Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)

[BatmanBeatles]

I hope this isn't the petty Marvel fanboy side of me but I almost felt as though watching the Avengers actively try to save civilians during the destruction of Sokovia/attack on Wakanda was a direct response to Man of Steel. I think we had more people being saved in this one than the last and it was so deliberate. Tony saying that he needed to get the Hulk out of the city and Cap and Thor teaming up to save one person. It was so great to see heroes acting like heroes.

I also liked how scared people looked after the big fight with Iron Man and Hulk. With some resentment thrown in.

[Dandesun]

I also liked how scared people looked after the big fight with Iron Man and Hulk. With some resentment thrown in.

 

Which just added to Bruce's despair. Rightly so but, man, I really felt for him.

 

The other thing is that Marvel has been pretty on board with protecting civilians from jump. This isn't a reaction to Man of Steel. It's been a major factor in most of their movies. It started with Iron Man when Tony went specifically to save a civilian populace from the people using his tech to terrorize them. Thor offered himself to the Destroyer in order to protect the town he was in as well as his friends. They were actively working to keep civilians away from the action or saving them in Avengers. The Winter Soldier was all about Hydra declaring war on civilians that might possibly be a threat due to Zola's algorithm. The Guardians of the Galaxy teamed up to rescue an entire planet from the destruction of the Power Stone. What's more, Avengers also acknowledged the destruction and loss of life that resulted in the Chitauri invasion. 

 

A lot of those were before Man of Steel. It's not so much that Marvel is trying to actively work against the legitimate issue of that movie... it's a combination of things. A) Marvel's always done that and B) when a Superman movie involves that much destruction and no acknowledgement of the loss of life therein... that's a huge problem.

[kirinan]

Bruce just waltzed in and freed her, it was odd.

 

It was so easy that I leaned over and whispered to my husband, "That can't be the real Bruce." But it was him. I thought that was odd, too.

 

This is, I'm sure, the Agent Carter fangirl in me, but that scene of Cap claiming his dance with Peggy was my favorite in the entire movie and made my heart ache. Captain America: The First Avenger will always be my favorite of the Marvel movies, so I loved getting that little bit of closure, even if it was false.

 

Other than that I really enjoyed the entire movie, although I have to be honest, there was just too much CGI for me. Even my husband agreed that there was SO much going on that sometimes it was hard to keep track of what was what. But I did appreciate the look into everyone's characters. Oh, and I thought James Spader was a perfect Ultron voice; very creepy, yet funny with the snarkiness.

 

I would definitely see the movie again--and will, I'm sure. 

Edited May 3, 2015 by kirinan

[JessePinkman]

The other thing is that Marvel has been pretty on board with protecting civilians from jump. This isn't a reaction to Man of Steel. It's been a major factor in most of their movies. It started with Iron Man when Tony went specifically to save a civilian populace from the people using his tech to terrorize them. Thor offered himself to the Destroyer in order to protect the town he was in as well as his friends. They were actively working to keep civilians away from the action or saving them in Avengers. The Winter Soldier was all about Hydra declaring war on civilians that might possibly be a threat due to Zola's algorithm. The Guardians of the Galaxy teamed up to rescue an entire planet from the destruction of the Power Stone. What's more, Avengers also acknowledged the destruction and loss of life that resulted in the Chitauri invasion.

A lot of those were before Man of Steel. It's not so much that Marvel is trying to actively work against the legitimate issue of that movie... it's a combination of things. A) Marvel's always done that and B) when a Superman movie involves that much destruction and no acknowledgement of the loss of life therein... that's a huge problem.

So it WAS the Marvel fanboy in me. Lol

The thing we're always supposed to pull from superhero battles where property is damaged is that no one actually dies (I believe there was a plot point in a Hulk comic book that even with all the destruction he's caused over the years no civilian ever died), which of course doesn't translate to the "real world" treatment of the movie universe. So I really appreciate that they have the heroes going out of their way to be...heroic.

