Tag Archives: The Avengers

Good time to be a fan

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luca parmitano long shot

Those of us who grew up in the 1960s have to be forgiven for occasionally wandering through the world of 2013 and wondering if we’re dreaming.

In the 1960s, comic books and science fiction and horror movies were an almost underground part of the culture, barely more tolerated by adults than eating paste or girlie magazines.

Now, science fiction and fantasy rule TV, from “The Walking Dead” to “Game of Thrones.” Books with sf and fantasy themes like the “Hunger Games” trilogy and the “Harry Potter” books top the best-seller lists.

And at the movies … Marvel’s merry marching movie machine rolls on. The sequel – sequel! – to “Thor” comes out tomorrow. It’s already playing in some theaters. And it’s the latest in a years-long chain of interconnected movies exploring the Marvel universe.

And today Marvel and Netflix announce original series like “Daredevil” and “Luke Cage” are coming, with a “Defenders” team-up series to follow.

If, before “Iron Man” debuted in 2008, anyone thought “The Avengers” was below-the-radar fun only enjoyed by geeks, you can only imagine what a head-snapping development a “Defenders” series would be.

DC is still plugging along with big-screen Batman and Superman movies, but doing impressive work on TV with “Arrow” and other series like “The Flash” still coming.

I sat down and watched an episode of “Arrow” tonight with Green Arrow and Black Canary, for pete’s sake. Tell me who thought that would have been possible a few decades ago.

And the picture above.

On Halloween, Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano, aboard the International Space Station, dressed up like Superman and took advantage of the lack of gravity to fly around.

I don’t care that he looks more like Lex Luthor. He’s flying like Superman!

It’s a good time to be a fan.

Great comic book covers: Avengers 57

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avengers 57

Behold, a beautiful cover.

From time to time here, I’ll note some of my favorite comic books covers. They’re not necessarily the covers of milestone comic books. They’re just covers that I loved.

By default, most of the covers will be from the 1960s and 1970s, when I was actively buying, reading and collecting comics. They had their maximum impact on me back then.

I’ll start off with this one, Avengers 57, from the Marvel comic of my favorite superhero group, introducing one of my favorite characters, Vision (or the Vision, to some). The cover date was October 1968.

The android creation of homicidal robot Ultron, Vision was sent to kill the Avengers but, maybe improbably, became part of the team.

To this day, the cover by John Buscema sets the standard for comic book covers. Striking composition? Yes. Heroes in peril? Yes. Mysterious and undeniably important new character causing chaos? Yes.

I couldn’t spend my 12 cents fast enough for this one.

Captain America on the Fourth of July

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cap uncle sam

It’s pretty easy to draw a line between Captain America, the classic Marvel Comics character, and the Fourth of July, the U.S.’ most patriotic holiday.

The guy’s dressed in the Stars and Stripes, for pete’s sake.

But those who dismiss Cap and his alter ego, Steve Rogers, as an empty American symbol are wrong.

cap poster

As a matter of fact, Cap’s real patriotism is what the Marvel movie producers got so right in “Captain America: The First Avenger” and “The Avengers.”

avengers 4 cap returns

Like Superman, Captain America is a man without his own people. When Cap returned in Avengers No. 4, he was nearly 20 years removed from his era and his battleground, World War II. That “man out of time” feeling, which directors Joe Johnson and Joss Whedon captured so well in those movies, is what sets Cap apart from hip, funny heroes like Spider-Man.

cap superhero squad

Heck, the former Cartoon Network series “Superhero Squad,” which made Marvel heroes appealing and accessible to young fans, even got Cap right even as they poked fun at him. Cap in that series was always talking about some conversation he had with FDR or making some other “frozen in amber” reference. It was as funny as it was on-the-nose.

But besides Cap’s stranger in a strange land status, he’s also known for doing what’s right. Always. For a period in his comic in the 1970s, that meant forgoing the Cap name and costume and, thanks to disillusionment with the government, operating as Nomad, the man without a country.

