Film Enimga: 31 Days of Monster Mania: Day 16: Ultimate Spider-man: Web Warriors Halloween Special

Written by Stu Cooper

Last year I covered the Ultimate Spider-man Halloween special which ended up being incredibly entertaining. Last year Spider-man had a run-in with a werewolf,Frankenstein, and Dracula! It will be hard to top that. This year's special is called "Halloween at the Museum" and apparently features an animated version of a Disney show called "Jessie". I don't keep up with modern children's shows other than a few cartoons, so I have no idea who these people are. It really feels like those old Scooby Doo specials where they have a random celebrity appearance like the classic Batman or Harlem Globetrotters. These kids are not quite as cool. Although immediately I notice one of the kids in the group is in a Doctor Octopus costume, which gave me a brief smile.

The special starts with Jessie and her group touring a local museum late at night. The group accidentally messes with an archaic sword and it activates some kind of ghostly spirit. The spirit collides with Spider-man, and the opening credits hit! Definitely feeling like a scooby doo episode. Messing with the sword ends up waking up a witch who thanks the group for their help, then immediately threatens to destroy and conquer them all. Spider-man quickly subdues the witch and doesn't take her seriously. She gets free of her webbed restraints and proceeds to go psychotic. She casts a spell that causes parts of the museum to come alive!

For some reason this museum is full of the most nightmarish exhibits imaginable starting with a giant worm that attacks Spider-man and Jessie. Also There's one kid in Jessie's group who seems to be a gigantic Indian stereotype. He makes mention that in his homeland, they have cobras instead of worms. Cause he's Indian...get it? Pretty low-brow stuff. The next monster they encounter is a gigantic Jack'O Lantern demon who I'm assuming is the Ghost of Sleepy Hollow. Also a bit unusual that any museum would have a Sleep Hollow exhibit, but I went with it. Later Spider-man beats up some cave men who kidnap Jessie, then he immediately has to fight living dinosaur bones. It seems to be a "Best of" random Scooby Doo-esque villains.

After running the museum gauntlet Spider-man, Jessie, and friends are confronted by the evil witch again. The witch remains confident she'll conquer the world despite the fact that Spider-man just whooped all of her monsters. The witch demonstrates her power by summoning a gigantic dragon to attack the group. While Spider-man fights off the dragon, Jessie uses the special sword to battle the witch. Jessie throws down a bunch of one liners and whips out some Sailor Moon fighting moves, tho she is not a super hero. Despite Jessie's fighting skills the witch shrugs Jessie off and vows to black out the sky, and turn the world into a modern Camelot. After befriending the indian boy, the dragon decides to turn against the witch and distracts her while Jessie puts the sword back into the magical spot. This imprisons the witch once again. Basically teaching the lesson that you should never...ever touch the museum exhibits.

The special goes by rather quickly and is only 30 minutes compared to last year's one hour special. This special felt pretty generic and definitely aimed at a younger audience. Not much to take from this special, and no legendary villains or monsters to be impressed by. I would say this is a sad excuse for a Halloween special and you'd be better off seeking out the "Spider-man and Friends" Dracula episode or last year's special. If you're a fan of the Disney show Jessie, you may feel differently. The special mainly focused on her and since I've only seen that show in passing, I had little frame of reference for it. It seemed pretty lowbrow and dumb, but then again this is a children's show. Give it a shot if you see it on a Saturday afternoon.

Dreamcast Anniversary: Top 10 Dreamcast Games

Written by Stu Cooper

Today marks the Anniversary of the Sega Dreamcast launch and I thought I'd take the time to think back on this wonderful system. The Sega Dreamcast was a true underdog console that actually revolutionized gaming in several different ways. The console was released September 9th, 1999 which was just a few months before the Playstation 2 release. The Dreamcast had some stiff competition ahead of them not only with Playstation but Xbox and the Gamecube. With that said, I won't be focusing on why the system failed, I want today to be about the positive things the console left behind.

