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Review: Avengers: Age of Ultron
Avengers: Age of Ultron is like a new episode of the biggest, most expensive TV show of all time. It’s not the event that the first movie was, and it might not be as Earth-shattering as I expected, but Age of Ultron is nonetheless a fun, exciting and action-packed movie starring all of our favorite superheroes. And therein lies my biggest complaint, which is really a non-complaint.
There’s a familiarity to Age of Ultron that leads to contentment. The movie doesn’t really give us anything new to get excited about, instead delivering just another solid chapter in this ongoing saga.
Movie Rating: 8/10 – Very Good.
I liken Age of Ultron to a TV show because that’s exactly what it felt like while I was watching. I may have been in a packed movie theater, and it’s been three years since the last episode, but Ultron was definitely the ‘monster-of-the-week’ in the latest episode of The Avengers. All of our favorite characters are back, their friendly, comfortable banter is exactly what we’d expect, and everything is more or less tied up in a nice, tidy bow by the end. Lessons are learned, a little romance is slipped in, and now we just sit back and wait for the next episode.
I don’t think I’ve ever felt this way with any movie sequel before. It’s a weird feeling.
But the episodic feel doesn’t keep the movie from being entertaining. It’s an exciting film from beginning to end. In the big picture sense, the movie is amazing. But when you step back and really think about all the moving parts, it’s not without some flaws. Director Joss Whedon juggles a few too many characters, so that some get a lot of attention — like Hawkeye, in some standout moments — while others are little more than props — like Thor, who spends most of his time dropping hints about future movies.
The new characters are a mixed bag. The titular villain, Ultron, is too entertaining to be menacing. That’s an odd way to describe a super villain, but it’s exactly how actor James Spader pulls it off.
I like Age of Ultron, a lot. It’s not as good at the first Avengers film, largely because the spectacle has worn off, but also for a lot of little reasons. Yet overall, it’s another exciting film in my favorite franchise of all time, despite those little reasons.
Join me after the jump for my full, detailed review. And there will be SPOILERS!
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 10/4/14
Welcome to a week of firsts! I don’t know if it’s divine intervention or some kind of back room deal, but both Marvel and DC delivered a huge number of new starts and #1 issues this week, which sounds to me like a solid foundation for this week’s reviews. There were so many firsts I couldn’t even get to them all, but I think I picked a nice smattering of titles.
We’ve got #1 issues for the new Thor, Gotham Academy, Guardians 3000, Bucky Barnes: The Winter Soldier and Lobo, some of which are really good, some of which are mediocre, and at least one of which is the worst comic I’ve ever reviewed in this column! I also included the new Captain America issue, which debuted Sam Wilson as the new Cap!
Thank Stephen Colbert
Comic Book of the Week goes to Gotham Academy for being both adorable and mysterious in pretty much equal measure. That’s a good start for any comic.
I’m going to warn you fine folks in advance though…be careful of my reviews this week. You know I’ve been sticking it out with Batman Eternal since the beginning, but this week…man…I get a little ranty. Keep reading if you dare…
Comic Reviews: Batman Eternal #26, Bucky Barnes: The Winter Soldier #1, Captain America #25, Gotham Academy #1, Guardians 3000 #1, Lobo #1 and Thor #1.
Change. Change Never Changes. The Next Marvel NOW!
Guess what! Marvel Comics has a bunch of awesome plans in store for all of their most popular characters! And for a few of their upcoming movie stars! They’re setting up their third Marvel NOW! wave, and personally, I think it all looks pretty neat. Check out this lineup!
The Amazing Avengers? Invincible Avengers? Irredeemable Avengers?
If you haven’t heard yet, we’ve got female Thor and the fact that Sam Wilson, the Falcon, is taking over at Captain America. I’m a big fan of that idea. Cap with wings? Bring it on! The Winter Soldier is getting a new series, where he becomes the protector of Earth. Deathlok is getting a reboot to bring him closer to his TV counterpart. And Marvel is still trying desperately to make Inhuman happen. See that flaming guy in the picture there? That’s Inferno, the new Inhuman. He and Medusa are the stars of the comic Inhuman, which has published all of 2 issues so far. If Marvel is really serious about making the Inhumans a force to be reckoned with, they are failing terribly.
