So, of course I don't want to see spoilers for Avengers: Endgame. I'm going to do my best to avoid them of course, but no matter what I might accidentally stumble upon, there's no way I'm NOT going to see Endgame. Spoilers would obviously be annoying, but they aren't the thing I'll regret. The only thing I'll regret about Endgame is the fact that my Dad isn't around to finish the journey through this arc of the MCU with me.
My Dad was a huge influence on me. You wouldn't think it to look at the guy but Dad was a nerd. I mean, the guy read books on String Theory, Astrophysics and Quantum Mechanics not because he had to, he was just interested in the subjects. He even planned to write his own book on these subjects for the layman that he planned to call The Stuff of the Universe. Total nerd. And in being a nerd I absolutely take after Dad.
Dad was also into Sci-Fi and Fantasy, and he definitely passed the love of those genres on to me, which I've loved my entire life. Pretty sure it was Dad's idea to take me to the first movie I have any memory of seeing in the theater; The Original Star Wars back in 1977 when I was 2. That was my gateway drug into as I said, a life-long love of fantasy and science-fiction, genres I write in, another thing I owe to Dad.
Over the years I ended up going to a LOT of flicks with my Dad, and those are all cherished memories for me. The last movie we went to together before he passed away was Iron Man, the movie that kicked off the MCU.
All throughout my journey through the MCU, there have been several times when I really felt Dad's absence. "Dad would have liked that", or "Man, Dad would've gotten a chuckle out of that." Even subsequent viewings of Iron Man, Tony saying "I never got to say goodbye to my father"(I didn't either), it hits me.
But even though he hasn't physically been here, I feel like Dad's been with me every step of the way, and there's no way we're not going to finish this journey. Even if I do it by myself. As Black Widow said in the trailer, I feel like I owe it to the person who's not in the room.
So, spoilers be damned. In the next few days I will be in a theater, box of Milk Duds(our traditional movie snack) in hand, and I will finish this journey I started with Dad around 10 years ago. Whatever it takes, to the end. Love you, Dad. Wish you were here, and thank you.
Carry on smartly, my friends.
