The One Question Avengers: Infinity War NEEDS To Answer

2. So What If Thanos Knew What He Was Doing?

Thanos' plan is obviously a blatant one now: he wants to wipe out half of the universe to rebalance existence to stop it from destroying itself. And though he's a magnificent specimen and a powerful creature, there's something about Thanos' past that has to impact his perception of his plan as well as potentially explaining why he gives up such a valuable asset in the pursuit of even more valuable assets.

Thanos, remember, is the last of his kind (or so we're led to believe by the backstory presented to us). He watched his planet wither and die and his people get wiped out by over-achievement and over-population. He might be a Titan and a hugely powerful entity, but he is more acutely aware of his own vulnerability than anyone.

The figure who swaggers into the Infinity War trailers may look untouchable, but he has not only the survival of his species on his shoulders but also the wholly justified agenda to save the universe from itself. And he knows he's the only one who could possibly do that because of his very specific back-story. So of course he'd be wary of putting himself directly into the firing line.

Thanos needs to stay alive at all costs so that he can see his plan through: in his mind, the fate of the galaxy depends upon it. And though it's unfortunate that he has to rely on underlings to do his bidding at first, it's a necessary evil to draw out the location of the remaining Stones as well as any threats that might stand in his way.

In short, Thanos knew about the Avengers from the moment they were formed and it was their arrival that changed his approach to finding the Stones. As soon as they were an obvious threat, he had to rely on some help to protect himself.

Think about the alliances he's made previously: with the Other, Loki, Ronan (and even Ultron by the suggestion of his Age Of Ultron post-credits appearance) - all were key to not only tracking Stones but also to testing the weaknesses of the Avengers and their probable allies. What if he knew that his emergence would bring his enemies together and he was using more disposable allies to help him track the Stones as well as limiting their effectiveness.

Had Thanos not allowed Loki to try and conquer Earth, the Avengers would never have come together, and given that they've been on a track to implosion ever since, you have to think that banding his enemies together was actually Thanos' smartest move.

So what if that was his intention all along? Read on for more.