'Avengers Infinity War': Peter Quill doesn't deserve such hatred and blame for that meltdown, here's why
It has been two years since the devastating events of 'Avengers: Infinity War'. Despite the best efforts of the Avengers, Thanos (Josh Brolin) caught hold of the six Infinity Stones and snapped his fingers. Half the universe withered away into dust and we had to see many of our heroes disappear in front of our eyes too. Yes, thanks to the epic Time Heist in 'Avengers: Endgame', the effects of the snap were reversed and our heroes were brought back in the final showdown with Thanos. Yet, not every story has a completely happy ending, as we bid goodbye to Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr), who sacrificed his life to save the universe. Well, not without having the last word of course.
Two years later and fans still debate that this whole debacle could have been avoided. Yes, you know where we are going with this. Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) has been slammed and received enough hate for losing his cool with Thanos, just when Spider-Man (Tom Holland) and Iron Man were just about to take the gauntlet from Thanos. Quill's emotions were all over the place, as earlier, he had seen Gamora (Zoe Saldana) vanish with Thanos. He did not know yet, that she had been sacrificed for the soul stone in Vormir. And so, while the Mantis (Pom Klementieff) was inducing Thanos into a stupor for the others to take the gauntlet with the Infinity Stones, Quill chose that time to ask about Gamora. And that's when he gets the heartbreaking news. A broken Quill gives Thanos a couple of punches, and so he snaps out of the stupor and is able to keep the gauntlet.
Yeah, fans have not been able to get over this and are convinced that had it not been for him, the universe could have been saved. Quill isn't used to the consequences of his emotional actions and it's only after Thanos does the unthinkable, does he have little time to mull over what's going to happen next. Two years later, fans are back to cursing Quill on Twitter, during the #QuarantineWatchParty of 'Avengers Infinity War'.
"I blame quill for it all," a fan tweeted.
"How can Peter Quill ask if they just lost after he lost control of his emotions when they almost had the gauntlet off of Thanos (I've convinced myself of this)?"another wrote.
But to be fair, does Quill really deserve all the blame and hatred? Let's look at it this way: The leader of the Guardians has been a savior, twice over. He knew that this whole battle was unlike any other that he had fought. He knew that there was so much at stake, to the extent that he was willing to pull the trigger on Gamora in Knowhere. Unfortunately, for him, it all stops to have any meaning, when he confronts Thanos again and realizes that Gamora is dead. Nothing matters much for him there, except for his broken heart, not even precipitating the lives that could be lost because of this. But honestly, Quill has only seen loss in his life. He lost his mother at a young age. And then he was forced to kill his father. He had just about found happiness in Gamora and she was taken away from him too. He is an emotional person and this was pretty much the last straw for him.
Chris Pratt has defended his character, Starlord is more human than the other superheroes. "I think he reacted in a way that’s very human," he pointed out, "And I think the humanity of the Guardians of the Galaxy is what sets them apart from other superheroes. I think if we did it a hundred times I wouldn’t change a thing."
Director Anthony Russo, who didn't expect the strong backlash against Quill, had drawn a parallel between him and Thor. Both the characters had come heartbreakingly close to defeating Thanos, but their emotions got the better of them. Thor didn't go for the 'head' as Thanos taunts him for and is left brimming with guilt for most of 'Endgame'.
Cut a guy some slack.