"Still recovering from the loss of Maria Rambeau, Carol Danvers has a new mission: Defending the Mind Stone. Seeking out injustices across the universe that she can right in Maria's name, Carol discovers a new intergalactic threat: The robotic Phalanx, lead by none other than Ultron. Aided by Supergiant, James Rhodes, Talos, Monica Rambeau, and Goose, Carol will fight this threat."
— The story summary attached to the fic
Spoilers for all chapters of Avengers: Endgame are unmarked and Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3 are unmarked. Spoilers for all chapters of Captain Marvel: Phalanx prior to Chapter 5 are unmarked.
Captain Marvel: Phalanx is a fanfiction by Dragonis Prime first published on Archive of Our Own on June 24, 2019, and is the fourth story in his Marvel Cinematic Fanfiction Universe. It can be found here. It is the direct sequel to his previous fanfiction, Avengers: Endgame.
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This story contains examples of:
Tropes #-F
- Accidental Misnaming: The Grandmaster has a habit of calling Cull 'Carl'. Overlaps with Embarrassing Nickname.
- Adaptation Relationship Overhaul: Carol and Maria were... Complicated. They weren't formally married due to the stigma against homosexuality at the time, but they were in love.
- Amazon Chaser: The Grandmaster flirts with Carol, who is more horrified and confused than anything.
- An Arm and a Leg: Chapter 7's Nightmare Sequence sees Steve Rogers lose an arm.
- And This Is for...: Carol says three in Chapter 7.Carol: "That was for my eye. That was for Steve. And that was for my wife.
- Antagonist Title: Not the Big Bad Ultron, but his Phalanx.
- Appropriated Appellation: Carol steals Rhodey's call-sign 'Warbird' for use as the name of her undercover persona.
- Beauty Is Never Tarnished: Averted in Chapter 7's Flashback Nightmare. Carol looses an eye and a tooth, gets a massive gash sliced into her face and arm, has her nose broken, and gets impaled.
- Big Bad: Ultron, according to the story summary.
- Blatant Lies: Yon-Rogg asks Carol if she remembers walking in on a naked Minn-Erva. One Flashback later and she tells him she doesn't.
- Brick Joke: A cross-story example occurs in Chapter 6. Corvus has a rock thrown at him because of Adam and Mantis. That same rock appears in MCFFU One-Shots where it is brought to Earth by Corvus and Proxima.
- Closing Credits: Following MCFFU standard.
- And Starring: With Chadwick Boseman, Benedict Wong, Benedict Cumberbatch, Mark Ruffalo, Keith David, Samuel L. Jackson, Vin Diesel, Rami Malek, Jeremy Renner, Scarlett Johansson, Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr., Jeff Goldblum, Jude Law, and James Spader. Reggie the Cat gets the 'And'.
- In Memoriam: Jack Kirby, Gene Colan, Stan Lee, Joe Simon, Steve Ditko, Dave Cockrum, and Chadwick Boseman get the treatment.
- Special Thanks:
- Jack Kirby, Stan Lee, Gene Colan, Joe Simon, Ed Brubaker, Steve Epting, Craig Kyle, Christopher Yost, Roy Thomas, Tony Isabella, Sal Buscema, Chris Claremont, and Dave Cockrum are all thanked for their characters.
- ArtistAnilu, a prominent artist in the Black Order fandom.
- The Stinger: As is usual for the MCFFU.
- The mid-credits scene features Stephen Strange, Wanda Maximoff, Vision, Wong, and Robbie Reyes discussing the weakening of dimensional barriers.
- The post-credits scene is a rift to another dimension opening, followed by the emergence of Miles Morales and Gwen Stacy.
- Cloudcuckoolander: The Grandmaster, just as he was in Thor: Ragnarok.
- Dead Person Impersonation: Chapter 6 reveals that Maria has actually been the alternate Supergiant from Avengers: Endgame (Dragonis Prime).
- Defiant to the End: Ultron's Skrull prisoner who refuses to give the AI any information.
- Embarrassing Nickname: The Grandmaster has a few. He calls Cull 'Carl' and Carol 'Twinkle Fists'. He calls Hulk by name, though.
- Eye Scream: In Chapter 7, Carol's eye is cut out during her Nightmare Sequence.
- Flashback Nightmare:
- The majority of Chapter 7 is dedicated to one. Carol has a nightmare of her battle against the alternate Thanos, except far worse. Thanos kills Maria Rambeau in front of Carol via beheading before engaging Carol and Steve Rogers in a long and brutal battle. Steve Rogers is killed, Thanos digs into Carol's psyche, and then kills her as well. Carol then wakes up.
- Chapter 9 features Carol Danvers dreaming of her life as Vers and getting romantic with Minn-Erva. She realizes what she's doing seconds before fully committing.
Tropes G-M
- Gladiator Games: Carol pays a visit to Sakaar in pursuit of a group of enslaved Skrull.
- Grave-Marking Scene: Carol and Rhodey both visit Maria Rambeau's grave in Chapter 1.
