Ranking Thanos’ Children In The MCU

In the MCU Thanos had a total of six children, all adopted. Four of them – Ebony Maw, Cull Obsidian, Corvus Glaive and Proxima Midnight

By Chandraboli Majumdar
August 21,2022
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In the MCU Thanos had a total of six children, all adopted. Four of them – Ebony Maw, Cull Obsidian, Corvus Glaive and Proxima Midnight were a part of the Black Order. Thanos also had 2 adoptive daughters- Gamora and Nebula. There was a shared hatred and disdain among the children as all of them tried to win their father’s affections. Each child was extremely skilled and trained. They completed missions and carried out orders given by Thanos.

Thanos and the Black Order
Thanos and the Black Order

We were introduced to Gamora and Nebula during Guardians of the Galaxy vol 1 and saw them again during Guardians of the Galaxy vol 2. Avengers: Infinity Wars and Endgame finally introduced the Black order. They stood against the Avengers, aiming to retrieve the Time Stone and the Mind Stone for their father. They were quickly defeated and killed by the Avengers. Nonetheless, we got a glimpse of each of their powers and potential, although some more than others. Now, let us rank all 6 of them!

6. Cull Obsidian 

Cull Obsidian
Cull Obsidian

We did not get to see much of Cull Obsidian, unfortunately. His character was quite a let-down from the comics. From what we saw, he seemed to be all brawns and no brains. However, in the brawns department, he was second to none. Initially in Infinity Wars, Tony Stark’s updated armor’s repulsors blasted him away. However, using his brute strength and his chain hammer he almost crushed Iron Man. At the last moment, Spider-Man appeared and saved him.

He showed great mastery over his chain hammer, as he used it to send Iron Man flying into a nearby park. He even had a shield which he used to protect himself from Iron Man’s blasts. Another display of his strength was when he broke through a building. Wong finally removed him from the fight by opening an inter-dimensional portal with his sling ring. He transported him to Antarctica and cut off his hand in the process. He returned during the battle in Wakanda with a prosthetic arm but was once again defeated by Bruce Banner in the Hulkbuster armor. During their fight, he was overpowering Banner but as mentioned before, he fell short when it came to tactics and intelligence.

5. Corvus Glaive

Corvus Glaive
Corvus Glaive

Corvus Glaive was a part of the attack on Wanda and Vision in Scotland. He pierced through Vision using his glaive and compromised his structural integrity. This stopped Vision from phasing. He along with Proxima Midnight almost cornered Wanda and killed Vision before Captain America, Falcon and Black Widow showed up. Black Widow successfully injured him before he was beamed back up into their ship.

We see him again during the battle in Wakanda. He along with Proxima Midnight orchestrated the sneak attack on Vision while Wanda was distracted in battle. He easily tackled the Wakandan guards. While fighting Vision, he had the upper hand until Captain America intervened. Glaive also overpowered Cap but was stabbed by Vision using his own blade. He showed superhuman strength, and durability and even healed quickly from his previous injuries inflicted during the Scotland fight. As is his name, he displayed immense mastery over his blade or the glaive. He was a great combatant and wasn’t an easy opponent at all.

4. Proxima Midnight

Proxima Midnight
Proxima Midnight

Proxima Midnight attacked Wanda in Scotland. She helped Corvus Glaive pin down Vision. Wanda blasted her and used her powers to defend against her attacks, however, Midnight managed to knock out Wanda and Vision from the sky and thrash them into a train station. She had cornered them until Cap and the rest came to their rescue. She threw her spear at Captain America but to no avail. There were several moments during her battle with Wanda where Midnight had the upper hand and served some very good blows, which is a great feat considering Wanda’s powers. She also saved the injured Glaive as she beamed him and herself up.

In the battle of Wakanda, she led the army and also ordered the sneak attack on Vision. Midnight with her brilliant combat skills knocked Black Widow to the ground and was about to kill her. Okoye and Scarlet Witch came to her aid but Midnight made quick work of them too. She successfully took on both Okoye and Romanoff at once. She had them in her grasp till Wanda used her telekinesis and threw her into the path of a Thresher thus killing her. Midnight displayed superhuman strength, durability and also extreme speed and agility in her attacks. She is a formidable combatant and is trained to use spears and swords. Midnight is also a skilled acrobat as she showed off her moves during the Scotland fight.

