The MCU has been gracing screens with content for over a decade, and seemingly have plans for the next decade, according to Kevin Feige. In that time, they've come up with several Easter eggs and inside jokes, many of which fans look forward to with every new release.
Marvel loves to slip a joke in wherever they can, many of which are Easter Eggs in their own right, and callbacks to earlier films. There are so many across the franchise that it would be impossible to discuss them all, but here are a few fan favorites.
Thor's Nickname
When Thor tries to activate the Quinjet in Thor: Ragnarok he struggles to identify himself with the ship. After multiple failed attempts, including "Strongest Avenger" and "Son of Odin", it eventually opens when he says "Point Break."
Eagle-eyed fans will remember that this is a nickname given to him by Tony Stark in The Avengers, about his hair looking like Patrick Swayze's character, Bodhi, in the film of the same name. It's an inside joke between Tony and Thor that fans love.
The Number 12 Joke
12 seems to be a recurring theme throughout the movies. It first appeared in The Avengers in a conversation between Tony and Pepper where he tells her to take "12% of the credit" for Stark Towers. It then shows up again in The Guardians Of The Galaxy when Star Lord reveals he has a plan, but then tells his team he has only "12% of a plan." In Avengers: Age Of Ultron, Pietro Maximoff tells his sister, Wanda Maximoff, that he is 12 minutes older than her.
There seems to be no real significance to this number, but fans have enjoyed spotting the number across various projects, wondering if it'll turn up again.
On Your Left
First spoken by Steve Rogers in Captain America: The Winter Soldier as he runs past Sam Wilson, this inside joke has become synonymous with Cap fans. Sam Wilson then repeats it back to Steve at the end of the movie when he's sitting next to his hospital bed.
Viewers will also remember one of the most iconic moments in the franchise in Avengers: Endgame when Sam (along with everyone else) returns after Thanos' Snap and repeats the phrase to Steve. It started as a joke between friends but is one of the most recognized phrases from the movies.
Tony Stark Hates Being Handed Things
There are several theories based on this recurring joke, some suggesting it's because Tony is a germaphobe, others are darker, suggesting this stems from his lack of trust and traumatic past.
Either way, it's a recurring theme that Tony Stark does not like being handed things and will not accept them. In both Iron Man and The Avengers, he explicitly tells the people trying to hand him things that he doesn't like it. In both cases, someone else takes what he is supposed to, Happy and Pepper being the slightly annoyed friends who are handed things meant for Tony.
Move Your Seat Up
Bucky and Sam have had a difficult friendship. Their first introduction involved Bucky trying to kill Sam, albeit as The Winter Soldier. Since then, the two of them are often seen bickering and arguing over the smallest of things.
In Captain America: Civil War, Steve, Bucky, and Sam are on the run and squeezed into a car way too small for them. While Bucky and Sam are stuck in the car waiting for Steve, Sam asks Bucky if he can move his seat up, to which he replies, "No.". This interaction is repeated in The Falcon And The Winter Soldier, where Bucky finds himself stuck behind Sam in a car, and he asks the same question. It's a small, insignificant moment in the grand scheme of the episode, but one that pleased diehard fans greatly.
Ant-Man's Admiration For The Avengers
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Ant-Man has always struggled to be taken seriously compared to his counterparts. Despite having 2 successful movies and a third to be released, many forget about his involvement in the MCU.
Scott Lang is arguably one of the biggest geeks in the MCU. There are several moments where he comes face to face with members of the Avengers and is too stunned to speak, often tripping over his own words. Fans especially have commented about how relatable and funny this is, many citing they would act the same if they found themselves face to face with their favorites.
Captain America's Virginity
She-Hulk: Attorney At Law shocked fans with its first post-credit scene which poked fun at Steve Rogers and his lack of a love life.
It's a recurring theme throughout the franchise, with Natasha poking fun at Steve Rogers in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, asking if their shared kiss was his first kiss since the 1940s. In the post-credit scene of She-Hulk, Bruce Banner reveals Steve Rogers lost his virginity in 1943 on the USO Tour, a nod to the joke and Steve Roger's character in the MCU. Steve Rogers' prude personality has been made fun of for years, from him telling Tony off for swearing in Avengers: Age Of Ultron, to his love life, so this is just another addition to the long-running list of Steve Rogers jokes.
Plays On Asgard
Thor: Ragnarok saw a shift in the tone and storytelling, compared to previous Thor movies. It's a shift that has since been praised, and there are several jokes in this movie that pleased diehard MCU fans.
One of them is the plays performed on Asgard. Eagle-eyed fans would have noticed that the actors playing the different versions of Thor and Loki were familiar. Hollywood actor Matt Damon plays Fake Loki, and Chris Hemsworth's own brother, Luke Hemsworth, plays Fake Thor. It's something that fans didn't pick up on the first watch, but a joke that is carried through and repeated in Thor: Love And Thunder.
Clint's Uselessness
Clint Barton, better known as Hawkeye, isn't as strong as his fellow Avengers teammates. This is something that's played on as the movies go on.
Clint first acknowledges this in Avengers: Age Of Ultron, when he's trying to talk Wanda out of her panic, admitting that he doesn't know what he's supposed to do with bow and arrows against robots. It's carried on again in Captain America: Civil War, when he tries to introduce himself to Black Panther, who simply replies with "I don't care." Even in his own show, Hawkeye, Clint takes a backseat to Kate Bishop who steals the show, another addition to the Clint's Uselessness long-running joke.
Loki's Adoption
Thor and Loki may be brothers, but they never miss an opportunity to remind people that they're adopted brothers. In The Avengers when Thor is faced with the news that his brother Loki killed 80 people in two days, he simply replies with the statement "he's adopted."
This statement comes back in a hilarious way in Thor: Ragnarok. When Loki is asked by the Grandmaster if he knows Thor, Thor replies that they're brothers. Loki quickly intervenes and confirms that they're adopted brothers, not related by blood, a direct callback and play on the first Avengers movie.