WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Eternals, now in theaters
Compared to even the other heroes of the Marvel Universe, the Eternals are on an entirely different scale. They protected the world for centuries with ease, and their powers make them among the most dangerous earth-bound beings. But while they get some opportunity to showcase their abilities against the Deviants that otherwise threaten humanity, they really only open up their potential when fighting each other at the climax of Eternals. And in the process, the climactic battle between them is bombastic and full of unique abilities going against each other and provides a better “Justice League turns on itself” sequence than anything from the recent Injustice animated film.
In Eternals, the eventual revelation of the Celestial Egg within the core of the Earth drives a wedge between the titular group. While Sersi (Gemma Chan) wants to find a way to save humanity and stop the ascension of the new Celestial, Ikaris (Richard Madden) resists, arguing this goes against nature itself. Having secretly killed Ajak (Salma Hayek) when she made a similar argument, Ikaris departs to complete the plan with Sprite (Lia McHugh) accompanying him. Kingo (Kumail Nanjiani) agrees with Ikaris but refuses to fight his family — departing to spend his seeming final moments on Earth in peace. This leaves Sersi with Thena (Angelina Jolie), Phastos (Brian Tyree Henry), Makkari (Lauren Ridloff) and Druig (Barry Keoghan) to fight back against their former allies.
Arriving on a remote island where the Celestial has begun to stir, Ikaris initially seems to kill Druig with an assault of his laser vision. This prompts Thena, Phastos and Makkari to hold him at bay while Sersi goes to try and stop the Celestial. The ensuing fight sees the three deploy unique talents and skills against Ikaris — Makkari’s super-speed allows her to literally run circles around him, while Thena’s blades allow her to combat him directly. When her attention is drawn away by the leader of the Deviants, it largely falls on Phastos to hold his own — and he does, with his inventions largely holding Ikaris at bay while Sersi completes the process of creating the Uni-Mind.
The fight itself is very impressive and especially exciting when one considers how it’s likely the closest thing to an actual Justice League civil war on screen anytime soon. Makkari moves with the kind of speed that is usually reserved for figures like the Flash, proving how someone with just “speed” to their name could combat a Superman-like figure like Ikaris. Thena serves as a good stand-in for Wonder Woman, a warrior using weapons to combat a powerhouse and even hurt him. Meanwhile, Phastos is, for all intents and purposes, a stand-in for an inventor like Batman or Mister Terrific, using impressive technology to hold someone far more physically imposing and doing so with a bit of mockery. And even Ikaris proves a good reminder of just how hard stopping a Superman-level figure would be.
Coincidently, the animated Injustice film debuted shortly before Eternals came to theaters. The film features a conflict between the Justice League that escalates to an all-out conflict between two sides over the definition of justice in their world. While the film was grisly at times, it lacked much of the emotional weight, impressive visuals and sheer scope of the battle from Eternals. Makkari going top-speeds to keep ahead of Ikaris looks phenomenal and is one of the best displays of super-speed in film to date. By contrast, Injustice killed its Flash within the first overarching sequence of the film before his super-speed was ever on display. Likewise, Ikaris is forced to overcome unique abilities with his film, as opposed to the more straightforward approach Superman tends to take in fights in recent films.
On top of having a more visually compelling final battle than Injustice, Eternals is able to build upon the bonds between the heroes to give the fight personal stakes rather than just theoretical ones. It’s a brutal brawl that might be largely bloodless but features more creativity and intent than most other throw-downs.
To see the fight for yourself, Eternals is in theaters now.
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