How did Thanos beat Hulk so easily?





.everyoneloves__top-leaderboard:empty,.everyoneloves__mid-leaderboard:empty{ margin-bottom:0;
}






up vote
33
down vote

favorite
1












Being that Hulk gets stronger when he gets angrier, how was Thanos able to knock Hulk out with such ease and why did Hulk not get more angry and increase his strength when fighting Thanos? From what I can see, Thanos did not use the Power Stone in the Infinity Gauntlet.








So how does Thanos beat hulk with such ease?




I just want add some of the extreme strength feats comic Hulk has performed and to show that Hulk is an extremely strong being.




  • Held a planet together

  • Tore the fabric of reality

  • Destroyed an asteroid twice the size of Earth

  • Held up a star's weight

  • Withstood a hundred trillion ton punch

  • Held up a Celestial






marvel marvel-cinematic-universe the-incredible-hulk avengers-infinity-war thanos







share|improve this question




















  • 13




    This was asked before on Movies SE: movies.stackexchange.com/questions/92247/…
    – Arcanist Lupus
    Nov 13 at 14:15






  • 22




    Unless the feats of strength that Comic-Hulk did have also been done by MCU-Hulk, they seem a bit irrelevant, since we'd have to then list Comic-Thanos' feats if strength too, to put his strength into perspective as well?
    – Longshanks
    Nov 14 at 12:47






  • 1




    @Longshanks, what else do we have to go on?
    – KyloRen
    Nov 14 at 12:55






  • 8




    Any and all events within the MCU canon featuring Hulk and Thanos. If there's a lack of information within that to provide a clear answer, then you'd go to the word of God. You can also use events from the films to try and work out power levels (See the YouTube series Deathbattle for examples of how they work out power levels of characters) - i.e. Scale up a regular dog to Hela's dog to workout how much Hulk can lift. Or look at how far he can jump + his body weight, to work out how strong his legs are.
    – Longshanks
    Nov 14 at 13:05






  • 3




    It’s almost as if the movies and the comics are different.
    – Paul D. Waite
    2 days ago

















up vote
33
down vote

favorite
1












Being that Hulk gets stronger when he gets angrier, how was Thanos able to knock Hulk out with such ease and why did Hulk not get more angry and increase his strength when fighting Thanos? From what I can see, Thanos did not use the Power Stone in the Infinity Gauntlet.








So how does Thanos beat hulk with such ease?




I just want add some of the extreme strength feats comic Hulk has performed and to show that Hulk is an extremely strong being.




  • Held a planet together

  • Tore the fabric of reality

  • Destroyed an asteroid twice the size of Earth

  • Held up a star's weight

  • Withstood a hundred trillion ton punch

  • Held up a Celestial






marvel marvel-cinematic-universe the-incredible-hulk avengers-infinity-war thanos







share|improve this question




















  • 13




    This was asked before on Movies SE: movies.stackexchange.com/questions/92247/…
    – Arcanist Lupus
    Nov 13 at 14:15






  • 22




    Unless the feats of strength that Comic-Hulk did have also been done by MCU-Hulk, they seem a bit irrelevant, since we'd have to then list Comic-Thanos' feats if strength too, to put his strength into perspective as well?
    – Longshanks
    Nov 14 at 12:47






  • 1




    @Longshanks, what else do we have to go on?
    – KyloRen
    Nov 14 at 12:55






  • 8




    Any and all events within the MCU canon featuring Hulk and Thanos. If there's a lack of information within that to provide a clear answer, then you'd go to the word of God. You can also use events from the films to try and work out power levels (See the YouTube series Deathbattle for examples of how they work out power levels of characters) - i.e. Scale up a regular dog to Hela's dog to workout how much Hulk can lift. Or look at how far he can jump + his body weight, to work out how strong his legs are.
    – Longshanks
    Nov 14 at 13:05






  • 3




    It’s almost as if the movies and the comics are different.
    – Paul D. Waite
    2 days ago













up vote
33
down vote

favorite
1









up vote
33
down vote

favorite
1






1





Being that Hulk gets stronger when he gets angrier, how was Thanos able to knock Hulk out with such ease and why did Hulk not get more angry and increase his strength when fighting Thanos? From what I can see, Thanos did not use the Power Stone in the Infinity Gauntlet.








So how does Thanos beat hulk with such ease?




I just want add some of the extreme strength feats comic Hulk has performed and to show that Hulk is an extremely strong being.




  • Held a planet together

  • Tore the fabric of reality

  • Destroyed an asteroid twice the size of Earth

  • Held up a star's weight

  • Withstood a hundred trillion ton punch

  • Held up a Celestial






marvel marvel-cinematic-universe the-incredible-hulk avengers-infinity-war thanos







share|improve this question















Being that Hulk gets stronger when he gets angrier, how was Thanos able to knock Hulk out with such ease and why did Hulk not get more angry and increase his strength when fighting Thanos? From what I can see, Thanos did not use the Power Stone in the Infinity Gauntlet.








So how does Thanos beat hulk with such ease?




I just want add some of the extreme strength feats comic Hulk has performed and to show that Hulk is an extremely strong being.




  • Held a planet together

  • Tore the fabric of reality

  • Destroyed an asteroid twice the size of Earth

  • Held up a star's weight

  • Withstood a hundred trillion ton punch

  • Held up a Celestial














marvel marvel-cinematic-universe the-incredible-hulk avengers-infinity-war thanos




marvel marvel-cinematic-universe the-incredible-hulk avengers-infinity-war thanos






share|improve this question















share|improve this question













share|improve this question




share|improve this question








edited Nov 15 at 16:15









TheLethalCarrot

36.6k15198241




36.6k15198241










asked Nov 13 at 12:34









KyloRen

13.2k1088210




13.2k1088210








  • 13




    This was asked before on Movies SE: movies.stackexchange.com/questions/92247/…
    – Arcanist Lupus
    Nov 13 at 14:15






  • 22




    Unless the feats of strength that Comic-Hulk did have also been done by MCU-Hulk, they seem a bit irrelevant, since we'd have to then list Comic-Thanos' feats if strength too, to put his strength into perspective as well?
    – Longshanks
    Nov 14 at 12:47






  • 1




    @Longshanks, what else do we have to go on?
    – KyloRen
    Nov 14 at 12:55






  • 8




    Any and all events within the MCU canon featuring Hulk and Thanos. If there's a lack of information within that to provide a clear answer, then you'd go to the word of God. You can also use events from the films to try and work out power levels (See the YouTube series Deathbattle for examples of how they work out power levels of characters) - i.e. Scale up a regular dog to Hela's dog to workout how much Hulk can lift. Or look at how far he can jump + his body weight, to work out how strong his legs are.
    – Longshanks
    Nov 14 at 13:05






  • 3




    It’s almost as if the movies and the comics are different.
    – Paul D. Waite
    2 days ago














  • 13




    This was asked before on Movies SE: movies.stackexchange.com/questions/92247/…
    – Arcanist Lupus
    Nov 13 at 14:15






  • 22




    Unless the feats of strength that Comic-Hulk did have also been done by MCU-Hulk, they seem a bit irrelevant, since we'd have to then list Comic-Thanos' feats if strength too, to put his strength into perspective as well?
    – Longshanks
    Nov 14 at 12:47






  • 1




    @Longshanks, what else do we have to go on?
    – KyloRen
    Nov 14 at 12:55






  • 8




    Any and all events within the MCU canon featuring Hulk and Thanos. If there's a lack of information within that to provide a clear answer, then you'd go to the word of God. You can also use events from the films to try and work out power levels (See the YouTube series Deathbattle for examples of how they work out power levels of characters) - i.e. Scale up a regular dog to Hela's dog to workout how much Hulk can lift. Or look at how far he can jump + his body weight, to work out how strong his legs are.
    – Longshanks
    Nov 14 at 13:05






  • 3




    It’s almost as if the movies and the comics are different.
    – Paul D. Waite
    2 days ago








13




13




This was asked before on Movies SE: movies.stackexchange.com/questions/92247/…
– Arcanist Lupus
Nov 13 at 14:15




This was asked before on Movies SE: movies.stackexchange.com/questions/92247/…
– Arcanist Lupus
Nov 13 at 14:15




22




22




Unless the feats of strength that Comic-Hulk did have also been done by MCU-Hulk, they seem a bit irrelevant, since we'd have to then list Comic-Thanos' feats if strength too, to put his strength into perspective as well?
– Longshanks
Nov 14 at 12:47




Unless the feats of strength that Comic-Hulk did have also been done by MCU-Hulk, they seem a bit irrelevant, since we'd have to then list Comic-Thanos' feats if strength too, to put his strength into perspective as well?
– Longshanks
Nov 14 at 12:47




1




1




@Longshanks, what else do we have to go on?
– KyloRen
Nov 14 at 12:55




@Longshanks, what else do we have to go on?
– KyloRen
Nov 14 at 12:55




8




8




Any and all events within the MCU canon featuring Hulk and Thanos. If there's a lack of information within that to provide a clear answer, then you'd go to the word of God. You can also use events from the films to try and work out power levels (See the YouTube series Deathbattle for examples of how they work out power levels of characters) - i.e. Scale up a regular dog to Hela's dog to workout how much Hulk can lift. Or look at how far he can jump + his body weight, to work out how strong his legs are.
– Longshanks
Nov 14 at 13:05




Any and all events within the MCU canon featuring Hulk and Thanos. If there's a lack of information within that to provide a clear answer, then you'd go to the word of God. You can also use events from the films to try and work out power levels (See the YouTube series Deathbattle for examples of how they work out power levels of characters) - i.e. Scale up a regular dog to Hela's dog to workout how much Hulk can lift. Or look at how far he can jump + his body weight, to work out how strong his legs are.
– Longshanks
Nov 14 at 13:05




3




3




It’s almost as if the movies and the comics are different.
– Paul D. Waite
2 days ago




It’s almost as if the movies and the comics are different.
– Paul D. Waite
2 days ago










5 Answers
5






active

oldest

votes

















up vote
71
down vote













Because Thanos is simply stronger than the Hulk.



