Tonight I watched the Avengers...again. The wonderful thing about watching a movie for the second, third, fourth, etc. time is finding new things to look at and analyze. My attention, while still on the film, was free to notice little things and imagine scenarios playing out that the movie missed out on. I had so many of these moments that I decided to compile them. WARNING: Spoilers ahead. Like majorly.
- Thor captures Loki and fights with Tony and Steve in what looks like Yosemite. If so, the National Park Service is going to be PISSED when they find the damage. I imagine the ghost of John Muir coming out of the woods and being all like "what the hell, guys?". I would also pay to see a sequel in which the ghost of John Muir is an Avenger...since apparently Ant-man, Wolverine, and Spidey can't get no love (granted the latter two were only recent additions).
- There are so many squee moments during the movie (you know, the kind of fangirlish - or boy, I'm not gonna judge - moments that make you go omgomgomg!) but my favorite, aside from the slow zoom on Chris Evans' butt, is probably the moment during the climactic battle where the camera shows the Avengers coming together as a team and working as a unit (Thor jumping on the thing's back to assist the Hulk, Iron Man and Cap's super cool laser beam trick). I love it when things come together.
- I don't care if you think Whedon's dialogue is bad (I'm looking at you, Eli, you crazy person)...he has a strong sense of character development. That is why I've found it odd when people's complaints with the movie include "hurrr hurrr its nothing but action sequences and no development". Whedon is a master of telling a backstory and creating a sense of a character's being in a short amount of time; the trick is you have to pay attention to nuances and not just spoken dialogue. This is why I can't multitask while watching Buffy, Angel, or Firefly - I'd miss out on critical information in a split second.
- Iron Man, after completing his Jonah and the Whale escapade, landed next to the Shawarma place he described soon after.
- Was that an engagement ring on Pepper Potts' finger at the end of the movie? IT WAS, WASN'T IT??? Squeeee!
- There is clearly a populated area directly below the carrier in the scene where Tony is fixing the engine. They probably aren't a fan of all the debris falling from the sky.
- I still like to imagine that Peter Parker and the Fantastic Four were sitting in their respective locales in New York City and watching the events unfold on TV...first reacting all like "what the hell is going on?" and then "eh....these guys seem to have it under control." Meanwhile, the X-Men are just glad they are upstate in Rochester..."oh man, sorry you guys...we were TOTALLY going to come help but, ya know, taking the X-Jet just wasn't fuel efficient and by the time we rented a van you guys pretty much had it taken care of..."
- I realize I'm asking too much from a movie whose sole purpose is to mash together superheros, but the thing I love most about Marvel is the comprehensive sense of awareness (yes, I know D.C. also does it, yadda yadda Supes and Batman are BFFs forever, but Marvel has always made their universe come alive better, IMO)...but I would have liked to seen an acknowledgement thrown to the other big wigs in the Marvel Universe. I don't need a cameo, and I understand red tape nightmares even within their own franchise, but it would have been pretty sweet to at least acknowledge that the Avengers weren't the only superheroes. And yes, I DID take note of Fury's offhand comment about "others out there that we can't control". I just like to ask a lot in terms of fandom.
- I teared up at the part where Tony calls Pepper while he was routing the nuke into space. Deep inside I knew Whedon wouldn't (couldn't, or else Iron Man 3 would be pretty short) kill off Iron Man, but....you never know. Props to Whedon for keeping his character killing to a minimum -only poor Coulson felt his wrath. I imagine Agent Coulson is in Whedon heaven playing dinosaurs with Wash.
- Uh....Mr. Policeman...how do you not know who Captain freaking America is? If a man that fabulously handsome wearing a ridiculous suit that only he can manage to pull off, you do not wait for him to punch a bunch of aliens in the face. He clearly is the real deal.
- It's already been said by everyone ever, but Mark Ruffalo really did a spot on job with Bruce Banner. Not that I found Edward Norton bad - I believe he would have done just as well with Whedon directing, but considering things fell through with him Ruffalo really stepped up. I loved how awkward he was in a true science nerd fashion.