I’m looking forward to “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” next year in great part because it looks like more of a political thriller than a spandex slugfest and in great part because it looks to pit Cap against SHIELD. Cap’s character in “The Avengers” certainly showed more than a little skepticism about SHIELD and Nick Fury’s motives. That’s perfectly in keeping with the character and I couldn’t be happier about that.

So while Steve Rogers would, if he existed, be enjoying a hot dog and some fireworks today, he’d also be mindful of what enabled him to enjoy the Fourth of July, the sacrifices of men and women that allowed that and the individual liberties of the people around him.

Because while Captain America might have been a man without his own people, he has embraced – and been embraced by – his new people.

Five coolest superhero movie moments

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nick fury iron man tag

Maybe it was Superman besting Lex Luthor’s nuclear missiles by turning the world backward on its axis. Maybe it was Spider-Man swinging over the NYC skyline for the first time. Heck, maybe it was a Robert Downey Jr. quip.

We all know them when we see them: Those moments in big-screen adaptations of superhero comics that made you get goosebumps, that made you pump your fist and shout “Yes!” right there in the theater.

Here’s a personal, subjective list of my five favorite superhero movie moments. And yes, this short list is heavy on “Iron Man” and Marvel movies. Maybe a follow-up installment will spread the love around a bit.

Superman’s first flight. The 1978 “Superman” reaches a several-minute-long high point during the sequence when Superman takes on bad guys and even rescues a kitten from a tree on his first night in Metropolis. But the single coolest moment? When, at the end of years of training, Christopher Reeve, in the classic Superman suit for the first time, flies from a distant point in the Fortress of Solitude toward the camera.

iron man suitcase armor

The suitcase suit. “Iron Man 2” was lacking in a lot of ways, but the appearance of the suitcase suit – a staple of the classic “Iron Man” comics – was a highlight.

Iron Man vs. thugs. When Tony Stark finds out his weapons are being used by marauding terrorists in “Iron Man,” he suits up and engages in some wish fulfillment fantasy. Who hasn’t wanted to fly over to a foreign country and take out some oppressors?

The tracking shot in “The Avengers.” There’s no denying the power of the moment in “The Avengers” when the team assembles, backs to each other, in a circle, ready to face the menace of Loki’s army. That’s the single most powerful visual shot in the movie. But for my fanboy money, the coolest sequence in the movie is Joss Whedon’s long tracking shot as his camera follows Iron Man through the concrete canyons, capturing one Avenger after another battling the Chitauri.

Nick Fury. Nick Fury! The modern age of comic book movies began at the end of 2008’s “Iron Man” when Tony Stark comes home to find Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury, director of SHIELD, in his house. Fury says he’s there to talk to him about … the Avengers Initiative!

Woo-hoo!

Why we should care about ‘Ant-Man’

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Disney announced today the Nov. 6, 2015 release of “Ant-Man,” directed by Edgar Wright and featuring the longtime Marvel Comics hero. No casting has yet been announced.

Why should we be excited about “Ant-Man?” He’s just a guy who shrinks, right?

Wrong. Here’s why we’re excited about “Ant-Man.”

Edgar Wright. This is the guy who directed cult classics like “Shaun of the Dead” and “Hot Fuzz.” And he loves Ant-Man. He’ll bring an offbeat approach to a somewhat offbeat hero.

He’s important. Ant-Man, also known as Henry Pym, was a founding member of the Avengers. He’s been there since the beginning – in the comics, at least. He’s linked to the Wasp, his girlfriend/wife Janet Van Dyne, who in the comics gave the team its name.

He might be edgy. If they choose to go that way, “Ant-Man” as a solo movie or member of “The Avengers” paves the way for some domestic drama. In some versions of the character, Pym has anger control issues and even abuses his wife. It’s a character point not unlike Tony Stark’s alcoholism. It might not make its way into the movies, but a lot of people will be wondering and speculating, and that creates buzz.

Ant-Man is not Aquaman. I love Aquaman as much as anybody, but he’s (unfairly) received a reputation as the worst member of the Justice League. And to the outside observer, Ant-Man seems just as limited. He shrinks. Hmm. But in reality, Henry Pym has a lot of cool capabilities – apparently the Ant-Man test footage screened this summer at conventions demonstrated this – and they’re not all based around shrinking. Pym has also, at various times, adopted other personnas including Giant-Man (Guess what? He not only shrinks!) and Yellowjacket (Goes with Wasp, get it?). Plus he’s a genius, not unlike Tony Stark and Bruce Banner. Getting Pym on the team will add a lot to the roster.