[Ceindreadh]

So remembering last Avengers movie (and I think all of the others), I sat through the ridiculously long credits for the very end of credits scene. I was so mad that there was no very end of the credits scene. (Ok there was but the phrase "The Avengers Will Return didn't work for me)

 

 

 

Halfway through the end credits, one of the cinema staff (who were waiting to come in and clean up) shouted out that there wasn't anything after the credits.  I'm pretty sure that of the people still there at that point, nobody left! 

 

(I get that they wanted to get in and clean up before the next showing, but when I fork out for 3D IMAX, you bet I'm getting my money's worth ;-)

[frenchtoast]

Saw it yesterday and thoroughly enjoyed it. I'm still amazed at how they can have such heartbreaking scenes with all the big action packed scenes. And how those emotional scenes play into the action scenes. As wrong as Tony was, his motivation was understandable. And his scene with Fury in the barn broke my heart a little. For all the bravado and quips, I got the feeling that he feels he doesn't measure up. Like he said to Fury, he failed. I really felt for him. And the image of the Hulk alone in the jet broke my heart, too. I was shocked by Pietro's death, but appreciated Hawkeye's numb response to it. But dang, I may have gasped. No, didn't see that coming.

 

I'm also glad I saw it with a packed theater. The reaction to Vision holding Thor's hammer (I can't spell it) was awesome--everyone went,"Ooohhh" and then laughed at the reaction. There was cheering and lots of laughing. It was great.

 

I'm debating whether to see it again. It feels like it will stand up to repeat to viewings, but the bank account might say no.

 

We have stayed to the end since before Marvel started with the Easter eggs, so we stayed even though we knew there was no end credits scene.

[KatWay]

 

As wrong as Tony was, his motivation was understandable. And his scene with Fury in the barn broke my heart a little. For all the bravado and quips, I got the feeling that he feels he doesn't measure up. Like he said to Fury, he failed. I really felt for him.

I think Tony is doomed to forever feel like he's not doing enough to make up for his past. I wonder if there were any cut scenes that made more of the fact that it was Stark Tech that had destroyed that place long ago. The twins brought it up, but I suppose it would have played into Tony's renewed obsessive interest in making the world safe as well, with Scarlett Witch's vision pushing him over the edge.

[Rick Kitchen]

Tony is just like his father, as far as the scenes from Agent Carter are concerned.  Howard was haunted by how his inventions are being used.

[MisterGlass]

A few hours removed from seeing the movie, I think it was a reasonably solid sequel that worked well enough inspite of being stuffed to the seams.  If one other character had been added I think all the spinning plates would have fallen.  The camaraderie between the characters really sold the film and held together moments that wouldn't have worked without it.  I complement the film for all the cameos that felt simple and natural, from Falcon to Carter to the tech who stood up to Rumlow.  I think they did a good job setting up the idea that the Avengers line-up is fluid, and that is something that is essential for Marvel going forward.

 

The emotional touches were very well done, and I don't mind that the film had a more somber tone.  I buy the relationship between Banner and Romanoff because as others have said they are of equal standing, and interact easily and honestly with each other.  I can believe that sometimes both of them just want to escape, especially after having been influenced by the Scarlet Witch.  They deserved more time to develop this, and I keep thinking that if Marvel had committed to a Black Widow movie after the CA:TWS this would have been an interesting aspect of that.  She did say at the end of that, after having been revealed to the world, that she needed some time, and I'm not sure she had enough before the continuing fight against Hydra.  I don't think reaching out for another person weakened Natasha.  She remained in control, and when the chips were down she made sure that both of them showed up to the fight.  That's part of why Banner left.  Natasha is still comitted to erasing the red in her ledger, and he's terrified of adding more to his if he stays.  They were both sad, but Natasha was back to business with Cap when the moment called for it.