That statement is not made without controversy, but according to the film's writers in a MovieWeb article he didn't even need the stones,




Avengers: Infinity War has brought up more than a few debates, but screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely have now revealed that Thanos would've beat the Hulk even if he didn't have the Infinity Gauntlet with the Power Stone, fueling more debate. The opening scene takes place on the Asgardian refugee ship after Thanos and his Black Order have taken it over to locate the Tesseract. In a last ditch effort to defeat Thanos, Loki sends the Hulk into a rage to fight. However, the fight doesn't go in the Hulk's favor.



Stephen McFeely believes that the Mad Titan would've destroyed the Hulk with his own bare hands in Infinity War. This would explain why Ebony Maw allows the fight to continue and makes the scene look like Thanos was just having some fun, like a cat playing with a mouse. Looking back at the scene, Maw and Thanos are pretty calm, even when it appears that the Hulk has the upper hand in the battle.



McFeely had this to say when asked if Thanos could still beat Hulk without help. I think he could. I may be speaking out of turn, but I think Thanos could kick the Hulk's ass without the (Power Stone).




This was to establish that Thanos is not to be trifled with,




However, the opening Infinity War scene wasn't just to show that Thanos could beat the Hulk. Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige revealed early on that the first 5 minutes of Infinity War would show off the immense power of the Mad Titan and he was not kidding around. McFeely explains.





From an in-universe perspective we also have Korath the Pursuer state in Guardians of the Galaxy that




Thanos is the most powerful being in the universe.




This is when Ronan is about to wield the power stone and Korath is trying to stop him.




You can also find the source interview for the above linked article here.






share|improve this answer



















  • 2




    You might want to link (and quote) the actual interview; youtube.com/watch?v=31hGnh7elAU
    – Valorum
    Nov 13 at 12:50






  • 22




    Possibly also the Worf Effect?
    – Draco18s
    Nov 13 at 20:06






  • 17




    Thanks @Draco18s I just got back from following that link. What day is it?
    – Harper
    Nov 14 at 2:02






  • 8




    Note that the "most powerful being" quote is likely not in relation to physical strength but rather political/military power, what is commonly described as someone's "reach". In the first Avengers movie, Loki can be described as powerful (i.e. in a seat of power, albeit given) but the Hulk flung him around like a puppet.
    – Flater
    Nov 14 at 9:38








  • 5




    @LightnessRacesinOrbit: I'm not discrediting Thanos' strength, but pointing out that the supposed evidence (the quote) is not particularly evidence (nor testimony) of physical strength.
    – Flater
    Nov 14 at 11:32




















up vote
58
down vote













They appear very evenly matched in terms of raw strength, unfortunately for Hulk, strength wasn't the deciding factor in this fight.



Hulk lays out Thanos initially, and Thanos isn't able to push him off - until he's got something to brace against. In a contest of strength between two opponents of approximately equal strength, the winner is going to be the one with greater momentum or something to brace against.



Thanos uses this momentary advantage to get to his feet and set his stance, after which he controls the fight. The Hulk becomes a glorified punching bag because he fights without technique, and against an opponent like Thanos, that's not going to work.



Hulk consistently wins because he's so ridiculously stronger than most of his opponents that his capacity to absorb damage means he can basically ignore technique with the same freedom that he ignores damage.



Against a disciplined technical fighter in his own weight class? He never stood a chance.






share|improve this answer

















  • 8




    Thanos - greatest pound for pound fighter in the MCU?
    – josh
    Nov 14 at 10:53






  • 4




    @josh If we're going pound-for-pound, surely one of the Pym crew would take that
    – Azor Ahai
    Nov 15 at 5:42










  • @AzorAhai haha, yes, I was thinking this but I wasn't sure how their weights change with their size. I feel a new question brewing...
    – josh
    Nov 15 at 11:53


















up vote
9
down vote













TLDR: We don't know and can only speculate. The movie uses this to get our curiosity and to establish Thanos as a strong villain.



We never see the Hulk build up anger. For all we know he could have just woken up in his bed, realising the ship is under attack, smashing a few of Thanos underlings and then go right at him, just because he was awoken in the middle of a good dream. At the least, we know he typically gets angrier if he's in life-threatening situations himself or if the love of his life is in danger. In the MCU, Black Widow gets closest to that and she's not around, nor do we have an indication that he was in serious danger before being beaten by Thanos.



So in-universe, it is likely he wasn't at his full potential and not very focused. And Thanos is likely at least about the same strength level, with better technique (less emotional fighting style) in that fight. Hulk was probably taken by surprise in how strong his opponent was - and we've seen in Age of Ultron, that surprising him when he's not looking/focused/at full strength is a sneaky way to get him out of the picture for a while.



Hulk wasn't ultimately defeated in the sense of about to die, yet a space ship is also a terrible place for the MCU Hulk to fight in. So far, we have no indication to think that he would survive in space. Even if that were the case, breaking the ship apart would kill the remaining Asgardians. And this would likely happen if he were to fully "hulk out" and have an extensive fight against someone at least equally strong. So, in his "mentally improved" state where he can talk and recognizes "friends" properly, he might also have held back on purpose. In any case it was probably a sane decision to just send him away and not drag out the lost fight.



Out of universe, the movie explicitly doesn't focus on him or his mental state. What mood he is in, what fights he had earlier whether he just transformed, whether he already is in disagreement with Banner or not. It doesn't make a big fuss about the fight and none about any "preparation" on Hulk's side. This way it builds the question of how he lost and why he hides inside Banner up as a mystery box for the next movie to open and investigate, while for the time being using him and Thor to establish how powerful Thanos is. Up to this point, those two were the top-contenders for "strongest avenger", so it sends a powerful message if Thanos outright beats both(!) - individually.



Personal side note: I sure hope Hulk can pick up that Gimli-Legolas relationship again, solve his mental issues and "level up" as well, after Thor stepped up his game in Ragnarok and IW.






share|improve this answer










New contributor




Darkwing is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.


















  • Dreaming is speculation. No evidence provided. Also not plausible to sleep through your ship being attacked and boarded. It's a plot hole and bad writing.
    – Chloe
    Nov 14 at 22:34








  • 2




    @Chloe Obviously it's speculation, that's my whole point, we have no clue what happened earlier. It's absolutely not a plot hole nor bad writing, it's simply omission (so yes, a hole in the sense that we don't see it^^), because it's not important for the story of the movie. It's even a nice tool to get people interested. Whether it's used well, all depends on whether and how they will come back to it. The whole "Hulk is hiding in Banner" storyline makes it very likely we will see a story arc about Hulk's defeat in the next movie in some form.
    – Darkwing
    Nov 15 at 10:32








  • 1




    @Chloe it would be a plot hole if Hulk later on easily beats Thanos without anything in-between that explains the difference between the old and new situation. But that he looses a short fight round doesn't go against what we know from the movies. He even got knocked out by the Hulk-buster.
    – Darkwing
    Nov 15 at 10:39










  • This is the correct answer
    – Garet Claborn
    Nov 15 at 18:10


















up vote
4
down vote













First of all this is not the Hulk of the Comics and so one can't be compared to another.



Within the MCU we have already seen Hulk beaten or matched in combat several times.



Thor is his match in the Avengers and in Ragnarok again proves to be able to match a Hulk who has been fighting for years finally beating him to a draw.



Tony Stark in the Hulk Buster, yes it took dropping a building on his head but he was able to defeat Hulk in a fight.



So within the MCU we have already seen Hulk is not as infinitely strong as his comic book alter ego. Now add to this the fact that Thanos has been defined as the most powerful being in the Universe, he has an infinity stone already, has been shown to beat Thor (who could hold his own against Hulk) and is therefore easily a match for Hulk. Remember Hulks power comes from Anger, now if Hulk is being beaten by Thanos fear and doubt starts to creep in. This then leads to these emotions overcoming his anger meaning he would actually weaken meaning Thanos can cause more damage leading to him weakening more.



