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While it ’s not yet well-defined what plans the MCU has for theHulkin Phase 4 , Marvel Studios has an chance to redeem the " Fat Thor " storyline by showing that they have listened to audience concerns . Marvel has been characteristically nasty - lipped about what Bruce Banner or the Hulk ’s next outing might be but pick out to let in Bruce , played by Mark Ruffalo , in aShang - Chipost - credits scene . Back in human phase , his visual aspect there is changed from how he look previously , inAvengers : Endgame , and it ’s not full clear why that is .
InEndgame , Thor ( Chris Hemsworth ) and Bruce undergo perhaps the biggest changes of any of the Avengers , with Thor having withdraw into a sedentary lifestyle following his last encounter with Thanos , and Bruce having undergo all-encompassing gamma therapy to mix the Hulk and himself into a single being , " Professor Hulk . " Thor ’s state is heavy suggested to be due to unhealthy coping mechanisms as he seek to take with the traumatic events ofAvengers : Infinity Warand killing a weakened Thanos after having arrived too late to call up the Infinity Stones . Bruce ’s new smell is suggest to be about self - acceptance and make out to terms with who he really is .
Related : Why Is Bruce Banner No Longer Hulk In Shang - Chi ( Endgame Retcon ) ?
The laggard forThor : dearest and Thundersuggests that writer - director Taiki Waiti may beavoidingEndgame’sThor mistake . Still , Marvel has an even bigger opportunity in the MCU ’s Phase 4 to show that they are listening to audience concerns and grow more conscious of these issuance . While the insensitive jokes made at the disbursal of Thor ’s heartbreak and the arguably juicy - phobic way the character was used ca n’t be retconned aside , the way the MCU treats the Hulk going forward will be a great thermometer for how in - melodic phrase they are with the public conversation surrounding genial wellness .
That Bruce has seemingly stepped aside from his identity as Professor Hulk suggests that that physical body might well have also been an unhealthy cope mechanism too heavily focused on perfectionism . Instead of seek to understand and love who his other one-half is , Bruce seek to eclipse and decimate the Hulk personality and make use only of its potency . An exploration ofBruce ’s humanity and the Hulk ’s othernessand strength and what they bring to each other is just the thing the MCU ’s Phase 4 need to explain the sudden slip away from Professor Hulk . If Marvel is able to key in on this and show Bruce growing past his pauperism to dominate his other half and instead show his capacity to see and even have a go at it the Hulk for what it is , this would go a farsighted style to show that both Bruce and the MCU have grown and matured .
Marvel ’s full program for Phase 4 of the MCU is still up in the strain . If they take advantage of the opportunity present to them by theHulk , the studio could do much to alleviate audience headache that cropped up skirt theirtreatment of genial health inEndgame . This opportunity coupled withThor : Love and Thunder’spotential to give Thor the closure and treatment he deserves mean that with the right contact , the MCU ’s Phase 4 could be used to make redress for much of the scathe that the prior mishandling of Thor stimulate .
Next : Why Phase 4 Will Have The debile Hulk