Most of all, Ant-Man’s existence in the Marvel movie universe paves the way for my favorite Avengers villain of all time, Ultron, an android created by Pym who becomes a recurring and deadly enemy for the supergroup. If the next “Avengers” movie – due out a few months before “Ant-Man” – revolves around Thanos – that guy glimpsed in the end credits of “The Avengers” – then Ultron would make a great bad guy for the third movie.

Excited yet?

Our favorite geek year: Marvel comics milestones

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It’s a staggering thought: Many of the Marvel comics characters that dominate modern movies were created, by a handful of talented artists and writers, within the space of little more than a year about five decades ago.

Sure, everybody knows Marvel of the early 60s was an a creative hothouse. But it’s truly impressive how quickly the staff turned out one soon-to-be classic comic and character after another.

It started with Fantastic Four No. 1, with a cover date of November 1961. An important word about cover dates: Then, as now, comics and magazines were given cover dates that were slightly in advance of the period they were actually available. I’m guessing that if you went to a newsstand (remember those?) today, in early October, you’d find November or December or even January editions of many monthly magazines. The practice was (is?) aimed at making comics and magazines look like they have a longer shelf life (literally). So while FF was dated November 1961, it was in the hands of fans weeks before that.

Writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby (with inker George Klein) introduced Reed Richards and the rest of the FF in that November 1961 issue and Marvel published several issues until, six months later, the first issue of The Incredible Hulk came out in May 1962. To create just the Fantastic Four would be an accomplishment for any two men. But for Lee and Kirby to create the Hulk within weeks or months is truly impressive.

Then things got crazy.

August 1962 saw the publication of Amazing Fantasy No. 15, which fans know introduced Spider-Man and his mild-mannered alter ego, Peter Parker. Lee and artistic genius Steve Ditko get the credit here for creating one of the world’s most enduring superhero characters.

That same month, August 1962, saw Journey into Mystery No. 83, with Lee and his brother, Larry Lieber, behind the plot and script and Kirby and inker Joe Sinnott introducing none other than Thor.

(Now keep in mind that during this time, Marvel continued to produce follow-up issues of FF and Hulk.)

In September 1962, Lee, Lieber, Kirby and Dick Ayers gave the world Tales to Astonish No. 35, introducing scientist Henry Pym, better known as Ant-Man.

Remember, by this point, we’re still not a year past the introduction of the FF.

By March 1963, another major character was introduced when Iron Man debuted in Tales of Suspense No. 39. Lee and Lieber and artist Don Heck were the men behind the future Avenger.

That same month, the unexpected response to Amazing Fantasy No. 15 led to the debut of Amazing Spider-Man No. 1, by Lee and Ditko.

The Marvel era was firmly in place in September 1963 with the debut of Avengers No. 1, featuring characters from the recent Marvel comics teaming up. Lee and Kirby and inker Ayers were reacting to – but actually topping – DC’s Justice League.

So, in the space of less than two years – little more than a year if you’re counting only the debuts of most of these characters – Lee, Kirby, Ditko and their cohorts gave us characters that not only entertained many readers but laid the foundation for the biggest movie hits of today.

Marvel movies: Rumors, facts and portents

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So “Iron Man 3” comes out in May, followed over the next couple of years by “Thor: The Dark World,” “Captain America: Winter Soldier,” “Guardians of the Galaxy” and an “Avengers” sequel, with a possible Ant-Man movie thrown into the mix somewhere along the way to 2015.

And we’re getting a little antsy for new Marvel Comics movie developments.

So can anyone blame the online contingent that freaked out (I originally wrote that as “fraked out” but let’s not mix franchises here) when word circulated that the U.K. version of the “Avengers” DVD and Blu had an edited version of SHIELD agent Coulson’s death at the hands of Loki? A version that didn’t show Loki’s blade protruding from Coulson’s chest?