The console featured the ability to get online which enabled owners the ability to surf the web and play games online. I remember playing around on the internet at a friends and having my mind blown because it wasn't AOL! When the console was first released Sega created the Dreamcast logo and decided to put that logo on all the boxes instead of the Sega logo. This was because of the huge commercial failures Sega had with the 32x and Saturn. Sega attempted to disassociate themselves with those consoles and wanted a fresh start with the Dreamcast. The system was very user friendly, and was very compact. The size is nice when compared to systems like the Playstation 2 and original XBOX which are extremely bulky and heavy in comparison. Almost immediately after the launch developers started releasing some pretty fun games. Some of the games like Crazy Taxi and WWF Royal Rumble were direct Arcade ports, while other games started with the Dreamcast and eventually moved to the PS2 or Xbox. Let's run down some of those remarkable games. I will be counting down what I consider to be the best Dreamcast games out there. There are quite a few gems, so choosing just 10 proved to be difficult.

10. Sonic Adventure

If there is one character that every Sega fan is familiar with, it's Sonic. In Sonic's Adventure you got to play as Sonic but you also get to play as 5 other characters throughout the game. The game was one of the first fully 3-D Sonic games and that provided some pretty intense chase sequences, even one with a giant killer whale. That level makes you feel like you are in Indiana Jones and you're running away from the giant ball! Of course the main enemy of the game is Dr.Robotnik...why won't he just die?! The game breathed new life into the Sonic character and opened the box for more 3D sequels.

9. Power Stone 2

Power Stone 2 was 4 player fighting game that was ported from the Arcade to the Dreamcast, like several other titles. The game featured the ability to have 4 people fighting on screen at once as opposed to the normal 2 characters. The game also featured the ability to pick up items and use them on your opponent. You could pick up chairs, tables, rocks, etc. The game also features the ability to interact with stages, like hopping into cannons that you can use to fire on your opponent. To add more chaos to the mayhem, you can also pick up weapons like a hammer,axe, and flame thrower! With four people playing at once this game is some good ole fashioned arcade fighting fun.

8. Jet Set Radio (Jet Grind Radio)

Jet Set Radio is a beautifully fun skating game with a twist. In the game you play a young punk who is part of a gang in Tokyo. Instead of unleashing gang violence you skate around town and tag parts of the city with graffiti! You will encounter rival gangs, police, and bosses throughout your journey. The game is strangely addictive and kind of feels like an anime version of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater. The art style is absolutely unique and I think that's a big part of what makes this game so memorable. This is a must have for any Dreamcast owner. In fact, most people I knew that had the system, owned this game as well.

7. Ready 2 Rumble Boxing

Ready 2 Rumble was an over the top boxing game developed by Midway. It was an arcade style boxing game like Punchout, but instead of being one single character, you are able to pick from a variety of personalities created for the game. The more memorable ones were guys like Afro Thunder, Boris the Bear, and secret characters like Michael Jackson! The game also featured the voice and appearance of world famous announcer Michael Buffer, which gives it a cool official vibe. Each player would have a special move they could use whenever their rumble meter was full. They were often unrealistic crazy movies, almost fatality level. It was a great game and a lot of fun if you have a buddy over.

6. Resident Evil Code Veronica

The fourth game in the Resident Evil series saw a slightly different approach. The completely 3-D backgrounds made for a crisp and beautiful experience. Some actually consider this one of the better looking games in the series. The game focused on Claire Redfield who was the main character in Resident Evil 2. This game was remembered for it's intense difficulty and badass villains. The villain that gets the most attention is a creepy terminator-esque Tyrant man named Wesker. If you can some how make it to him in the game, I suggest playing him with the lights out! If you want a good zombie survival experience on this console, you can't beat Code Veronica.

5. Typing of the Dead

Speaking of awesome Zombie related things, this game is an absolute gem. "House of the Dead" is a very popular arcade series where you shoot zombies with a light gun as fast as possible. Well "Typing Of The Dead" was a sequel that used a keyboard instead of a light gun. Sounds weird right? Well It was actually a blast! You would have to type words to defeat enemies and sometimes even full sentences. The further you got into the game, the more awkward the words get. Boss fights are especially rewarding because you have to type as fast as you can, and the AI will throw some bizarre sentences at you. I highly recommend picking this one up. It's an odd and addicting game.

