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The Marvel Cinematic Universe After Avengers: Age of Ultron – The Fantasy Characters

Posted on May 1, 2015 by

Avengers of Ultron hits the screen today and millions of fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe get the next big step forward since last summer’s Guardians of the Galaxy. One of the notable elements in the new film is the organic nature in which traditional Avengers are introduced to the overall story line. The Vision and Scarlet Witch finally get introduced on the main screen, but their introduction probably fulfilled the desires of many fans. After all many fans have tired of the superhero films which repeatedly give the origin of a new character, and the characters here were introduced without overwhelming the script with their background story. With the confirmed addition of Captain Marvel and Black Panther to the Marvel Cinematic Universe in years to come the roster of the Avengers can be expected to keep expanding, and will probably expand once again this summer with the addition of Ant-Man and hopefully the Wasp.

In terms of the iconic character for the Avengers, there are going to be very few spots left to fill from what can be considered to be the usual roster, but there are still a few outliers that they could tie into the overall picture. The Avengers from the 1960s contained among its other members Hercules and the Black Knight, and the 1980s saw the introduction of Tigra. What do all of these characters have in common? A tie to the fantasy genre. Although more based in myth than pure fantasy, Hercules still belongs to the latter. The Black Knight is also obviously tied into the genre, the more so that he has led the Knights of Wundagore. Tigra is a member of the Cat People who are tied into the stories of the Higher Evolutionary as well, and thus also serve as a tie to fantasy.

The link between the three characters is tenuous enough, but Marvel is successful at making unconventional pairings work. In Guardians of the Galaxy they introduced what was essentially a talking tree and fans loved it. What is more interesting about the Guardians of the Galaxy was the mixing of genres, as some said it was essentially a mixture of Star Wars and super heroes. The same could be asked equally though why Marvel could not attempt the same with other genres. Marvel also recently released season 1 of Daredevil on Netflix, which the creator stated as saying that he wanted to make a superhero film as close as possible to the Wire, and so therefore why could not Marvel introduce a television series that was as close as they could take superheroes to Game of Thrones, especially while mixing in the three previously named characters and somehow spinning them into the mainstream Marvel Cinematic Universe. It would fit with the same Netflix concept as well, especially to introduce some characters that are not so well in pop culture, thus not taking as much of a gamble.

If there is one thing that is certain it is that movie and television fans can’t get enough of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and despite having been around for a while, the euphoria does not seem yet ready to pass. The above could be a great way in which to incorporate harder to implement characters while also giving fans something new to see.

Movie Review: Avengers: Age of Ultron

Posted on May 1, 2015 by Brett

When Tony Stark tries to jumpstart a dormant peacekeeping program, things go awry and it is up to the Avengers to stop the villainous Ultron from enacting his terrible plans.

If there’s a lesson learned from previous superhero movies, more does not mean better. Numerous Batman, Spider-Man 3, The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Iron Man 3, the addition of more villains, larger explosions, greater sets, they don’t make a good movie. They can make a brainless entertaining experience, which is what Avengers: Age of Ultron is. A movie that’s wide in the visuals, but shallow in story and character.

The movie kicks off right where you’d expect it if you’ve been watching Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. with the team after Loki’s scepter. The drawn out sequence should tell you everything you need to know about the movie, both in what’s coming, and what visuals you should expect. In between movies director Joss Whedon seems to have gone to the Zack Snyder school of visuals where shaky cams, quick cuts, and slow mo, are the name of the game. The battle attempts to up the danger factor a bit, making us believe one of the main actors could die, but also presenting where the relationships lay in the group.

That main focus of their relationships is the thrust of the film, which might as well had a tagline, “A prequel for Captain America: Civil War.” The movie attempts over and over to lay the groundwork for what’s to come, instead of focusing on the threat in front of us. Marvel’s attempt to shove in and connect more and more is starting to show cracks with the inclusion of Ulysses Klaue, Wakanda, and more. And really, Dr. Banner can’t pronounce Wakanda? There’s also numerous allusions to the Infinity Guantlet, the device that’s been tying in many of the films, and will eventually lead to the two-part film Avengers: Infinity War.

The direction seems off in the film too with edits that seem disjointed and mysteriously transporting characters from situations, which falls into line of the films large battle/action sequence, talking scene, large battle/action sequence, talking scene, rinse, repeat. And those large battles are over the top. The amount of damage and reconstruction needed after each would bankrupt Stark Industries in the clean up. Cities are literally destroyed, though the heroes focus on saving civilians for once. And the special fx seem to have slipped in quality, with clear computer work that pulled me out of the film. Maybe there was too much and either the time and/or budget brought the quality down?