This fear and shock at being so easily beaten would explain why Hulk does not want to come out to face Thanos again later in the movie.






share|improve this answer






























    up vote
    1
    down vote













    He did use the Power Stone. According to the comic book, Thanos is able to wield the power of the stones simply by having them in his possession (he doesn't need to keep them inside the gauntlet). With the Power Stone, Thanos' physical strength is basically unmatched. At some point in the storyline, Thanos admits that he needed the Power Stone to overcome creatures such as the Hulk, implying that at his regular strength level the Hulk would be a match for him.



    Still, based on feats, I don't believe the Hulk would be a match for Thanos even without the Power Stone. I've read all issues of the Incredible Hulk comics and there have been dozens of creatures who have defeated him in combat. People want to think that Hulk is invincible and the physically strongest creature in MU but it's simply not true. His strength is proportional to his anger, but since his anger has limits, so does his strength.



    On the other hand, very few creatures have bested Thanos in combat. The only person who has achieved this single-handedly in a straight-up fight happens to be a character from the MCU who has conveniently gone missing during the Infinity Wars (of course I'm talking about Odin).



    The creature who has overpowered the Hulk more easily than any other (and actually killed him in the split of a second) is a character who has made cameo appearances in the MCU (talking about Cosmo the Spacedog).
    PS: Alright, I know that was Cancerverse Hulk - but it's an overpowered clone of the real Hulk...






    share|improve this answer








    New contributor




    Digio is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
    Check out our Code of Conduct.














    • 1




      It's worth noting that this question is about the MCU whereas the majority of your answer is talking from the comics perspectives and there are differences.
      – TheLethalCarrot
      2 days ago






    • 1




      According to "the" comicbook? Which comicbook and what does it say?
      – Valorum
      2 days ago










    • @Valorum. The comic book in question is the Thanos Quest.
      – Digio
      2 days ago










    • @TheLethalCarrot I'm aware of this but I believe most people are interested in the comics perspective, at least for the things that MCU does not explain.
      – Digio
      2 days ago











    Your Answer








    StackExchange.ready(function() {
    var channelOptions = {
    tags: "".split(" "),
    id: "186"
    };
    initTagRenderer("".split(" "), "".split(" "), channelOptions);

    StackExchange.using("externalEditor", function() {
    // Have to fire editor after snippets, if snippets enabled
    if (StackExchange.settings.snippets.snippetsEnabled) {
    StackExchange.using("snippets", function() {
    createEditor();
    });
    }
    else {
    createEditor();
    }
    });

    function createEditor() {
    StackExchange.prepareEditor({
    heartbeatType: 'answer',
    convertImagesToLinks: false,
    noModals: true,
    showLowRepImageUploadWarning: true,
    reputationToPostImages: null,
    bindNavPrevention: true,
    postfix: "",
    imageUploader: {
    brandingHtml: "Powered by u003ca class="icon-imgur-white" href="https://imgur.com/"u003eu003c/au003e",
    contentPolicyHtml: "User contributions licensed under u003ca href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"u003ecc by-sa 3.0 with attribution requiredu003c/au003e u003ca href="https://stackoverflow.com/legal/content-policy"u003e(content policy)u003c/au003e",
    allowUrls: true
    },
    noCode: true, onDemand: true,
    discardSelector: ".discard-answer"
    ,immediatelyShowMarkdownHelp:true
    });


    }
    });














     

    draft saved


    draft discarded


















    StackExchange.ready(
    function () {
    StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fscifi.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f198503%2fhow-did-thanos-beat-hulk-so-easily%23new-answer', 'question_page');
    }
    );

    Post as a guest















    Required, but never shown

























    5 Answers
    5






    active

    oldest

    votes








    5 Answers
    5






    active

    oldest

    votes









    active

    oldest

    votes






    active

    oldest

    votes








    up vote
    71
    down vote













    Because Thanos is simply stronger than the Hulk.



    That statement is not made without controversy, but according to the film's writers in a MovieWeb article he didn't even need the stones,




    Avengers: Infinity War has brought up more than a few debates, but screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely have now revealed that Thanos would've beat the Hulk even if he didn't have the Infinity Gauntlet with the Power Stone, fueling more debate. The opening scene takes place on the Asgardian refugee ship after Thanos and his Black Order have taken it over to locate the Tesseract. In a last ditch effort to defeat Thanos, Loki sends the Hulk into a rage to fight. However, the fight doesn't go in the Hulk's favor.



    Stephen McFeely believes that the Mad Titan would've destroyed the Hulk with his own bare hands in Infinity War. This would explain why Ebony Maw allows the fight to continue and makes the scene look like Thanos was just having some fun, like a cat playing with a mouse. Looking back at the scene, Maw and Thanos are pretty calm, even when it appears that the Hulk has the upper hand in the battle.



    McFeely had this to say when asked if Thanos could still beat Hulk without help. I think he could. I may be speaking out of turn, but I think Thanos could kick the Hulk's ass without the (Power Stone).




    This was to establish that Thanos is not to be trifled with,




    However, the opening Infinity War scene wasn't just to show that Thanos could beat the Hulk. Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige revealed early on that the first 5 minutes of Infinity War would show off the immense power of the Mad Titan and he was not kidding around. McFeely explains.





    From an in-universe perspective we also have Korath the Pursuer state in Guardians of the Galaxy that




    Thanos is the most powerful being in the universe.




    This is when Ronan is about to wield the power stone and Korath is trying to stop him.




    You can also find the source interview for the above linked article here.






    share|improve this answer



















    • 2




      You might want to link (and quote) the actual interview; youtube.com/watch?v=31hGnh7elAU
      – Valorum
      Nov 13 at 12:50






    • 22




      Possibly also the Worf Effect?
      – Draco18s
      Nov 13 at 20:06






    • 17




      Thanks @Draco18s I just got back from following that link. What day is it?
      – Harper
      Nov 14 at 2:02






    • 8




      Note that the "most powerful being" quote is likely not in relation to physical strength but rather political/military power, what is commonly described as someone's "reach". In the first Avengers movie, Loki can be described as powerful (i.e. in a seat of power, albeit given) but the Hulk flung him around like a puppet.
      – Flater
      Nov 14 at 9:38








    • 5




      @LightnessRacesinOrbit: I'm not discrediting Thanos' strength, but pointing out that the supposed evidence (the quote) is not particularly evidence (nor testimony) of physical strength.
      – Flater
      Nov 14 at 11:32

















    up vote
    71
    down vote













    Because Thanos is simply stronger than the Hulk.



    That statement is not made without controversy, but according to the film's writers in a MovieWeb article he didn't even need the stones,




    Avengers: Infinity War has brought up more than a few debates, but screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely have now revealed that Thanos would've beat the Hulk even if he didn't have the Infinity Gauntlet with the Power Stone, fueling more debate. The opening scene takes place on the Asgardian refugee ship after Thanos and his Black Order have taken it over to locate the Tesseract. In a last ditch effort to defeat Thanos, Loki sends the Hulk into a rage to fight. However, the fight doesn't go in the Hulk's favor.



    Stephen McFeely believes that the Mad Titan would've destroyed the Hulk with his own bare hands in Infinity War. This would explain why Ebony Maw allows the fight to continue and makes the scene look like Thanos was just having some fun, like a cat playing with a mouse. Looking back at the scene, Maw and Thanos are pretty calm, even when it appears that the Hulk has the upper hand in the battle.



    McFeely had this to say when asked if Thanos could still beat Hulk without help. I think he could. I may be speaking out of turn, but I think Thanos could kick the Hulk's ass without the (Power Stone).




    This was to establish that Thanos is not to be trifled with,




    However, the opening Infinity War scene wasn't just to show that Thanos could beat the Hulk. Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige revealed early on that the first 5 minutes of Infinity War would show off the immense power of the Mad Titan and he was not kidding around. McFeely explains.





    From an in-universe perspective we also have Korath the Pursuer state in Guardians of the Galaxy that




    Thanos is the most powerful being in the universe.




    This is when Ronan is about to wield the power stone and Korath is trying to stop him.




    You can also find the source interview for the above linked article here.






    share|improve this answer



















    • 2




      You might want to link (and quote) the actual interview; youtube.com/watch?v=31hGnh7elAU
      – Valorum
      Nov 13 at 12:50






    • 22




      Possibly also the Worf Effect?
      – Draco18s
      Nov 13 at 20:06






    • 17




      Thanks @Draco18s I just got back from following that link. What day is it?
      – Harper
      Nov 14 at 2:02






    • 8




      Note that the "most powerful being" quote is likely not in relation to physical strength but rather political/military power, what is commonly described as someone's "reach". In the first Avengers movie, Loki can be described as powerful (i.e. in a seat of power, albeit given) but the Hulk flung him around like a puppet.
      – Flater
      Nov 14 at 9:38








    • 5




      @LightnessRacesinOrbit: I'm not discrediting Thanos' strength, but pointing out that the supposed evidence (the quote) is not particularly evidence (nor testimony) of physical strength.
      – Flater
      Nov 14 at 11:32















    up vote
    71
    down vote










    up vote
    71
    down vote









    Because Thanos is simply stronger than the Hulk.



