Fans have certainly had plenty of good looks at what each of the Eternals will look like , but not much about them besides specific characters like Ajak , Ikaris , and Gilgamesh . However, besides Makkari's speed, their specific abilities have never been made explicit in any announcements or merchandise.
In the comics, many of their powers overlap with one another, so it is expected that Marvel Studios will go out of their way to make each Eternal feel more unique from one another, which appears to be the case in new descriptions for all the Eternals characters.
NEWS
Redwolf, an independent clothing label, has new descriptions for Eternals and its many immortal characters. Once again, it reiterates that, unlike the comics, the Eternals are alien-in-origin living on a “distant planet” who all arrived on Earth “thousands of years ago.” Since the Eternals' arrival, they have protected humanity from an alien “predator” race called Deviants.
However, what is very much a staple of Jack Kirby's original Eternals is it abiding by the idea of “ancient aliens,” extraterrestrial beings who visited Earth millions of years ago and made contact with early humanity. In Eternals , the Celestials are said to be “a race of cosmic builders” who influenced life itself on Earth or throughout the universe.
The Eternals are a race of immortal aliens from a distant planet who arrived on Earth thousands of years ago to protect humanity from a race of alien predators called Deviants. The Eternals were alerted to the Deviant threat by the Celestials, a race of cosmic builders whose fingerprints are on the very building blocks of life itself.
There is also more context given to the Eternals' symbol that has appeared on various merchandise, representing “eons of history charted via calendars.”
Symbolizing eons of history charted via calendars and other mysterious ancient technologies, the Eternals icon will serve as a subtle nod to the name of these immortal, godlike beings.
Most of this description for Ikaris was already revealed through previous merchandise leaks, but what's new is that the events of Eternals seem to be triggered by the return of the “monstrous” Deviants, with Ikaris leading the charge in uniting the scattered Eternals:
Ikaris is the tactical leader and most powerful Eternal and takes pride in keeping the other Eternals safe. Moral, kind and charismatic, Ikaris boasts the power of incredible strength, flight and the ability to project beams of intense cosmic energy from his eyes. When the monstrous Deviants return after centuries, Ikaris leads the charge to unite the scattered Eternals to stop the new threat.
The description for Sersi establishes that she has an “affinity” for humans, working as a museum curator. More of the plot is also revealed, saying that Sersi has been in love with Ikaris “for centuries” and that she helps him search for the remaining Eternals for “one last mission:”
Sersi is the Eternal with an affinity for humanity. Sersi is as happy working as a museum curator as she is saving humans from the threat of the Deviants. Sersi has the ability to manipulate matter, changing the makeup of any non-sentient material she touches. She's also been in love with Ikaris for centuries, and helps him to recruit the Eternals for one last mission.
Again, like Ikaris, most of this description for Ajak should be familiar to fans paying attention to leaks these past several months, but has new tidbits not included in the previous description. This includes that the Eternals have helped “humans advance to the modern civilization that they live in today,” more influence from the “ancient aliens” theory that Jack Kirby loved to use in his comics.
Additionally, Sersi being a museum curator would explain filming that took place at the Parks Road museum with Angelina Jolie, Richard Madden, and Salma Hayek.
Ajak is the spiritual leader of the Eternals. Her wisdom has helped guide the team since they arrived here from their home planet to help defend humanity from the Deviants and to help humans advance to the modern civilization that they live in today. Ajak can not only heal humans and Eternals alike, but she is able to communicate with the Celestials as well.
A brand-new description has been given for Phastos, which gives a detailed description of how his “power of invention” works. If given enough raw material, Phastos can “create whatever he can imagine.” Phastos is also credited as having helped “nudge” humanity into a technological future in secret.
Phastos is blessed with the power of invention. He is able to create whatever he can imagine provided that he has enough raw materials at his disposal. Over the centuries, Phastos has helped nudge humanity forward technologically while always keeping his brilliance hidden in the shadows.
For Makkari, there has actually been context given for why the character will be “the only deaf Eternal” as she is immune to her sonic booms from “cosmic” running.
Makkari is the fastest woman in the universe. She uses her cosmically powered super-speed to scout planets for the Eternals, and as the only deaf Eternal, the sonic boom that accompanies her cosmic running does not affect her.