4. Soul Calibur

Soul Calibur is the second in the now famous Soul series. The game was developed by Project Soul but produced by Namco. It started out as an arcade exclusive but then it was ported to the Sega Dreamcast with updated graphics and a bigger roster. The game was basically a 3-D weapon fighting game. It was like Tekken with weapons. The game featured many interesting characters that would later become iconic as the series continued. My personal favorite would have to be the boss of the game "Cervantes". The story is kind of hard to pick up on in the game, but it apparently is all about possessing the "Soul Edge" sword, which is held by Cervantes and eventually turns another character into "Nightmare". The gameplay was almost identical to Tekken except for the inclusion of weapons. The weapons would provide a deeper element to the moves. This game is about as fun as it gets and if you grew up going to Pizza Hut, you probably played this in their lobby at some point. You can't go wrong with a "Soul" game.

3. Crazy Taxi

In the game Crazy Taxi you play a taxi driver who likes to play things close to the edge. You are basically in some type of cartoon world where you can drive like a maniac, get outrageous speed and high jumps, and above all else you get to pick up random people. You will be tasked with delivering certain people to certain places in a short span. This is what causes you to amp things up. Not only is the driving a blast, but the world you play in is also a lot of fun. The range of people you pick up are endless. It's quite funny when the passenger comments on your driving skills, or in some cases their brush with death. Another big highlight of this game would have to be the soundtrack! It's mostly a bunch of Offspring songs that mesh PERFECTLY with the tone and pace of the game. The main track is stuck in my head as I type this.

2. Shenmue

Perhaps one of the most beautiful titles of it's time, Shenmue was a game that many instantly fell in love with. It was an action adventure game that featured nonlinear gameplay that would allow you to walk and do whatever you wanted. This was executed beautifully in the game, but it would come at a cost. The game was one of the most expensive in history! It cost 47 million dollars to produce, which is about 65 million adjusting for inflation. Unfortunately while there was a sequel, the game creators never got to complete the trilogy, most likely due to financial losses on the game. I had heard somewhere that almost every dreamcast owner would have to buy 2 copies of Shenmue for them to make their money back. It's quite sad because it really was a remarkable game that opened the door to many other games like it. I think it was really before it's time.

The gameplay revolved around a young guy named Ryo who is trying to solve the death of this father. You escalate the story by traveling around the city and finding different items. In terms of combat it has a nice 3-D RPG feel to it, as you fight the Yakuza and street thugs, then eventually you solve the mystery. It was a very deep game for it's time and it was very easy to get immersed in it. Fans of the game are still hoping and praying that someday we will finally see the completion of the series.

1. Marvel Vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes

Now I know this may be a controversial pick for number one, but I just had to do it. I've dumped countless hours into this game, and I've got the thumb blisters to prove it! This game is possibly one of the best sequels in gaming history. The original Marvel vs. Capcom was your basic 2-D fighter but featured comic book characters squaring off against characters owned by Capcom. It was quite a cool idea and it allowed fans to live out dream matches. The sequel took this idea and increased the roster ten fold. You get to pick a team of 3 characters and you battle your way through some pretty epic combinations of characters.

The game became famous on the arcades and was eventually ported to the Dreamcast, then later on other consoles. Many consider the Dreamcast version to be the definitive version and the one that reminds people the most of the arcade. Not only was the gameplay an absolute blast, but the competition was also very steep. The game became so popular that it spawned a series of gaming tournaments, where the best face off. I never was one for playing against strangers in the arcade, plus if they know combos you're probably going to lose anyways. To top the game off, it features an extremely catchy menu select song which I'll post below. All of these things combined with the adrenaline rush of fighting as fast as you can, make for the perfect Dreamcast experience!

