Marvel announced a whole stream of new content and projects for fans to look forward to during this year's San Diego Comic-Con. Among the new projects, where characters that have been anticipated by fans for years.
With the future of the MCU as bright as it is, it is reasonable to wonder what new character nicknames will continue to be utilized, and what new nicknames will be bestowed upon the rookies. Some of the previous nicknames included reoccurring ones like "Fox" or "Big Guy" while others contained pop culture references like "Legolas" or "Thumbelina."
"Thumbelina" For Ant-Man
To save half of the population that had been blipped, the Avengers go back in time to find the infinity stones and restore the people of Earth. In doing so, Tony Stark, Steve Rodgers, and Scott Lang go back to the "Battle of New York" to retrieve the tesseract which carried the space stone.
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The plan was to unhook a valve in 2012 Tony's chest piece and have 2012 Tony go into cardiac arrest. When 2023 Tony tells Scott it was "go time" he referred to him as Thumbelina, a nod toward's Scott's ability to shrink down to a minuscule size. A nice pop culture reference and nickname on Tony's part.
"Point Break" For Thor
Another pop culture reference from Tony Stark occurs throughout phases 1-3 when Thor is often referred to as "Point Break" by Tony because of Thor's uncanny resemblance to Patrick Swayze in the 1991 movie, Point Break.
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This was a reoccurring nickname and was even used when Tony was not around. For example, "Point Break" was used as Thor's activation code when he is attempting to escape Saakar in Thor: Ragnarok. Because it was a continual nickname, and the fact that Thor deposed it so much, makes this nickname all the more memorable.
"Big Guy" For Hulk
It comes as no surprise that Hulk is one of the biggest and physically strongest Avengers on the squad. For this reason, it is quite funny that the nickname Valkyrie picks out for the Hulk is "Big Guy" as it just cuts straight to the point.
While this nickname is a bit bland, it does showcase to the fans the level of admiration that Valkyrie feels towards Hulk, almost treating him like a brother. Not only that, but is quite humorous, as it is the most obvious nickname Valkyrie could give to Hulk, and yet he adores it.
"Legolas" For Hawkeye
After realizing that he needed a better view to targeting the Chitauri, Hawkeye asks Iron Man for a boost to the nearest rooftop. Tony grasps Clint and tells him to "clench up Legolas." This, of course, was a reference to Legolas, the Sindar Elf, in The Lord of the Rings.
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Both Legolas and Hawkeye are archers and good ones at that, but the similarities stop there. Seeing that the only reason Tony was giving Clint a boost was so that he could get a better angle to shoot his arrows, this nickname was short-lived and circumstantial.
"Kid" For Spider-Man
While this might seem like a basic nickname for Spider-Man, it is extremely sentimental. Not only does Tony Stark call Spider-Man "kid," but many of the other Avengers, including Doctor Strange, refer to Peter as "kid."
Of course, Peter is hardly a kid and is a teen completing high school by the time Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness hits, but it is still an honorary name used by people who see themselves as father figures in Peter's life.
"Junior" For Ultron
It is quite odd that a cognizant being who wanted to destroy the world was given a nickname by its maker, but Tony Stark did. What makes the nickname "Junior" so memorable is not only does it showcase that Tony is, in fact, Ultron's "father," but it is said in such a scolding way, almost paralleling a relationship between a father and son.
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Altogether, it is quite strange that Tony would give someone who wanted to destroy the world, any nickname at all, but then again, it's Tony Stark.
"Tic Tac" For Ant-Man
Captain America: Civil War was not the first time Sam Wilson had met Scott Lang. He had initially met him when Scott was attempting to break into the Avenger Compound and steal the Yellowjacket suit in Ant-Man and the Wasp. The first line of defense and the only line of defense during this scene was Sam.
After reuniting in Captain America: Civil War, Sam says to Scott "wassup TicTac" as Scott tries to awkwardly apologize. What makes this line so iconic is that between the attempting apology and him ignoring the fact that Sam called him a TicTac, this nickname, and the context that goes along with it, was quite funny to uncover.
"Forehead of Security" For Happy
Happy Hogan might be the Head of Security at Stark Industry, but despite working alongside a technological genius, he, himself, is technologically challenged. Wanting to spy on Aldrich Killian during a meeting with Pepper, Tony asks Happy to FaceTime him.
While Happy was able to answer the phone, he was unable to get himself in the frame, leading to Tony calling Happy the "forehead of security." Just like many of Tony's nicknames for people, this was a short-lived one that elicited many laughs.
"Angry Girl"
Hulk is a man of few words and was probably not cognizant of the fact that he gave Valkyrie a pretty decent nickname. Valkyrie was known in Thor Ragnarok to be "hardcore" and high-strung, but her receiving the name of "Angry Girl" meant that Hulk must've known about her past and her ambitions.
Knowing this fact makes this nickname a lot more enjoyable. It showcases the fact that Valkyrie is angry at a lot of people, Hela being one of them, and wishes to enact her revenge, making this name perfect for her.
"Fox" For Rocket
Rocket has been given many nicknames over the years, most of them having to do with mistaking him for another animal. "Fox," however, unlike the other nicknames Rocket received, is a reoccurring nickname that Nebula bestowed upon him.
Even though Rocket looks a lot closer to a rabbit, another nickname, than a fox, Nebula, continually utilizes this nickname throughout the movies they are shown in together.