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Marvel Entertainment released a veritable blitz of character posters for Avengers: Infinity War today, 22 in all, but there’s only one that’s taken Twitter by storm.
It’s the poster for Chris Evans’ Captain America, featuring the superhero in three-quarters profile with his back to the camera, a Wakandan shield strapped to his arm. But the attention isn’t on Evans’ beautiful blue peepers — though they do pop quite nicely from the dark tones of the poster, don’t they?
No, it’s all about another of his considerable ... assets.
they. gave. him. the. butt. pose. pic.twitter.com/NY2z0ahEDM
— alex (@alex_abads) April 4, 2018
The effect of the poster may have been enhanced slightly by the way Twitter algorithmically crops its thumbnail images to be weighted toward text, which makes the whole situation a little difficult to ignore.
In the replies to Evans’ own tweet of the poster, which is cropped in the same way when it appears in the main Twitter timeline, the response is strong and consistent:
pic.twitter.com/gNlO65GWYD
— Pierre C. Shadeaux (@Sedna_51) April 4, 2018
OF COURSE Captain America's butt has to be on the poster. The sexualization of our star-spangled hero has become outright disgusting... LMAO who am I kidding my guy @ChrisEvans is killing that pose, I ain't even mad ♂️ https://t.co/MxPX9lS71T
— chamo (@jcaruci_) April 4, 2018
Gizmodo Media’s James Whitbrook stepped in to remind everyone that it’s not as if this image is without precedent in the 10-year history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe:
God bless the long, continuous tradition of the "Please Look at Captain America's Butt" publicity picture pic.twitter.com/tXktBTafRT
— James Whitbrook (@Jwhitbrook) April 4, 2018
For other users, there was a bit of a victory in equal butt-rights in the poster. The three-quarters pose, shot from behind, is a common trope of action movie posters — at least when it comes to female leads. This Captain America poster isn’t the first time the butt-pose trope has been flipped to use with a male lead, but it’s still a notable exception to the rule.
We love a feminist action hero. pic.twitter.com/pw277z562i
— Thirst Aid Kit (@ThirstAidKit) April 4, 2018
And for bucking of that trend, some are grateful.
Yeah. It’s definitely because of the trend part.