    That statement is not made without controversy, but according to the film's writers in a MovieWeb article he didn't even need the stones,




    Avengers: Infinity War has brought up more than a few debates, but screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely have now revealed that Thanos would've beat the Hulk even if he didn't have the Infinity Gauntlet with the Power Stone, fueling more debate. The opening scene takes place on the Asgardian refugee ship after Thanos and his Black Order have taken it over to locate the Tesseract. In a last ditch effort to defeat Thanos, Loki sends the Hulk into a rage to fight. However, the fight doesn't go in the Hulk's favor.



    Stephen McFeely believes that the Mad Titan would've destroyed the Hulk with his own bare hands in Infinity War. This would explain why Ebony Maw allows the fight to continue and makes the scene look like Thanos was just having some fun, like a cat playing with a mouse. Looking back at the scene, Maw and Thanos are pretty calm, even when it appears that the Hulk has the upper hand in the battle.



    McFeely had this to say when asked if Thanos could still beat Hulk without help. I think he could. I may be speaking out of turn, but I think Thanos could kick the Hulk's ass without the (Power Stone).




    This was to establish that Thanos is not to be trifled with,




    However, the opening Infinity War scene wasn't just to show that Thanos could beat the Hulk. Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige revealed early on that the first 5 minutes of Infinity War would show off the immense power of the Mad Titan and he was not kidding around. McFeely explains.





    From an in-universe perspective we also have Korath the Pursuer state in Guardians of the Galaxy that




    Thanos is the most powerful being in the universe.




    This is when Ronan is about to wield the power stone and Korath is trying to stop him.




    You can also find the source interview for the above linked article here.






    share|improve this answer














    Because Thanos is simply stronger than the Hulk.



    That statement is not made without controversy, but according to the film's writers in a MovieWeb article he didn't even need the stones,




    Avengers: Infinity War has brought up more than a few debates, but screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely have now revealed that Thanos would've beat the Hulk even if he didn't have the Infinity Gauntlet with the Power Stone, fueling more debate. The opening scene takes place on the Asgardian refugee ship after Thanos and his Black Order have taken it over to locate the Tesseract. In a last ditch effort to defeat Thanos, Loki sends the Hulk into a rage to fight. However, the fight doesn't go in the Hulk's favor.



    Stephen McFeely believes that the Mad Titan would've destroyed the Hulk with his own bare hands in Infinity War. This would explain why Ebony Maw allows the fight to continue and makes the scene look like Thanos was just having some fun, like a cat playing with a mouse. Looking back at the scene, Maw and Thanos are pretty calm, even when it appears that the Hulk has the upper hand in the battle.



    McFeely had this to say when asked if Thanos could still beat Hulk without help. I think he could. I may be speaking out of turn, but I think Thanos could kick the Hulk's ass without the (Power Stone).




    This was to establish that Thanos is not to be trifled with,




    However, the opening Infinity War scene wasn't just to show that Thanos could beat the Hulk. Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige revealed early on that the first 5 minutes of Infinity War would show off the immense power of the Mad Titan and he was not kidding around. McFeely explains.





    From an in-universe perspective we also have Korath the Pursuer state in Guardians of the Galaxy that




    Thanos is the most powerful being in the universe.




    This is when Ronan is about to wield the power stone and Korath is trying to stop him.




    You can also find the source interview for the above linked article here.







    share|improve this answer














    share|improve this answer



    share|improve this answer








    edited Nov 14 at 12:29

























    answered Nov 13 at 12:49









    Skooba

    37.9k13191253




    37.9k13191253








    • 2




      You might want to link (and quote) the actual interview; youtube.com/watch?v=31hGnh7elAU
      – Valorum
      Nov 13 at 12:50






    • 22




      Possibly also the Worf Effect?
      – Draco18s
      Nov 13 at 20:06






    • 17




      Thanks @Draco18s I just got back from following that link. What day is it?
      – Harper
      Nov 14 at 2:02






    • 8




      Note that the "most powerful being" quote is likely not in relation to physical strength but rather political/military power, what is commonly described as someone's "reach". In the first Avengers movie, Loki can be described as powerful (i.e. in a seat of power, albeit given) but the Hulk flung him around like a puppet.
      – Flater
      Nov 14 at 9:38








    • 5




      @LightnessRacesinOrbit: I'm not discrediting Thanos' strength, but pointing out that the supposed evidence (the quote) is not particularly evidence (nor testimony) of physical strength.
      – Flater
      Nov 14 at 11:32
















    • 2




      You might want to link (and quote) the actual interview; youtube.com/watch?v=31hGnh7elAU
      – Valorum
      Nov 13 at 12:50






    • 22




      Possibly also the Worf Effect?
      – Draco18s
      Nov 13 at 20:06






    • 17




      Thanks @Draco18s I just got back from following that link. What day is it?
      – Harper
      Nov 14 at 2:02






    • 8




      Note that the "most powerful being" quote is likely not in relation to physical strength but rather political/military power, what is commonly described as someone's "reach". In the first Avengers movie, Loki can be described as powerful (i.e. in a seat of power, albeit given) but the Hulk flung him around like a puppet.
      – Flater
      Nov 14 at 9:38








    • 5




      @LightnessRacesinOrbit: I'm not discrediting Thanos' strength, but pointing out that the supposed evidence (the quote) is not particularly evidence (nor testimony) of physical strength.
      – Flater
      Nov 14 at 11:32










    2




    2




    You might want to link (and quote) the actual interview; youtube.com/watch?v=31hGnh7elAU
    – Valorum
    Nov 13 at 12:50




    You might want to link (and quote) the actual interview; youtube.com/watch?v=31hGnh7elAU
    – Valorum
    Nov 13 at 12:50




    22




    22




    Possibly also the Worf Effect?
    – Draco18s
    Nov 13 at 20:06




    Possibly also the Worf Effect?
    – Draco18s
    Nov 13 at 20:06




    17




    17




    Thanks @Draco18s I just got back from following that link. What day is it?
    – Harper
    Nov 14 at 2:02




    Thanks @Draco18s I just got back from following that link. What day is it?
    – Harper
    Nov 14 at 2:02




    8




    8




    Note that the "most powerful being" quote is likely not in relation to physical strength but rather political/military power, what is commonly described as someone's "reach". In the first Avengers movie, Loki can be described as powerful (i.e. in a seat of power, albeit given) but the Hulk flung him around like a puppet.
    – Flater
    Nov 14 at 9:38






    Note that the "most powerful being" quote is likely not in relation to physical strength but rather political/military power, what is commonly described as someone's "reach". In the first Avengers movie, Loki can be described as powerful (i.e. in a seat of power, albeit given) but the Hulk flung him around like a puppet.
    – Flater
    Nov 14 at 9:38






    5




    5




    @LightnessRacesinOrbit: I'm not discrediting Thanos' strength, but pointing out that the supposed evidence (the quote) is not particularly evidence (nor testimony) of physical strength.
    – Flater
    Nov 14 at 11:32






    @LightnessRacesinOrbit: I'm not discrediting Thanos' strength, but pointing out that the supposed evidence (the quote) is not particularly evidence (nor testimony) of physical strength.
    – Flater
    Nov 14 at 11:32














    up vote
    58
    down vote













    They appear very evenly matched in terms of raw strength, unfortunately for Hulk, strength wasn't the deciding factor in this fight.



    Hulk lays out Thanos initially, and Thanos isn't able to push him off - until he's got something to brace against. In a contest of strength between two opponents of approximately equal strength, the winner is going to be the one with greater momentum or something to brace against.



    Thanos uses this momentary advantage to get to his feet and set his stance, after which he controls the fight. The Hulk becomes a glorified punching bag because he fights without technique, and against an opponent like Thanos, that's not going to work.



    Hulk consistently wins because he's so ridiculously stronger than most of his opponents that his capacity to absorb damage means he can basically ignore technique with the same freedom that he ignores damage.



    Against a disciplined technical fighter in his own weight class? He never stood a chance.






    share|improve this answer

















    • 8




      Thanos - greatest pound for pound fighter in the MCU?
      – josh
      Nov 14 at 10:53






    • 4




      @josh If we're going pound-for-pound, surely one of the Pym crew would take that
      – Azor Ahai
      Nov 15 at 5:42










    • @AzorAhai haha, yes, I was thinking this but I wasn't sure how their weights change with their size. I feel a new question brewing...
      – josh
      Nov 15 at 11:53















    up vote
    58
    down vote













    They appear very evenly matched in terms of raw strength, unfortunately for Hulk, strength wasn't the deciding factor in this fight.



