When you live in a world of masked superheroes, aliens falling from the sky, and powers that cross dimensions, the weapons involved can be stranger than just fancy swords or guns.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe is a world of movies and television series that thrive on scientific experimentation and outlandish fantasy. With all of that comes a variety of objects that can be both weapons and defense mechanisms.
Each chapter of the MCU has introduced different items, but for as many as have stuck around (Hulkbuster armor, the tesseract, etc.) there are just as many that disappeared for years that the audience might have forgot even existed.
Just as Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s fifth season brought back gravitonium nearly 100 episodes later, the MCU will likely bring many more weapons back to the screen in future movie installments.
We’ll soon see the return of the hidden infinity stones thanks to Avengers: Infinity War as well, but there are still plenty of pieces of weaponry out there that likely won’t make a comeback.
In some cases, the lack of a return might be because the weapons are obsolete, but in others, it might be because there’s no plot point that needs their return.
We’re taking a look at the 9 Weapons Hidden In The MCU That Even True Fans Forgot About (And 8 We’ll Never See).
Still Hidden: Ebony Blade
As one of the few weapons here that never officially made it into the MCU, the Ebony Blade was slated for a spot in Doctor Strange.
Initially, the sword was designed by the props team to appear in the Lexicon of Relics, but was eventually eliminated from the script for an unknown reason. This mystical sword has an interesting history in the comics though.
The sword was created from a meteor and used by one of the Knights of the Round Table. Created by Stan Lee and first debuting in comics in 1955, it typically belongs to the Black Knight, usually descendants of that first .
It’s also come into the possession of Black Panther in the comics, though, and in fact, Shuri used it to defend herself against invaders in Wakanda. Perhaps its cut from Doctor Strange means it’s lurking out there in the MCU for future use.
Never See Again: Peggy’s Sweet Dreams Lipstick
Over the course of the Agent Carter television series many “new” pieces of technology and weapons were introduced. Since the series was set in the 1940s, though, many of those things are now outdated.
One weapon that Peggy Carter only put to use once early on the show was a very special kind of lipstick. Called 102 Sweet Dreams, it wasn’t just a pretty shade, but knocked out anyone she kissed while wearing it.
In addition to being something straight out of an old spy comic, it’s the kind of weapon that requires someone to get a little too close to their target.
Modern versions of the weapon include Black Widow’s widow stings and the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. ICER bullets. There’s no reason for the MCU to revisit this weapon -- unless they decide to go back in time.
Still Hidden: The Darkhold
With the introduction of Doctor Strange to the MCU, there are sure to be many magical elements. One that was missing in his first movie did turn up on Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. The Darkhold brought a sense of magic to the show.
The comic book version of the book was written by a god and even had demons bound in its pages. While the show didn’t expand on that, it did showcase the immense power of The Darkhold and how it corrupted the minds of those who used it. With it, new dimensions were opened and new powers explored.
Last the audience saw it, Robbie Reyes took the book with him and seemingly opened a door to the MCU version of Hell. Given that Ghost Rider is still out there and there is more Doctor Strange on the way, it’s only a matter of time before the book returns.
Never See Again: Extremis
Extremis made its debut in Iron Man 3. Though it was an interesting attempt to recreate a super soldier, the formula has likely run its course.
A formula based in nanotechnology, extremis was intended to recreate the success the Strategic Scientific Reserve had with Captain America.
Created by Maya Hansen and Tony Stark, Advanced Idea Mechanics improved it. Instead of getting an easily led army, the formula was unstable and put Pepper Potts in danger. It also appeared on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
The extremis formula was part of the cocktail that turned Mike Peterson into someone with super strength and stamina -- before he became Deathlok.
The formula was stabilized thanks to a paralytic agent in a bullet. With everyone involved in its creation now out of the picture (except for Iron Man himself) and only one person living successfully with it, its time in the MCU is seemingly over.
Still Hidden: Staff of the Living Tribunal
It wasn’t Doctor Strange who introduced this magical artifact to the MCU, but rather one of the men who trained him. Karl Mordo used the staff as his weapon of choice.