 

Her line about Stark and Rogers still staring into each others' eyes was a good jab.  Evans and Downey played off each other well.  I'm glad Cap kept the spark from his last movie and continues to be the leader.  Stark stayed in a darker vein here.  Persuasive as he is, he was on the verge of bullying Banner into their collaborations.  Mark Ruffalo played everything well, and I'm glad he got an opportunity to show humor, awkwardness, and melancholy.  I liked Paul Bettany as the Vision, and picking up the hammer got a huge laugh in my theatre too.  So did the running gag about "Language!", which I thought was brilliant.

 

I admit that Clint's family caught me off guard (I managed to remain spoiler free), but I'm not opposed to it.  It wouldn't shock me if they look at retiring the character before much longer given all the screen time they received.  I would have omitted Thor in the cave and given that screen time to something else.  I think I would have shortened the Hulk/Hulk Buster fight by half too.  And I expected the Baron to have more of a role after the end credits scene in the first Avengers.

 

It's an odd thing to stick in my mind, but after the first fight with Ultron at the party, Maria Hill was pulling glass shards out of her foot while participating in the conversation.

[Lantern7]

Caught the movie today. I think AoU falls short of the original movie, but a. That was a pretty high bar, and b. Still better than anything DC Comics has put out without Batman.

 

Seriously, the movie felt like more cool moments were stuffed in, as opposed to it happening organically the first time, if that makes sense. Vision wielding Mjolnir was out of left field. I was okay with it, especially with the ramifications of "worthiness" brought up afterward. Also was surprised Hawkeye got to live. I guess he gets his "happily ever after," especially with Bobbi Morse/Mockingbird off the table, Isn't it comics canon that Clint is a bit of a slut? Giving him a secret family was odd, but I could dig it.

 

I heard there was no end credits scene, but I stayed anyway, like an idiot. Not like anything could top the scene from three years ago, but something would have been nice. And no, Thanos doesn't really count.

[benteen]

Comics Clint was an ATROCIOUS husband.  So it's nice to see that Movie Clint is much better.

 

I thought Natasha's nightmare/flashback, along with her mentioning working for the KGB, seems to indicate that she is indeed far older than she appears.

[JBC344]

Comics Clint was an ATROCIOUS husband.  So it's nice to see that Movie Clint is much better.

 

I thought Natasha's nightmare/flashback, along with her mentioning working for the KGB, seems to indicate that she is indeed far older than she appears.

Yeah, I don't know if the movies have ever really touched on this but Black Widow ages slower than a normal person and also has an enhanced strength.  I think those are results of "The Red Room", the place she was being wheeled into on the gurney in her vision.

 

I think another poster may have mentioned this that they covered her experimentation on Agents of Shield, but not in the movies so far.

Edited May 4, 2015 by JBC344

[Raja]

Yeah, I don't know if the movies have ever really touched on this but Black Widow ages slower than a normal person and also has an enhanced strength.  I think those are results of "The Red Room", the place she was being wheeled into on the gurney in her vision.

 

I think another poster may have mentioned this that they covered her experimentation on Agents of Shield, but not in the movies so far.

It was on  Agent Carter, Dottie's story and a Howling Commandos raid on a Red Room facility.

[Zuleikha]

I think another poster may have mentioned this that they covered her experimentation on Agents of Shield, but not in the movies so far.

 

Did they? Agent Carter had a very important subplot about the Black Widow program, but I didn't think Agents of Shield ever touched on it (I don't watch Agents of Shield). The Agent Carte subplot left it ambiguous about whether the girls received augmented powers or not. The black widow character's fight scenes were shot with very inhuman movement, but nothing was explicitly stated. I've always felt that Black Widow's fight scenes in the movies make the most sense assuming that she has her enhanced healing factor and agility from the comics, but it's hard to say for sure without the movies making it canon because action heroes are typically portrayed with unrealistic, superhuman abilities. 

[JBC344]

Sorry I guess it was Agent Carter and not Agents of Shield (I watch neither).  As far as the movies go they have never portrayed Black Widow as anything other than a carefully trained assassin.  They could reveal later on that she has been enhanced when she was young, but as far as onscreen they have never alluded to it. 

[Bruinsfan]

Isn't it comics canon that Clint is a bit of a slut?