Honorable Mentions:

Well folks that wraps up our list for today, but please comment and tell me what were some of your favorite Dreamcast games? Do you agree with my list?

X-MEN: Days of Future Past Review

Written By Brandon Pershing

Its the midnight premiere of X-men: First Class during the summer of 2011, and I remember having waited so anxiously to see the much hyped film. When the credits ended, and the projector shut down I was still sitting on the edge of my seat, amazed by the superhuman action that had just shredded its way across the screen. I remember just being in complete shock how well the casting of James Mcavoy and Michael Fassbender enhanced the entire X-men saga, and more than anything I wanted to see the cast reunite again for a sequel. Cut three years and another Wolverine spinoff later, and my wish was granted far more than expected.

Days of Future past is hands down the best X-men film, and it deserves that distinction for a good reason. Its a movie that transcends just the superhero genre, as it is a stellar film regardless of the big MARVEL branding that comes along with it. The film not only bridges the gap between the younger and older X-men casts, but also successfully revitalizes the X-men franchise itself. DOFP operates as a unique hybrid movie, being a prequel/sequel/reboot, a strange conglomeration of many different elements that ultimately make even the general idea of the film interesting. Set both in a far dystopian future and the Nixon era 1970s, the plot takes moviegoers on a time bending adventure to right the wrongs done to the mutants of both eras. While the time traveling element of the film does sometimes get confusing, audiences will likely love getting to see such drastically different X-men teams come together to fight enemies of both eras. Leading the bad guys is Peter Dinklage's character Bolivar Trask, a mutant hating scientist who has nothing much on his mind but creating giant killer robots.

While the inclusion of the Game of Thrones star in this film was awesome to see, Trask as a character is ultimately quite boring next to more memorable movie villains. Most of the time Trask can be seen making robust statements about his distaste for mutants, or showing off his robot army to potential clients. Trask’s robotic creations, called sentinels, on the other hand are much more exciting, as they are nearly indestructible ruthless butcherers who will indeed kill many of your favorite characters in the most heinous ways.

Speaking of mutants, Hugh Jackman returns for his seventh outing as Wolverine, and once again offers another great performance as his most famous character. This time around he operates much more in the background, and lets his other team members shine for once. This was both a fantastic and disappointing choice by director Bryan Singer, as its great to see more focus on James Mcavoy’s Professor X and Michael Fassbender’s Magneto, but the battle worn wolverine seen in this film was the closest to the comic books the character has gotten since the start of the series in 2000. The rest of the cast is very much at home and featured normally throughout, however its obvious that the film favors showing off the prequel cast more, as the past is where the duration of the plot takes place. The real breakout star of the film however was Evan Peter’s Quicksilver. A super fast mutant who steals the spotlight every scene he is in, Peter’s Quicksilver will likely become a new fan favorite, especially after viewers see him featured in one of the best slow motion action sequences ever.

Overall, Days of Future Past is going to amaze every type of moviegoer that walks into the theater. Its a visual treat in its entirety, and longtime fans of the X-men comic books will be pleased at the faithful character representations featured throughout. The film shows just how to remarket and revitalize a struggling series into a hollywood game changer, and is going to get fans on their heels for 2016’s X-men Apocalypse.

Film Enigma is now officially on Facebook!

Written by Stu Cooper

I figured it was time to get with the times and create an official facebook page for FILM ENIGMA. I will be posting extra content on the page such as discussion topics, pictures, and videos. I will also use the page as a community and place for fellow cinemaphiles to converse. I actually encourage those who love film, television, comics, pop culture, etc. to head on over to the page and contribute! The more conversation, the better. I will also use the page to post all of the new updates to the blog, so you can keep up with Film Enigma in your daily feed. Please Like, Share, Comment, and Enjoy!