The staff gets its name from a Marvel comic book character known as the Living Tribunal. A cosmic entity, the character was first introduced when he challenged Doctor Strange to prove there was enough good in the world to make it worth saving. A vastly powerful entity, the Living Tribunal observes the multiverse and maintains balance in it.
Whether audiences will ever be introduced to the Living Tribunal on the screen remains to be seen, but the staff was last seen in the hands of Karl Mordo.
Mordo abandoned his old life, taking the staff with him, when he decided to seek out more power. We’ll certainly see him and the staff again.
Never See Again: The Substance
When Sigourney Weaver’s character revealed that she and several of the Hand were positively ancient on The Defenders, the audience wondered just how that was possible. As it turned out, a mysterious substance kept them alive.
That substance was eventually revealed to be created from the bones of dragons -- yes, actual dragons -- and there was an entire dragon graveyard under New York. Before the of the Hand could unearth any, the Defenders and their allies blew up a building on top of them.
One could argue that since Daredevil (and likely Elektra as well) was dug up from the rubble that dragon bones could be as well, but the storyline that would result would be too repetitive for Marvel to retread. The substance won’t be keeping anyone else alive any time soon.
Still Hidden: The Judas Bullet
When a man reveals himself as bulletproof, plenty of villains try to find a way to bring him down and restore their own power. Such was the case in Luke Cage.
The Judas bullet was designed and developed with alien technology scavenged during the aftermath of events in The Avengers.
Though Luke Cage had unbreakable skin, the bullet was able to pierce him. The bullet also trickled down through the MCU to appear in an episode of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. when Jeffrey Mace had a similar power set.
It would be more surprising if this particular weapon doesn’t pop up again in the hands of more villains in a super powered world.
As Diamondback pointed out, “You don’t need to [end] God with one shot to sell a weapon. You just need to make him bleed.” Sales of the Judas bullet should be pretty high in the MCU.
Never See Again: Midnight Oil
Originally conceived as a combat drug, Howard Stark designed a gas for the military that was supposed to help keep soldiers awake for days at a time. Instead, it drove them mad.
The gas made its appearance in the first season of Agent Carter, though it had ties to World War II and Captain America.
After Howard Stark realized how dangerous his invention was, he sealed it away, but it was stolen and used by soldiers. A Russian contingent massacred one another, and Stark cut all his military ties.
Over the course of the season, he also destroyed all his research into the gas so it couldn’t be replicated, so it’s unlikely to be seen again. As the MCU has since evolved to demonstrate other combat drugs, like the ones used by Will Simpson in Jessica Jones, the midnight oil would be obsolete now.
Still Hidden: Staff of One
The Staff of One had a bit of a cameo in Doctor Strange, but it’s real story occurs in the Marvel series Runaways.
With Runaways exclusively on Hulu in the United States, its audience claims slightly smaller numbers than the rest of Marvel’s properties, so forgetting that the Staff of One exists within the MCU can be forgiven.
While it’s essentially a magic wand in the comics, the series sees it as a scientific advancement. Created by Tina Minoru at her tech company, her DNA is necessary to activate it.
That means that only Tina and her descendants can utilize its abilities. So far, her daughter Nico hasn’t been able to get much practice in with it, though she did steal it on more than one occasion.
The last audiences saw of the staff, it was in Tina’s possession. She used it to make sure her husband could remain alive.
Never See Again: Hammer Tech’s Suits
Like the Judas bullet in Luke Cage, Justin Hammer’s tech company also used alien technology to augment defensive suits to wear in combat. Also like the Judas bullet, Diamondback made use of it in the series.
The suit looked remarkably similar to what Diamondback wore in the comics, full of plenty of padding to keep the villain safe from Luke Cage. In a perfect world, the MCU would probably use it again. In the MCU though, technology has already moved on.
Audiences have seen the vibranium woven into clothing in Black Panther, upgrades to Iron Man’s suits over the years, and more.
With more aliens on their way to Earth in Infinity War as well, the technology of Hammer Tech will be outdated by the time Luke Cage’s second season debuts in June.
