Is that Mephisto?!

Dude, it has to be Reed Richards, right?!

Who is the Power Broker?!

Where are the mutants?!

Wait, is Kang coming to the party?!

When is the No Way Home trailer dropping?!

If you haven’t asked any of these questions at least once over the last year, are you even paying attention to Phase Four of the MCU?! I say this in jest, but ever since WandaVision dazzled our screens with sitcom throwbacks and magical hijinks back in January, these questions have poured out of the fanbase much like boxed wine into Alligator Loki’s mouth. And as we got our answers (no Mephisto, Richards, or mutants but a Power Broker and Kang) only one hung in the air taunting us with its lack of arrival.

When is the No Way Home trailer dropping?!

Even without a trailer there has been some crazy speculation surrounding the third MCU Spidey movie. Everyone on the internet thinks they have the source, like some kind of dirt reporter or non-caped Batman, that proves their theories to be correct. Outside of deleted Instagram posts (Jamie Foxx) or accidental red-carpet confirmations (Albert Molina), we’ve all had to live within the speculation. Would this be a live-action Spider-Verse? Will Andrew Garfield and Toby Maguire be suiting up again? Is Charlie Cox reprising Daredevil? Will the original Green Goblin make his first MCU appearance? Did Mysterio actually die? Is this just some weird Skrull simulation… that really wasn’t one but you understand how it could have been.

Add in the events of Loki, the collapse of the multiverse, the title of the Doctor Strange sequel, and now What If…?, it certainly seemed that all these theories, guessing, dirt sheet investigations could be, at the very least, possible. The multiverse lends itself to make every Marvel property that has ever existed, even that Howard the Duck movie, cannon. The very thought is the type of overwhelming where your brain oozes out your nose or melts your face to the point where you’re permanently cosplaying as Taserface. But without a trailer, the internet was intent with driving itself crazy. Everyone had the “scoop” and everyone knew who was in the movie cross their hearts and hope to die.

With the movie five months away the lack of trailer made internet buzz a bit nerve-wracking. Sony has already pushed back the release of Venom 2 and with COVID numbers spiking again (get the vax and wear the mask) it wasn’t hard to believe that No Way Home could be pushed back into 2022 so Sony/Disney could get the maximum amount of butts in the maximum amount of seats and get some of that chedda cheese. That would certainly cause a delay in a trailer release considering everything is about that all mighty dollar.

Then the trailer leaked. Granted, it was unfinished and filmed by a child who most likely cost his poor mother her job, but it was out there, and the internet being the internet, so were spoilers. So strange living in a world where I have to avoid trailer spoilers. That was a true first. The leak made it seem that an actual trailer was the best way for Marvel/Sony to save face. Leaks are bad for business after all. Throw in Sony’s presentation at Cinema Con and the internet was abuzz with the potential of an actual, finished, honest-to-god trailer. I personally spent from 8:20 to 9:something constantly updating Twitter waiting to see if all the speculation was correct. And during one of those refreshes… the trailer appeared and I was almost too stunned to open the link. Almost as if I was in disbelief that the trailer was actually there. Which I guess I kind of was.

Now, now we finally have a Spider-Man: No Way Home trailer, so, what does that mean? Well, it means we’ve got a lot to unpack.

I couldn’t help but feel that there was a great deal of sleight of hand throughout this trailer. Not everything is as it seems to be, multiverse withstanding. The way this trailer was edited, a ton of quick cuts and action pieces that seemed to be connected but most likely aren’t, intended to put viewers on their toes and possibly question what they’re seeing. Tom Holland does a lot of running around and switching of suits making us think that there are various different scenarios where he’s using various different suits. But, I couldn’t help but feel like we were looking at some Spider-Man variants, looking at you Iron Spider suit. With Loki and What If…? introducing the idea of variants within the multiverse, it makes sense for a movie that’s about to rip the multiverse open to explore that idea a bit further. Couldn’t help but feel the Peter Parker running through what seemed to be a school in a dark Spidey suit, ripping off his mask, wasn’t our Peter Parker. Sure, I think we’re going to see Andrew Garfield and Toby Maguire but I also think we’re going to get more Tom Holland. He’s the current Spider-Man after all so it makes sense before the nostalgic return of Maguire that we explore other variants within the multiverse.

With that being said, there’s no way that I believe that Doc Oc is speaking to Tom Holland’s Spider-Man in the trailer. In my heart of hearts, I feel that he’s talking to Toby and it has me feeling all the feels that came with seeing Spidey on the big screen for the first time and would be the most impactful use of this character’s return. Which also raises some questions. Sometimes we’re so blinded by the return of characters that we forget to question how this is even possible. If you recall Doc Oc is currently living under the sea buried by a bunch of rubble. Dude is dead. Same goes for Willem Dafoe’s Green Goblin who’s ghost was in a mirror asking Harry to “AVENGE ME” last we saw. These are two characters who never crossed paths, and seeing how crowded Spider-Man 3 was we should be thankful, so how is it possible for this to happen now?