Like the visuals, the plot too is choppy with odd things introduced like a pool that Thor visits, or Barton’s safe-house. Things could be done without, cutting the movie, which it seriously needed. Battles drag on, and debates feel circular in their logic. Excess is the name of the game here. There’s also just a lack of things that make sense. With the world’s survival up for grabs, wouldn’t the team call in War Machine? How about Falcon? You’d think this is an all folks on board moment.

That excess leads to the addition of new characters such as Strucker, Klaue, Scarlet Witch, Quicksilver, and eventually Vision, all of whom are a bit robotic in their performances. The Vision is the oddest of the characters, bouncing back and forth between laughable make-up, to really cool visual. Vision’s powers aren’t explained at all, and we’re left to accept he can do whatever he displays with no logic surrounding it all.

The one good new addition is James Spader as Ultron, who seems to now play the same character over and over, but it works here. His poetic speeches are entertaining, and draw you in to the madness of the character, and I can’t imagine anyone else pulling it off, especially when the character fx at times is so bad.

The film is entertaining, I will give it that, but it’s the brainless entertainment I expect from a big budget summer movie. The issue is, we’ve seen you can go big, but also create fantastic characters such as we’ve seen in Captain America: The Winter Soldier. The movie leaves us with New Avengers to look forward to, and much to come. It’s the closest you can get to a fresh start without a complete reboot, and after this film, the series already needs it.

Overall rating: 6

Diamond Select Toys This Week: Mr. Fusion, Dragon Age and Buddy Christ!

Posted on April 30, 2015 by Brett

It’s another big week for Diamond Select Toys at your local comic shop, as eight new items are shipping to stores! Not only are there new Minimates from Dragon Age, Avengers: Age of Ultron and Classic X-Men comics, there are new busts from Sin City and the Batman Classic TV Series, a plush Buddy Christ, a Godzilla pizza cutter and our long-awaited Mr. Fusion prop replica! There’s something for every collector and every fan in stores this week from DST!

Back to the Future 2 Mr. Fusion Electronic Prop Replica

A Diamond Select Toys Release! It’s almost 2015, which means we’re only months away from inventing Mr. Fusion, the device that turns garbage into energy! Arguably the biggest technological leap between the 1985 we saw in Back to the Future and the 2015 we saw in Back to the Future II, the Mr. Fusion Home Energy Reactor is now a realistically scaled 18″ electronic replica from Diamond Select Toys, complete with a sound effect to let you know that the sealed processing unit has been opened and is ready to process household waste into 1.21 gigawatts of energy! Runs on included batteries. (Item #OCT142188, SRP: $399.99)

Batman Classic TV Series Penguin Resin Bust

A Diamond Select Toys release! Batman’s rogues gallery continues to grow as the Penguin joins the Riddler and the Joker in DST’s line of busts based on the Batman Classic TV Series! This 6-inch-tall resin bust captures Burgess Meredith as fowl fiend, wielding a deadly umbrella and an equally deadly sneer. Bust sits atop a colorful base inspired by the show’s animated opening credits, and comes packaged in a full-color box. Designed by Barry Bradfield! Sculpted by Jean St. Jean! (Item #DEC142214, SRP: $59.99)

Dragon Age Minimates Series 1 Box Set

A Diamond Select Toys release! On your next Dragon Age quest, why not keep your companions in your pocket? The legendary video game series kicks off an epic line of Minimates with this debut four-pack featuring the Grey Warden Alistair; the bard, Leliana; dwarf rogue Varric Tethras (with Bianca); and Morrigan, Witch of the Wilds. Each 2-inch Minimate mini-figure features 10-14 points of articulation and interchangeable parts. Packaged on a blister card. (Item #DEC142215, SRP: $19.99)

Godzilla 2000 Sculpted Pizza Cutter

A Diamond Select Toys release! Destroy all toppings! A monstrous hunger requires a monstrous slice, and you can cut yourself off a big one with this palm-sized pizza cutter featuring the sculpted face of Godzilla, King of the Monsters. Based on his appearance in “Godzilla 2000,” this menacing utensil will cut a path through a deep-dish pie like Godilla cuts a path through Tokyo! Packaged in a full-color box. (Item #DEC142216, SRP: $14.99)

Marvel Minimates Avengers Age of Ultron Movie Single Pack Display

A Diamond Select Toys release! For a movie as big as “Avengers: Age of Ultron,” one assortment is not enough! This colorful countertop display holds 18 individually blind-bagged Minimates based on the movie, including multiple types of Ultrons, Iron Man’s Iron Legion, plus one-per-case Minimates of Baron Strucker and Nick Fury! Every bag contains one 2-inch Minimate mini-figure, featuring 14 points of articulation and interchangeable parts. (Item #DEC142220, SRP: $5.99/ea.)

Marvel Minimates Series 60 X-Men Vs. Brotherhood Asst.

