The original Avengers line-up is finally over, with the MCU now just playing with a few stories of them. The universe has a new narrative, a new squad of heroes, and fresh stories. In this ‘modern’ era, Blade could be a new Nick Fury and make a team capable of replacing Dark Avengers. Thanos (Josh Brolin) and his quest to gain the Infinity Stones and the Infinity Gauntlet occupied the first three phases of the MCU, collectively known as the Infinity Saga. The original Avengers defeated him in Avengers: Endgame.
Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame were the crown jewels in Infinity Saga. The MCU’s Phase 4 encompasses movies and television, and this phase emphasizes the multiverse and its myriad dangers and possibilities, as well as creating new teams. With Eternals, the MCU got its first superhero team. Blade (Mahershala Ali) debut in Phase 4 through Eternals.
The MCU declared in 2019 that Blade(Mahershala Ali) will soon be part of the franchise. Blade is yet to appear in the MCU as a proper character, but he made his debut in the post-credits scene of Eternals. As Dane Whitman was about to touch the Ebony Blade, Blade asked him if he was sure of what he was doing. Many fans did not like this voice cameo, as they were expecting Blade to make a grand debut through his solo movie. However, it seems like the MCU has planned big things for Blade in Phase 4.
Blade And Nick Fury’s Debut Are Very Similar
The Marvel Phase 4 projects (as well as those prior) have already hinted at Blade‘s arrival, such as Korg mentioning vampires in Thor: Ragnarok (as a joke at the time) and Mobius discussing vampires. Also, Casey had a crucifix in Loki. Despite this, there were no signs hinting that Blade would appear in the MCU before his solo flick, so hearing his voice in Eternals was also a big surprise. Eternals focused on the apocalyptic event of ‘emergence’ and the heroes’ quest to save the world from it. The makers gave no reason to believe he could somehow link up with Dane, so viewers didn‘t even realize Blade was talking to Dane until the show’s director confirmed it was Blade.
Nick Fury made his debut in the post-credits scene from Iron Man. Unlike Blade, Fury’s cameo was very much expected and loved. It surprised Tony Stark when Fury arrived at his Malibu home one night to talk about the Avengers Initiative. He became a key character throughout the Infinity Saga. Nick Fury is still active in the MCU, and he is to appear in Secret Invasion on Disney+. The blade may take Fury’s place in Phase 4 and 5 if the MCU spices up a few things.
Midnight Sons Are Setting The Stage For Blade
Mahershala Ali had a brief cameo in Eternals, and his single line doesn‘t supply much information. but that he appeared to Dane Whitman just before he was about to touch the Ebony Blade, opens up several possibilities. In the MCU, Blade‘s most pressing questions revolve around when he will appear and how he is linked to Dane Whitman/Black Knight. According to popular theory, Blade will join Black Knight and Moon Knight (Oscar Isaac) to form a new team.
Midnight Sons made their debut in Ghost Rider vol. 3 #28 in 1992. Doctor Strange formed it with characters like Blade, Frank Drake, Hannibal King, Morbius, Vengeance, Sam Buchanan, Victoria Montesi, Louise Hastings, Modred the Mystic, Jinx, Danny Ketch, and Johnny Blaze. Since then, the Midnight Sons have encountered a variety of enemies, such as Lilith and company, Zarathos, and even Blade, when he turned into Switchblade with the help of a Darkhold page and nearly killed everyone he once worked with.
As of today, the MCU has Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) as a core character. Blade is getting his own movie. Morbius is preparing to make his big-screen debut. Moon Knight has a TV show on the way, and So is Werewolf by Night (Gael Garcia Bernal).
Although Black Knight is not a Midnight Son in the comics, he can easily be its member in the MCU (it wouldn‘t be the first time the film universe has adapted literature to fit its narrative), and Blade will be the one bringing it all together. This is unlike comics, where Doctor Strange does it.
Blade Will Be The New Nick Fury Of Phase 4 & 5
After recruiting each one of the original Avengers members one by one, Fury was the one to bring the team together. but with the original Avengers now gone (and their surviving members going their own respective ways), Fury will now turn his attention to other missions, leaving his place open. Given the similarity between Blade and Fury‘s MCU debuts and the possible emergence of the Midnight Sons, Blade could take on Fury‘s role of assembling this dark team, starting with Dane Whitman, who is about to enter his role as Black Knight.
Several online rumors suggest Blade will appear in Moon Knight in a cameo role, supporting the idea that he could be Phase 4 and 5‘s Nick Fury and the one to unite the Midnight Sons – and his Eternals line suggests that he has plans for Dane Whitman.
Blade Has More Dimensions To Him Than Being New Nick Fury
The fundamental difference between Nick Fury and Blade is that Blade is an active fighter. Although Fury has fought on some occasions, combat is definitely not Fury’s forte. Because of the MCU’s emphasis on the supernatural side of the MCU in Phase 4 (Moon Knight, Werewolf by Night, and vampires), Blade will need some extra help. There are unique abilities that each member of the Midnight Sons has, so Blade would have to use his skills as a founder and leader of the team instead of taking more “comfortable“ roles.
Blade as the MCU’s new Nick Fury would be interesting and exciting, since it would be like a darker mirror of Fury. There are many possibilities for Blade‘s future in the MCU, but there’s enough evidence already to believe that Midnight Sons will enter the picture. As a vampire hunter, he would become a complex character and play a greater role in the future of the MCU than Fury did.