Druig seems to be the typical character who will fall from grace, like Mordo in Doctor Strange , as he disagrees with how the other Eternals have interacted with humanity. The description is so blunt as to question “whether he's friend or foe.” Druig's powers are actually quite similar to the comics, as he typically used brainwashing or caused waking nightmares in his enemies:
Druig can use cosmic energy to control the minds of men. Druig has become withdrawn from the other Eternals because he disagrees with how they've interacted with mankind over the centuries. Aloof and powerful, at times it's hard to determine whether he's friend of foe.
Already described as the “kindest” Eternal in previous merchandise, along with his “de facto” relationship with Thena, the description describes Gilgamesh's powers as “projecting a powerful exoskeleton of cosmic energy,” likely cementing his reputation as the “strongest” Eternal:
Gilgamesh is the strongest and kindest member of the team. He becomes Thena's de facto partner when the events of the past exile them from the rest of the team. Capable of projecting a powerful exoskeleton of cosmic energy, Gilgamesh is a fierce warrior who has become legendary for his fights with Deviants throughout history.
The description for Thena seems to confirm that the “de facto” partnership between herself and Gilgamesh is “an unlikely friendship” and not romantic. As for other details, Thena's power, fitting for a “fierce warrior,” is the ability to use “cosmic energy to form any handheld weapon she can think of.”
Thena, a fierce warrior more comfortable in battle than any other place, she has the ability to use cosmic energy to form any handheld weapon she can think of. Often surly and aloof, she forges an unlikely friendship with Gilgamesh that spans centuries.
It was revealed long ago that Kingo would be a Bollywood star, but that he “must leave his life of wealth and celebrity” to help Sersi and Ikaris stop the Deviants. Similar to Ikaris, Kingo can also project cosmic energy, but as projectiles and from his hands instead of his eyes.
Kingo is the Eternal with the power to project cosmic energy projectiles with his hands. Over the centuries, he has become enamored with the idea of fame. In present day, he's a famous Bollywood star who must leave his life of wealth and celebrity to help the team repel the new Deviant threat.
Finally, Sprite is described as only appearing as “a 12-year old girl,” but “her friendship with Sersi hides a world-weary sadness” due to humanity not showing her proper respect due to her childish appearance. In contrast to her small, non-threatening appearance, Sprite is actually “much stronger and cleverer” than others expect.
And finally, there Sprite - who appears to be a 12-year old girl, Sprite has the ability to cast lifelike illusions. Her friendship with Sersi hides a world-weary sadness because she's been treated like a child by humanity for centuries. But Sprite is much stronger and cleverer than she appears, which will come in handy as while they battle with the Deviants.
WHAT THIS MEANS
Fans finally have a clearer picture of what each Eternal will be like in Chloé Zhao's Eternals . In the comics, most of the Eternals already have many of these abilities, especially those involving the manipulation of matter, which seems to have been essentially separated between Sersi, Phastos, and Thena. Sersi can change the makeup of any non-sentient material she touches, while Phastos can essentially create anything if he has “enough raw materials at his disposal.”
There's a possibility that Sersi and Phastos work well off one another, as she can transmute objects into the appropriate raw material for him to use. However, what has to be the coolest detail in explaining Makkari's deafness is that it allows her to be unharmed by the sonic-booms she creates when running. It's easy to imagine Makkari using this immunity to her advantage by blowing out a bunch of Deviants' eardrums.
Another interesting fact is that Sersi, in the comics, if her name wasn't an obvious enough give away, acted as Circe, the same from the story Odyssey. Sersi's specialty was illusions, but that power seems to be exclusive to Sprite now. Still, a friendship between the two was mentioned, so perhaps over the centuries interacting with humanity, they played off one another with Sprite giving humanity the impression that Sersi conjured powerful illusions, as they wouldn't believe a child, like Sprite appears, capable of such feats.
There are many more interesting details, but regardless, it's good to finally have a more distinct description of each character and their abilities. It really helps differentiate them from one another, with each of them having powers unique to them, unlike the comics where many of these powers overlap with one another. It'll also be interesting to see if the “deep, strong, manga roots” will impact how their individual powers are displayed on the screen.
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