Geez, you bang one Doombot and people never let you hear the end of it...

[SunDevil28]

Regarding whether Black Widow was damseled:  Josh Wigler and company (on Post Show Recaps which is part of the Rob Has A Podcast lineup) pointed out that a) BW only got captured because she pretty much singlehandedly saved The Vision-to-be from Ultron and put herself in a position to be captured  and b) was rescued by Banner *because* she used her own ingenuity to get a message to Hawkeye.  I don't see a damsel in distress there.

[TobinAlbers]

I think the thing I loved most was the dialogue and banter. It just popped well in a lot of scenes and helped carry you through from one scene to the next.

While I had issue with the refitting of Ultron's origins to Tony as 'Daddy' instead of Hank Pym as in the comics, it worked with the reasoning they gave Tony. However I call severe BS on Ultron being completely purged from the Internet and no longer being a threat. Not only is it virtually impossible for ALL traces to be gone but part of what makes Ultron so manacing is his ability to survive, evolve, and return and his being a recurring reminder of his creator's arrogance so that the sin is never completely wiped clean also made for compelling layers. I get Tony already has that perpetual stain from his Stark tech being exploited but since they went there with making Ultron his Frankenstein monster only to have it all wiped away in the end rather than have him add that failure to his legacy smacks of trying to keep Tony clean when in comics Hank was still villified for his creation of Ultron decades later. It's like they needed a decent and powerful enough villain for the Avengers to be needed but only the superficial parts. Ultron in the comics is a lot more ruthless, wily, smart and tough to neutralize let alone beat.

The obvious credits scene would've been showing that while all the Ultron bots were gone, his program lived on in cyberspace having found a pocket to hide out in to rise again.

[Jediknight]

Her line about Stark and Rogers still staring into each others' eyes was a good jab.  Evans and Downey played off each other well.  I'm glad Cap kept the spark from his last movie and continues to be the leader.

Of course he continues to be the leader, that's who Cap is.  He may not be the strongest, or quickest, but he is the most respected and the one that inspires the team.

[Sharpie66]

Natasha on screen was born in the 1980s (I can't remember the exact year that Virtual Zola mentioned in CA:WS), so having her age slower than normally hasn't been an issue yet.

[Shannon L.]

This will probably sound ridiculous, but I'd have probably enjoyed it more if the crowd had been more fun.  Our crowd was a complete dud.  Very few laughs and shouts, almost no applause, even at the end.  That's not to say that I'd have enjoyed it more, but it would have been more fun.

 

I didn't hate it, but I'm in the "it was ok" category.  But, I've always said that even the weakest of the Marvel movies are still pretty good.

 

On the other thread, we are listing the movies in order of favorite to least favorite and I had it in the middle.  But, the more I read this thread and the more I think it over, the more I like it.  I may have to see it again.  I do agree that there were too many fast cut action sequences, but it sure did show off their CGI firms' impressive skills.  Ultron alone was amazing.

 

There are so many things on this thread that I'd love to point out and respond/agree to, but I won't (because it would be a long post) except to say that those of you who loved it have given me a better appreciation of it.

 

In regards to SJ's acting, I haven't seen many of her movies, but I think she does well as Black Widow.  I honestly thought she sold the scene where she was talking about being sterilized.  It was heartbreaking.

 

Vision was cool.  I loved that he was a soldier fighting with them, but at the same time there was something so peaceful about him.  Great acting there (and a great make up, too!).  One of the laughs in our theater was, of course, when he picked up the hammer.  Someone posted earlier  that if too many characters pick up the hammer, it will lose it's significance, but I think it would depend on what was happening and how well the actor played the scene.  I heard of a scenario in the comics that could be used as an example, but don't want to say anything in case they use it in another movie.

 

Scarlett Witch/Elizabeth Olsen was fantastic!  I hated to see Quicksilver die, but loved that Hawkeye gave the baby his name. 