    Hulk lays out Thanos initially, and Thanos isn't able to push him off - until he's got something to brace against. In a contest of strength between two opponents of approximately equal strength, the winner is going to be the one with greater momentum or something to brace against.



    Thanos uses this momentary advantage to get to his feet and set his stance, after which he controls the fight. The Hulk becomes a glorified punching bag because he fights without technique, and against an opponent like Thanos, that's not going to work.



    Hulk consistently wins because he's so ridiculously stronger than most of his opponents that his capacity to absorb damage means he can basically ignore technique with the same freedom that he ignores damage.



    Against a disciplined technical fighter in his own weight class? He never stood a chance.






    share|improve this answer

















    • 8




      Thanos - greatest pound for pound fighter in the MCU?
      – josh
      Nov 14 at 10:53






    • 4




      @josh If we're going pound-for-pound, surely one of the Pym crew would take that
      – Azor Ahai
      Nov 15 at 5:42










    • @AzorAhai haha, yes, I was thinking this but I wasn't sure how their weights change with their size. I feel a new question brewing...
      – josh
      Nov 15 at 11:53













    up vote
    58
    down vote










    up vote
    58
    down vote









    They appear very evenly matched in terms of raw strength, unfortunately for Hulk, strength wasn't the deciding factor in this fight.



    Hulk lays out Thanos initially, and Thanos isn't able to push him off - until he's got something to brace against. In a contest of strength between two opponents of approximately equal strength, the winner is going to be the one with greater momentum or something to brace against.



    Thanos uses this momentary advantage to get to his feet and set his stance, after which he controls the fight. The Hulk becomes a glorified punching bag because he fights without technique, and against an opponent like Thanos, that's not going to work.



    Hulk consistently wins because he's so ridiculously stronger than most of his opponents that his capacity to absorb damage means he can basically ignore technique with the same freedom that he ignores damage.



    Against a disciplined technical fighter in his own weight class? He never stood a chance.






    share|improve this answer












    They appear very evenly matched in terms of raw strength, unfortunately for Hulk, strength wasn't the deciding factor in this fight.



    Hulk lays out Thanos initially, and Thanos isn't able to push him off - until he's got something to brace against. In a contest of strength between two opponents of approximately equal strength, the winner is going to be the one with greater momentum or something to brace against.



    Thanos uses this momentary advantage to get to his feet and set his stance, after which he controls the fight. The Hulk becomes a glorified punching bag because he fights without technique, and against an opponent like Thanos, that's not going to work.



    Hulk consistently wins because he's so ridiculously stronger than most of his opponents that his capacity to absorb damage means he can basically ignore technique with the same freedom that he ignores damage.



    Against a disciplined technical fighter in his own weight class? He never stood a chance.







    share|improve this answer












    share|improve this answer



    share|improve this answer










    answered Nov 13 at 19:31









    Morgen

    7671510




    7671510








    • 8




      Thanos - greatest pound for pound fighter in the MCU?
      – josh
      Nov 14 at 10:53






    • 4




      @josh If we're going pound-for-pound, surely one of the Pym crew would take that
      – Azor Ahai
      Nov 15 at 5:42










    • @AzorAhai haha, yes, I was thinking this but I wasn't sure how their weights change with their size. I feel a new question brewing...
      – josh
      Nov 15 at 11:53














    • 8




      Thanos - greatest pound for pound fighter in the MCU?
      – josh
      Nov 14 at 10:53






    • 4




      @josh If we're going pound-for-pound, surely one of the Pym crew would take that
      – Azor Ahai
      Nov 15 at 5:42










    • @AzorAhai haha, yes, I was thinking this but I wasn't sure how their weights change with their size. I feel a new question brewing...
      – josh
      Nov 15 at 11:53








    8




    8




    Thanos - greatest pound for pound fighter in the MCU?
    – josh
    Nov 14 at 10:53




    Thanos - greatest pound for pound fighter in the MCU?
    – josh
    Nov 14 at 10:53




    4




    4




    @josh If we're going pound-for-pound, surely one of the Pym crew would take that
    – Azor Ahai
    Nov 15 at 5:42




    @josh If we're going pound-for-pound, surely one of the Pym crew would take that
    – Azor Ahai
    Nov 15 at 5:42












    @AzorAhai haha, yes, I was thinking this but I wasn't sure how their weights change with their size. I feel a new question brewing...
    – josh
    Nov 15 at 11:53




    @AzorAhai haha, yes, I was thinking this but I wasn't sure how their weights change with their size. I feel a new question brewing...
    – josh
    Nov 15 at 11:53










    up vote
    9
    down vote













    TLDR: We don't know and can only speculate. The movie uses this to get our curiosity and to establish Thanos as a strong villain.



    We never see the Hulk build up anger. For all we know he could have just woken up in his bed, realising the ship is under attack, smashing a few of Thanos underlings and then go right at him, just because he was awoken in the middle of a good dream. At the least, we know he typically gets angrier if he's in life-threatening situations himself or if the love of his life is in danger. In the MCU, Black Widow gets closest to that and she's not around, nor do we have an indication that he was in serious danger before being beaten by Thanos.



    So in-universe, it is likely he wasn't at his full potential and not very focused. And Thanos is likely at least about the same strength level, with better technique (less emotional fighting style) in that fight. Hulk was probably taken by surprise in how strong his opponent was - and we've seen in Age of Ultron, that surprising him when he's not looking/focused/at full strength is a sneaky way to get him out of the picture for a while.



    Hulk wasn't ultimately defeated in the sense of about to die, yet a space ship is also a terrible place for the MCU Hulk to fight in. So far, we have no indication to think that he would survive in space. Even if that were the case, breaking the ship apart would kill the remaining Asgardians. And this would likely happen if he were to fully "hulk out" and have an extensive fight against someone at least equally strong. So, in his "mentally improved" state where he can talk and recognizes "friends" properly, he might also have held back on purpose. In any case it was probably a sane decision to just send him away and not drag out the lost fight.



    Out of universe, the movie explicitly doesn't focus on him or his mental state. What mood he is in, what fights he had earlier whether he just transformed, whether he already is in disagreement with Banner or not. It doesn't make a big fuss about the fight and none about any "preparation" on Hulk's side. This way it builds the question of how he lost and why he hides inside Banner up as a mystery box for the next movie to open and investigate, while for the time being using him and Thor to establish how powerful Thanos is. Up to this point, those two were the top-contenders for "strongest avenger", so it sends a powerful message if Thanos outright beats both(!) - individually.



    Personal side note: I sure hope Hulk can pick up that Gimli-Legolas relationship again, solve his mental issues and "level up" as well, after Thor stepped up his game in Ragnarok and IW.






    share|improve this answer










    New contributor




    Darkwing is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
    Check out our Code of Conduct.


















    • Dreaming is speculation. No evidence provided. Also not plausible to sleep through your ship being attacked and boarded. It's a plot hole and bad writing.
      – Chloe
      Nov 14 at 22:34








    • 2




      @Chloe Obviously it's speculation, that's my whole point, we have no clue what happened earlier. It's absolutely not a plot hole nor bad writing, it's simply omission (so yes, a hole in the sense that we don't see it^^), because it's not important for the story of the movie. It's even a nice tool to get people interested. Whether it's used well, all depends on whether and how they will come back to it. The whole "Hulk is hiding in Banner" storyline makes it very likely we will see a story arc about Hulk's defeat in the next movie in some form.
      – Darkwing
      Nov 15 at 10:32








    • 1




      @Chloe it would be a plot hole if Hulk later on easily beats Thanos without anything in-between that explains the difference between the old and new situation. But that he looses a short fight round doesn't go against what we know from the movies. He even got knocked out by the Hulk-buster.
      – Darkwing
      Nov 15 at 10:39










    • This is the correct answer
      – Garet Claborn
      Nov 15 at 18:10















    up vote
    9
    down vote













    TLDR: We don't know and can only speculate. The movie uses this to get our curiosity and to establish Thanos as a strong villain.



    We never see the Hulk build up anger. For all we know he could have just woken up in his bed, realising the ship is under attack, smashing a few of Thanos underlings and then go right at him, just because he was awoken in the middle of a good dream. At the least, we know he typically gets angrier if he's in life-threatening situations himself or if the love of his life is in danger. In the MCU, Black Widow gets closest to that and she's not around, nor do we have an indication that he was in serious danger before being beaten by Thanos.



    So in-universe, it is likely he wasn't at his full potential and not very focused. And Thanos is likely at least about the same strength level, with better technique (less emotional fighting style) in that fight. Hulk was probably taken by surprise in how strong his opponent was - and we've seen in Age of Ultron, that surprising him when he's not looking/focused/at full strength is a sneaky way to get him out of the picture for a while.



