The Sentry debuted in Thunderbolts*, which is about to enter its fourth week in theaters. His arrival wasn't surprising given the number of clues set out in the Thunderbolts* trailers, but that didn't detract from his first appearance on-screen, where he deployed a dizzying array of powers against which the titular team stood no chance.
The fact that the Sentry's big-screen debut pitted him against a relatively weak team of superheroes comprising super-assassins and super soldiers, it is hard to determine what the upper limits of the Sentry's powers are. MCU intends to adapt a relatively comic-accurate rendition of the character. This presents something of a concern when it comes to the power balance within the MCU, but it looks like the franchise is simply going to double down.
Marvel Has Already Teased Franklin Richards' MCU Introduction
Sue Storm Is Pregnant In The Fantastic Four: First Steps
In Marvel Comics, Franklin Richards is the first child of Sue Storm and Reed Richards and older brother to the super-genius, Valeria Richards. Unlike his sister, Franklin Richards was a mutant with the power to warp reality on a universal scale, allowing him to create entire worlds. Franklin Richards has yet to feature in a live-action movie (outside of Easter eggs), including Fox's two attempts at a Fantastic Four franchise, but it appears the MCU is about to change this.
Why Reed Richards & Sue Storm's Child Is More Powerful Than Scarlet Witch & Vision's
Reed Richards and Sue Storm will be having a child in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, and their super-kid will be one of the MCU's most powerful.
The most recent trailer for The Fantastic Four: First Steps revealed that Sue Storm will be pregnant for at least a portion of the movie. Given that certain clues within this trailer suggest that there will be time-jumps (such as Sue appearing to be further along in her pregnancy in some shots), The Fantastic Four: First Steps may even feature the birth of Franklin Richards, as one shot of Sue and Reed in space would also suggest. While there is a small chance that this child isn't Franklin, all signs suggest that the MCU is about to drastically change.
Franklin Richards Is An Even More Powerful Hero Than Sentry
Franklin Richards Can Alter Reality Itself On A Universal Scale
It is hard to overstate the sheer scale of Franklin Richards' powers, and while the same could be said for a comic-accurate Sentry, I expect that The Fantastic Four: First Steps is about to introduce Scarlet Witch died in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, leaving the door open for another reality-manipulator to take her place.
Except Franklin Richards is even more powerful. While a comic-accurate Sentry also boasts a measure of reality-warping capabilities, even causing the entire world to forget about him (albeit with the help of Reed Richards and Doctor Strange), the sheer scale of what Franklin Richards has been able to achieve in Marvel Comics is almost beyond comprehension. He has, after all, created entire universes - and this could be what makes him such an important addition to the MCU and the Multiverse Saga's projects.
Franklin Richards & Sentry Could Both Be Key To The Avengers Movies
Both Will Be Integral In The Fight With Doctor Doom
It is difficult to ignore the proximity of Sentry and Franklin Richards' big-screen debuts to the climactic movies of the Multiverse Saga, Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. In fact, the Avengers: Doomsday cast , confirming that Bob and likely Sentry will next appear in Avengers: Doomsday.
Whatever the case, with Doctor Doom being positioned as the MCU's newest big bad, both Franklin Richards and Sentry will likely be significant aces up the sleeves of the heroes.
story details about Avengers: Doomsday, it's unclear what role Franklin Richards could play, or whether he'd be old enough to contribute, but it's feasible that he might have a role to play in creating Doom's Battleworld from Marvel Comics in the absence of any Molecule Man MacGuffin.
Bob is currently keeping the Sentry alter-ego suppressed so as not to wake the Void.
Franklin is more likely to play a larger role in Avengers: Secret Wars. The 2015 "Secret Wars" run of comics centered on the Fantastic Four, and Franklin Richards plays a pivotal role in reshaping the new multiverse after the previous one was destroyed. Should Avengers: Secret Wars be accurately adapting this run, then it stands to reason that Franklin will have a similar part to play.
Whatever the case, with Doctor Doom being positioned as the MCU's newest big bad, both Franklin Richards and Sentry will likely be significant aces up the sleeves of the heroes. I have less faith that Sentry will survive for much longer, as he is now vulnerable to being the victim through which Doctor Doom's powers can be highlighted. Much like how Hulk was immediately defeated by Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War, I can see a similar scene playing out between Doom and Sentry to yield similar narrative results.
Franklin Richards & Sentry Take The MCU's Powers To A Whole New Level - So What's Next?
The MCU Can't Introduce Many More Powerful Characters
Should Sentry survive the events of Avengers: Doomsday, then the MCU is in a unique position. The days of Thanos being the universe's greatest threat are long gone, with the likes of even Scarlet Witch and Captain Marvel giving him cause for concern before Iron Man brought his tenure as the MCU's arch-villain to its end. Since then, the Multiverse Saga has introduced a litany of unfathomably powerful superheroes while supercharging the powers of MCU veterans like Thor, Loki, and Doctor Strange.
This power creep is arguably about to reach its zenith with Sentry and Franklin Richards. Thunderbolts* illustrated how certain characters, like Sentry's destructive alter-ego, the Void, can only be defeated through extremely unconventional means. Between this entity's apparent invulnerability and Franklin Richards' nigh-omnipotence, it is difficult to see where the MCU could go from here to introduce a more powerful character, especially if Avengers: Secret Wars introduces God Emperor Doom.
I think the most satisfying answer to this state of affairs is in the future MCU.
- Created By
- Paul Jenkins, Jae Lee, Rick Veitch
- First Appearance
- The Sentry (2000)
- Alias
- Robert Reynolds
- Alliance
- Avengers, New Avengers, Mighty Avengers, Dark Avengers, Horsemen of Death
- Franchise
- Marvel