Seriously, Inhuman is terrible. Inferno should be ashamed to be in that group picture.
Also in that picture, you can see Ant-Man and Doctor Strange, both of whom have upcoming movies on the Marvel slate. I’m excited for both, and if Marvel can get both heroes their own comics, that would be a blast. Marvel is doing great things with comics these days. I’m dying for a quality Ant-Man comic.
Entertainment Weekly has some of the details.
Iron Man is getting a big change too. See his fancy new white/silver armor? That’s the Superior Iron Man!
Iron Man is suddenly big into testing
Tony Stark will be moving to San Francisco, where he plans to implement some darker, tougher technology upgrades. Tony’s going a little dark. Good for him.
I don’t know about you, but all of this looks great to me. Maybe I’m just really into Marvel these days. I know that’s the truth. They can do little wrong in my book. I have always been a Marvel man, and the various Marvel NOW! campaigns have been comic book gold. So you better believe I’m excited to get my hands on some of these new books.
This is going to be the year of the Ant-Man!
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Review: Captain America: The Winter Soldier
You can’t see it right now, what with the computers in the way, but I am saluting the flag. I feel an overwhelming swell of patriotism growing inside me, having taken in Captain America: The Winter Soldier. This is a damn fine country and it produces some damn fine movies about damn fine superheroes. How many does this make for Marvel? How many amazing action movies have they produced so far? The Avengers was one of the biggest movies of all time, and all three superhero follow-ups have been dynamite, with Captain America 2 probably the best of the bunch. This movie has everything. This movie is everything.
It makes me proud to be an American.
Movie Rating: 9/10 – Great.
Not that American patriotism is the driving factor of The Winter Soldier, I just needed a good opening. This movie is actually about SHIELD and the secrets it keeps, and how Steve Rogers may be the only honest man left who can get to the bottom of the mysteries that lie at the heart of the organization. SHIELD has been the glue that binds all of the Marvel movies so far. Heck, Marvel went ahead and based a whole TV show around them. But something inside SHIELD is starting to crack, and Captain America is just the sort of hero we need to save the day. He’s not flashy like Iron Man or Thor. He’s not at war with himself like the Hulk. Steve Rogers is just a man, for the most part. He’s determined and honest, and a lot tougher than most. But he’s a man who wants to do the right thing, and has the strength to stick with it when the odds seem overwhelming.
Plus he’s brought along a bunch of neat friends. Captain America: The Winter Soldier is almost as much of an ensemble film as The Avengers, and it works just as good.
In terms of sheer spectacle and excitement, The Avengers is still the best. But The Winter Soldier is of the same caliber and quality. The action and danger are very real, with ties to both The Avengers and Captain America’s first film. The characters are true to themselves, and grow beyond what we’ve seen before. And, as always, that signature Marvel wit just saturates the film. The dialogue is delightful, the banter is beautiful, and the film knows exactly when to sprinkle in the humor.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier is everything we’ve come to expect from the Marvel Movie Machine. Once again, Marvel raises the bar for action movies and superhero movies everywhere.
Join me after the jump for the full review. I’m going to try to keep SPOILERS to a minimum.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier Finally Explains the Winter Soldier
There’s no doubt that ‘The Winter Soldier’ is a badass character name, but is he enough to hang an entire movie off? Marvel’s going to find out this Summer in Captain America: The Winter Soldier! At least the new trailer, aired during the Super Bowl, starts to introduce the villain to audiences.
Trailer looks as awesome as the first one! This film definitely stands to be a good one, I hope. And I also hope that audiences really dig Winter Soldier. I think he has potential when it comes to battling Cap, though I’m sure there’s another, bigger villain waiting in the wings. I also hope Falcon doesn’t come off as just a silly sidekick.
Henchman-4-Hire 