3. Nebula

Nebula
Nebula

Nebula, a Luphomoid assassin, is one of Thanos’ adopted daughters. We see her transform from a villain to a hero. Her body had slowly been replaced, piece by piece, with machinery by Thanos every time she lost a fight to Gamora. Thanos tortured her expecting that would make her tougher and stronger.

Her hatred for Gamora resulted in several failed attempts to kill her. But we see that she is a great combatant. She is a skilled pilot and has flown many ships before. During Nebula’s battle with Gamora on the planet Ego, she finally bested her in combat and proved her worth. This is also the moment when we truly see Nebula beyond her otherwise stone-cold demeanor. As she sides with the heroes, she becomes an integral part of the battle against Thanos in both Titan and later in Endgame.

However, her weakness is her own emotions and her constant need to prove herself. Her remotely accessible memory file also becomes the downfall of the Time Heist. She and her memories were used as pawns when Thanos was trying to extract information regarding the soul stone from Gamora.

Nebula does fight Thanos on Titan and gets in a few good punches. During Endgame, she retrieved the Power Stone orb from the temple using her very hands, displaying her superhuman durability. Her intelligence showed when she understood the concept of the time machine and different timelines much quicker than the other Avengers.

During the final battle, she convinced the past version of Gamora to betray Thanos and killed the 2014 Nebula as well. The simple reason why she ranks above the others is that she was pivotal in taking down Thanos while the rest remained unsuccessful in their quests.

2. Gamora – The favourite child

Gamora
Gamora

Gamora, often known as the deadliest woman in the Galaxy, is the other daughter of Thanos. From the very beginning of Guardians vol 1, we see her combat skills and agility. She fights with great speed and swiftness. Her mastery over the Godslayer is apparent right away.

While she too has cybernetic and bionic enhancements, being a Zehoberei already makes her inhumanly strong and durable. She is fearless, smart and calm in the face of adversity. She was the first to sense that there was something off about Ego. Her acrobat skills were in full display when she jumped and climbed up the Abisilk and then cut it open with her sword. She assisted Quill while taking down Ronan and shared the energy of the Power Stone. This is no easy task even with 4 people.

She ranks this high even more so because of her intelligence and knowledge about the universe. Her ability to wield almost any weapon gave her an added edge as she battled Nebula on the Dark Aster. She is also a skilled pilot as she helped maneuver Quill’s spaceship to escape the Sovereign fleet that was chasing them for stealing Anulax batteries.

During Infinity Wars, on Knowhere, they sneaked into The Collector’s museum. Here, Gamora defeated and killed Thanos with a combination of quick, swift moves, finally stabbing him with the very dagger he gave her when she was just a child. However it turned out that Thanos had already retrieved the Reality Stone and it was all just an illusion.

Gamora is courageous, brave, fastidious and selfless. She was ready to sacrifice herself if that meant stopping Thanos from getting his hands on the Soul Stone.

1. Ebony Maw

Ebony Maw
Ebony Maw

Ebony Maw was the only child of Thanos who had never failed him on any mission before. He was deeply loyal and acted a Thanos’ right hand man. His powers of telekinesis made him incredibly formidable. He could take on Doctor Strange while also deflecting attacks from Wong and Spider-Man. In the end, he managed to capture Strange and tortured him using sharp needles meant for microsurgery. He could effortlessly flick Obsidian with only his telekinesis. During the fight in New York he used his powers to slice cars into half, uproot trees from the pavement, and turn bricks in sharp needles.

He can use his telekinesis to levitate and fly as well. What makes him even scarier is that he’s a great tactician. He was the calm collected thinker of the Order and possessed genius levels of intellect. His rank as the strongest comes because of how effortlessly he deals with threats. The others, masters of hand to hand combat, would not be able to come that close in the first place. While aboard the Statesman, looking for the Space Stone, he restrained Thor, the God of Thunder and gagged him using broken metal parts.