An argument can be made that with the tearing open of the multiverse that Strange and Peter have found Doc and Gobby before they die in their films but the safer more logical answer is that these are variants of the versions we’ve already met. Their arrival tickles the nostalgia keys but also allows for something new within the MCU, and could lead to the possible formation of the Sinister Six. We know Foxx is coming back as Electro, and not blue according to his deleted Insta post, but he also is dead in the Amazing Spider-Man universe. Variant seems likely here. Same could be said about the Lizard (also deeeead) who some people are claiming to see in the trailer but I’m having a tough time seeing for myself. It’s like one of those 3D puzzles and my eyes are just failing to see the scooter, eh, Lizard.

Variants seem to be the “Get Out of Jail Free” cards that allow characters to return to our screen. The integrity of the original is maintained while allowing for characters to return and run amuck with some new shades and possible motives or depth. Maybe we even get more Mysterio, who’s impact on this trailer hangs heavy. I mean, he did give up the goose on Spidey’s secret identity which is the catalyst for Peter reaching out to Strange in the first place. And probably the reason fans are thinking Mephisto is back after seeing this image.

Speaking of Doctor Strange… things felt a bit off, right? Not just because the Sanctum was full of snow (why?!) but Strange himself was giving off some, um, strange energy. Hear me out, somewhere in this trailer we saw our version of Doctor Strange but please don’t ask me to tell you which one that was. Was it the guy who wore a hoodie, cloak, and jacket all at once? Was it the one casting the spell to help the world forget who Peter Parker is? Was it the one punking Peter’s soul out of his body? Could it have been the one who seemed to be battling Peter with the use of trains?! No clue. He’s in there somewhere though. Or maybe he’s not. Maybe our Doctor Strange has been replaced and this Strange, who’s quick with a wink, is here to mess with the multiverse.

How else could you explain Strange wearing the Eye of Agamotto? Sure, it makes for some cool wizard bling but that stone is gone. Destroyed. Star dust. Gardner Thanos made sure of that. Seeing Strange wear it is a bit weird and seems more like a different Doctor Strange where the Eye of Agamotto is still a thing or someone doing their best to cosplay as our Doctor Strange. Perhaps both. Not to mention, do we really believe that our Strange could be distracted from a spell of this magnitude? Yeah, Peter talks a lot but our Strange would probably hit him with a spell to seal his mouth.

Of course, this opens the door to who would do such a thing? Mysterio can appear to be someone else but my man doesn’t have those magic skills and wouldn’t Wong have noticed? Sure, it looks like he’s heading out to fight Abomination but Wong is no slouch. He knows what’s up. I think the most likely answer is a different Doctor Strange. A… darker Doctor Strange. Maybe the version we’re going to meet in What If…? or the rumored Dark Doctor Strange believed to be heading our way in Multiverse of Madness.

Maybe even a Loki variant?!

Perhaps this friendly and easily ready to help Strange is here to destroy the multiverse and Peter gives him the avenue needed to do so. Maybe he’s an agent of one of the Kang variants. Who knows, but will the real Stephen Strange please standup and prevent the multiverse from falling apart thus thrusting everything into some sort of dark void or Secret Wars.

This trailer gave us a lot to chew on but it’s the things that we didn’t see that speak the loudest. Obviously, we’re not going to see any of the returning Spideys in the first trailer as some things just play better as a surprise or in a second trailer. We heard the laugh but we never saw Willem Dafoe’s Goblin just the pumpkin bomb. Wouldn’t it be a kick in the nads if it ended up being Dane DeHaan’s Goblin?! There was no Daredevil but you could feel him lurking in the shadows while Peter was being questioned by the police, and no, I don’t think that man in the white shirt is Charlie Cox. Not unless ole Matty boy put on some pounds.

This trailer in all it’s wonderful Spider-Man glory, barely scratched the surface of what to expect from No Way Home while probably pointing us in a million wrong directions, and I’m so very here for it. I love how this is mirroring a post-Civil War comic storyline where Strange restored Peter’s identity but at the sacrifice of losing trust with the New Avengers and others in his life. Introducing the multiverse to this story, something that I’m obsessed about in the MCU, and I’m all in on this movie. Obviously, I was all in as soon as this was announced and Sylvie shattering the multiverse just heightens my excitement. No Way Home is about to catapult the MCU in a new direction in a massive way and the possibilities are literally endless. Honestly, I’d be happy if this is the only trailer. Let us stew in this until December… which can’t get here soon enough.