The exact amount of foreknowledge varies depending on the property in question, but this is a tool that adaptations can use. Batman’s archenemy is the Joker, Spider-Man’s uncle dies, etc. Audiences are assumed to have a certain level of knowledge about these storylines and characters. It can lead to experiences of stories that you can’t get from original, stand-alone projects. Comic books are recursive, constantly iterating on the same concepts with new ideas, directions, and perspectives. This ability for recontextualization is a feature of comic book adaptations, not a bug. Infinity War is just another take on that same concept, no different from the several other comic book storylines that brought back Thanos and the Infinity Stones to tell different stories. The resulting movie has only the bare minimum in common with the Infinity Gauntlet storyline that inspired it, but that’s not a problem. Instead, the MCU’s Thanos is motivated by a misguided approach to sustainability, believing that only by slaughtering half of all life in the universe can the rest of that life be preserved. That motivation would’ve felt out of place in the MCU’s (at the time) more grounded approach to superheroes. In the comics, Thanos is madly in love with the physical manifestation of Death and slaughters half of all life in the universe to try and earn her favor. The Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Thanos ( Josh Brolin) is an excellent example of this. But they can reinvent an existing character to suit the story being told in the adaptation. For example, there are instances of Batman killing throughout the comic book canon, but a story about a Batman that kills is always contentious despite that precedent. The advantage of not being beholden to a single sacred text is not a free pass for comic book adaptations to do whatever they want with the source material.
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