15 things we learned from the new Avengers: Infinity War trailer

Tickets are now available to book for Avengers: Infinity War, and an explosive new trailer has arrived to take our breath away. Here's what we discovered from it.

1. Gamora's warning

Infinity War brings us the looming threat of Thanos (Josh Brolin), the supervillain looking to conquer the Earth by wielding the all-powerful Infinity Stones. This strikes a personal note for Guardians of the Galaxy's Gamora (Zoe Saldana) – she is, after all, his adopted daughter. It's therefore appropriate the trailer kicks off with her dire warning that he's always sought such a goal.

It's a chilling way of establishing both their twisted family history and Thanos' own dark ambitions, while promising to push Gamora herself into more conflicted areas. The distorted strains of composer Alan Silvestri's once heroic Avengers theme reinforce the feeling of apprehension.

2. Peter hitches a ride

There's never a good time for an evil baddie to invade Earth. It has particular repercussions for Peter Parker/Spider-Man (Tom Holland), whose home city of New York is directly in the firing line. Spidey has always been one of the most relatable of the Avengers – the great moment where he's forced into action wearing nothing but his cowl reinforces his perennial battle between adolescent normality and superhero responsibility.

3. Tony's plan

He's the motormouthed genius billionaire playboy philanthropist. But not even the great Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) can quip his way out of this one. Over the course of the standalone Iron Man films, plus the Avengers and later Captain America movies, we've seen him become more and more disillusioned with the dangers posed by villains not of this planet.

Thanos tops them all but Tony has a typically wily plan, aiming to use the seductive power of the Infinity Stones to lure Thanos to Earth, where our heroes will have the advantage. But with speculation mounting that Iron Man may not be much longer for this world, will his audacious scheme backfire?

4. Wakanda forever!

Black Widow actress Scarlett Johansson has confirmed that Infinity War takes place years after the end of Captain America: Civil War. It's therefore heartening to note the friendship established at the end of the latter film between Captain America (Chris Evans) and Wakandan leader T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman) still stands. Even so, it's the prospect of scene-stealing Shuri's (Letitia Wright) return that's got us amped. What gadgets will she unleash in the fight against Thanos?

5. Star-Lord has a plan

So far, we can note various little factions of Infinity War heroes. While Black Panther, Captain America and Black Widow team up in Wakanda, Tony is defending New York. He's fighting alongside Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), Wong (Benedict Wong), Spider-Man and, last but not least, the Guardians, including Drax (Dave Bautista), Groot (Vin Diesel) and Rocket (Bradley Cooper).

It's hilarious to note that even when faced with such legendary Avengers figureheads, Peter Quill/Star-Lord's (Chris Pratt) smart mouth won't stop running over. Something tells us the equally sharp-tongued Tony is going to be arguing with him even more than he did with Captain America...

6. Hulkbuster

Thanos' diabolical plan is multi-pronged, with his invasion of Wakanda key to the plot. It remains to be seen whether the elusive Soul Stone is central to this (it's the last Infinity Stone coveted by Thanos), but the Wakandan forces are breaking out all the toys to combat him. This includes the return of Tony's Hulkbuster armour, last seen in 2015's Avengers: Age of Ultron.

We saw in an earlier trailer that Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) was standing next to one of its arms, but given he Hulks out during the brawl, it can't be him piloting it... can it? Well, a recently released LEGO set image has apparently confirmed it is indeed Banner controlling the armour.

7. Thor's new hammer

Given the God of Thunder lost his trusty Mjolnir to the evil Hela (Cate Blanchett) in Thor: Ragnarok, you may wonder what hammer it is he's wielding in the Infinity War trailer. Allow us to introduce Stormbreaker, the Norse equivalent to one of Tony's suit upgrades. The reveal came as part of a leaked image from Hasbro's Infinity War toys. In the comics it's created by Odin himself, so the fact Thor is wielding a weapon created by his father further enforces his godlike standing in the wake of Asgard's destruction. Plus, teenage Groot looks impressed.

