MCU Fan Theory: Why Are So Many Infinity Stones On Earth?

Next year, in celebration of the tenth anniversary of the MCU, Marvel will release Avengers: Infinity War. Promising to unite all the heroes we've seen on the big screen in the last decade, the movie will feature Thanos arriving on Earth in pursuit of the ancient power of the Infinity Stones. These immensely powerful objects were created by ancient cosmic entities, and were once wielded by the Celestials as they sought to "balance" the universe. Lost for millennia, the first three phases of the MCU have seen all but one of the Infinity Stones come into play once more; and in Infinity War, Thanos will set his sights on them.

But one question has been nagging at the minds of Marvel fans all these years. It's a big galaxy, and yet so many of these Infinity Stones have wound up on Earth. What's going on?

Have you noticed how many Infinity Stones are turning up on Earth? We have:

• The Time Stone: As revealed in Doctor Strange, the Time Stone has been on Earth for a long time — since the days of Agamotto. In the comics, we've recently learned that was 1,000,000 years ago.
• The Space Stone: Described as "the jewel of Odin's treasure room," the Tesseract was left behind on Earth in events that have yet to be disclosed. It was returned to Asgard in The Avengers.
• The Mind Stone: As we saw in The Avengers, Thanos gave Loki a mysterious scepter in order to assist in conquering Earth. The scepter was left behind, and fell into the hands of Hydra. The Mind Stone contained within was ultimately bonded with the Vision.
• The Reality Stone: Wielded by the Dark Elves, the Aether was a potent threat to all reality. It was captured by Odin's father, Bor, who placed it in an unknown location. As we saw in Thor: The Dark World, as the time neared for the Convergence of the Nine Realms, portals began to open that enabled travel between the Realms. Jane Foster stumbled through one portal, and her mortal body was infused with the Aether. It is now kept safe by the Collector.

Of the five Infinity Stones we've seen to date, four of them have been drawn to Earth. What's more, the D23 footage raised an intriguing possibility that the Soul Stone, too, is on Earth; it is potentially kept in the nation of Wakanda. Given there's a whole universe out there, why are so many Infinity Stones drawn to this one world?

The Secret Of The Infinity Stones

The comics offer a tantalizing hint. Towards the tail end of his New Avengers run, Brian Bendis told a story in which the mystic criminal known as the Hood was pursuing the Infinity Gems (the comic book inspiration for the Infinity Stones). These had been secreted away by a group of heroes who called themselves the Illuminati, but once the Hood had learned the location of one, he could easily track down the others. It turned out that the Infinity Gems are drawn to one another, as though by a force of magnetism, and all the Hood needed to do was let the Gems guide him. As he gathered more Infinity Gems, he gained an ever stronger awareness of where the remaining Gems were to be found.

If the Infinity Stones are drawn to one another in the same way, then it would make sense for them to be drawn to Earth. We can assume that, in ancient times, one Infinity Stone — the Time Stone, most likely — was hidden on our world. It was a perfect hiding place; at the time, we'd be nothing more than a cosmic backwater, and nobody would think of looking here. Given we lack the ability to travel the cosmos, the Time Stone would be stuck here —but it would still be drawing the other Infinity Stones to itself. So the Space Stone wound up stranded on Earth, and portals allowed the Reality Stone to be brought to our world during the Convergence. The Infinity Stones were continuing to be drawn to one another. If the Soul Stone does indeed appear in #BlackPanther, we can assume it was involved in the meteorite impact that left the nation of Wakanda enriched with vibranium.

Not only does this explain the importance of Earth, it also suggests why Thanos gave the Mind Stone to Loki. This has always troubled Marvel fans; if Thanos is seeking out the power of the Infinity Gauntlet, why would he hand an Infinity Stone to one of his agents? It could easily be that Thanos knew the Mind Stone was needed in order to help Loki find the Space Stone in the first place. Frankly, it's possible that Loki manipulated the connection between the Infinity Stones in order to open the portal that took him into the S.H.I.E.L.D. base in The Avengers.

It's true that this is only a fan theory, but it doesn't just fit with the comics — it works well with what we've already seen. Right now, we have the strange coincidence that so many of the Infinity Stones keep being drawn to Earth. But this theory suggests that there's no coincidence at all; by their very nature, the #InfinityStones are drawn to one another, and thus to Earth. As a bonus, the theory nicely explains away one of the most troubling long-term plot holes for #Marvel fans, revealing just why Thanos would give Loki the Mind Stone.