Monster Mania Day 13: Ultimate Spider-man: Meet Blade And The Howling Commandos

Written by Stu Cooper

It's time to discuss the first Halloween special of the season! This one came on Disney XD last week and should be repeated several times before Halloween. The special was called "Ultimate Spider-man: And The Howling Commandos". It was actually just a two-parter of the actual Ultimate Spider-man cartoon that is on it's third season. The show itself is actually really good and high quality. The stories are pretty intense and it has a lot of humor. The artwork and effects are also top notch. The guy who plays Agent Coulson even voices himself on the show. It's not quite as good as the Avengers show that ended a year ago, but it's easily the best superhero show on TV right now.

The two-parter starts off with Spider-man and his friends (Luke Cage, Iron Fist, etc) all goofing off late at night when they are suddenly attacked by vampire like monsters. The monsters keep coming and coming and are putting up a pretty good fight. The group investigates where these vampires are coming from and that leads them to the one and only...the man, the myth, the legend...DRACULA! Dracula doesn't exactly look like his Bela Lugosi self. He actually looks more like a form of Dracula from one of the Castlevania games. He is covered in armor and has long white hair. Pretty menacing looking and of course he thinks Spider-man and his friends are mere peons. Dracula's plan is to basically turn the entire world into his army of vampire minions, and he is also looking for some kind of device to help him. It's soon after we meet Dracula that things pick up even more when BLADE shows up! That's right, the Daywalker is in town. To be honest this Halloween Special was about 10x better than Blade Trinity.

What unfolds after this is absolute madness. Many of Spider-man's friends (Iron Fist, Luke Cage, etc) get put under Dracula's spell and start fighting on his side. This leaves Spider-man and Blade outnumbered but don't worry Nick Fury has a plan! He introduces Spider-man to another super hero group that most of us probably don't know about, The Howling Commandos! Yeah I haven't heard of these guys either, but apparently they are real and are all marvel characters. The team is made up of Man-Thing, Werewolf by Night, The Living Mummy, and of course Frankenstein's Monster! The group is almost identical to the Universal Monsters we all know and love, except they have amped up powers or in Frankenstein's case...MACHINE GUNS! At this point the story gets pretty goofy, but I don't want to spoil it. Let's just say the special is essentially Spiderman vs. The Monster Squad. If you like either one of those things, you will be very pleased. The special is set to air 2-3 times between now and Halloween, so I highly suggest DVRing it. It's nice to see shows still doing original Halloween Specials instead of just replaying old stuff. Upon doing a bit of research I actually found out Spider-man and Dracula have interacted a few times in the past, in the comics and in the old "Spider-man and His Amazing Friends" cartoon (which is GOLD). I believe the Dracula episode of the old cartoon is on Netflix, so you could always check that one out.

After the Credits: The Wolverine (Spoilers ahead)

Taking a look at the Wolverine after Credits Scene

Written By Brandon Pershing

Have you ever finished something wanting more? You paid your hard earned cash to see a film, and you get to the end, and you just think “If there was only more”. Apparently Hollywood has had this thought as well, because a recent trend pushing after credits scenes in movies has become the new status quo for superhero films and summer blockbusters. The Wolverine is a high octane comic book adventure that will surely make audiences happy they chose to spend the price of a movie ticket on it. But, once you see the after credits scene, you will likely be more happy you spent the price of a ticket to see a small three minute clip than the movie itself!

The scene takes place over two years after the movie, in which time audiences can assume that Wolverine had gone on several adventures all around the world. Wolverine gets off an aiplane, and enters the airport, where he is about to walk through a metal detector. Before our hero can however, he notices several items floating, all which are made of metal. While such occurrences surely aren’t shocking to a member of the X-men, Wolverine still seems slightly puzzled as to what is going on. This is only short lived however because soon he unleashes his claws (still made of bone) and attempts to slash them at the only person it could be, which is Magneto. Magneto instantly pauses wolverine’s offensive maneuver by controlling the metal in his body. Magneto then offers wolverine the notion that an unforeseen enemy has plotted to destroy mutant kind, and that wolverine must join as a force of resistance for the onslaught. Before wolverine can even make his mind up, he notices the people around him have all frozen in place, similar to the museum scene in X2. Then wheels in Professor Xavier, who thanks to the after credits, scene in X-men: The last stand is still alive unbeknownst to wolverine. Professor X also makes it clear to Wolverine that he and Magneto are actually working together, and that they need Wolverines help. Then sadly the credits begin to roll again, and the movie is officially over. (a photo of Chris Claremont’s Days of future past comic)

