In 2008, "Iron Man" introduced the idea of bringing together a group of Earth's mightiest heroes. Now, ten years later, the Marvel Universe has expanded, plots have thickened, new characters have been introduced and the third and perhaps most impressive Marvel film is due to come out on April 27, 2018.

"Avengers: Infinity War" has been a long time coming, and by long time coming, I mean 17 films and a decade of lead-up and preparation. So, because most of us do not have the time to watch or re-watch every story, here is a quick summary of everything you need to know before seeing the movie.

The main point of the film is as follows:

1. A purple alien warlord named Thanos is searching the universe to complete his rock collection in order to decimate the cosmos.

Each of these rocks, called infinity stones, hold distinct and abundant cosmic powers that, when combined, would allow someone to wipe out half of the universe. The Avengers and other galactic heroes are ultimately trying to prevent this from happening.

Coincidentally, Thanos’s name is an acronym for each infinity stone he is trying to collect.

2. Tesseract (Space Stone)

The tesseract is a cube-shaped containment unit that holds the Space Stone, which can control space itself and transport someone to any location in the universe. Loki currently has possession of it.

3. Unknown (Soul Stone)

The Soul stone has still not been revealed, but according to the "Dr Strange" character, Wong, it is potentially the biggest threat of all the stones.

4. Aether (Reality Stone)

The Aether looks like a dark red liquid and made its appearance in "Thor: The Dark World", when it got absorbed into the body of Jane Foster (Thor’s S.O. at the time). Turns out the Aether was just the Reality Stone in liquid form which allows its host to warp reality. The stone is currently in the possession of the Collector in his museum of universe relics.

5. Necklace (Time Stone)

The Time Stone was first introduced in "Doctor Strange" and has the capability to turn back time, accelerate time or create a time loop. The character Dr. Strange currently wears it around his neck and uses it as a skilled sorcerer.

6. Orb (Power Stone)

In "Guardians of the Galaxy," it seemed like everyone in the universe is trying to obtain the orb, which contains the Power Stone that offers its user incredible power and energy. The character Star Lord was able to safely retrieve it and give in to Nova Corps who currently have it safely kept away.

7. Scepter (Mind Stone)

The Mind Stone was first introduced within a weapon that Loki received from Thanos in order to control the minds of his enemies. However, this scepter was then used for HYDRA experiments which gave power to Sokovian twins including mind manipulation, telekinesis, and super speed. Finally, the scepter was destroyed and the Mind Stone was used to bring to life the character, Vision, and currently remains in his head.

Finally, the last thing you need to know are the characters involved in attempting to stop Thanos. First off, we have the Avengers currently working with S.H.I.E.L.D (Captain American, Iron Man, Black Widow, Vision, Hawkeye, Falcon, War Machine). Then we’ve got some outlying earth heroes off doing their own thing (Ant Man, Spider Man, Dr. Strange), an intergalactic crew of heroes (Star Lord, Gamora, Rocket Raccoon, Groot, Drax the Destroyer, Mantis), a space ship of Asgardians (Thor, Loki, plus Hulk), and finally the African warriors (Black Panther, the nation of Wakanada, plus The Winter Soldier).

Now that you've got this quick recap, you can enter the theaters with a clearer understanding of the multiple storylines being merged into one epic film. However, if you've got some spare time, the only movies you really need to watch in order to catch up are "Avengers," "Guardians of the Galaxy," "Avengers: Age of Ultron," "Captain America: Civil War" and "Doctor Strange." Whether you've been a die-hard fan since the beginning, or have only read this article, whatever you do, don't miss this incredibly important cinematic event.