Avengers Assemble

...And they did.

The movie comic book fans have all been waiting for is finally here.  Director Joss Whedon, best known for the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer in the 90's and his writing on the first Toy Story movie, came through in a big way with the first blockbuster of the summer.  

Nerds everywhere were concerned with just exactly how this film would come out, given that Captain America and the Hulk have had less that fantastic feature films released in the past, especially concerning the Hulk's with 2003 version, starring Eric Bana and Jennifer Connelly.  This attempt at the Hulk's story line turned out to be a gigantic flop, and left a black mark on the characters record.  The following film The Incredible Hulk was the Mmuch better 2008 rendition starring Edward Norton and Liv Tyler, which also confirmed the Hulk's place in the eventual Avengers film.  Fans were worried how exactly Mark Ruffalo was going to fill that mean, green role.  Needless to say, Ruffalo did a fantastic job, and the Hulk really was a shinning hero in the film. The same goes to Chris Evans' return as Captain America.  After Captain America: The First Avenger left many hardcore fans with a semi-sour taste in their mouths, it       was fantastic to see Cap's involvement done so well in The Avengers.

The interaction between characters was written flawlessly.  The tension between Tony Stark and Steve Rogers felt like it came right out of the pages of the civil war story arch.  Really, any time Tony Stark (aka Iron Man) interacted with any of the heroes was not only funny, but felt so true to the comic.  And that is the important part: staying true to the comic series. Having all of Marvel's heavy hitters come to life and work together all in one film is every comic fans dream.  What can be better than watching Iron Man blast a proton beam off of Cap's shield to take out a group of bad guys?  

Another notable character was how Loki really stepped his trickery game up.  In the Thor movie, he was the evil, whiney brother with daddy issues.  In the The Avengers is a complete beast,  from his duplication of himself to flashing around on the screen, making him a difficult target to track.  Loki really lived up to his name and lore as the trickster.  

The Avengers clocked in at two hours and twenty minutes, but it didn't feel like it.  The film is packed to the brim with action and suspense.  When the movie comes to an end, you're left thinking "wait, that's it?" and when you look to see how much time has passed, you'll be surprised to see how much they packed in from beginning to end. It feels like you just sat down.  Overall The Avengers is a smash, and to attest to how great the film really is, it has garnered an estimated $200.3 million in its opening weekend, shattering box office records.  Assemble your friends and go see this movie.  You won't regret it.