    Hulk wasn't ultimately defeated in the sense of about to die, yet a space ship is also a terrible place for the MCU Hulk to fight in. So far, we have no indication to think that he would survive in space. Even if that were the case, breaking the ship apart would kill the remaining Asgardians. And this would likely happen if he were to fully "hulk out" and have an extensive fight against someone at least equally strong. So, in his "mentally improved" state where he can talk and recognizes "friends" properly, he might also have held back on purpose. In any case it was probably a sane decision to just send him away and not drag out the lost fight.



    Out of universe, the movie explicitly doesn't focus on him or his mental state. What mood he is in, what fights he had earlier whether he just transformed, whether he already is in disagreement with Banner or not. It doesn't make a big fuss about the fight and none about any "preparation" on Hulk's side. This way it builds the question of how he lost and why he hides inside Banner up as a mystery box for the next movie to open and investigate, while for the time being using him and Thor to establish how powerful Thanos is. Up to this point, those two were the top-contenders for "strongest avenger", so it sends a powerful message if Thanos outright beats both(!) - individually.



    Personal side note: I sure hope Hulk can pick up that Gimli-Legolas relationship again, solve his mental issues and "level up" as well, after Thor stepped up his game in Ragnarok and IW.






    share|improve this answer










    New contributor




    Darkwing is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
    Check out our Code of Conduct.


















    • Dreaming is speculation. No evidence provided. Also not plausible to sleep through your ship being attacked and boarded. It's a plot hole and bad writing.
      – Chloe
      Nov 14 at 22:34








    • 2




      @Chloe Obviously it's speculation, that's my whole point, we have no clue what happened earlier. It's absolutely not a plot hole nor bad writing, it's simply omission (so yes, a hole in the sense that we don't see it^^), because it's not important for the story of the movie. It's even a nice tool to get people interested. Whether it's used well, all depends on whether and how they will come back to it. The whole "Hulk is hiding in Banner" storyline makes it very likely we will see a story arc about Hulk's defeat in the next movie in some form.
      – Darkwing
      Nov 15 at 10:32








    • 1




      @Chloe it would be a plot hole if Hulk later on easily beats Thanos without anything in-between that explains the difference between the old and new situation. But that he looses a short fight round doesn't go against what we know from the movies. He even got knocked out by the Hulk-buster.
      – Darkwing
      Nov 15 at 10:39










    • This is the correct answer
      – Garet Claborn
      Nov 15 at 18:10













    up vote
    9
    down vote










    up vote
    9
    down vote









    TLDR: We don't know and can only speculate. The movie uses this to get our curiosity and to establish Thanos as a strong villain.



    We never see the Hulk build up anger. For all we know he could have just woken up in his bed, realising the ship is under attack, smashing a few of Thanos underlings and then go right at him, just because he was awoken in the middle of a good dream. At the least, we know he typically gets angrier if he's in life-threatening situations himself or if the love of his life is in danger. In the MCU, Black Widow gets closest to that and she's not around, nor do we have an indication that he was in serious danger before being beaten by Thanos.



    So in-universe, it is likely he wasn't at his full potential and not very focused. And Thanos is likely at least about the same strength level, with better technique (less emotional fighting style) in that fight. Hulk was probably taken by surprise in how strong his opponent was - and we've seen in Age of Ultron, that surprising him when he's not looking/focused/at full strength is a sneaky way to get him out of the picture for a while.



    Hulk wasn't ultimately defeated in the sense of about to die, yet a space ship is also a terrible place for the MCU Hulk to fight in. So far, we have no indication to think that he would survive in space. Even if that were the case, breaking the ship apart would kill the remaining Asgardians. And this would likely happen if he were to fully "hulk out" and have an extensive fight against someone at least equally strong. So, in his "mentally improved" state where he can talk and recognizes "friends" properly, he might also have held back on purpose. In any case it was probably a sane decision to just send him away and not drag out the lost fight.



    Out of universe, the movie explicitly doesn't focus on him or his mental state. What mood he is in, what fights he had earlier whether he just transformed, whether he already is in disagreement with Banner or not. It doesn't make a big fuss about the fight and none about any "preparation" on Hulk's side. This way it builds the question of how he lost and why he hides inside Banner up as a mystery box for the next movie to open and investigate, while for the time being using him and Thor to establish how powerful Thanos is. Up to this point, those two were the top-contenders for "strongest avenger", so it sends a powerful message if Thanos outright beats both(!) - individually.



    Personal side note: I sure hope Hulk can pick up that Gimli-Legolas relationship again, solve his mental issues and "level up" as well, after Thor stepped up his game in Ragnarok and IW.






    share|improve this answer










    New contributor




    Darkwing is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
    Check out our Code of Conduct.









    TLDR: We don't know and can only speculate. The movie uses this to get our curiosity and to establish Thanos as a strong villain.



    We never see the Hulk build up anger. For all we know he could have just woken up in his bed, realising the ship is under attack, smashing a few of Thanos underlings and then go right at him, just because he was awoken in the middle of a good dream. At the least, we know he typically gets angrier if he's in life-threatening situations himself or if the love of his life is in danger. In the MCU, Black Widow gets closest to that and she's not around, nor do we have an indication that he was in serious danger before being beaten by Thanos.



    So in-universe, it is likely he wasn't at his full potential and not very focused. And Thanos is likely at least about the same strength level, with better technique (less emotional fighting style) in that fight. Hulk was probably taken by surprise in how strong his opponent was - and we've seen in Age of Ultron, that surprising him when he's not looking/focused/at full strength is a sneaky way to get him out of the picture for a while.



    Hulk wasn't ultimately defeated in the sense of about to die, yet a space ship is also a terrible place for the MCU Hulk to fight in. So far, we have no indication to think that he would survive in space. Even if that were the case, breaking the ship apart would kill the remaining Asgardians. And this would likely happen if he were to fully "hulk out" and have an extensive fight against someone at least equally strong. So, in his "mentally improved" state where he can talk and recognizes "friends" properly, he might also have held back on purpose. In any case it was probably a sane decision to just send him away and not drag out the lost fight.



    Out of universe, the movie explicitly doesn't focus on him or his mental state. What mood he is in, what fights he had earlier whether he just transformed, whether he already is in disagreement with Banner or not. It doesn't make a big fuss about the fight and none about any "preparation" on Hulk's side. This way it builds the question of how he lost and why he hides inside Banner up as a mystery box for the next movie to open and investigate, while for the time being using him and Thor to establish how powerful Thanos is. Up to this point, those two were the top-contenders for "strongest avenger", so it sends a powerful message if Thanos outright beats both(!) - individually.



    Personal side note: I sure hope Hulk can pick up that Gimli-Legolas relationship again, solve his mental issues and "level up" as well, after Thor stepped up his game in Ragnarok and IW.







    share|improve this answer










    New contributor




    Darkwing is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
    Check out our Code of Conduct.









    share|improve this answer



    share|improve this answer








    edited Nov 15 at 18:22





















    New contributor




    Darkwing is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
    Check out our Code of Conduct.









    answered Nov 14 at 0:00









    Darkwing

    21515




    21515




    New contributor




    Darkwing is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
    Check out our Code of Conduct.





    New contributor





    Darkwing is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
    Check out our Code of Conduct.






    Darkwing is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
    Check out our Code of Conduct.












    • Dreaming is speculation. No evidence provided. Also not plausible to sleep through your ship being attacked and boarded. It's a plot hole and bad writing.
      – Chloe
      Nov 14 at 22:34








    • 2




      @Chloe Obviously it's speculation, that's my whole point, we have no clue what happened earlier. It's absolutely not a plot hole nor bad writing, it's simply omission (so yes, a hole in the sense that we don't see it^^), because it's not important for the story of the movie. It's even a nice tool to get people interested. Whether it's used well, all depends on whether and how they will come back to it. The whole "Hulk is hiding in Banner" storyline makes it very likely we will see a story arc about Hulk's defeat in the next movie in some form.
      – Darkwing
      Nov 15 at 10:32








    • 1




      @Chloe it would be a plot hole if Hulk later on easily beats Thanos without anything in-between that explains the difference between the old and new situation. But that he looses a short fight round doesn't go against what we know from the movies. He even got knocked out by the Hulk-buster.
      – Darkwing
      Nov 15 at 10:39










    • This is the correct answer
      – Garet Claborn
      Nov 15 at 18:10


















    • Dreaming is speculation. No evidence provided. Also not plausible to sleep through your ship being attacked and boarded. It's a plot hole and bad writing.
      – Chloe
      Nov 14 at 22:34








    • 2




      @Chloe Obviously it's speculation, that's my whole point, we have no clue what happened earlier. It's absolutely not a plot hole nor bad writing, it's simply omission (so yes, a hole in the sense that we don't see it^^), because it's not important for the story of the movie. It's even a nice tool to get people interested. Whether it's used well, all depends on whether and how they will come back to it. The whole "Hulk is hiding in Banner" storyline makes it very likely we will see a story arc about Hulk's defeat in the next movie in some form.
      – Darkwing
      Nov 15 at 10:32








