or Eros was adopted. It’s still unclear if Thanos was an Eternal with the Deviant gene (so that explains why he wasn’t immortal like the rest) in the MCU or he was the adopted brother of Eros, but if he was an Eternal, then his evil plans to bring balance to the universe could have been the result of Mahd Wy’ry.

Thanos Suffers From The Eternals' Mahd Wy'ry Illness - Theory Explained
As mentioned above, most of Thanos’ backstory is still a mystery, and only a couple of details were revealed in Avengers: Infinity War. Thanos was born on the planet Titan, which became threatened by the imminent catastrophic collapse of overpopulation. Thanos came up with the “solution” of getting rid of half of the population of Titan, which would free the survivors from starvation. Of course, his idea was considered too drastic and dangerous by his people and led to his exile from Titan. However, Titan was eventually devastated due to overpopulation and rendered nearly uninhabitable, with Thanos becoming the last Titan. Still convinced that his plan could have saved the planet, Thanos concluded that other planets would have the same fate, and began his quest to save the universe by bringing balance to it. Thanos became known as the “Mad Titan”, and a fan theory suggests he was literally mad.

A theory posted on Reddit (via Inverse) suggests Thanos, like Thena, was afflicted with Mahd Wy’ry, so his idea of overpopulation ending planets was rooted in witnessing various Emergences through the years. Given how Mahd Wy’ry affects the mind and memories, Thanos only remembers Titan’s destruction, but he has actually lived through many others, and his approach to overpopulation is the only way to prevent the birth of more Celestials and thus the destruction of more planets. The author also suggests that Titan wasn’t destroyed due to overpopulation and lack of resources, but because it also guarded the seed of an Eternal – however, this is unlikely as Titan appeared in Avengers: Infinity War, and was even the setting of the Battle of Titan between Thanos and the Guardians of the Galaxy, Iron Man, Spider-Man, and Doctor Strange.

How Thanos Being Mad Changes Avengers: Infinity War
Thanos suffering from Mahd Wy’ry completely changes his motivations and the purpose of his plans, and even gives more reasons to the supporters of “Thanos was right”. Among the many questions fans were left with after Eternals is whether Thanos knew about the Emergence in Avengers: Infinity War or not, but as he wanted to preserve life in the universe (through questionable methods, of course), it’s likely he knew about the Emergence. It was confirmed in Eternals that Thanos’ snap delayed the Emergence, so if Thanos was literally mad due to Mahd Wy’ry, then he definitely knew about it, though perhaps not consciously.

Thanos being “mad” would somewhat justify his plans of wiping out half of life in the universe to bring balance, as he would have prevented (or at least delayed) many Emergences, though obviously, his methods were too extreme. This also adds a layer of tragedy to Thanos as what he considered his “home” never really was, and it also means that he went through a lot of mental damage just like Thena, which could change the perspective of some viewers and make Thanos not a full bad guy, but more of a misunderstood and very powerful character who was actually going through a lot of suffering unbeknownst to everyone else.

The Problems With The Thanos Mahd Wy'ry Theory
The biggest problem with the theory of Thanos suffering from Mahd Wy’ry is that, to be afflicted by it, he has to be an Eternal, which would mean that he had the Deviant Syndrome as he didn’t look human. The Eternals were sent to Earth to get rid of the Deviants and could only interfere if they were creating chaos on Earth, which is why they never helped humanity during its most evil and obscure moments in history, including the snap. Now, Thanos having the Deviant gene means that the Eternals should have intervened when he was acquiring the Stones and when the snap was about to happen, yet they never showed up.

Another detail playing against the idea of Thanos having Mahd Wy’ry is that it didn’t manifest in him as it did in Thena, as her eyes went white and she became very violent, whereas Thanos was always in full control and his eyes never went white. Fans of Marvel Comics and the MCU have also pointed out that the Deviant gene would have prevented Thanos from getting Mahd Wy’ry, but again, the MCU has made many changes to the source material, so it could be possible that an Eternal with Deviant Syndrome could be afflicted by it. Although the Thanos Mahd Wy’ry theory sounds appealing and greatly changes Thanos’ story and Avengers: Infinity War, there are many details that go against it – but then again, at this point, anything can happen in the MCU, and this universe still has many, many questions about Thanos, Eros, and the Eternals to answer.


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