Spider-Man: Far From Home is the first film since Avengers: Endgame, and it marks the end of Phase 3 in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). The ever-energetic Tom Holland reprises his role as Peter Parker/Spiderman, meeting us 8 months after Endgame with the damage still evident in the characters’ lives.
Some of the questions we had after the epic conclusion are answered, while other questions are raised after ‘the blip’ – which is how Peter’s high school news anchors refer to Thanos’ genocidal snap.
Marvel has made a trademark of scattering easter eggs and references throughout their films, and their latest offering is no different. We’ve listed down some of the cooler call-backs that we noticed. Let us know in the comments if we missed anything!
(WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD, OBVIOUSLY)
Iron Man (RIP)
Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) was a mentor and father figure for Peter Parker, and his demise has left Peter devastated in grief. As for the world, it is still in the process of mourning Tony’s death.
There are various tributes to Iron Man placed in the movie, like an ‘In Memoriam’ slideshow broadcasted in Midtown High (Peter’s high school), the Iron Man mural on a wall, shrines of candles and flowers, and posters of our goateed guardian.
There is even a documentary for Tony called ‘Heart of Iron’ in the in-flight movies selection on Peter’s plane to Europe. Not to forget the many Iron Man drawings pinned on the bulletin board in Peter’s art class.
What I’m saying is, if you’re still not over Tony’s death, BE STRONG.
Pepper Potts
The Iron Man impact continues as we see Tony’s right-hand man Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau) delivering a huge cheque from Stark Foundation as a donation to Aunt May’s fundraiser for people who were impacted by ‘the blip’.
Happy says Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) sent this cheque and that she couldn’t make it to the event. It would have been nice to see her, but we still feel your presence, Miss Potts.
‘Mr. Strange’
Aunt May mistakes Mysterio for Dr Stephen Strange, by referring to him as ‘Mr. Strange’. Peter who had a similar mix-up with Strange’s name in Infinity War, quickly corrects her.
You can imagine the Sorcerer Supreme wouldn’t be very happy with that mistake.
Thor and Captain Marvel
When Nick Fury asks for Peter’s help in defeating the Elementals, Peter asks him where are the other Avengers. The super spy replies that Thor seems to be ‘off world’, which probably means that he’s going around with the Guardians of the Galaxy. And when asked about Captain Marvel, Fury only says, ‘Do not go there’.
We’d all love to find out where two of our favourite Avengers are lurking, but it looks like we’ll have to wait a while. In the meantime, it’s kind of cool to know how the God of Thunder has impacted Earth, as Peter mentions that he even studies Thor in his Physics class.
The backstory of the Water Elemental
In an apparent nod to the comics, Peter’s classmate Flash Thompson tells the group about a Buzzfeed article written on the origins of the water Elemental (obviously not true since the Elementals are fake).
However, the backstory described is actually the backstory of one of Spider-Man’s villains in the comics, Hydro-Man.
Wakanda
The in-flight movie selection contains another reference next to the Tony Stark tribute. A documentary about Black Panther’s home country called ‘Finding Wakanda’ is spotted.
This shows how the world is discovering the mysterious nation since Wakanda will no longer watch from the shadows.
B.F.P?
When Peter was packing for Europe, a glimpse of his suitcase was shown. Written in block letters were the initials B.F.P, which most probably refers to Benjamin Franklin Parker.
If you don’t know who that is, it’s the name of Uncle Ben, a character we’ve never seen in the MCU but are very fond of.
‘With great power comes great responsibility,’…yeah, that guy.
Peter’s Captain America moment
During the Tower Bridge battle with the drones, Peter uses a Tower Bridge sign as a shield on one hand and holds a damaged drone shaped like Thor’s Mjolnir on his other hand. This is a clear nod to Captain America in Endgame when he wielded both his shield and Mjolnir.
Happy’s not-so Captain America moment
In an attempt to escape from a group of drones in the Tower of London, Happy throws a shield at the drones, only for it to fall to the ground without hitting anything.
He then asks the question which burns at the back of our minds: “How does Cap do that?”
New Spider Suit
Peter gets to build himself a new spider suit (since he left his own suit at home) using Tony’s tech at the back of the jet. I couldn’t help noticing that he behaved and sounded like Tony when Tony built his Iron Man suits.
The resemblance was uncanny and emotional – please tell me you noticed this too!
Post-Credits
There is a mid-credits scene and a post-credits scene in Spider-Man: Far From Home. Both are equally important as it gives us a clue to the future of the MCU and Marvel Phase 4.
I’m not going to give it away, but I gotta admit I was shocked by the revelation. So, don’t leave the cinema hall just yet!
