Captain America 2 is now Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Thor 2 is now Thor: The Dark World!
Guardians of the Galaxy concept art!
Ben Kingsley as full on Mandarin!
Edgar Wright gives us the Ant-Man we have been longing for!
Don’t just sit there! check out the bleeding links already!
http://www.bleedingcool.com/2012/07/14/guardians-of-the-galaxy-concept-art-released/
SDCC is just full of surprises this year first a new Sandman series by Neil Gaiman now something almost as good in my opinion. Avengers: EMH is ending technically speaking but it’s far from over. The show will transition in to Avengers Assemble! The new show will be a continuation of the existing series that will expand the Avengers universe even further than ever before. Marvel has redeemed themselves but they gave us fans a hell of a scare to be certain. While there will be some retooling bringing the show somewhat closer to the cinematic universe it won’t reboot or alter anything the show has done so far. Geek Omnipresence is shining upon us people and it feels good!
Galactus has arrived and with him comes the end of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. Finally we arrive at the conclusion of the series and it is bittersweet to be sure. Without warning and against any kind of plot development what so ever the world eater himself comes to claim earth. The Avengers team up with just about every hero that was introduced this season to take him on but will they be enough? Galactus is a threat like no other that the team has faced a literal cosmic deity that wipes planets out of existence. His arrival is swift and his 4 heralds are all formidable opponents each wielding the power cosmic. Terrax is front and center essentially acting as Galactus’s mouth piece.
The episode is brief and to the point which is an unfortunate use of Galactus as a threat. His introduction should have been slowly revealed throughout the season building up to his arrival. By far the most disappointing thing about this episode is the lack of a certain former herald. The introduction of the Silver Surfer to the EMH universe seemed to be a sure thing and it just never happened and It makes Galactus less interesting because of it. So much of the story could have been improved by him being a part of it. Another some what odder issue is that Galactus never actually speaks at any point. I’m guessing we were supposed to feel as if he thought so little of the Avengers as a threat that he had no reason to address them directly.
The action of the episode is well paced and we do get some interesting moments but its all rushed. It also feels like the heralds were far under powered as they were rather easily dispatched. Having 4 heralds in the episode was strange to be sure since Galactus in the comics only had 1 primarily but this did change from time to time. In the end the way the heroes defeat him is pretty uninspired and seemingly way to easy. Overall it was an abbreviated episode with an equally abbreviated ending. As a series finale its a terrible let down and it leaves many hanging plot threads. The most obvious being the conclusion to the Surtr arc that was so painstakingly set up early in the season.
We may never know what could have been in store for Earth’s Mightiest show. I will look back fondly on the 1st season and on some episodes of the 2nd but i will always resent Marvel for cancelling their greatest animated accomplishment to date. A decision i feel may come back to haunt them if the new Avengers series doesn’t deliver what EMH did. Shutting down a show that had great ratings and a tremendous fan base because they wanted something more movie oriented seems short-sighted. They would be wise to remember the source material that started it all rather than focusing on the film’s box office. There is nothing wrong with trying to attract new viewers or a more mainstream audience but doing so at the expense of existing fans is not a smart move. Hopefully the new show steers clear of the many issues that plague Ultimate Spider-Man that is all i will say.
Final Score for “Avengers Assemble” 3 out of 5.
The Avengers face off against the Kree Supreme Intelligence and may have to “Live Kree or Die” Hard. Yes i had to make that joke… Moving on.
While this episode picks up where “Operation Galactic Storm” ended it’s only slightly better than it’s predecessor. The story shifts from the Avengers trying to protect earth’s solar system from the Kree incursion to trying to survive on the Kree home world Hala. Along the way simply surviving their stay on a planet where the entire civilization is hostile to them seems to take a back seat.
There are some heavy philosophical themes in this episode. The Avengers see the Kree as a race of militants bent on conquering that need to be shown another way. There isn’t anything necessarily wrong with thinking your way is better than others but essentially forcing an entire species to change based on that fact is way off center if you ask me. I guess since we are all earthlings(maybe) we are supposed to support the Avengers on this one. I had a real hard time trying to get around the subtext on this although i do tend to think to much about this kind of stuff.
The action in this episode gets pretty good at times especially when Thor goes full out on the entire Kree military. It does seem like his power level in this episode is kind of inconsistent to what we have seen before he is basically off the charts. The main villain of the episode would be the Kree Supreme Intelligence also known as Supremor a living computer comprised of the brains of the greatest kree scientists of all time. He’s weird i will say that not threatening in the way most villains are. He is based on logic a lot like Vulcans in Star Trek except to a much higher extreme. In the end however the person this episode is about more than any other is Captain Mar-Vell. It’s his choice that will ultimately shape the future of the Kree people.
There is a bit of a twist carried of from Galactic Storm that was kind of obvious involving a member of the team that appeared to die. Big surprise the rule of comic book deaths not being permanent applies to cartoons too. Otherwise everything else is quite bluntly straight forward. Some real consequences could have saved this episode from mediocrity and set up the team to find a new resolve. That’s just my opinion of course.
Final score for “Live Kree or Die” 3 out of 5.
The Kree final solution begins in “Operation Galactic Storm”. How a two-part episode like this made it in to the final four episodes of the series is beyond me. The Kree were easily the most forgettable part of the last 2 years. With the secret invasion ending up sub par it makes the decision to go back to the Kree seem completely unnecessary. While there were a few dangling plot threads i personally could have cared less about them. There were many other plots that could have been expanded on or addressed. Instead we get part 1 of 2 “Operation Galactic Storm”.
