If there’s a Marvel movie in theaters, you can bet on a cameo from Stan Lee. As one of the primary writers of the Marvel Universe’s classic Silver Age titles, Lee is a true icon in the comic book industry. That means he gets offered opportunities to appear in nearly every Marvel film, even when he didn’t play a part in creating the characters. For example: Lee’s cameo in Guardians of the Galaxy, who were created by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning.
Lee’s appearances have gone beyond studio boundaries, to include the Spider-Man films at Sony and a few of 20th Century Fox’s X-Men movies. There was even a time when Lee appeared as himself in Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer! For a long time now, there’s been a fan theory about Lee’s multiple Marvel appearances that suggested that he was the all-seeing Watcher. Of course, those theories tend to overlook one of the most common characteristics of Lee’s cameos: he doesn’t seem to be paying much attention to everything around him. That would kind of disqualify him as the Watcher, wouldn’t it?
Earlier this week, The Lamppost released a new video that sought to explain how Lee’s appearances in the Marvel Cinematic Universe could fit together as a single narrative. Considering that Lee’s character appeared in Captain America: The First Avenger during World War II, it would mean that he’s been around for a lot longer than we thought!
The Lamppost’s solution was to split Lee into two: Stan Sr. and Stan Jr., the latter of whom gets most of the cameos collected in this video. There’s even an explanation about how Stan Sr. ended up on Xandar in Guardians of the Galaxy! Of course, to get there, this video has to make several cognitive leaps of faith with a healthy dose of conjecture. But honestly? It’s not a bad theory!
What did you think about The Lamppost’s Stan Lee video? Let us know in the comment section below!
Image: Disney/Marvel Studios
