New Theory: The Dusted Heroes Are the Ones Who Survived the Snap

CinemaBlend has put forth a new theory about the Snap Heard Round the Universe: The dusted characters are the ones who actually survived, and the remaining characters are dead. I don’t know if I buy it, but it has enough merit to deserve consideration. So basically, everyone assumes that everyone who got “dusted” at the end of Infinity War is in the Soul Stone, and Endgame is going to be all about bringing them back, which seems like a no-brainer, and maybe seems supported by the previews, but no one trusts Marvel previews anymore after Hulk never showed up in Wakanda.

However, if you look at the roster of who was dusted and who survived, the dusted ones — Black Panther, most of the Guardians of the Galaxy, Doctor Strange, Spider-Man — are the ones who have sequels in development, while the “survivors,” who are mostly the legacy Avengers, do not. So basically the theory is that in Infinity War we actually saw The Decimation from the perspective of the decimated, and we don’t know what it looked like from, say, Black Panther’s perspective. Since CinemaBlend specifically referenced The Leftovers, we will call this the “Leftovers” theory.

Here is why I don’t buy it. One, Spider-Man’s sad, extended dusting scene sure seemed like he was aware of what was happening and it wasn’t that he was actually watching Tony Stark disintegrate. Two, in this theory you actually kill off fan favorites like Rocket Raccoon, M’Baku, and Okoye. Three, given Nick Fury’s distress call, this would mean Captain Marvel is dead. It’s a big investment to give her a giant movie and then immediately kill her off. I’m not saying Marvel wouldn’t do it, but they definitely wouldn’t do it. I mean, in theory they could set infinite sequels in the years between 1996 and 2018, but no.

And this is the ultimate reason why I will burn the theater to the ground if it is true. CinemaBlend writes,

"The assumption was the original Avengers would have to rescue [the dusted]. As this theory argues, there's no rescuing needed. Those characters are all alive and well on Earth, ready to go on vacations to Europe and have new adventures. That's not to say that they aren't broken up about all their missing buddies, but eventually they accept that there's no way to undo what Thanos did.”

You guys, this is fucking grim. Endgame is expected to be Steve Rogers’s swan song, and that is how you send him out? In The First Avenger he jumps on a grenade to save everyone, and his exit is a failed rescue attempt as he realizes he is stuck in the Soul Stone forever? No. I refuse to accept that. If Cap is gonna go, he’s gonna go after punching Thanos in the nose and saving everyone else in the universe.

What do you guys think? Is this better/worse/more plausible than the other theories floating out there?