8. Thanos and... young Gamora?

Now this is possibly the most intriguing shot in the whole trailer. As Thanos gravely intones his plan to enslave humanity, we get a glimpse of him in some sort of ceremonial context, clutching the green hand of a small, unseen figure. Are we to assume this is a flashback to Gamora's early years with her adoptive father? If so, we can expect the movie to be more richly textured and emotional than we expected, particularly with regard to Thanos himself.

Will he be expressing some sort of remorse over having to fight with his daughter? Let's not forget that in the comics, he killed her biological parents, so don't feel too sorry for him. Perhaps this is the moment we're witnessing in the trailer?

9. Loki and the Black Order

Tom Hiddleston's trickster character has vacillated between the forces of good and evil throughout the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). His motivations in Infinity War are still unclear, but he's clearly dwarfed by the power of Thanos. Not only that, this shot shows him surrounded by the Black Order, Thanos' minions who will help him conquer the Earth and retrieve the Infinity Stones.

At the end of Thor: Ragnarok Loki was spotted looking covetously at the Mind Stone (aka the Tesseract) in the bowels of Asgard, which was then followed by a climactic sequence in which Thanos' ship appeared. Logically, it makes sense Thanos has retrieved the Mind Stone directly from Loki, although given he appears to crush the gem in the trailer, maybe it's not as straightforward as it seems... Maybe Loki's trying some of his old mind games in order to stall for time and help save the Earth?

10. The Captain's new shield

Wakanda is the vibranium-producing capital of the world, and it's the same material Steve Rogers' first star-spangled shield was made of. However, he left that patriotic accessory behind following the climactic battle with Tony Stark in Civil War. This time, he's sporting an all-new one – it's darker in colour and more angular in nature, as glimpsed in the previous teaser. Not only have Wakanda upped their game in honour of their special guest, the new shield befits Captain's increasingly tortured psyche and beardy visage.

11. Wakandan force fields up!

If you thought the end battle in Black Panther was impressive, this is set to make it look like a playground scrap. Remember the force fields deployed by the Dora Milaje? Amplify their size by about one hundred and you have exactly what's needed to ward off the forces of Thanos. The presence of fellow Avengers Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) and Falcon (Anthony Mackie) is sure to help, too.

12. Demonic acupuncture

We're not exactly sure what's happening to Doctor Strange here, but it looks painful. Given he wields the Time Stone, perhaps the villains are trying to extract it in their quest for world domination. Either way, it appears Thanos is refusing to get his hands dirty, allowing his Black Order cronies to torture and torment our heroes. What a coward.

13. The end of Iron Man?

Thanos appears to adjust his strategy depending on who he's battling. When facing the quick-witted Tony Stark, it's the psychological assault that matters most, taunting, "I hope they remember you". To undo Stark's legacy, one he's established over the course of three Iron Man movies and the subsequent Avengers blockbusters, would be one of the most sadistic things imaginable. Or maybe he's targeting Tony's long-term love interest Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow). Little wonder Brolin has warned that Thanos is poised to "upset" a great many fans...

14. The end of Captain America?

As the most physically robust of the Avengers, Steve Rogers won't be conquered via mind games alone. Instead, Thanos unleashes all of his latent brute strength, the Captain barely able to ward off the gauntlets that are as big as his entire head. Will he be going out in a blaze of glory, mano a mano? Something tells us that's how Captain America would want to go down.

On a side note, the following screenshot shows at least one of the Infinity Stones is missing, indicating Thanos' plan hasn't yet come to fruition. Is Steve the last thing that stands between Thanos and the Soul Stone?

15. Superhero bantz

Of course, the Marvel movies aren't all doom and gloom. They've established themselves as witty and warmhearted, even when the end of the world looms. The final dialogue exchange between Peter and Doctor Strange, blurring the lines between actual names and superhero names, is a charming reminder of why we love these films so much.