One that might confirm that Coulson is resurrection bound, possibly to return in the “SHIELD” TV series and future Marvel movies?

Of course, the explanation was the simplest one: Disney decided to tone down the gruesome, blade-penetrating part of the death because it was too awful for Brits to see, apparently. Even the ones who had already seen it on the big screen early this summer.

So, anyway, don’t even think about Clark Gregg coming back as Agent Coulson (“His first name is Agent”). And definitely don’t even contemplate Gregg coming back as the synthetic Avenger known as The Vision.

Don’t. Even. Think. About. It.

(Above is the edited and un-edited scene.)

We move from the news that wasn’t really real to the news that was kinda real. Some online headlines blared the other day that Chris Evans might have a small part as Captain America in the “Thor” sequel. Clicking through, however, we see that Evans is saying he would be down with hanging out with his pal Chris Hemsworth in the movie. It would make sense and would serve the old Marvel tradition of brief comic book crossovers.

While we’d all like to see guest appearances by all the Avengers – and more – in upcoming solo adventures, we know that will happen only if it fits into Marvel’s Phase Two plans.

And now from the news that was definitely real department: Director James Gunn, previously rumored to be the company’s pick for the “Guardians of the Galaxy” movie, announced that he is officially onboard for the adventures of Starlord, Drax and Rocket Raccoon, the cosmic version of the Avengers.

Gunn, whose horror movie “Slither” is a little gem of funny weirdness, seems likely to give Joss Whedon a run for his money in the quip arena:

“As a lifelong lover of Marvel comics, space epics, AND raccoons, this is the movie I’ve been waiting to make since I was nine years old.”

It sounds like Gunn will make us believe a raccoon can fly … a spaceship.

 

 

‘Thor’ kicking ass, not taking names as far as we can tell

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This looks like it’s going to be fun.

We don’t know a lot so far about the sequel to “Thor.” It’s called “Thor: The Dark World” and draws from characters – and probably storylines – from the comics, pitting the Asgardian Avenger against Malekith, played by former “Doctor Who” Christopher Eccleston.

We also know that the “Thor” sequel will be part of phase 2 of the Marvel Comics movie universe, leading up to “The Avengers” sequel in 2015.

Today pictures from the set came out and show Thor, Sif (Jaimie Alexander) and company (or at least their stunt doubles) kicking ass.

“Thor: The Dark World” is scheduled to be released Nov. 8, 2013.

Comics classic: The Avengers Kree-Skrull War

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When fandom realized, a few years ago, that Marvel was planning an “Avengers” movie, half of those who thought about it said it would be a huge hit and half said it couldn’t be done.

And all of them said the plot should cover the Kree-Skrull War.

Well,  now that we’re on the other side of a billion dollars in box office receipts and great critical and fan reception, we know that it was doable, especially with Joss Whedon in the director’s chair.

But what about those Krees and Skrulls?

For those of us reading comics back in the day, the Kree-Skrull war was everything that was great about Marvel Comics, especially compared to DC.

Marvel had, by the time Avengers 89 came out in June 1971, spent nearly a decade building a universe that included not only costume-clad superheroes like the Avengers and the Fantastic Four but also more “cosmic” creatures like Captain Marvel, a Kree warrior come to Earth, and the Skrulls, alien invaders and shape-shifting imposters who fought the FF.

Writer Roy Thomas and artists Sal Buscema, Neal Adams and John Buscema gave us, over the course of eight monthly issues, a nice introduction to the larger universe outside Earth’s atmosphere and outside the influence of its “everyday” heroes.

Although Thor, Captain America, Iron Man and lesser-known Avengers like Scarlet Witch, Vision and Black Panther were the kings of New York superherodom, they were pitted here against alien menaces. While some of the storyline was large in scope – including space battles – other moments were (literally) small scale: One of the most famous sequences came in Avengers 93, when Ant-Man shrinks to microscopic size and goes inside the Vision to effect repairs on the android Avenger. The overall series plotline is almost ridiculously complicated and involves everything from the Fantastic Four to Skrulls masquerading as cows.