For audiences who don’t already know, the next X-men movie coming out is “Days of Future Past” which is set in a future that may or may not happen. The scene in Wolverine sets the foundation for this movie to happen, with the mutant resistance being founded by the three men. What exactly are they resisting however? The answer is actually in Chris Claremont’s 1980’s “Days of Future Past” X-men story arc where most mutants have been killed off by the classic robotic villains; the sentinels. In a nod to this enemy becoming a threat, as Wolverine walks through the airport in the movie, eagle eyed individuals can actually spot a television advertisement for robotics made by the Trask Company. People who are familiar with the X-men comic book will get this reference, as Bolivar Trask was the founder of the Trask Company, and creator of the evil Sentinels.

In all, the after credits scene was made to make comic book and movie fans alike excited for next summer’s adaptation of Chris Claremont’s popular X-men story arc of the same name. With the foundation of the new mutant resistance, the next movie will easily be able to build upon this team up, and definitely be representative of yet another classic X-men story. Let’s just hope Wolverine can get his adamantium claws back in the next movie!

BONUS! Days of Future Past from the original animated X-men:

The Avengers (2012) Review

Written by Stuart Cooper

The Avengers (2012) Starring: Robert Downey Jr, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlet Johannson, Samuel L. Jackson, Mark Ruffalo, Tim Hiddleston

I never thought this day would come. I can remember being a young child and hoping I would see live action versions of my favorite heroes…The X-men, The Silver Surfer, Iron Man, Thor, Captain America…it all seemed like a fantasy. Little did I know that years later all of these hero films would become a reality. While all of their incarnations may not have been classics, they were brought to life none the less. If someone told me that in 2012 we would be seeing the ultimate marvel-team up movie, I would have laughed in their face. Now I am sitting here trying to wrap my brain around what I just witnessed. My entire childhood wrapped into 2 hours and 35 minutes. The film I am referring to is of course “The Avengers”, which is being released nationwide in 2-D, and 3-D IMAX. The film collects all of the major Marvel Film Stars (aside from War Machine’s unexcused absence). Robert Downey Jr. returns as the very charismatic Tony Stark (Iron Man), Chris Hemsworth returns as Thor, Samuel L. Jackson returns as Nick Fury, Chris Evans returns as Captain America (not his human torch alternate personality), Scarlett Johansson returns as The Black Widow, Mark Ruffalo as the Hulk, and Jeremy Rinner as Hawkeye. That is quite the all-star list if you ask me. One cast member that I believe deserves the most credit is Tim Hiddleston as the unstoppable mega villain LOKI! Now I am going to try my absolute best to avoid any spoilers, I will be giving away some basic storyline elements but to be honest you probably picked up that much from the trailers.

The conflict begins when Loki, who survived at the end of Thor, is shown making a deal with an alien race called The Chitauri. The deal involves him leading an army through a portal connected to Earth and ultimately conquering it. This idea is threatening enough that Nick Fury calls upon The Avenger plan and organizes an elite group of super heroes. The film takes it’s time catching up with each member of the team. We see that Tony Stark has just finished building Stark Tower (which is involved in the comic books quite a bit), Captain America is still adjusting to his new time, Hawkeye is working for S.H.I.E.L.D. as well as Black Widow, and Bruce Banner is off in a third world country helping others with his doctor talents, keeping the beast at bay. After Loki makes his presence known on earth, Nick Fury races to assemble the team. The film really kicks off the action fairly quickly as we see Loki go at it with a few of the Avengers, and there is some cool Hero vs. Hero sequences that I don’t want to spoil. The Hero vs. Hero scenes get quite heated and interesting. As an audience member I almost found myself begging these guys to get their acts together so they could function better as a team. The fact that I felt such emotion so soon into the film is proof that Joss Whedon definitely knew what he was doing with this film.

