Scott Lang, along with Hope van Dyne, also played by Paul Rudda and Evangeline Lilly, returned for the third installment in the standalone Ant-Man franchise, which was also the first chapter for the so-called fifth phase in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Also in the cast are again Michael Douglas (Hank Pym), Michelle Pfeiffer (Janet van Dyne) and Corey Stoll, who played the role of Darren Cross in the first part, due to circumstances transforming from the Yellow Hornet into another classic antagonist under the name “MODOK “.
They are joined by Kathryn Newton as Cassiddy “Cassie” Lang and Jonathan Majors as Kang the Conqueror, who made his multiverse debut in the season one finale of the Loki miniseries as a slightly different character called “The One Who Remains”.
Undoubtedly, the most memorable moments can be called the most detailed acquaintance with Cassie Lang – the grown-up daughter of the main character, who tried on the role of another superheroine, as well as with the cruel Kang the Conqueror. And by the time the credits roll, it’s clear that the heroes only achieved their victory through incredible luck and the arrival of unexpected allies.
What is Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania about?
To understand the central conflict of Quantum Mania, one must go back to when Janet van Dyne was trapped inside the Quantum Realm. At first she thought she was alone in this deserted place.
However, one day a strange man arrived on a high-tech ship. The man told Janet that he was a scientist who also ended up in the Quantum Realm, but if she helps him fix the core of his ship, then they can return to their homes. This helpful stranger turns out to be this same Kang.
Gradually acquaintances become friends by working together. They manage to do the impossible, and after fully repairing the ship, Kang’s neurotechnology kicks in again, giving him control over his battle armor.
Because the ship is connected to Kang’s brain, Janet inadvertently reads the villain’s mind by touching the ship. It is then that Janet learns of Kang as the Conqueror, the man who destroyed countless worlds and timelines. Janet also realizes that Kang did not end up in the Quantum Realm by accident – he was exiled to this place outside of time and space, where he was destined to remain forever trapped.
As much as Janet wants to return to her family, she cannot let Kang escape and return to her conquering intentions. That’s why she tries to steal the core and escape. When Kang proves too powerful, Janet uses Pym Particles to blast the core, making it gigantic and impossible to use.
In the decades that follow this fateful encounter, Janet becomes a freedom fighter, leading the natives of the Quantum Realm against Kang. Meanwhile, the villain, still in control of his battle armor, has built his empire for himself, waiting for the right time to finally start a war against other versions of himself.
Further, the action is already transferred to the period of time when a year has passed since the final battle against Thanos. Scott Lang’s physics-addicted daughter Cassie is building a special apparatus to explore the Quantum Realm. First, she sends out a signal that is received by MODOK, a mental organism built only to kill, which is actually Darren Cross, the villain from the first Ant-Man movie.
After being defeated at the time, Darren is sucked into the Quantum Realm and deformed into a giant head with tiny limbs. Kang finds Darren and turns him into the perfect weapon, using him to hunt down his enemies. Wanting to please Kang, MODOK transfers all loved ones of the hated Ant-Man to the Quantum Realm.
Since Kang threatens to kill Cassie, Scott agrees to help him retrieve the core. To accomplish this impressive feat, Scott needs to shrink down and get to the center of the power source by passing through a probability field.
At first, the task seems impossible because the probability field creates competing scenarios, one for each possible outcome. However, as each version of Scott is motivated by his love for Cassie, they end up working together to reach the center. Hope also comes to Scott’s aid at the very last second, and together they manage to fix the core and allow Kang to use it to escape the Quantum Realm.
But suddenly, just as Scott gets to the core, he is attacked by Kang, who steals the power source and kidnaps Janet. Hank Pym’s ship is also destroyed by MODOK. As for Cassie, she remains locked in Kang’s stronghold.
The Meaning of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania
As mentioned, the action of the superhero blockbuster takes place thanks to Cassie Lang’s device, which she describes as the quantum equivalent of the Hubble telescope. Cassie’s device works by sending signals into the Quantum Realm and interpreting them, allowing it to be explored without physically moving around. Unfortunately, the first real test leads to disastrous consequences.
Due to MODOK’s cunning, Janet, Hank, Hope, Scott, and Cassie are sucked into the Quantum Realm. Viewers will learn that Janet was already well acquainted with the true nature of Kang, while she was 30 years in virtual captivity.
By the third act of the film, Scott gives the assembled core to Kang, who in turn slyly attacks him instead of fulfilling his part of the deal to free Cassie. Luckily, Hank Pym’s army of super-intelligent ants, with their advanced technology, comes to the aid of Ant-Man’s family.
Eventually, Kang finds himself overwhelmed by this army, and MODOK is killed trying to move against Kang and has a redemptive moment with Scott before dying with dignity.
Janet then opens a portal back to Earth, allowing everyone to return, but Kang tries to follow them, and Scott, and then Hope, decides to stop him. This desire for physical self-sacrifice leads to a sense of final confrontation.
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania ending explanation
In fact, the ending begins with Scott attacking Kang’s stronghold with Hope. Inside, Cassie manages to escape captivity and free the freedom fighters who are being held locked up in prison. The girl also sends a message to the entire Quantum Realm, asking people to join their fight against tyranny. Soon, ships and warriors from all corners converge on the stronghold, attacking Kang’s forces and reclaiming the land for themselves.
While Cassie’s plan works, she also becomes a target for MODOK, who is ordered by Kang to track down and kill her. But after losing to Cassie, MODOK reflects on his past actions and changes his mind. MODOK decides that he no longer wants to be a villain.
At first, Kang uses all his energy and turns the citadel into a giant ship to take himself and his army out of the Quantum Realm. And again it seems that all hope is lost. However, Hank arrives with an army of super-strong ants that turn the tide in the heroes’ favor.
The ants are so powerful that Kang can do nothing but maintain the energy field to protect himself from harm. Just then, MODOK lunges at Kang, using his body to destroy the energy field, allowing the ants to rip off the villain’s armor and drag him away. MODOK dies in the process, but he goes down in history as a hero.
Scott and Hope stay in the Quantum Realm to permanently neutralize Kang by throwing the remaining Pym particles at him. Kang ends up being sucked into a probabilistic energy source field, where he presumably dies, and the portal back to Earth closes.
It seems that Scott and Hope are now forever trapped inside the Quantum Realm, a heavy price to pay for their victory. But Cassie manages to track down her father with her quantum radar and reopens the portal, saving everyone.
However, in addition to the end of the main storyline, and in this film, as has long been established in films from Marvel, there are again cutscenes after the completion of the main narrative, which give it additional aspects.
In the first scene, in the middle of the end credits, a huge council is shown, consisting of many variations of Kang, which once banished the Conqueror to the Quantum Realm. Next, viewers see several Kang claim that the Avengers are wreaking havoc across multiple timelines and must be stopped. This gives reason to expect an epoch-making clash between the Kangs and the Avengers in future films.
The second scene, played after all the credits have ended, takes viewers back to the early 1900s when someone demonstrates some very futuristic technology. It turns out to be one of the variations of Kang, featuring wild hair, facial hair, and small round glasses. He introduces himself as Victor Timmy. After that, the camera pans to Loki and Mobius in the crowd. The Scandinavian god convinces his partner that the speaker is a threat. Text then appears on a black screen that reads “Kang will return”.