    • 1




      @Chloe it would be a plot hole if Hulk later on easily beats Thanos without anything in-between that explains the difference between the old and new situation. But that he looses a short fight round doesn't go against what we know from the movies. He even got knocked out by the Hulk-buster.
      – Darkwing
      Nov 15 at 10:39










    • This is the correct answer
      – Garet Claborn
      Nov 15 at 18:10
















    Dreaming is speculation. No evidence provided. Also not plausible to sleep through your ship being attacked and boarded. It's a plot hole and bad writing.
    – Chloe
    Nov 14 at 22:34






    Dreaming is speculation. No evidence provided. Also not plausible to sleep through your ship being attacked and boarded. It's a plot hole and bad writing.
    – Chloe
    Nov 14 at 22:34






    2




    2




    @Chloe Obviously it's speculation, that's my whole point, we have no clue what happened earlier. It's absolutely not a plot hole nor bad writing, it's simply omission (so yes, a hole in the sense that we don't see it^^), because it's not important for the story of the movie. It's even a nice tool to get people interested. Whether it's used well, all depends on whether and how they will come back to it. The whole "Hulk is hiding in Banner" storyline makes it very likely we will see a story arc about Hulk's defeat in the next movie in some form.
    – Darkwing
    Nov 15 at 10:32






    @Chloe Obviously it's speculation, that's my whole point, we have no clue what happened earlier. It's absolutely not a plot hole nor bad writing, it's simply omission (so yes, a hole in the sense that we don't see it^^), because it's not important for the story of the movie. It's even a nice tool to get people interested. Whether it's used well, all depends on whether and how they will come back to it. The whole "Hulk is hiding in Banner" storyline makes it very likely we will see a story arc about Hulk's defeat in the next movie in some form.
    – Darkwing
    Nov 15 at 10:32






    1




    1




    @Chloe it would be a plot hole if Hulk later on easily beats Thanos without anything in-between that explains the difference between the old and new situation. But that he looses a short fight round doesn't go against what we know from the movies. He even got knocked out by the Hulk-buster.
    – Darkwing
    Nov 15 at 10:39




    @Chloe it would be a plot hole if Hulk later on easily beats Thanos without anything in-between that explains the difference between the old and new situation. But that he looses a short fight round doesn't go against what we know from the movies. He even got knocked out by the Hulk-buster.
    – Darkwing
    Nov 15 at 10:39












    This is the correct answer
    – Garet Claborn
    Nov 15 at 18:10




    This is the correct answer
    – Garet Claborn
    Nov 15 at 18:10










    up vote
    4
    down vote













    First of all this is not the Hulk of the Comics and so one can't be compared to another.



    Within the MCU we have already seen Hulk beaten or matched in combat several times.



    Thor is his match in the Avengers and in Ragnarok again proves to be able to match a Hulk who has been fighting for years finally beating him to a draw.



    Tony Stark in the Hulk Buster, yes it took dropping a building on his head but he was able to defeat Hulk in a fight.



    So within the MCU we have already seen Hulk is not as infinitely strong as his comic book alter ego. Now add to this the fact that Thanos has been defined as the most powerful being in the Universe, he has an infinity stone already, has been shown to beat Thor (who could hold his own against Hulk) and is therefore easily a match for Hulk. Remember Hulks power comes from Anger, now if Hulk is being beaten by Thanos fear and doubt starts to creep in. This then leads to these emotions overcoming his anger meaning he would actually weaken meaning Thanos can cause more damage leading to him weakening more.



    This fear and shock at being so easily beaten would explain why Hulk does not want to come out to face Thanos again later in the movie.






    share|improve this answer



























      up vote
      4
      down vote













      First of all this is not the Hulk of the Comics and so one can't be compared to another.



      Within the MCU we have already seen Hulk beaten or matched in combat several times.



      Thor is his match in the Avengers and in Ragnarok again proves to be able to match a Hulk who has been fighting for years finally beating him to a draw.



      Tony Stark in the Hulk Buster, yes it took dropping a building on his head but he was able to defeat Hulk in a fight.



      So within the MCU we have already seen Hulk is not as infinitely strong as his comic book alter ego. Now add to this the fact that Thanos has been defined as the most powerful being in the Universe, he has an infinity stone already, has been shown to beat Thor (who could hold his own against Hulk) and is therefore easily a match for Hulk. Remember Hulks power comes from Anger, now if Hulk is being beaten by Thanos fear and doubt starts to creep in. This then leads to these emotions overcoming his anger meaning he would actually weaken meaning Thanos can cause more damage leading to him weakening more.



      This fear and shock at being so easily beaten would explain why Hulk does not want to come out to face Thanos again later in the movie.






      share|improve this answer

























        up vote
        4
        down vote










        up vote
        4
        down vote









        First of all this is not the Hulk of the Comics and so one can't be compared to another.



        Within the MCU we have already seen Hulk beaten or matched in combat several times.



        Thor is his match in the Avengers and in Ragnarok again proves to be able to match a Hulk who has been fighting for years finally beating him to a draw.



        Tony Stark in the Hulk Buster, yes it took dropping a building on his head but he was able to defeat Hulk in a fight.



        So within the MCU we have already seen Hulk is not as infinitely strong as his comic book alter ego. Now add to this the fact that Thanos has been defined as the most powerful being in the Universe, he has an infinity stone already, has been shown to beat Thor (who could hold his own against Hulk) and is therefore easily a match for Hulk. Remember Hulks power comes from Anger, now if Hulk is being beaten by Thanos fear and doubt starts to creep in. This then leads to these emotions overcoming his anger meaning he would actually weaken meaning Thanos can cause more damage leading to him weakening more.



        This fear and shock at being so easily beaten would explain why Hulk does not want to come out to face Thanos again later in the movie.






        share|improve this answer














        First of all this is not the Hulk of the Comics and so one can't be compared to another.



        Within the MCU we have already seen Hulk beaten or matched in combat several times.



        Thor is his match in the Avengers and in Ragnarok again proves to be able to match a Hulk who has been fighting for years finally beating him to a draw.



        Tony Stark in the Hulk Buster, yes it took dropping a building on his head but he was able to defeat Hulk in a fight.



        So within the MCU we have already seen Hulk is not as infinitely strong as his comic book alter ego. Now add to this the fact that Thanos has been defined as the most powerful being in the Universe, he has an infinity stone already, has been shown to beat Thor (who could hold his own against Hulk) and is therefore easily a match for Hulk. Remember Hulks power comes from Anger, now if Hulk is being beaten by Thanos fear and doubt starts to creep in. This then leads to these emotions overcoming his anger meaning he would actually weaken meaning Thanos can cause more damage leading to him weakening more.



        This fear and shock at being so easily beaten would explain why Hulk does not want to come out to face Thanos again later in the movie.







        share|improve this answer














        share|improve this answer



        share|improve this answer








        edited 2 days ago

























        answered Nov 15 at 15:45









        Richard C

        3,610835




        3,610835






















            up vote
            1
            down vote













            He did use the Power Stone. According to the comic book, Thanos is able to wield the power of the stones simply by having them in his possession (he doesn't need to keep them inside the gauntlet). With the Power Stone, Thanos' physical strength is basically unmatched. At some point in the storyline, Thanos admits that he needed the Power Stone to overcome creatures such as the Hulk, implying that at his regular strength level the Hulk would be a match for him.



            Still, based on feats, I don't believe the Hulk would be a match for Thanos even without the Power Stone. I've read all issues of the Incredible Hulk comics and there have been dozens of creatures who have defeated him in combat. People want to think that Hulk is invincible and the physically strongest creature in MU but it's simply not true. His strength is proportional to his anger, but since his anger has limits, so does his strength.



            On the other hand, very few creatures have bested Thanos in combat. The only person who has achieved this single-handedly in a straight-up fight happens to be a character from the MCU who has conveniently gone missing during the Infinity Wars (of course I'm talking about Odin).



            The creature who has overpowered the Hulk more easily than any other (and actually killed him in the split of a second) is a character who has made cameo appearances in the MCU (talking about Cosmo the Spacedog).
            PS: Alright, I know that was Cancerverse Hulk - but it's an overpowered clone of the real Hulk...






            share|improve this answer








            New contributor




            Digio is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
            Check out our Code of Conduct.














            • 1




              It's worth noting that this question is about the MCU whereas the majority of your answer is talking from the comics perspectives and there are differences.
              – TheLethalCarrot
              2 days ago






            • 1




              According to "the" comicbook? Which comicbook and what does it say?
              – Valorum
              2 days ago










            • @Valorum. The comic book in question is the Thanos Quest.
              – Digio
              2 days ago










            • @TheLethalCarrot I'm aware of this but I believe most people are interested in the comics perspective, at least for the things that MCU does not explain.
              – Digio
              2 days ago















            up vote
            1
            down vote













            He did use the Power Stone. According to the comic book, Thanos is able to wield the power of the stones simply by having them in his possession (he doesn't need to keep them inside the gauntlet). With the Power Stone, Thanos' physical strength is basically unmatched. At some point in the storyline, Thanos admits that he needed the Power Stone to overcome creatures such as the Hulk, implying that at his regular strength level the Hulk would be a match for him.



