And then there’s this.
For Comic Con, Marvel has been releasing pieces of a giant poster promoting next May’s “Avengers: Age of Ultron.”
The final pieces were released today.
And yes, that’s the Vision, as played by Paul Bettany, up in the corner. And he looks to be the proper green and yellow color.
That’s a whole lot of Ultrons.
I’m not one of those fans that has to declare a victor in the war between Marvel and DC. They’re both doing well – if very differently – in particular areas outside comics, including live-action movies and TV and animation.
Marvel’s big-screen universe is firing on all cylinders through a timetable that, if we’re to believe a recent interview with mastermind Kevin Feige, is loosely planned through 2028. The producers of Marvel movie outliers like the “Spider-Man” and “X-Men” series are trying to build their own universes, although that could be a challenge. I still wish we’d see the universes combined on screen someday.
As for DC, Warner Bros. is flat-out struggling to build a cohesive movie universe. The “Man of Steel” sequel featuring Batman – with Wonder Woman and Cyborg and possibly other characters in supporting roles – could be cool or it could fall as flat as “Green Lantern.” And DC has just announced that director Zach Snyder will follow the “Man of Steel” sequel with a “Justice League” movie.
DC’s plans feel a little rushed, with none of the universe-building that Marvel has engaged in with its “Avengers” lead-ins and follow-ups. But maybe it’ll turn out nifty.
On TV, there’s no question that “Arrow,” the second-season CW adaptation of Green Arrow, is the best superhero series ever.
And over on ABC, “Agents of SHIELD” – after a first half of this debut season that felt like wheel-spinning or slow burn, depending on how charitable you might be – is building to what might be a genuinely thrilling climax.
Both series have three episodes left this season. Here are some thoughts:
“Arrow”: After setting up Slade (Deathstroke) Wilson as the good-guy-turned-bad-guy this season, the series has let Slade run rampant on Oliver Queen and his city, family and team. Last week’s episode ended with Slade killing Oliver’s mother, Moira, in a cruel mirror to the “choice” Oliver was given by Ivo on the island.
What we want to see: More DC characters – including Ravager, pictured above, who appears in “City of Blood,” the next episode – more twists, more peril, more return visits from past favorites and more triumph for Team Arrow.
What we don’t want to see: An easy way out for anybody.
“SHIELD”: Spinning off events in “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” “SHIELD” finds itself in a world where SHIELD itself is in shambles. The agents are on the run, striking back at enemy organization HYDRA and building alliances. All the while, they’re dealing with the treacherous Agent Ward, who has turned out to be a HYDRA agent and has been killing SHIELD agents right and left.
What we want to see: Well, we already know Agent Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders) returns in this week’s episode, “Nothing Personal,” and Samuel L. Jackson is supposed to return as Nick Fury in “Beginning of the End,” the season finale set for May 13. So we’re getting return visits from some favorites. We also want more revelations, including more big-picture tie-ins to the movie universe.
What we don’t want to see: The redemption of Agent Ward. We want him and Agent Garrett (the great Bill Paxton) to continue as our favorite HYDRA turncoats into the second season.
The longterm big picture for both series – if “SHIELD” returns for a second season – could be fantastic. “SHIELD” will be building toward the May 2015 premiere of “Avengers: Age of Ultron.”
And although it’s unlikely, it’s possible Warners will tie “Arrow” to its big-screen franchise in some way. Warners could do a whole lot worse – and likely will – if it ignores the universe created for the small screen.
You lucky people who went to Comic-Con in San Diego got to see this teaser trailer for “The Avengers: Age of Ultron.” The rest of us have been looking forward to it ever since.
Then it was posted online this week … then it disappeared. Then it was back … then it disappeared.
So I guess we’ll see if this posting of it sticks.
The trailer is short and, as described, shows Tony Stark’s Iron Man helmet being hammered, forged into the macabre, grinning image of Ultron.
In the comics, of course, Ultron was a creation of Hank Pym, also known as Ant-Man. It makes sense that the movie version would grow, somehow, out of Stark.
If that’s what really happens, of course.
We’ll know more soon about the movie version of a favorite comic book villain, including how James Spader is to play the android. Motion capture? Voice over? Something else?
As for hints of the plot, there’s not much. Other than the sites and sounds of hammering Tony’s helmet into Ultron’s visage, there are a few lines of dialogue from previous previous Marvel movies. Most seem to be from “The Avengers.”
“I don’t play well with others,” Tony says. “Here with a mission, sir?” Cap asks. “We’re not a team. We’re a time bomb,” Bruce Banner says.
And we’ll know all in 2015, when the movie hits the big screen.
So this is happening:
And so is this:
Bradley Cooper giving voice to Rocket Raccoon in “Guardians of the Galaxy.”
James Spader playing (voice? motion capture and CGI? costume with Willem DaFoe style headgear?) Ultron in “Avengers: Age of Ultron.”
Marvel, you crazy geniuses.
keithroysdon 