Because comics of the time were rarely planned out months in advance as “big events” are now, it was extraordinary that Thomas and company took the better part of a year to tell this story. DC comics was still, at this point, doing “one and done” stories. For all of us elementary school kids out there, the Kree-Skrull War series re-emphasized how different – and how much better – Marvel was.

So we didn’t get a Kree-Skrull war in the “Avengers” movie, although we did get a dose of Marvel’s cosmic characters. Particularly when Thanos shows up in the credits.

And of course, the Skrulls figured into the “Avengers” movie as the Chitauri, a disguised version of our favorite galactic marauders.

So maybe we’re inching toward a big-screen version of the classic comic storyline.

In the meantime, we can enjoy the original, which has been reprinted as a trade paperback a few years ago. The full-color paperback really emphasizes the artistry of Adams, one of my favorites.

 

TV: What I’m watching, given up on and looking forward to

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When I was a kid, besides going back to school and the run-up to Halloween, this time of year was a big deal for me because of the new fall TV season.

Yes, I was a TV geek.

I eagerly anticipated the fall season, which usually had at least one or two shows that I wanted to see. Besides, who could guess just how great “The Night Stalker” or “Planet of the Apes” (the TV series) might make the fall of 1974?

There’s less anticipation about the fall TV season nowadays because the TV year is so fractured – worthwhile series debut throughout the calendar year – and, speaking only for myself, I watch less TV.

Because I watch less TV, I try to make every random hour and half-hour count.

So here’s what I’m watching right now as well as what I’m anticipating, what I’ve given up on and what I’m worried about.

“Copper” is a BBC America series – the channel’s first original production – that just debuted last Sunday. It’s about cops in New York City in 1864. The city was a lawless place, full of casual cruelty to children and others who couldn’t defend themselves, and the police department wasn’t much better. Into the mix comes Kevin Corcoran (Tom Weston-Jones), an Irish-American veteran of the Civil War who has come back to the city to find his wife missing and his child dead. The series, which has a nice gritty tone, follows Corcoran as he investigates crimes – the murder of a child prostitute in the first episodes, for example – and patrols the grimy streets and brothels of the city.

“Justified” is returning for a fourth season sometime in early 2013 and it’s likely that our favorite Kentucky-born-and-bred U.S. marshal, Raylan Givens, and his longtime friend and sometimes antagonist, Boyd Crowder, will find themselves up against some new lowlife. Timothy Olyphant and Walton Goggins lead a great cast.

We don’t have to wait until next year to see “The Walking Dead.” The AMC series returns on Oct. 14 for its third season. The series will be split between the prison the survivors were near in the final episode of last season and the town of Woodbury, presided over by the Governor. The first eight episodes air this year, with eight more beginning in February.

I’m not sure when “Mad Men” and “Falling Skies” will be back – hopefully early in 2013 – but I’ll be watching the two very different series. Both came off solid seasons this year.

Few series have been as enjoyable in the past three years as NBC’s “Community,” an odd and offbeat show about a group of misfits who become friends in a study group at a second-rate community college. But I’m worried about “Community” this year after the departure of creator Dan Harmon. By most accounts a genius with people skills issues, Harmon got fired at the end of last season. The cast is great and the stories – complete with blanket forts, paintball apocalypses and genuinely nice character moments – are wonderful. But can the show survive without Harmon? Or will it become another kooky sitcom like “Scrubs?”

I’m not sure I’ll be around for a second season of “Longmire,” the A&E series based on Craig Johnson’s enjoyable series of mystery novels about a Wyoming sheriff. The show looked pretty good and the cast was fine, but the mysteries were mediocre. When the show did take a page from one of Johnson’s stories, as it did in the season finale, it didn’t bring the author’s charms.

I’m not sure I’m looking forward to anything on TV quite as much as a live-action Marvel Comics series set in the “Avengers” movie universe. Luke Cage? Daredevil? S.H.I.E.L.D? Where will creative genius and “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” mastermind Joss Whedon take this series? Wherever it is, I’m following.

The best part about TV is that, in any given season, some really terrific show can suddenly appear and make you glad you gave it a try. I’ve felt that way about every show on this list at one time or another.