 

I do think the cast is great together and have hit their stride. I love the camaraderie as well as how they work together as a team.  My only concern is whether or not I'll be able to handle the last two movies.  I can handle the occasional bickering between friends, but to see them fighting against each other?  I don't know if I could stand it.  Unless there's some big kum-baye-ah moment at the end, because I'm not ashamed to admit that I like Hollywood endings.

[TigerLynx]

I'm confused as to why the Avengers would start fighting each other.  Tony, Cap, and Thor bicker, (Banner, BW, and Hawkeye to a lesser extent), but when a real threat shows up, they unite.  The Scarlett Witch and Quicksilver had a problem with Tony, but when they realized what Ultron really was, they switched sides and came through for the Avengers.

[stealinghome]

In regards to SJ's acting, I haven't seen many of her movies, but I think she does well as Black Widow.  I honestly thought she sold the scene where she was talking about being sterilized.  It was heartbreaking.

Oh yeah, I thought she sold the hell out of that scene. By far the best-acted and most emotional scene in the movie (which is not to knock the other actors--everyone did well--but that scene was a standout for me).

[Shannon L.]

Oh!  I forgot the line that we all loved:  "Please be a secret door, please be a secret door.....yay!"

[Raja]

I'm confused as to why the Avengers would start fighting each other.  Tony, Cap, and Thor bicker, (Banner, BW, and Hawkeye to a lesser extent), but when a real threat shows up, they unite.  The Scarlett Witch and Quicksilver had a problem with Tony, but when they realized what Ultron really was, they switched sides and came through for the Avengers.

Its playing out in the forefront now on Agents Of SHIELD. Where Tony Stark let his concern over another alien invasion prejudice all his ultimate judgement and decisions others in the MCU are taking the same prejudice for anyone "enhanced" to use the terminology the MCU is using at this point. Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch were merely soldiers for their nation who underwent experimentation for the cause like Captain America did in 1942. Just as Black Widow was sent to the Soviet Red Room spy/assassin school as a young child and their prior military/spy service will not be a cause of the eventual fight among the Avengers

 

. So like the X-Men series mutants, the "enhanced", whether  biological or uber-technical based are feared. And there will be two sides of the issue about how much the government should control them and how free they get to be. . Only so far we don't have many secret identities among the known enhanced people where as the focus of the source comic book was unmasking the secret identities., Almost all of the enhanced are celebrities with action figures in their images sold.. There are a few spies and now Dare Devil among the secret identity type.

 

But if my speculation is right the number of biologically enhanced, from being alien/human hybrid Inhumans exposed to catalyst, is about to explode that number to an X-Man 3 number of folks for the Avengers to fight for their rights versus the enhanced public's rights over. It is common knowledge that from the source comic book Captain America and Iron Man where the leaders of the two different individual factions. So we all expect that from the upcoming Captain America movie

[blueray]

I just saw this and liked it. Though I felt I missed a few things since I didn't see Captain America 2.  It had many plot holes but that's okay, still good entertainment. Also random but did the twins have names? My boyfriend and I couldn't figure out what their names were.

Edited May 4, 2015 by blueray

[blueray]

The thing I'm most upset about is that Tony wasn't more upset over Jarvis having to "die" in order to create the Vision. Dammit, in creating a functional, moral AI he basically did most of the work of a parent, and seeing what's effectively his child sacrifice itself and be reborn as this strange new creature with a very different personality should have had a more visible emotional impact on him.

I was bothered by this too. Jarvis was already an AI and a great character, I was sad to say goodbye too :(.

[Rick Kitchen]

I just saw this and liked it. Though I felt I missed a few things since I didn't see Captain America 2.  It had many plot holes but that's okay, still good entertainment. Also random but did the twins have names? My boyfriend and I could figure out what their names were.

 

Their names are Pietro and Wanda, though I am not positive those names were ever said.  But Clint gave the baby Pietro as a middle name.

[Raja]

I just saw this and liked it. Though I felt I missed a few things since I didn't see Captain America 2.  It had many plot holes but that's okay, still good entertainment. Also random but did the twins have names? My boyfriend and I couldn't figure out what their names were.

