Marvel Mania: MCU Phase 1- The Avengers

The Avengers (2012)
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth
Directed by: Joss Whedon


Plot Summary: When S.H.I.E.L.D. is experimenting on the Tessaract, they open a gateway which brings Loki to Earth. Taking control of many S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, Dr. Erik Selvig, and Hawkeye, Nick Fury initiates the self-destruct on the headquarters and begins a plan to counter Loki and his impending attack on the planet. Fury assembles a team comprised of Tony Stark, Steve Rogers, Bruce Banner, and Black Widow to apprehend Loki and retrieve the Tessaract. However, when Thor shows up to bring Loki back to Asgard, tensions arise between the heroes. With an army of aliens about to invade Earth, the heroes have to put aside their differences and join forces to put an end to Loki's plan.


We have finally arrived at the big one. The movie that changed the world of superhero movies as we know it. The movie that united 6 superheroes in an epic teamup no one ever thought would be possible to capture on film. This is The Avengers, and it is a movie that changed my life. I watched this movie on opening night in a room full of screaming Marvel fans. I had goosebumps. I had hairs standing up on the back of my neck. I had numbness all over my body. And I cried manly tears of MANLINESS!!! And I didn't just get those feelings when I saw it on opening night. I STILL get those feelings EVERY time I watch this movie. I've built this up long enough, let's see why I love about The Avengers.

Many of our favorite franchise superheroes return for The Avengers, including Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark. He does just what you'd expect him to do. He's sarcastic, yet lovable. He does NOT get along with most of the other Avengers and it's absolutely entertaining. Chris Evans returns as Steve Rogers, and he really steps up to the plate here as leader of the team. He fights for truth and justice, which plays a really big factor in the arguments with other characters. One of the recurring gags for Captain America is that since he is out of his time period, he doesn't get many of the jokes or references. He may get one or two, but most times he's a fish out of water on pop culture. Thor, played by Chris Hemsworth, is another fish out of water who also gets a lot of development here. He's the only Avenger from another world, so he gets treated like an outsider. Along with that, his loyalties towards his home world and family are very heavily tested in the film, so he gets many strong scenes that really build his character.

One character that returns but may look different is Dr. Bruce Banner, now played by Mark Ruffalo. This version of Banner actually fits better with the team dynamic than I believe the Edward Norton would've. The highlight is the bromance he has with Stark, and I think a lot of that chemistry really does exist between Downey and Ruffalo. And of course, his scenes as the Hulk are amazing to sit through. This is the Incredible Hulk that I WANT to see on film. GIVE RUFFALO HIS OWN HULK MOVIE ALREADY!!! Black Widow, played by Scarlett Johansson, is the sole female on the team, but I think she gets left with a token female role. She doesn't add too much to this team outside of a few good fight scenes and one or two interrogation scenes. But she isn't the most useless member on the team. That would go to Hawkeye, played by Jeremy Renner. Hawkeye spends about 80% of the movie not actually part of the team, so by the time he joins up with them, I didn't really care. He has some good bits in the final battle, but I was so disappointed with his role on the team for this movie. Here's hoping Age of Ultron develops him further.

Now that we've addressed the Avengers, let's look at the supporting cast rounding out the film. First, is the main antagonist Loki, played by Tom Hiddleston. Hiddleston is still just as charming as ever. No, I don't have a man crush. STOP JUDGING ME! Anyways, a new character that was introduced in The Avengers is Maria Hill, played by Cobie Smulders. As a fan of How I Met Your Mother, I love the opportunity to see Smulders in a big movie role like this. With that said, I do wish they would have given her something more to do because she does VERY little here. Agent Coulson, played by Clark Gregg, has a much extended role than in his previous appearances and has opportunities to have entertaining discussions with Stark, Rogers, and Thor. Finally, there's Nick Fury, played by Samuel L. Jackson, who like Coulson, plays a larger role than his cameos so that's already great. And also...it's SAMUEL L. JACKSON...he's freaking AWESOME!

Do I even need to say anything else about why this movie is AWESOME!?!? This film did the impossible. It brought together so many powerful elements and made it work. The Avengers is a movie that set the bar for what superhero movies had to be from here on out. When a superhero movie comes out, it will always be trying to top the standard The Avengers set. This was the best way any moviegoer could expect Phase 1 to end for the MCU, and with that came the question of what Marvel would have in store for Phase 2. To that, I didn't really care what was on the way. My loyalty and dedication to all things Marvel Studios had been sealed.

And what kind of epic movie would The Avengers be without a post-credits scene? Well, this film actually has TWO post-credits scenes, so here's some HUGE *SPOILERS* to add to the epicness...

Cut to outer space, and we have a reveal of a villain whose identity had been concealed the entire film. He turns to face the camera, and it's THANOS! This mid-credits scene gave the fans so much to look forward to as they were about to enter Phase 2 of the MCU. We didn't know what movie we'd be getting him in, but we were told by Joss Whedon and Marvel that Thanos and the Infinity Gauntlet were on their way. The now infamous post-credits scene shows the Avengers eating in a shawarma restaurant. Nothing else happens. It's just Whedon giving us something quirky at the very end of the film. Seems so out of place, yet so perfect all at the same time.


Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

I really don't care if this movie has a handful of plotholes and flaws, the fact that this film isn't a complete failure after all the buildup is a miracle in filmmaking. The Avengers is one of the biggest superhero movies of all-time because it was the first of its time to assemble a team of big name superheroes from different franchises. Definitely check this one out before Age of Ultron, watch it as a standalone movie, own it in your collection...heck, watch it RIGHT NOW! This is easily one of my favorite movies to watch and can put me in a good mood at any time of the day.

The Avengers and movie images are copyrighted by Marvel Studios