Avengers 4 Endgame Trailer Confirms Another Heartbreaking Loss From Infinity War

The end of Avengers: Infinity was brutal. With just a snap of his fingers, Thanos wiped out half the population of the universe. Characters we loved, that we have emotionally invested in for years, just turned to ash in front of our very eyes. Peter Parker, gone! Bucky Barnes, gone! T'Challa, gone! But they were just a few of the casualties, millions and millions of lives across all of existence were extinguished. The implications are, to this day, difficult to come to terms with.

And yet, it gets worse. Today, the trailer for the next part in the story, Avengers: Endgame, was released, and it reveals that the extent of Thanos's heinous crimes go much further than we could have ever imagined. As the saying goes, "You never know what you've got until it's gone," and today we learned that we've lost something truly special: Steve Rogers' beard.

At the end of Captain America: Civil War, Captain America was deemed a fugitive, having defied superiors to help his childhood friend Bucky Barnes. Life on the run was no doubt rough for Steve, but he fought. When he re-emerged in Infinity War to save Vision and Scarlet Witch, he was Nomad, a slicker, stealthier, more stern version of Steve and Cap. He's always had the power to rally people to his cause, but now he was different, there was a more compelling kind of gravitas to him, a more driven air about him. He wasn't just the purehearted patriot doing the government's bidding anymore, he was choosing his own path, fighting for who he wanted to fight for.

And this new Steve commanded respect in a whole new way. That beard ... that perfectly even, meticulously groomed, golden face helmet was awe-inspiring. When Steve appears in Scotland during the events of Infinity War, he emerges from the shadows, forcing Proxima Midnight to stop her assault, and in that moment, it's clearly visible in her eyes that she knows things are about to go south for her. In that same fashion, the camera zooms into Vision and Scarlet Witch, and if you look at their eyes... they're looking at Steve's beard. It commands attention, and demands respect. Such is its power.

But now, it's gone. In the trailer for Endgame, Steve Rogers' face is smoother than an egg. The beard is no more, and we can only assume it was a casualty of the Thanos snap. In one short clip during the trailer, Steve is shown mourning, a single tear trickling down his cheek. While the voiceover talks about the loss of friends and family, we all know what Steve cries for: the beard that would have caught that tear for him.

So once again, we mourn. Rest in peace, Steve's beard, you will be missed.