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When Gamora and Thanos arrive at Vormir, the Red Skull calls each one by his and their father’s/mother’s name. However, he says Gamora's father is Thanos, which we know isn't true. (Her family was killed by the Black Order).

Stonekeeper: Welcome, Thanos, son of A'lars. Gamora, daughter of Thanos.

So why did the stone keeper (Red Skull) say that? Did he know who Gamora's real father was? He definitely seems to know in Avengers: Endgame:

RED SKULL (2014): Natasha, daughter of Ivan. Clint, son of Edith.

Was the Red Skull lying? Why would he? Did he really think Thanos was Gamora's real father? What prevented him from knowing the truth?

Also: Why is he inconsistent by calling Gamora, Thanos and Natasha by their father, and Clint by his mother?

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    Is he inconsistent? Is there any evidence that A'lars is the name of Thanos's father, and not his mother?
    – Anthony Grist
    Commented Jul 26, 2020 at 7:49
  • @AnthonyGrist even if A'lars is the mother he is still inconsistent! he calls half the people by their father and half by their mother.
    – MBEllis
    Commented Jul 26, 2020 at 7:53
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    Using the person's mother if they're male (Clint, Thanos) and the person's father if they're female (Natasha, Gamora) is consistent.
    – Anthony Grist
    Commented Jul 26, 2020 at 8:20
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    Are you implying that adoption isn't a thing?
    – Marvel Boy
    Commented Jul 29, 2020 at 13:55
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    Another possibility is that he listed the parent who had the most influence. He is the guardian of the Soul stone after all. Perhaps he was given more insight into the heart of their being? Just speculation.
    – DocBon3saw
    Commented Jul 29, 2020 at 14:08

2 Answers 2

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Thanos isn’t Gamora’s “wrong” father, he’s her adoptive father, albeit forcibly adopted. Adoptive families are still families and she’s been in the adoptive one for longer than her real one. She is a Daughter of Thanos, and was at least for a time a part of the Black Order and one of the Children of Thanos.

Thor: You seem to know a great deal about Thanos.

Drax: Gamora... is the daughter of Thanos.

Thor: Your father killed my brother.

Peter Quill: Oh, boy. Stepfather. Technically, she hates him as much as you do.

Avengers: Infinity War

Using either the adoptive father or the real father’s name would have been fine (though I don’t think we know her real father’s name in the MCU) but it also serves as a set up for the sacrifice. They both love each other, albeit not quite in the traditional sense. By using Thanos in this scene it sets the precedent than Thanos does truly love her for the sacrifice.

Red Skull: In order to take the stone you must lose that which you love. A soul... for a soul.

Gamora: All my life, I dreamed of a day... a moment when you would get what you deserved. And I was always so disappointed. But now... you kill and torture... and you call it mercy. The universe has judged you. You asked it for a prize, and it told you no. You failed. And do you wanna know why? Because you love nothing. No one.
Really? Tears?

Red Skull: They're not for him.

Gamora:!No. This isn't love.

Thanos: I ignored my destiny once. I cannot do that again. Even for you. I'm sorry, little one.

Avengers: Infinity War

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  • Black Widow considers the Avengers as her family. shouldn't her father be Nick Fury or something?
    – MBEllis
    Commented Jul 26, 2020 at 7:58
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    @MBEllis there’s a difference between thinking of people as your family and your real family, biological or otherwise. There’s no indication she thinks of anyone as a father figure.
    – TheLethalCarrot ♦
    Commented Jul 26, 2020 at 7:59
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    "It is my curse to know all who journey here." - So Red Skull knows about the relationships between the characters and their parents
    – Valorum
    Commented Jul 26, 2020 at 8:11
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    @MBEllis - You're assuming that he's basing it on biology.
    – Valorum
    Commented Jul 26, 2020 at 8:58
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    @MBEllis - His welcome is intended to prove that he 'knows' each person. How better to prove it than to name a parent? Even better if they're adopted to name their "real" parental figure
    – Valorum
    Commented Jul 26, 2020 at 9:26
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Probably because despite everything they think of each other as father and daughter. Atleast Thanos did. And as evidenced by her tears when it seemed to Gamora that she had killed Thanos on Knowhere, she might've cared for him as well.

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    They don't just think of each other as father and daughter, they are father and daughter, just not biologically. Although Thanos' opinion here likely shouldn't matter as Red Skull is talking about Gamora not Thanos.
    – TheLethalCarrot ♦
    Commented Jul 29, 2020 at 13:19
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    I want to point out as well that I don't think there's any doubt that she cared for him, she was raised by him, taught by him and fought at his side on his mission. She never wouldn't care for him; she just stopped believing in his mission along the way.
    – TheLethalCarrot ♦
    Commented Jul 29, 2020 at 13:20

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