From The Winter Soldier we get the destruction of SHIELD as the overwhelming force headed by Director Fury which fired the nuke at New York City. We have the reemergence of Hydra which Captain America fought in WWII. Some scenes where the Black Widow flirts with Captain America and an explanation of what the Falcon was doing when the Avengers went into battle with Ultron.

 

In some ways Whedon also ignored the movies as he ignored the TV series. Such as the War Machine being War Machine again and not dealing with what Tony Stark did at the end of Iron Man III and explaining why he is back in the fight with the Iron Legion.

[stealinghome]

Their names are Pietro and Wanda, though I am not positive those names were ever said.  But Clint gave the baby Pietro as a middle name.

I swear I recall hearing the twins call each other by their first names. I think Pietro only called Wanda by name once, but I thought she called him Pietro a few times. Did I totally hallucinate that?

Edited May 5, 2015 by stealinghome

[VCRTracking]

Seeing Game of Thrones last night made me realize that the graduates of the Black Widow program are basically the female equivalent of the 'Unsullied' on GOT. Enslaved male warriors who were trained as boys and were also castrated. This is to remove all sexual desire in them, so they're more disciplined.

[ChelseaNH]

Bruce just waltzed in and freed her

It's not super clear from the edit, but he followed Thor (who punched a hole in the wall).

 

laughing maniacally while bleeding from wounds

Pretty sure that was spilled red wine in Cap's dream.

 

Their names are Pietro and Wanda, though I am not positive those names were ever said

Hill mentioned them while briefing Cap on his return from retrieving Loki's scepter, and Wanda called Pietro by name when they first met Ultron in the church.

[Bruinsfan]

Pretty sure that was spilled red wine in Cap's dream.

Red wine isn't that bright a red, and they didn't have strawberry daquiris in WWII. There were people fighting along with the people dancing in that ballroom, so I assumed the wounded guy was symbolic of the war effort.

[Amethyst]

Clint named his newborn son Nathanial Pietro Barton. That's a pretty big deal.

 

Yes, but Clint and Wanda are really the only ones who show any grief.  In perspective, it's not that surprising.  Quicksilver may have been an Avenger in the end, but they barely did anything with him in the film.  Scarlet Witch was the brains and had all of the dialogue.

 

Since none of the other Avengers knew QS beyond a few days, they don't grieve him, they just shrug it off and keep going.  And since his death has so little impact on the story, it doesn't hold any emotional weight for the audience.  Even Feige said that his death just serves as a way for SW to become an Avenger.

[Raja]

All in all Aaron Taylor-Johnson just had bad timing. The X special effects may have been better but I prefer the soldier volunteering like Steve Rogers once did then the punk kid mutant who just plays with regular humans After Evan Peters' notices and then Grant Gustin's Barry Allen with another stand alone Flash movie coming his character and skill set was the odd man out.

 

In the end Whedon killed him off but Whedon is gone and they didn't cover the body of an enhanced human, maybe Inhuman like we do for fallen comrades if possible. Even if Hawkeye honored him by naming his child after him and his sister reacting to his being shot they can but probably won't bring him back..

 

For those not watching Agents of Shield

Tahiti was an initiative to save avengers who fell in battle and Fury's ship was the last place he was seen.

Edited May 5, 2015 by Raja

[frenchtoast]

I was thinking of that Raja

(especially when they mentioned Bruce Banner landing in Fiji) but the Kree juice and body was destroyed. Raina used the last bit of it on Garret. Unless they find some more obelisks (or go to Afterlife) I don't know how it could happen. Having said that, Strucker and List were experimenting on Inhumans, and if QS volunteered and was Inhuman as opposed to Mutant? It's all confusing!! 

. I did see a clip where Elizabeth Olsen mentioned that SW can bring people back to life and they did mention his high metabolism, so there's that.

[blueray]

They showed the male twin's body on the plane next to Clint after he rescued that boy.

[Raja]

They showed the male twin's body on the plane next to Clint after he rescued that boy.

