Some Marvel movies - especially the two Avengers movies in the works - one character who was seemingly promised to have an MCU future based on Thunderbolts* trailers has not made the transition into an Avenger.
The Thunderbolts*' cast of characters who did not survive the movie, though, this was not the cast. Almost a month after the movie's release, I still wish we had seen more of Taskmaster, especially after concept art from the film surfaced online.
Thunderbolts* Concept Art Shows Just How Cool Taskmaster's Costume Really Is
Taskmaster's Visual Design Was Drastically Improved In Thunderbolts*
The concept art from Thunderbolts* is fairly simple as it depicts Taskmater's costume from the movie. Found in a Reddit thread for all things Marvel Studios, the art shows off Taskmaster's suit; the simple blue over suit, the armor padding she wears, her shield, and, most notably, her skull mask. The design of Taskmaster in Black Widow was disappointing to many, yet Thunderbolts* improved in this regard, especially when depicting the character's iconic skull mask from the comics.
The MCU Has Wasted One Of Marvel's Best Villains
The Franchise Did Not Match Taskmaster's Character With Her Design
Sadly, the only thing I think of when seeing this concept art is how the MCU wasted Taskmaster. Thunderbolts* made improvements to Taskmaster's Black Widow design, yet failed to raise the character's development to this level thanks to her very sudden death. The film saw her introduced for a brief moment as one of the many characters Valentina Allegra de Fontaine tried to kill before being shot by Ghost. As a result, one of the coolest villains in Marvel's roster has been wasted in live-action.
We All Knew That 1 Thunderbolts* Death Was Coming - But I Still Can't Get Over Exactly How It Happened
Thunderbolts* killed off one major character, who's precisely the one MCU anti-hero supposed to be the best at taking out other assassins.
In Marvel Comics, Taskmaster is one of the most intriguing villains. His abilities alone make this so, with many wishing to see more of Taskmaster's power to expertly echo any ability of Marvel's many superheroes. The MCU's best Taskmaster scenes - or, more aptly, moments - included this power, as evident in Thunderbolts*, but were sorely lacking from a development standpoint. The character has a great many stories in the source material and, despite the change from Anthony Masters to Antonia Dreykov, the MCU could have adapted them. Now, live-action Taskmaster is simply a waste.
Taskmaster May Be Dead, But Could The MCU Give Her A Legacy?
The Hero Might Be Able To Live On
Image via Disney+
Despite Taskmaster's death in Thunderbolts*, there could be some ways for the MCU to give the character a legacy. One way that has already been teased comes from across the MCU multiverse in Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man season 1's ending. This show introduced the character Finesse who, in Marvel Comics, is the daughter of Taskmaster and has the same abilities he does. This could allow for more Taskmaster goodness to be provided in one facet of the franchise.
The MCU could introduce the comics' Anthony Masters version of Taskmaster as someone who was inspired by Antonia Dreykov...
In live-action, there is a possibility that Finesse is introduced to the MCU too, but an ittedly small one. Beyond that, the MCU could introduce the comics' Anthony Masters version of Taskmaster as someone who was inspired by Antonia Dreykov. This would allow for more of the character's comic book personality and backstory to be explored given that the MCU drastically rewrote this for Antonia. Whether this happens in the franchise's future remains to be seen, but it is one of the ways Taskmaster's legacy could be extended beyond Thunderbolts*.
Thunderbolts*
- Release Date
- May 2, 2025
- Runtime
- 127 minutes
- Director
- Jake Schreier
- Writers
- Eric Pearson, Joanna Calo
- Producers
- Kevin Feige
Cast
Yelena Belova
Bucky Barnes
- Franchise(s)
- Marvel Cinematic Universe
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