A Diamond Select Release! Some of the X-Men’s most memorable costumes and memorable foes return in this all-new assortment of Marvel Minimates! Exclusively available through Previews, this assortment has the X-Men’s Strike Force team (as seen in Uncanny X-Men #275) take on that era’s Brotherhood of Mutants, a.k.a. Freedom Force! Plus each two pack of 2-inch Minimates includes bonus parts to create an alternate X-Men character! The two-packs include Wolverine (with Forge parts) vs. Blob, Banshee (with Gambit parts) vs. Pyro, Storm (with Psylocke parts) vs. Avalanche, and a short-packed, one-per-case two-pack of Jubilee vs. Destiny! Each two-pack is packaged in a full-color window box. Designed by Art Asylum! (Item #NOV142181, SRP: $9.99/two-pack)

View Askew Buddy Christ Plush Doll

A Diamond Select Toys release! From the films of Kevin Smith, it’s the most marketable religious icon of all! Buddy Christ is a friend who is always willing to hear your problems, and now he’s also super-cuddly! This 8″ tall plush doll features finely stitched details, is made out of soft plush material, and will fit anywhere you want him to go, including your backpack. Wherever you go, he’s gonna go! Comes packaged in a clear polybag. (Item #OCT142187, SRP: $19.99)

Sin City Movie Marv Resin Bust

A Diamond Select Toys release! Sin City is no place for the soft or weak. Luckily, Marv is as hard as they come! We made this collectible 6″ bust of Marv out of high-quality resin, so he and his gun Gladys will blend into your bust collection, no matter how tough a crowd it is. Set into a rocky base, he’ll stand guard on your shelf. your desk or even the bar at Kadie’s Club Pecos! Sculpted by Jean St. Jean. Limited to 1,000 pieces. Comes packaged in a full-color box. (Item #NOV142178, SRP: $59.99)

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The Marvel Cinematic Universe After Avengers: Age of Ultron – The Science Character

Posted on April 30, 2015 by

The below contains minor spoilers for Avengers: Age of Ultron

With the release of the next big blockbuster in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Avengers: Age of Ultron will leave a few ripples in its wake. Perhaps the biggest of these will be the events which will lead the team into the upcoming Captain America movie, which includes a minor disbanding of the team combined with the assembly of a new team. In what becomes an interesting development (spoilers to follow) neither Iron Man nor the Hulk will be members of the team after this movie. While this of course has an effect on the focus on specific characters, it also changes something going on behind the scenes, namely the lack of any major scientific mind on the team. Although Ant-Man is likely to join the team as well, it will be the Lang version, not the Pym, thus leaving the main team with a genius mind to put together the science.

In the 1970s a similar enough dynamic existed, even when both Stark and Pym were active members of the team. Another one of the great scientific minds of the Marvel Universe was introduced to the Avengers, in what was the first member of the X-Men to be introduced to the team since Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver (who had weaker ties to the mutants at the time.) The character which was introduced was Beast, who had been on a break from the Avengers but who was looking for to be a member of a team.

There of course exists a major impediment to introducing Beast as a member of the Avengers, and that is that the film rights to the character do not belong to Marvel but rather to Fox who has their own universe of X-Men to compete with the MCU. This means explicitly that unless Fox gives up rights to the characters that such a union would be unlikely, and it is even unlikely that the character would be shared as Columbia is doing with Spider-Man, because the X-Men universe is on solid enough ground with their own company.

While using Beast is therefore somewhat out of the question, there is no real problem with introducing other characters who could have the same role and even powers, as long as the character were to be properly established beforehand as having nothing to do with the character. Incidentally there is potential for such a character that already exists in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, though this one comes from television – Agent Fitz from Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. It might seem like a strange suggestion at first but there exists enough of a link to establish something similar to Beast while also being different enough. The main link is that Fitz is one of the scientific geniuses behind the team, and that his colleague and closest friend (and also scientific genius) Jemma is also close to understanding the bioligical mechanism of certain super powers. As Beast’s super powers are mostly physical enhancements as opposed to supernatural the link is not that far off. It is worth mentioning as well that the actor that plays Fitz, Iain De Caestecker is one of the better actors from the show and might more easily transition to the big screen.

The fate of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is still somewhat up in the air, but if the show does meet an early demise then it does have a potential recruit waiting for the big screen treatment for a faithful enough treatment of a dedicated Avenger.

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Unboxing: Marvel Collector Corps April 2015 Box

Posted on April 28, 2015 by Brett

I open up to show off Funko and Marvel‘s first Marvel Collector Corps box. The bimonthly premium box service features a theme of Avengers: Age of Ultron just in time for the movie’s release.

We go over the contents including a t-shirt, exclusive Pop! figure, comic with variant cover and more! Valued at over a $50 the first box is an impressive debut.

The exclusive Hulkbuster Pop! figure has some weight and heft to it, the tshirt is really comfortable, the variant cover nice, and I’m still debating about opening up the Dorbz figure. It’s one I’m happy I signed up for the full year. Hopefully they’re all as impressive.