We know, and that is what I focused on he wasn't covered as we do to honor the dead. I can fan wave they he had been black tagged by a medic doing triage and we were waiting for nature to take its course.

Edited May 5, 2015 by Raja

[Llywela]

I'm not sure we can read anything into the body not being immediately covered up. They made a point of retrieving the body, in those last frantic seconds of emergency, and we only caught a glimpse of what happened in the first moments immediately after - they were in the middle of an emergency evacuation, being transported from the flying city across to the helicarrier. We saw only the first moments of that journey as Clint reached safety and keeled over, exhausted. Pietro's body had been retrieved - doing more for him would have come later, in the aftermath, not in those first seconds of escape that were all we saw. There simply hadn't been time at the point we caught that glimpse of the body.

Edited May 5, 2015 by Llywela

[JessePinkman]

While I don't like that they killed Pietro (he's just an awesome comic book character and could have caused a lot of dramatic conflict because he's so incredibly arrogant and self-assured), I think Marvel should err on the side of caution in bringing characters back from the dead. They've done it, I think, 3 times now? They don't want to go to that well too often. It works in comics because sometimes resurrections are decades apart but not for movies.

 

However if they have Wanda go nuts (it'll happen eventually) and she brings him back in some sort of attempt to reconstruct her life then I'd be cool with that. As long as it doesn't last. That would be a gut punch I'd be totally down for.

[GHScorpiosRule]

I've been told that the actor who played Pietro/Quicksilver was signed up for like, five movies, so that makes me think he'll be resurrected. Or was off screen at the end.

[Jazzy24]

While I don't like that they killed Pietro (he's just an awesome comic book character and could have caused a lot of dramatic conflict because he's so incredibly arrogant and self-assured), I think Marvel should err on the side of caution in bringing characters back from the dead. They've done it, I think, 3 times now? They don't want to go to that well too often. It works in comics because sometimes resurrections are decades apart but not for movies.

However if they have Wanda go nuts (it'll happen eventually) and she brings him back in some sort of attempt to reconstruct her life then I'd be cool with that. As long as it doesn't last. That would be a gut punch I'd be totally down for.

I defiantly want Quicksilver back but more deaths should have occurred like War Machine and more SHIELD agents.

[BatmanBeatles]

Apparently Joss Whedon closed his Twitter account due to hostile Tweets about the way Black Widow was written.

Edited May 5, 2015 by BatmanBeatles

[Dandesun]

I've seen a lot of complaints on Tumblr about Black Widow in Ultron. But...  it's Tumblr. I also saw a lot of complaints that Loki wasn't in the movie. So... yeah.

 

I honestly do not see that Natasha's characterization was 'ignored' for what her characterization was in Ultron. It was two different circumstances and when it comes down to it, I find Natasha to be wonderfully complex and multi-faceted. Why can't she fall in love? Because she said 'love is for children?' Did falling for Bruce somehow change her? She still seemed pretty kick ass to me. Oh, she was kidnapped? As I understand it, she was pregnant for some filming so they wrote that in... it wasn't in the original script and had to make adjustments.

 

She wanted to run away and disappear with Bruce after getting screwed over by her own head and memories? Tony built a robot that almost killed everyone because of his mindscrew. And then he decided to call it quits at the end. Was he damseled? Was Clint? Who is married and has kids that he keeps so secret that only two people even knew they existed... and one of those was Natasha? That's quite different from the first Avengers. I feel that a lot of the complaints are from disgruntled ClinTasha fans although I will concede that some out there probably just didn't like how Natasha was written.

 

Personally, I don't feel like this movie weakened her, made her lesser than, changed her or any such thing. I think she is more fully realized than many might believe... fully realized in that she has the agency to feel any emotion she wants. Natasha is a strong and powerful woman. But she's also a human being and they are, by their nature, contradictory. She is damaged... anyone coming up through the Red Room would be and it has little do with whether or not she can bear a child. It has to do with everything else she went through there. She's been through a thousand hells... in my mind, she has more than earned the right to find someone she admires and loves and want to run away with them. I wouldn't blame her for it.

