It’s funny, I don’t hit up movie theaters as much as I used to. Life gets busy, travel happens, and honestly, catching a flick on a plane isn’t the worst thing. I can even remember the last time I saw a movie on the big screen – Star Wars: The Last Jedi. For Star Wars, I make an exception.
But recently, I finally got around to watching Avengers: Endgame. Now, if you’re planning to see it and somehow haven’t yet, maybe skip the next bit. I enjoyed it, but something about it bugged me, and it’s a recurring theme in movies I watch.
Once again, a movie throws time travel into the mix as a major plot point, and once again, it kind of fumbles the whole time travel paradox thing. Let me try to break down this paradox quickly, but brace yourself, it can get a little mind-bending.
Essentially, the paradox is this: if you go back in time to change something, that change messes with the very timeline that led you to want to time travel in the first place. Think about trying to stop a historical event – if you succeed, the reason for your time travel might cease to exist. It’s a real head-scratcher. I’m not saying it’s impossible to deal with in stories, just that I rarely see it handled in a way that totally satisfies me. Endgame tried, but for me, it missed the mark. Remember the Captain America scene fighting himself? Shouldn’t present Cap have remembered that whole brawl since he was future Cap in that past moment? These paradoxes can pull me out of enjoying an otherwise fun Time Travelers Movie.
Despite the paradox problem, the idea of time travel is still incredibly appealing, isn’t it? It’s fun to imagine. And in that imaginative spirit, it makes you wonder about real-world “time travelers” in a way. Consider Cox Automotive’s recent big investment in Rivian, the electric vehicle company.
Why bring this up with time travelers movie? Because thinking long-term, this era in the auto industry feels like a major turning point. Companies betting big on electric vehicles look like they might be the visionaries of our time. If you could time travel, investing in electric vehicles now would probably seem like a genius move. Tesla is a clear winner in hindsight, but they won’t be the only ones. Cox getting in early with Rivian feels like a smart, forward-thinking move.
Rivian is aiming to be the Tesla of adventure vehicles. They’re planning to launch electric trucks and SUVs with impressive range by late 2020. I checked out their website, and while the starting price is a bit steep for my family right now, I bet there’s going to be a huge demand for these vehicles. Hopefully, like Tesla, they can bring prices down as they grow.
Electric vehicles feel like the future, and with everything happening with the climate, it’s about time. It might not be long before gas-guzzling engines are a thing of the past. And who knows, maybe future generations will look back at companies investing in EVs today as the real time travelers, predicting and shaping the future.