The Kree have finally decided to get off their butts and do something which is destroy our sun and therefore us. The episode lacks much and with little to make up for it.In fact off of the top of my head i can’t think of thing that really stuck out about it. Part 2 “Live Kree or Die” has way more action and stronger plot elements.
Having already seen the next 2 episodes after this one i can say that it gets better just not by much which is disappointing.
Final score for “Operation Galactic Storm” 2 out of 5
The countdown to the end of the series begins with “New Avengers”. It’s almost here folks the moment we as fans all dread the end. Thankfully the writers and staff of earth’s mightiest cartoon are sending us off with a BANG. Kang has escaped imprisonment with the help of one of the loosest plot elements the show has ever utilized and he is back to his conquering ways. This episode breaks us away from the core team in a truly spectacular way and brings us fan boy moments a plenty.
Characters we have yearned for make their debuts while familiar faces join them as the New Avengers bring the pain to Kang to save the world. If there is one thing i wish this episode had more of it would be Wolverine. While we saw James Howlett’s brief cameo at the beginning of the series in WW2 as the recon man of the Howling Commandos here we get the real deal. None of the other members of the team elicit the reaction that Wolverine does. Most of the face time is held by Spider-Man the defacto non leader of the group. Who does his best to reign in the other members of the ragtag team.
The plot of the episode is pretty weak overall a lot of it seems random and half thought through. I also have to again relate how much i dislike Drake Bell as the voice of Spider-Man. He is so high pitched and annoying that it actually seemed to throw the episode of kilter. There were also other characters that could have easily rounded out the roster that weren’t present like the Hulk and the new Ant-Man or hell I will even throw Red Hulk in there. Even with these minor issues “New Avengers” is a spectacle to behold. A mash up worthy of the final four episodes to say the least.
I really wish there were more episodes coming, more crossovers and new heroes to introduce. Avengers was close to being the perfect Marvel cartoon in so many ways. Final Score for “New Avengers” 4 out of 5.
It’s almost time to bid a Avengers :EMH a fond farewell. I will be updating the site with reviews of the final four episodes starting tomorrow with “New Avengers”. It has been one hell of a ride, it’s replacement Avengers:Assemble has a lot to live up to.
The Mystery of the Red Hulk comes to it conclusion in “The Deadliest Man Alive”. I wish Red Hulk had more screen time this season. They never seemed to peg his power level in the show compared to the comics. Basically he was literally just a Hulk that wasn’t green. No stronger than the original and no where near as interesting if you ask me.
This episode is about bringing the hulk back in to the Avengers fold. It honestly feels like they took their sweet time to do it. There were several instances in previous episodes that having the Hulk around could have helped. The unfortunate thing about “The Deadliest Man Alive” is that it doesn’t even further develop the Hulk’s character in anyway. Worst of all the fights that occur are small and barely show off how destructive a fight between the two Hulks could be. It feels like little effort was put in to the story even less so in it’s conclusion.
I have not been satisfied with many of the recent episodes of Avengers. This one is no different than the others in terms of quality.
“The Deadliest Man Alive” scores 2 out of 5 stars.
The (not) secrets of the Winter Soldier revealed! Since the first episode of Avengers that featured Cap we were teased with the appearance of the Winter Soldier. One of the most legitimately cool characters in Marvel comics today. What we finally get as far as an origin is somewhat similar but does differ in many respects. And while this episode does have the Red Skull in it its obvious its less about the Skull and more about how he has affected Captain America and Bucky respectively.
There are technically two stories here one that follows Captain America and the Winter Soldier and another with the rest of the Avengers. The “Sleepers” are the supposed threat of this episode. Giant robots that are somehow basically invulnerable without ever explaining why or how. They are the Skull’s contingency plan in the event his brilliant plot as Dell Rusk failed. That’s right the semi-intelligent plan he threw away just to gloat at Captain America face to face. If that wasn’t stupid enough the final group of Sleeper robots combine to what i like to call the Skulltronic. A voltron like gestalt robot that is just ridiculously stupid looking and stronger than all the Avengers put together.
In the end we are left pretty much where we started out. The Red Skull is back in custody the day is saved and the Winter Soldier makes a cool exit. There are a few cool moments that we learn from Nick Fury in this episode mostly brief stuff about the Soldier’s career including how he was responsible for Nick losing his eye. On a side note i would like to point out that the new S.H.I.E.L.D base on Hydra Island is basically the worst guarded military complex on the planet. There is another example of why i believe this coming up in “The Deadliest Man Alive”.
Final Score for “Winter Soldier” 3 out of 5.
A foe from Captain America’s past finally catches up to him in “Code Red”. This episode is bitter sweet for many reasons. I have personally been waiting with great anticipation for the Red Skull to return. The story is an obvious rush job which really works against it. There is no way that anyone could excuse the rapid pace that this episode unfolds in. This should have been an arc that was part of a larger season similar to the way season 1 was broken down. Instead its a single episode that barely had any set up and that’s what works against it the most.
The largest plot hole is the most apparent from a story stand point. The Red Skull has been working in secret the entire time Captain America was frozen and during his time with the Avengers. He has 50 plus years of preparation and countless resources at his disposal. Instead of continuing to build up his forces and simply working slowly to discredit the Avengers standing he decides to throw it all away on a direct attack. One that clues Captain America off instantly that the Skull has returned. He even goes as far as to bring Captain America to the pentagon to gloat directly to his face.
With the proper development and seeding this should have been THE defining Arc for Captain America and maybe the show in general. Instead it was an abrupt and unsatisfying conclusion. Final Score 2 out of 5.
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