They didn't have this much trouble with the Thanos that had more stones in IW ...
shareWhen he battled Hulk in Infinity he didnt use the gem he had. He really is insanely powerful by himself.
When he battled groups later you have to realize one thing. He was toying with them. They had a great chance with Mantis but, that was the best shot they had. After that they had no chance.
Well there were a few differences. On Titan they ambushed him. Here they were in the middle of a chaotic battle. They never really all tackled him at the same time, they were kind of going up against him one after another.
Thanos didn't know how to use the Infiinity Stones effectively. But above all, I think he was complacent in the first film. He already had collected 4 of the stones, and didn't see the Avengers as a real threat. I think he wasn't really going all out. I think this is also why he seemed to be more straight out evil in Endgame. He had already seen himself die, and the Avengers had undone the snap. He brought a whole army with him, and he wasn't messing around anymore.
Having said that, If Doctor Strange, Hulk, Thor, Scarlet Witch, Iron Man and Captain Marvel had all ambushed him and gone up against him like they did on Titan, I think he would have been destroyed.
I suppose there is a little truth to this or at least the argument can be made.
As some have pointed out he really just battled the Avengers one at a time or at most 2-3 at a time. On Titan he was fighting 6-7 of them at once.
The Scarlet Witch had him in End Game. He had to call on his ship to fire down in order to stop her. In that sense they DID fight him better. In Infinity War she was distracted, half blasting the stone in Vision with one hand and blasting Thanos in the other.
I've heard the theory pushed forth that this is a DIFFERENT Thanos. He has seen the playback from Nebula that he succeeds and gets the stones and fulfills his vision. He is focused on destroying these people who have undid it and are trying to undo what he will succeed at in the future. He IS trying to kill them. In Infinity War he seems more focused on getting the stones. He doesn't really try to kill them if he doesn't have to in order to get the stones.
Once Strange gives him the stone he leaves them. He even empathizes with them to a degree and discusses his belief. "You have my respect Stark", ...to Quill "I like him", he talked and told Scarlett Witch "I understand". It wasn't personal, he just wanted the stones. In Endgame he seems focused not only on getting the stones but on destroying and killing those in his way.
Lastly, in Infinity War he sheds his armor through the film and only uses his gauntlet. He has no other weapon.
In Endgame he is fully armored and he is wielding that massive double sided blade.