Of all the Avengers movies, Infinity War is my second favorite behind the original. The story is exciting, builds tension, and provides one of the most iconic Marvel villains onscreen. I love the visuals during the battles and after the snap.

Avengers: Infinity War is my favorite film of the four Avengers movies. It has some of the best dialogue between the characters and Thanos is a genuinely threatening villain. Seeing the various of the team spread out around the world (and galaxy) and having to fight all their own battles is good stuff. Fantastic ending too.

This is still one of the best Marvel movies of all time in my opinion. I still the absolute silence in my movie theater as the credits rolled, everyone was completely shocked by the ending. No other Marvel movie before or since garnered that same reaction of sheer disbelief.

With the huge number of cast involved in this movie, it can sometimes feel like there's too much going on at once. It turns out, however, that isn't a bad thing when it comes to comic book movies. This is the first MCU movie that genuinely felt like I was seeing a comic book brought to life. Fight scenes looked like comic book splash pages and the stakes felt genuine. It's also a stroke of genius to have nearly all of the superheroes the audience had grown to love wiped out in the final moments of the movie, leaving everyone waiting to see how those who were left behind could pick up the pieces.

I'm so glad that Marvel actually had the guts to end this film with the Avengers losing. I thinking to myself how they were going to split this up into two parts, perhaps a cliffhanger of sorts, but there is really no better way that they could've set up Endgame. What makes this movie so exciting to watch is obviously the huge ensemble cast and the team ups of heroes that we'd never expect together. It is a pretty overwhelming plot and it's easy to get lost in the story, but it's all enjoyable enough for a superhero movie of this scale.

While I have a hard time picking my favorite MCU movie (let alone Avengers crossovers), Infinity War truly does stand apart as something truly unique and impressive. In my mind, Thor's "Bring Me Thanos!" moment is just as epic and powerful as Captain America's "Worthy" scene with Mjolnir in Endgame. The Battle of Wakanda intercut with the Battle on Titan is truly amazing as it all builds up to the tragic and unforgettable moment that was The Snap.

The MCU's Infinity Saga is defined by risk after risk working out for Marvel Studios, and Infinity War remains arguably the biggest gamble. The first Avengers movie broke new ground for team-ups, but Infinity War had to balance a far larger cast, flesh out Thanos as a character, and make good on a decade of hype and world-building. And it pulled it off.

It's hard to now that almost nothing was established about Thanos pre-Infinity War, to the point that nobody knew why he wanted the stones. The fact that he's among cinema's all-time most iconic villains is a testament to the quality of Infinity War. Endgame may be the true Saga-close, but Infinity War remains the tighter story.

A friend who had never seen any MCU films asked me how this was, the next morning after my midnight screening. I told her it was like a concert: if you're already a fan of the band and know all the songs, it's great, and you'll have a good time. If you've never heard of them before, however, you might have some good moments but ultimately will be left cold.

I have complicated feelings on the final two Avengers Infinity Saga movies, but Infinity War is the stronger film. What this movie excells at is building tension. It creates a formidable, if unimpressive villain that will leave you wondering how the united heroes can win, and sweeps the rug out from under you at every chance. The character chemistry is also well done, such as the Stark, Strange, and Parker trio and Thor ing the Guardians. The ending clifhanger feels earned, and leaves an impact.

A genuinely daring superhero epic that's brave enough to go darker than you'd expect. His rhetoric may not make much sense beyond first impressions, but Josh Brolin makes Thanos an iconic cinema villain.