- Grave Robbing: Played for Laughs in Chapter 10. Gamora-842667 travels to the Mojave Desert and pulls Minn-Erva's semi-mummified corpse from her crashed ship. The damage to the body causes it to fall into a few pieces in the robber's hands.
- Hide Your Lesbians: Averted. Carol and Maria are very publicly a couple.
- I Have a Family: Ultron tries to get one of his Skrull prisoners to invoke this trope. The Skrull refuses.
- Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: Chapter 7's Flashback Nightmare sees three of these. Carol, Steve, and the alternate Thanos are all impaled at various points with Thanos' double bladed sword.
- Important Haircut: Carol receives one at the hands of the Watcher Informant. However, she takes it far better than Thor did.
- In-Universe Soundtrack: The past Carol and Maria dance to Elton John's 'Tiny Dancer' and 'Your Song'.
- Intimate Haircut: Carol relives a memory of Maria trimming her hair.
- Innocent Swearing: Both Morgan and James Stark quote their father's use of "Shit". Rhodey eggs them on by saying "Shitshow", which they parrot back.
- Kick the Dog: Supergiant-842667's treatment of Carol. She impersonates her dead wife in order to obtain the Mind Stone.
- Let's Duet: Carol and Maria sing 'Your Song' and 'Can You Feel The Love Tonight?' together.
- Man Bites Man: Warbringer puts his serrated teeth to good use against Carol, biting her bicep during their fight.
- Memory Jar: What the Mind Stone serves as to Carol.
- Mental Health Recovery Arc: The fanfiction is one big one for Carol Danvers. She tackles her depression about Maria Rambeau's death with the help of their daughter, some anti-depressants and therapy from Vision, and the knowledge that Maria would want her to live on.
- Metronomic Man Mashing: Two examples.
- In Chapter 7's Nightmare Sequence, the alternate Thanos executes one on Carol.
- In Chapter 8, Carol executes one on Ulik, likely inspired by her dream from the night before.
- Movie Superheroes Wear Black: Carol's undercover suit is black, burgundy, and copper. Justified in that her standard colour scheme is rather recognizable, and it serves as a Shout-Out to her Ms. Marvel suit.
- My Greatest Failure: Carol's recurring guilt over Maria Rambeau's death comes across as this.
- Mythology Gag:
- Scrapper-164's name is a reference to The Uncanny X-Men #164, the first appearance of Carol Danvers as Binary.
- Cull Obsidian goes off to give a drink to Yabbat, a reference to their Will They or Won't They? in the comics.
Tropes N-T
- Off with His Head!:
- Carol uses her powers to remove Warbringer's head during their fight.
- Thanos decapitates Maria during the Nightmare Sequence in Chapter 7.
- Beta Ray Bill decapitates Supergiant-842667.
- Only The Worthy May Wield: Chapter 7's Flashback Nightmare includes Carol and the alternate Thanos wielding Mjolnir. However, Thanos makes use of the Soul Stone to do so.
- The Reveal:
- The woman Carol believes is Maria Rambeau is actually Supergiant-842667.
- Ultron is behind the missing Skrulls' capture.
- The author posted a picture teasing a new Iron Man on his Tumblr. Chapter 10 reveals it to be none other than Harley Keener.
- Solo Duet: Carol sings Elton John's 'Tiny Dancer' with a memory of herself.
- Songs of Solace: Carol sings 'Tiny Dancer' as she remembers dancing with the now dead Maria to the song.
- Stunned Silence: Carol's reaction to seeing the Watcher Informant's haircutting device.
- Sword Fight: Carol and Stardust engage in one that features both using Blades Below The Shoulder.
- Barehanded Blade Block: Starburst catches Carol's sword between her hands during their fight. It serves as the turning point in a fight that had, until that point, been a stalemate.
- Blade Lock: The two engage in multiple over the course of the fight.
- Laser Blade: Carol's sword manifests as a photon blade.
- Talking to the Dead: Carol talks to Maria Rambeau's headstone.
- Teeth Flying: Carol spits out one of her teeth in Chapter 7's Nightmare Sequence.
- To Absent Friends: Carol, Supergiant, Monica, Talos, Rhodey, and Fury toast Maria Rambeau.
Tropes U-Z
- Vocal Dissonance: Cull Obsidian, an alien larger than Hulk, still has his soft and measured way of speaking.
- Wham Line: Steve Rogers-842667 lists off a series of heroes that died to that world's Thanos and his forces. The list includes such powerhouses as Erik Lehnsherr, T'Challa, Charles Xavier, Scott Summers, Victor von Doom, Brian Braddock, and Kamala Khan.
- What Kind of Lame Power Is Heart, Anyway?: Supergiant-842667 describes the Mind Stone as "kind of shit" as far as Infinity Stones go.
- Wrecked Weapon:
- Carol destroys Tel-Kar's hammer and suit in their battle.
- She then destroys Warbringer's axes during their fight.
- Chapter 7's Nightmare Sequence sees the destruction of Captain America's shield and Thanos' sword.
- Carol's sword is broken during her fight with Stardust and used to impale her.