'Doctor Strange 2': The Time Stone looks set to return and here's what that means for the MCU
An official synopsis for 'Doctor Strange In The Multiverse of Madness' has been confirmed and it contains major implications for the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a whole.
The Time Stone makes a return, which means that the other Infinity Stones can't be too far behind. After the events of 'Avengers: Endgame', the Marvel Cinematic Universe shouldn't technically have Infinity Stones anymore.
Thanos (Josh Brolin) destroyed the stones after using their power to wipe out half of all life in the universe. The Avengers had to go back in time to gather the Infinity Stones again to restore the lives that were lost in Thanos' snap.
After using the Stones to bring those lives back, and to snap Thanos' army away, Captain America (Chris Evans) returned the Stones to their respective time periods, just to ensure that the timeline wasn't corrupted.
It's a little complicated, but to sum up, the Stones were destroyed, then plucked out of the past, then returned to the past, and that should have been it.
The Time Stone, however, is going to be a major part of the 'Doctor Strange' sequel, and the question is, how. Of course, there is no other Stone more suited to plucking itself out of the timestream without major timeline interruptions than the Time Stone itself, but there are other ways it could be back.
One theory is that it's an Infinity Stone from another universe — something implied by the "Multiverse" mentioned in the film's title.
While in the comics, the Infinity Stones could only be used in their home universes, the MCU has proven itself comfortable with breaking away from the rules of the comics when it suits them.
Another theory is that the Stones simply reform themselves after being destroyed. Each Stone represents a fundamental aspect of the universe, after all.
Forces like Time, Space, and Reality all continue to function within the MCU, though the embodiments of that power may have been scattered, their reformation may have been inevitable.
This does mean that the Infinity Gauntlet could, in theory, be reformed, and if that's the case, there needs to be a universal team in place to ensure that doesn't happen.
This might introduce the Infinity Watch to the MCU — a team from the comics that was formed to ensure that the Infinite Gems do not fall into the wrong hands.
With the Infinity Gauntlet being so central to the plot of 'Infinity War' and 'Endgame,' it would be a little tiring for Marvel to return to that in future crossovers.
However, with movies like 'Doctor Strange', 'Thor' and the 'Guardians of the Galaxy' that deal with larger, cosmic forces, there is still a lot about the nature of the Stones left to explore.
'Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness' is set to release in cinemas on May 7, 2021.