Thanks to Thor: Love & Thunder and Ms. Marvel's finale, brave characters in the MCU are at the forefront right now. Both Jane Foster and Kamala Khan, among others, show great courage in their respective arcs. Jane fights the God Butcher while simultaneously fighting cancer while Kamala finally faces the Department Of Damage Control and does everything she can to protect her friends.
Recently, the people of Reddit came together to discuss what they believe to be the greatest displays of bravery in the franchise. With hundreds of characters and thousands of sequences to choose from, there are a select few that stand out among others.
Hogun Stands Up To Hela - Thor: Ragnarok
Upon Odin’s death in Thor: Ragnarok, Hela returns to Asgard to claim the throne. She is greeted by a group of non-conforming Asgardian soldiers, and even after destroying the majority of them, Hogun stands up to her.
Reddit user its_so_amazing is in awe of this character's will. They speak about the situation, how Hogun "saw his fellow Asgardian soldiers slaughtered by Hela and he stood and faced her while injured knowing that he would die." As one of the Warriors Three, the character has always been courageous. He is loyal to his kingdom and his best friend, Thor, and proves this once again in his fight against Hela, though he is quickly defeated.
Kid Faces A Hammer Drone Alone - Iron Man 2
Whiplash unleashes his Hammer Drones at the Stark Expo, wreaking havoc on the event and the people who attended. A young kid with an Iron Man helmet encounters one of these robots and takes it upon himself to destroy it. Stark sees this exchange and attacks the drone from behind the child.
Reddit user ApprehensiveSteve believes this is one of the greatest displays of bravery in the entire MCU. Others such as Kooky_Wonder_2379 bring up a frequent theory that the kid in this film grows up to be Peter Parker in the franchise. There have allegedly been multiple confirmations and denials by the cast and crew themselves, so no one can say for sure if this is true, but Marvel has been retconning many things lately, especially with the events of Doctor Strange 2. Whether this kid is Peter or not, this is one of the best moments in the film.
Star-Lord Pulls The Trigger On Gamora - Avengers: Infinity War
In Infinity War, Gamora makes Peter Quill promise that if Thanos gets close to her, he would kill her so her adoptive father wouldn't find the soul stone. When the moment comes, he abides by her wishes. Reluctantly, and through tears, he pulls the trigger but Thanos alters reality, and the gun only blows bubbles.
Redditor AlbertZhuFG is passionate about this forgotten moment, sharing that it "is seldom brought up when people [give Star-Lord crap] for messing up the Avengers' plan on Titan, but him pulling the trigger on Gamora would have been very fresh on his mind, and he was definitely not ready to accept that Gamora still died." This user makes a great point. Quill attacking Thanos is often framed as the worst decision made in the MCU, but when keeping this prior scene in mind, it is understandable that his anger got the best of him.
Tony Stark's Sacrifices - Various
Tony Stark may be best known for being sarcastic, selfish, and a self-proclaimed playboy. Many fans see his sacrifice in Avengers: Endgame as a shift in his character, but he's made sacrificial moves and proven his bravery many times.
Reddit user obesatron references the first Avengers in their comment: "He literally went through a wormhole with a nuke he strapped himself to in order to save the world. He had no idea he was coming back, all he wanted to do was put an end to the army of aliens pouring through earth.” Contrary to popular belief, Stark has always made sacrifices for others. As Mayboyles90 points out, he "had Pepper blow the reactor with him still on the roof to get Obadiah" in Iron Man.
Hawkeye Just Being There - Various
Hawkeye is one of the most underrated Marvel characters. Fans have questioned his abilities among the various alien and technological threats the Avengers often face. However, Reddit users believe that his participation in these battles alone shows the immense amount of bravery he possesses.
Reddit user Mrminecrafthimself shares one of Hawkeye's greatest quotes on this thread: "'The city is flying, we're fighting an army of robots, and I have a bow and arrow. None of this makes sense.'" He speaks this line to Wanda Maximoff during their battle with Ultron. Dudemann adds, "He wasn't even exaggerating--that lunacy was exactly the reality of their situation--it was just bizarre and funny for him to actually say it out loud."
Scott Goes Subatomic - Ant-Man
In Ant-Man, Scott Lang shrinks exponentially to enter the Yellowjacket's suit and destroy it from the inside. He does this to protect his daughter, though he knows he may never return. Subsequently, he makes a rash decision while subatomic that could save him, but also has the potential to kill him.
User AlbertaChuck reflects on the consequences of Scott's decision: "not death but forever shrinking to quantum size... assuming it would be a lonely slow death... that's guts." Several others agree, with Not_a_Titan_Main saying "He had some balls of f***ing steel to do that." In addition to Scott, Janet Van Dyne deserves an honorable mention for being the first to brave the quantum world.
Steve Jumps On A Grenade - Captain America: The First Avenger
Steve Rogers is known for being the bravest Avenger in the MCU. However, his greatest display of bravery is before he even becomes Captain America. During a training exercise, a small and skinny Steve jumps on a prop grenade thinking it's real.
User JonnyAU believes this to be the greatest display of courage "because Steve completely believed he would die and he was doing it to save dudes who did not care about him at all." Free_For__Me adds, "I've said for years--Steve having the serum is incidental. His real power is being a better human being than any of the other heroes (or any of us) could ever really be." This claim is evidenced by not only his jump on the grenade, but his reroute of the ship at the end of his first film and the choices he makes throughout his run in the franchise.
S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Refuses To Launch Helicarriers - Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Cap makes an announcement at S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ, revealing Hydra's takeover of the organization and asking for help to stop Hydra's mission to launch their attack-helicarriers. The control operator of the launch sides with Steve and refuses to continue.
Reddit user macsflamethrower says, "This one always comes to mind. This guy with no superpowers had a literal gun pointed to his head and he still refused to launch the ship." eltrotter adds, "This one hits hard because it feels very real. I can really put myself in that poor lad's shoes, and totally imagine how terrifying that must be." Anyone can tell the character is scared and overwhelmed, but he shows courage and follows his gut anyway. After all, bravery is doing something despite the fear one feels about it.
Man Refuses To Kneel Before Loki - The Avengers
In the first Avengers, Loki wreaks havoc on Earth. He visits Germany where he attacks the locals and forces them to praise the God before them. One man refuses to kneel at Loki's feet. He confronts the frost giant in this iconic franchise moment.
Redditor Umc_thunder72 is in awe of this man's courage, saying "That man had no way of knowing he would have been saved, he's up against power he's never seen before and is likely maybe even weaker than the average due to his age. There is no chance he could survive a direct fight, yet he still refuses to kneel." Hgilbert_01 admits, "I just now got chills reflecting on it--such a powerful moment." This goes to show that some of the most courageous people are those without superpowers as a crutch.