Most of the film is spent on the conflict between Loki and The group, but we do get a few moments of background story on Black Widow and Hawkeye. One character I was particularly pleased with was Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner. I was not impressed with the casting choice at first because Ruffalo hasn’t really done any films other than “Blindness” that I really cared for. I am happy to admit I was very wrong and he does a fantastic job with The Hulk character. Ruffalo makes the audience feel true sympathy for the Bruce Banner character. Many think it would be wonderful to have the strength and power of The Hulk, but for Bruce it is a true nightmare and he makes that very clear. There is even a slightly tear jerking moment where Bruce discusses his unhappiness with the group. The Hulk character was done perfectly. One worry I had was that there would simply be too many characters and they would suffer as a result, but Whedon does a great job juggling all of these characters at once. The team is constantly at odds and playing off one another and it comes off quite natural. Robert Downey Jr. definitely shines as Tony Stark and is the most charismatic and comfortable character on screen. It’s evident that he is the best actor when he is in the room with the whole team, talking circles around them. There are so many little jokes here and there between the team members; I can’t even start listing them. You really have to see it for yourself. Chris Evans as Captain America is quite fun. He sticks to the choir boy persona and stays true to all the things that Captain America stands for. There is a part in the movie in which Thor and Captain America exchange remarks about God and Captain says something along the lines of “well I only believe in One God and he isn’t like you and your brother”. I’m of course paraphrasing but it was quite the odd thing for him to say. There is also a moment where Stark is poking fun at Banner and asking him what his key to calmness is and he suggests that he may have a big bag of weed on him! So the jokes are definitely in there, and make for great banter between action sequences.

While there is a lot of humor, there are also some tense moments that had underlying themes I felt like. There is some references to the earth being in trouble because we need a renewable energy source (which is true), there is a remark Loki makes about humans spending a lot of time killing each other (which is true), and the one comment I thought was quite chilling; an alien says that “humans cannot be ruled because they are unruly”. These kinds of remarks added a layer of reality to the film and made me reflect a bit on human characteristics. Hawkeye as a character was just kind of there, I felt like he had a cool gimmick but I really didn’t care for the character. Hawkeye’s S.H.I.E.L.D. counterpart however ,The Black Widow (Johannson) really impressed me. Not only does she ooze sex appeal the entire time, but she whoops so much ass, you will have to appreciate her character. Although if you want to get technical, it doesn’t make much sense seeing as she has average fire power and no super powers, but she can move like Spider-man and she proves to be a valuable part of the team. One last cast member I want to talk about is Clark Gregg as Agent Coulson, whom you may remember from all of the previous marvel films. This character really becomes quite likeable and has quite a few lines that will give you a chuckle. I enjoyed that character in this film more than I did the other appearances. So if you are looking for quality characters, this film has definitely got it.

Now let’s talk about what everybody came to the party for, the action! The action sequences in this film are absolutely breathtaking. I’m often left unfulfilled with the final fights in Marvel films. Too often is it just a few moves and boom it’s over within a minute. This is not the case with The Avengers. It’s as if all the Marvel films leading up to this were prequels and they were saving the fighting for this installment. If you want destruction, you got it, if you want crazy superpower battles, you got it, if you want beautiful C.G.I. and not Indiana Jones aliens, you got it. The Avengers delivers in every aspect. The fight scenes will leave you on the edge of your seat! I don’t often say things out loud during a film but I found myself yelling “Oh No!” and “Yeah!” quite a few times. It really had me fully immersed in the Marvel Universe.

I really hope all the comic book fans check this film out in theaters. It is really one of those movies you have to see in a theater setting first, so don’t hold off for Redbox, get your ass in the car, shill out the 7 bucks for a matinee showing, and enjoy yourself. If you grew up a fan of any of these characters, or if you are a new comic book fan, or even a casual action film fan, you will enjoy this movie. I said it before and I will say it again, this is the PERFECT super hero film. Without a doubt, The Avengers is a must-see.