Blade Wants Dane Whitman's Sword For Himself

Rather than train Dane Whitman (Kit Harington), it may be that Blade’s plan after Eternals is to take the Ebony Blade for himself. A shocking cameo in which Mahershala Ali’s Blade could be heard saying “sure you’re ready for that, Mr. Whitman?” officially introduced the iconic vampire hunter to the MCU. Not only that, but it laid the groundwork for an interesting future for Sersi’s human love interest.

Following Eternals’ cryptic tease about Dane’s family secret, the movie teased his MCU future with the live-action debut of the Ebony Blade. Known for being able to cut through nearly any material, the Ebony Blade is one of the most powerful weapons in the Marvel Universe. Plus, it’s the signature sword of Dane Whitman’s comic book counterpart – the Black Knight. Armed with the Ebony Blade, Black Knight was a major member of the Avengers during the 1980s and the early 1990s. In fact, there was a time when his prominence in Marvel Comics allowed him to serve as the face of The Avengers comic as well as the team leader.

Eternals’ post-credits scene set the stage for the MCU’s Dane Whitman to get his comic role – but with a twist. Unlike the Avenger from the comics, it looks like Eternals’ take on the character will be impacted in some way by Blade, who found him just when he uncovered the sword for the first time. Marvel’s decision to link these two characters raises all sorts of questions about what the MCU has in store for them, and how it may differ from the source material. One implication it had was that Blade may be Dane’s mentor, but that may not end up being the case at all. Here’s why Blade may be looking to get his hands on the Ebony Blade, and what this would mean for their roles in the MCU going forward.

Blade Wanting Black Knight’s Sword Would Explain His Eternals Cameo

blade actor mahershala ali and eternals black knight kit harington

Blade’s arrival was so shocking that many overlooked one of the most interesting mysteries created by his cameo. Why did Blade seek out Dane? For him to find them in Eternals’ post-credits scene, he must have been looking for either Dane or the sword itself. As for what could motivate such a search, one possibility is that his aim was to keep it out of the wrong hands. However, this explanation doesn’t account for why he would look for it now. Instead, Blade may have reached a point in his own journey where he decided that he needed the Ebony Blade for himself. It’s possible that he tracked its location to Dane Whitman's uncle, who is believed to be the person Harington’s character acquired it from. From there, he could have found Dane. If this is really what happened, it would make sense of his cameo and why he was present when Dane found the Ebony Blade.

The Ebony Blade’s Blood Curse Explained

Blade’s warning to Dane hints that the sword carries the blood curse from Marvel Comics. In the Avengers comics, it was revealed that wielding the Ebony Blade came with some life-changing consequences. A curse put on the sword causes the weapon to slowly corrupt the soul of the user. The curse’s influence becomes stronger every time the wielder sheds human blood with it. For this reason, Dane Whitman went to extreme efforts to ensure that he didn’t do harm to his enemies with the Ebony Blade. He knew that if he ever misused it, he could end up following the self-destructive path of his ancestors. And as more recent stories have shown, the Ebony Blade’s curse did get the best of Dane in certain situations.

Why Blade Would Want The Ebony Blade (Despite The Curse)

The blood curse would naturally give anyone reservations about wielding it. However, its ability to cut through the strongest metals with ease would still make it an attractive weapon for any warrior. It can effortlessly pierce an opponent’s defenses, and even adamantium weapons are incapable of breaking the sword. In fact, the sword’s usefulness could outweigh the drawbacks, especially for someone like Blade. In contrast to most superheroes, Blade spends his time fighting vampires. Since they’re undead beings, killing them shouldn’t fuel the blood curse. So if he’s not going to use it on living people, he may be able to avoid being overtaken by the Ebony Blade’s evil influence. He may think that this makes him the best possible choice to wield the Ebony Blade in the MCU. If this is true, that could give new meaning to Blade’s warning in Eternals. In Blade’s mind, Dane may not be “ready” for the sword, but he is.

Can Blade Really Get Dane Whitman’s Sword In The MCU?

Why Blade warns dane about the Ebony Blade the eternals

Blade having designs on the Ebony Blade could create a fascinating dilemma for Dane in the MCU’s future. It could be that his line in the post-credits scene was the beginning of a speech in which he’ll lay out the sword’s origin, history, and the details of the blood curse. His intention may be to convince Dane that the best move for him is to give up his claim on the Ebony Blade. And based on everything that’s known about the sword, no one could blame Dane for passing it up. After all, there’s a good chance that the comic book version of the hero would never have touched it if he knew the whole truth from the start. If Dane were to agree, the Ebony Blade could be the vampire hunter’s main weapon for his solo movie.

The problem with this scenario is that it would ruin Eternals’ Black Knight setup. Using Dane to build toward Blade and then casting him aside would be a major letdown for those hoping to see Black Knight burst onto the scene. An entirely different way to resolve this would be for him to decline Blade’s offer. If Dane thinks he needs the sword to save Sersi (Gemma Chan), he may refuse to give it up, even after learning about the curse. The MCU moving in this direction could be good for Black Knight’s future, as it would allow him to move forward independently of Blade. If Blade just wants the sword and isn’t interested in helping Dane, he could leave, thus paving the way for Dane Whitman to go on his own MCU journey, as opposed to becoming a part of Blade’s. Blade’s Eternals cameo may have been included just to tease his solo movie, and not to give Dane a mentor. A Black Knight-Blade team-up may not actually be in the cards.

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