 

Ultimately, though, she's still there. Bruce is the one who ran away. Natasha stayed.

[VCRTracking]

Wow, it's a good thing twitter didn't exist when Buffy the Vampire Slayer or Angel first aired! He would have gotten waaaay more hate. First of all I had no idea fans wanted a very specific version of Black Widow because she's different in each of the previous movies.  She kicks ass and is funny and charming and heroic throughout the Age of Ultron. People act like she was wearing an apron and handing Bruce a pipe and slippers.

 

I compare Black Widow in the movie to James Bond in ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE. A lot of people(myself included) think it's one of the best Bonds but a lot of Bond fans hate it. Part of it is because Bond is George Lazenby(not the best actor) but also Bond is at his most vulnerable in it. There's a part where he even has to be rescued by the Bond girl(the always awesome Diana Rigg). Then later he proposes and marries her(spoiler alert: she dies). That's what makes OHMSS great is that it adds so much to Bond's character. Fans don't want that. They want the callous, ruthless James Bond, and it's the same with Black Widow fans.

 

Joss Whedon likes to put his characters(male and female) through the ringer emotionally, because it makes them greater heroes, and I agree.

Edited May 5, 2015 by VCRTracking

[Dandesun]

I just saw a thing where someone was complaining on Twitter (to Whedon and Ruffalo) that Natasha was 'reduced' to nothing more than a love interest who needed saving and made some pithy 'now who's got internalized misogyny?'

 

Ruffalo's response: Funny, I thought it was Bruce who was the love interest in need of saving.

 

I saw nothing in Ultron that reduced or diminished Natasha. She was the one pursuing Bruce from what I saw... not fielding his advances like an alleged 'love interest' would actually do.

[KatWay]

Where was all this outrage about Uhura in Star Tek?

 

I saw nothing wrong with Natasha's arc in AoU either. She had tons of good moments and she never took a backseat to Bruce.

[Dandesun]

I recall a lot of outrage about Uhura, actually. I liked what they did with her for the most part but I do feel like Uhura was a glorified love interest. Smarter and with a little more agency than most get but still...  ultimately Star Trek is about Kirk/Spock with others on the side.

 

Natasha makes things happen as much as anyone else on the Avengers. She's not a glorified girlfriend or extra.

[Skyline]

Jeremy Renner is at it again:

 

Maybe Jeremy Renner Should Just Stop Talking About Black Widow

 

Why can't the Avengers' star stop calling Scarlett Johansson's character a 'slut?'

 

 

 

To Jeremy Renner, calling Black Widow a slut is apparently still funny enough that it can be talk show fodder.

During the Avengers: Age of Ultron press tour Renner and Chris Evans drew ire for calling Scarlett Johansson’s Natasha Romanoff (a.k.a. Black Widow) a “slut” and a “complete whore” when the two were asked in an interview with Digital Spy UK about fans’ hopes that the super spy could be paired with their characters Hawkeye and Captain America. A romance between Romanoff and Bruce Banner (a.k.a. the Hulk) is one of the central plots of the sequel.

 

Though Renner quickly issued an apology, saying he was “just poking fun during an exhausting and tedious press tour,” his appearance on Conan last night implied he didn’t take any of the criticism to heart. Renner told O’Brien that he got into “Internet trouble,” and then launched into some more questionable jokes. “Mind you, I was talking about fictional character and fictional behavior, but, Conan, if you slept with four of the six Avengers no matter how much fun you had, you’d be a slut, just saying,” Renner said. “I’d be a slut.”

 

Time

[funkopop]

Jeremy Renner is at it again:

 

Maybe Jeremy Renner Should Just Stop Talking About Black Widow

 

Why can't the Avengers' star stop calling Scarlett Johansson's character a 'slut?'

 

 

Time

 

Where's that Tyra Banks "we were all rooting for you" gif when you need it.

Edited May 5, 2015 by funkopop