- Sprecking of which, characterization really shone through with Banner and the Hulk. One question (and criticism) I've seen come up is why didn't the Hulk rationalize his thoughts aboard the carrier like he did in NYC? I've decided that Banner's story arc was about control and acceptance. During the course of the movie he makes it clear that he resents "the other guy", that he is very aware of the danger of letting the Hulk loose, and is resentful of him for stealing his life away. Tony even lectures him on how such a burden becomes a part of someone, and they must accept it. Banner shows up in NYC on his little motorbike (which for some reason I find adorably hilarious) ready for action and voluntarily turns into the Hulk - by accepting this other part of him, he finally has control of him. That's what I got out of it, anyway.
- For funsies, I'll go into my other character arc observations since that argument that the movie lacks it really pisses me off. Steve, still upset about his future robbed from him and lost in a time he doesn't quite understand, or even want to understand, feels lost. From receiving orders to discovering the the intention behind Phase 2 and Tony's snide comment about "everything that's special about you came from a bottle", all he feels like is a soldier in a battle he has no control of. Coulson's idealism as well as his own initiative to step up during the NYC battle puts him in his rightful place as not only the personification of courage, kindness, and strength but also as the leader of the Avengers. Tony's selfless act of putting the nuke through the portal, knowing he was probably going to die doing so, negated his previous bad habit of making things about him and how these things affected him. He realized there was no way out and couldn't just "cut the wire" this time, and yet he did it anyway. He also had a prime opportunity to take a cheap shot at Loki with an expected witticism once he rose from the streets in his new suit, but instead made it abundantly clear that Loki would be held accountable for Coulson's death. Natasha and Clint didn't really have much of an arc so much as a look into their already formed characters - what they mean to each other, how their pasts have affected their current situation. It was clear, though, that despite how she played it off some of what Loki said got to Natasha and that is why she was ready to become a soldier. I found out recently that Clint is, in the comics, mostly deaf...so, ya know, I guess that's interesting. Thor didn't really have much development but considering all the growing up he did in his own movie I guess it could slide. He did, as Loki pointed out, retain a constant sense of sentimentality that kept him trying to reason with his brother instead of straight up murdering his ass. It is implied that this will always be the case. How sweet.
- You guys, how friggin sweet was Natasha's jump off of Cap's shield onto that flying thingy? It looked like fun.
- If you work for S.H.I.E.L.D. and are a female (or Hawkeye, apparently) you MUST wear the standard uniform catsuit. Caleb said any organization that Natasha is a member of that doesn't require a catsuit should be burned to the ground. Psh.
- Those fly-y thingies that shot out the alien troopers is clearly a living thing, or at least a weapon made up of organic matter - when the Hulk causes one to explode, you see viscera and things flying about. So do the alien soldiers live inside them, or are those umbilical cords on the soldiers when they come shooting out of it onto the buildings?
- Alexis Denisof as the Other. It didn't even sound like him (modulation aside). I honestly had a hard time paying attention to those scenes because I kept reciting his lines in my head as said by my favorite loser rogue demon hunter turned badass Wesley Wyndam-Pryce.
- Speaking of Buffyverse, Whedon looooooves those shots of a giant area being engulfed into a pit of doom while a vehicle full of people drive away, barely missing the destruction. Also, the "you lack conviction" speech Coulson gives to Loki was TOTALLY in an episode of Angel. Like, nearly verbatim.
- The S.H.I.E.L.D. bosses can't be taken seriously. Why? Because it looks like they're trying to recreate the Guild of Calamitous Intent. Just throw David Bowie as the Sovereign in there and suddenly this becomes a Venture Brothers vehicle. Which I would watch forever, especially considering Rusty Venture is definitely Tony Stark in the darkest timeline.
- Suiting up for the major battle! Hell yeah! Wait...is Natasha putting on a Nintendo Power Glove?
- The "tink" sound when Loki tries to corrupt Tony's heart is the icing on the hilarity cake.
- WTF is "dark power", Loki? Quit making up things. But no, really, Thor...you're not even going to take a second to pop on over to Jane and tell her hello? I mean it was pretty well established at the end of Thor that she was never going to stop looking for him. That's cold, man.
- Directed by Joss Whedon. Screenplay by Joss Whedon. Produced by Joss Whedon. A Joss Whedon film. Starring: Joss Whedon. Music by Joss Whedon. Catering by Joss Whedon Problematic Foods Inc. Visual Effects by Joss Whedon. No Joss Whedons were harmed in the making of this Joss Whedon.
Lastly, look at this picture. LOOK AT IT! Tom Hiddleston Loki Squee!
This "list" might be updated as I think over other stuffs...but please, feel free to add your own observations!