Marvel Promotes Comics with Fandango and Age of Ultron

Posted on April 28, 2015 by Brett

I tend to call out missed opportunities when it comes to marketing comics to those who might be interested in comic books. For instance the lack of advertising of comic books during movies based on comic books have driven me crazy. That’s why it was great to open up my email today and come across a promotion between Fandango and Marvel for those who buy tickets to Avengers: Age of Ultron through the ticketing service.

The promotion provided seven “free” digital comics via the Marvel digital comic app. The comics provided are Avengers Origins: Quicksilver & the Scarlet Witch, Hawkeye #1, Thor: God of Thunder #1, Captain America #1, Black Widow #1, Hulk #1, and Superior Iron Man #1.

Two other things also stand out. Marvel, in the redemption page, has a “source” of Fandango. That means they’re tracking how well the promotion does, probably to see if it’s worth while to repeat in the future. What gets measured, gets done, after all. Also, towards the middle of the Fandango email was a link to a discounted digital copy of the Age of Ultron trade paperback.

This type of promotion should be standard with every movie, television show, tie-in released, so great to see. Now, to provide digital codes in all toys….

Robert Downey, Jr. and Jeremy Renner Ring Open the New York Stock Exchange

Posted on April 27, 2015 by Brett

This morning, Robert Downey Jr. and Jeremy Renner rung open the New York Stock Exchange to promote Avengers: Age of Ultron which opens in North America this week. The film has already opened in some markets overseas and earned over $200 million.

Furious 7 Holds on to First, Age of Ultron Over $200 Million

Posted on April 27, 2015 by Brett

In its fourth week at the box-office, Furious 7 remained in first place on the domestic chart, earning an estimated $18.3 million. The film has earned $320.5 million domestically.

Overseas is the real story though. Furious 7 is only the third film to earn over $1 billion overseas, and currently has earned $1.001 billion. When you combine its domestic and international totals, the film has earned $1.32 billion. It is now the top grossing film ever in China.

The film currently sits in fifth in worldwide grosses and will absolutely get to fourth. There’s a chance it dethrones the first Avengers film which earned $1.5 billion.

To do that, the movie will have to have some impressive legs (wheels?) and still perform when Avengers: Age of Ultron opens this coming weekend domestically. That film has already opened in some overseas markets and has earned $201.2 million. Disney has said that’s 44 percent better than the first Avengers film and 24 percent better than Iron Man 3. Internationally, the film still has yet to open in Span, Mexico, and China.

In other comic related movie news, Kingsman: The Secret Service added $550,000 to its total. The film has earned a solid $126.5 million domestically, and $273.2 in foreign markets. Its total is $399,635,000 as of now. The film’s budget was $81 million, so that’s a pretty solid return for the film.

Chris Evans Apologizes for Calling Black Widow a “Slut” and “Whore,” Renner Not so Much

Posted on April 24, 2015 by Brett

In an interview to promote Avengers: Age of Ultron with Digital Spy, Jeremy Renner and Chris Evans were asked about fans wanting Black Widow to be with Hawkeye or Captain America, but turns out she’s really with Bruce Banner/the Hulk. In what was intended to be a joke, but still not exactly appropriate, Renner responded deadpan before laughing:

She’s a slut.

Evans who burst out laughing responded:

Something along that line. She’s a complete whore.

There’s then some jokes about her having a prosthetic leg and leading everyone on.

As I’d expect, those answers haven’t gone over all that well with the public, no matter how much of a joke they were intended to be. In a statement through his agent, Evans said:

Yesterday we were asked about the rumors that Black Widow wanted to be in a relationship with both Hawkeye and Captain America. We answered in a very juvenile and offensive way that rightfully angered some fans. I regret it and sincerely apologize.

Renner’s statement that was released wasn’t quite accepting of the blame as Evans’.

I am sorry that this tasteless joke about a fictional character offended anyone. It was not meant to be serious in any way. Just poking fun during an exhausting and tedious press tour.

It’s not too hard to say that one tried to make a joke that fell flat and it was juvenile and inappropriate.

The character of Black Widow is particularly sensitive to fans right now. Though she’s quite popular, she’s not receiving the merchandising focus as other characters are, or her own movie. She’s being relegated to the sidekick, there for eye candy only apparently.

You can watch the video of their interview below.

Jimmy Kimmel Goes Avengers Crazy…. and a little Ant-Man

Posted on April 14, 2015 by Brett

Jimmy Kimmel went Avengers crazy on Monday’s Jimmy Kimmel Live featuring the cast and lots of skits involving the cast of Avengers: Age of Ultron. He also has a little after-credits scene with Paul Rudd aka Ant-Man. Check out all the video below!

Cheesy Marvel Cartoon Openings