**WARNING: Spoilers ahead.
While it took a whole team of Earth's mightiest heroes to go after Thanos, one Marvel fan has reminded us that the entire MCU owes a debt of gratitude to the actions of one regular man.
WARNING: Spoilers ahead.
It's been a long road for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, 11 years and 22 movies all leading up to the final fight with Thanos. For those who still haven't caught Avengers: Endgame this is where the spoilers come in.
By now the rest of us know that Tony Stark laid down his life to save the universe and defeat Thanos—making the ultimate sacrifice Tony snapped his fingers and was killed by the overwhelming energy produced by the Infinity Gauntlet.
But as great a debt the universe owes to Iron Man's sacrifice, Tony himself remembers that his journey began 11 years outside that cave in Afghanistan.
Marvel Studios' Avengers: Endgame - Official Trailerwww.youtube.com
From that point on Tony began his odyssey as Iron Man.
But one Marvel fan has reminded us that Tony, Iron Man, The Avengers and the entire MCU might not have come to be if not for the extraordinary sacrifice of one ordinary man, Dr. Ho Yinsen.
After taking shrapnel from one of his own weapons, Tony was as good as dead as the small pieces of metal made their way to his heart. But Yinsen stepped in to save Tony's life.
Later Yinsen laid down his life to save Tony once again as he made his escape from the cave in Afghanistan where he was being held prisoner by the terrorist group known as the Ten Rings.
With his final breath Yinsen reminded the then arms-dealing, war-mongering, billionaire playboy Tony:
"Don't waste your life."
At the time Yinsen may have saved just one man, but indirectly his sacrifice saved the entire MCU.
Not only did Yinsen lay down his life, but he did it all for a man he could have easily hated or blamed for the death of his family.
Yinsen not only saved Tony's life, but his soul as well.
Yinsen may have been an unsung Marvel hero up until now, but the thread honoring his sacrifice soon went viral for all the right reasons.
And in the end Yinsen's story reminded fans that In a world full of billionaire playboy geniuses, Norse gods and powerful super-humans, that one of the greatest heroes was nothing more than a good man.