            Still, based on feats, I don't believe the Hulk would be a match for Thanos even without the Power Stone. I've read all issues of the Incredible Hulk comics and there have been dozens of creatures who have defeated him in combat. People want to think that Hulk is invincible and the physically strongest creature in MU but it's simply not true. His strength is proportional to his anger, but since his anger has limits, so does his strength.



            On the other hand, very few creatures have bested Thanos in combat. The only person who has achieved this single-handedly in a straight-up fight happens to be a character from the MCU who has conveniently gone missing during the Infinity Wars (of course I'm talking about Odin).



            The creature who has overpowered the Hulk more easily than any other (and actually killed him in the split of a second) is a character who has made cameo appearances in the MCU (talking about Cosmo the Spacedog).
            PS: Alright, I know that was Cancerverse Hulk - but it's an overpowered clone of the real Hulk...






            share|improve this answer








            New contributor




            Digio is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
            Check out our Code of Conduct.














            • 1




              It's worth noting that this question is about the MCU whereas the majority of your answer is talking from the comics perspectives and there are differences.
              – TheLethalCarrot
              2 days ago






            • 1




              According to "the" comicbook? Which comicbook and what does it say?
              – Valorum
              2 days ago










            • @Valorum. The comic book in question is the Thanos Quest.
              – Digio
              2 days ago










            • @TheLethalCarrot I'm aware of this but I believe most people are interested in the comics perspective, at least for the things that MCU does not explain.
              – Digio
              2 days ago













            up vote
            1
            down vote










            up vote
            1
            down vote









            He did use the Power Stone. According to the comic book, Thanos is able to wield the power of the stones simply by having them in his possession (he doesn't need to keep them inside the gauntlet). With the Power Stone, Thanos' physical strength is basically unmatched. At some point in the storyline, Thanos admits that he needed the Power Stone to overcome creatures such as the Hulk, implying that at his regular strength level the Hulk would be a match for him.



            Still, based on feats, I don't believe the Hulk would be a match for Thanos even without the Power Stone. I've read all issues of the Incredible Hulk comics and there have been dozens of creatures who have defeated him in combat. People want to think that Hulk is invincible and the physically strongest creature in MU but it's simply not true. His strength is proportional to his anger, but since his anger has limits, so does his strength.



            On the other hand, very few creatures have bested Thanos in combat. The only person who has achieved this single-handedly in a straight-up fight happens to be a character from the MCU who has conveniently gone missing during the Infinity Wars (of course I'm talking about Odin).



            The creature who has overpowered the Hulk more easily than any other (and actually killed him in the split of a second) is a character who has made cameo appearances in the MCU (talking about Cosmo the Spacedog).
            PS: Alright, I know that was Cancerverse Hulk - but it's an overpowered clone of the real Hulk...






            share|improve this answer








            New contributor




            Digio is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
            Check out our Code of Conduct.









            He did use the Power Stone. According to the comic book, Thanos is able to wield the power of the stones simply by having them in his possession (he doesn't need to keep them inside the gauntlet). With the Power Stone, Thanos' physical strength is basically unmatched. At some point in the storyline, Thanos admits that he needed the Power Stone to overcome creatures such as the Hulk, implying that at his regular strength level the Hulk would be a match for him.



            Still, based on feats, I don't believe the Hulk would be a match for Thanos even without the Power Stone. I've read all issues of the Incredible Hulk comics and there have been dozens of creatures who have defeated him in combat. People want to think that Hulk is invincible and the physically strongest creature in MU but it's simply not true. His strength is proportional to his anger, but since his anger has limits, so does his strength.



            On the other hand, very few creatures have bested Thanos in combat. The only person who has achieved this single-handedly in a straight-up fight happens to be a character from the MCU who has conveniently gone missing during the Infinity Wars (of course I'm talking about Odin).



            The creature who has overpowered the Hulk more easily than any other (and actually killed him in the split of a second) is a character who has made cameo appearances in the MCU (talking about Cosmo the Spacedog).
            PS: Alright, I know that was Cancerverse Hulk - but it's an overpowered clone of the real Hulk...







            share|improve this answer








            New contributor




            Digio is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
            Check out our Code of Conduct.









            share|improve this answer



            share|improve this answer






            New contributor




            Digio is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
            Check out our Code of Conduct.









            answered 2 days ago









            Digio

            1112




            1112




            New contributor




            Digio is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
            Check out our Code of Conduct.





            New contributor





            Digio is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
            Check out our Code of Conduct.






            Digio is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
            Check out our Code of Conduct.








            • 1




              It's worth noting that this question is about the MCU whereas the majority of your answer is talking from the comics perspectives and there are differences.
              – TheLethalCarrot
              2 days ago






            • 1




              According to "the" comicbook? Which comicbook and what does it say?
              – Valorum
              2 days ago










            • @Valorum. The comic book in question is the Thanos Quest.
              – Digio
              2 days ago










            • @TheLethalCarrot I'm aware of this but I believe most people are interested in the comics perspective, at least for the things that MCU does not explain.
              – Digio
              2 days ago














            • 1




              It's worth noting that this question is about the MCU whereas the majority of your answer is talking from the comics perspectives and there are differences.
              – TheLethalCarrot
              2 days ago






            • 1




              According to "the" comicbook? Which comicbook and what does it say?
              – Valorum
              2 days ago










            • @Valorum. The comic book in question is the Thanos Quest.
              – Digio
              2 days ago










            • @TheLethalCarrot I'm aware of this but I believe most people are interested in the comics perspective, at least for the things that MCU does not explain.
              – Digio
              2 days ago








            1




            1




            It's worth noting that this question is about the MCU whereas the majority of your answer is talking from the comics perspectives and there are differences.
            – TheLethalCarrot
            2 days ago




            It's worth noting that this question is about the MCU whereas the majority of your answer is talking from the comics perspectives and there are differences.
            – TheLethalCarrot
            2 days ago




            1




            1




            According to "the" comicbook? Which comicbook and what does it say?
            – Valorum
            2 days ago




            According to "the" comicbook? Which comicbook and what does it say?
            – Valorum
            2 days ago












            @Valorum. The comic book in question is the Thanos Quest.
            – Digio
            2 days ago




            @Valorum. The comic book in question is the Thanos Quest.
            – Digio
            2 days ago












            @TheLethalCarrot I'm aware of this but I believe most people are interested in the comics perspective, at least for the things that MCU does not explain.
            – Digio
            2 days ago




            @TheLethalCarrot I'm aware of this but I believe most people are interested in the comics perspective, at least for the things that MCU does not explain.
            – Digio
            2 days ago


















             

            draft saved


            draft discarded



















































             


            draft saved


            draft discarded














            StackExchange.ready(
            function () {
            StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fscifi.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f198503%2fhow-did-thanos-beat-hulk-so-easily%23new-answer', 'question_page');
            }
            );

            Post as a guest















            Required, but never shown





















































            Required, but never shown














            Required, but never shown












            Required, but never shown







            Required, but never shown

































            Required, but never shown














            Required, but never shown












            Required, but never shown







            Required, but never shown







            -

            Popular posts from this blog

            Accessing regular linux commands in Huawei's Dopra Linux

            Image
            4 Backstory: I have a Huawei HG8245 router in my house and I want to change the default username/password. I've tried following this guide but the config file always gets reset. My ISP isn't helping either so I'm looking for other ways to accomplish this. The router has telnet access so this seems like a way to change the credentials. The first shell I gain access to looks like this: WAP> Pressing "?" gives me a list of available commands which I've pasted here, the two interesting ones are "su" and "shell". I can't seem to get su access, even after logging in as root (challenge password prompt, and then nothing happens), but shell gives me a proper linux shell. WAP>shell BusyBox v1.18.4 (2017-12-26 17:06:34 CST) built-in shell (ash) Enter 'hel...
            Read more

            Can't connect RFCOMM socket: Host is down

            Image
            up vote 3 down vote favorite I have bluez 5.4.3 and I am attempting to communicate with a ble device through minicom. These two deceives (my computer and a bluno nano) are alreadt paired and this has been my method so far. #bluetoothctl # pair xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx # exit Everything is working well so far then... #sudo rfcomm connect /dev/rfcomm0 xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx 1 & [1] 3665 Can't connect RFCOMM socket: Host is down Does anyone know how to resolve this issue? Any help would be very much appreciated. bluetooth bluez share | improve this question asked Feb 9 '17 at 18:46 Brandon Knape 46 2 ...
            Read more

            Kernel panic - not syncing: Fatal Exception in Interrupt

            Image
            0 Every day this error occured on my pc, kernel panic error on interrupt, what will be the problem? linux-mint share asked 6 mins ago Vinod Selvin Vinod Selvin 1 1 New contributor Vinod Selvin is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering. Check out our Code of Conduct. add a comment ...
            Read more