So I've finally set out to watch some of the movies I got for Christmas, those being a box set of Marvel Animated films.
The box set came with Ultimate Avengers 1 & 2, Doctor Strange, Iron Man, The Next Avengers, and Hulk Vs (Wolverine & Thor on 1 disc).
I already owned both Ultimate Avengers, but the person didn't know that, and I'll happily take an extra copy of each for the other 4 films.
First, I watched Hulk Vs since I figured both would be shorter than most of the other animated films, and funny enough, both Hulk Vs. were rather well done.
I started with Hulk Vs Thor, and I have to say, it was pretty amazing. The whole story revolves around Loki and The Enchantress trying to take Asgard during the Odin-Sleep, where the Kingdom is vulnerable as Odin replenishes his strength. They decided to use the Hulk as he's the only creature who's ever bested Thor. The film includes nearly every single Asgardian, from the Warrior's Three to Hela, Sif, and Balder. Heck, even Odin's Ravens get in on the action. Really was very impressed with it, and the power levels that the characters used were incredible. I'll be very entertained if the Thor movie is something similar to this.
Then I watched Hulk Vs Wolverine, and it was pretty good. It's more of an origin story for Wolverine than anything else, and deals with the Weapon X program wanting the Hulk. Logan's in an outfit that very closely resembles his first appearance one even, as Department H sends him to stop the Hulk in Canada. Weapon X-ers in the film include Sabertooth, Lady Deathstrike, Omega Red, and Deadpool. I was caught off by most of them, but they all do play a huge role in Wolverine's life so I wasn't surprised. Deadpool annoyed me that he was included, but wasn't terribly annoying overall in this one. You see them all in flashbacks too as black ops teams, and their uniforms resemble the current Uncanny X-Force ones (not surprising since Yost and Kyle wrote both these films, and then launched the new X-Force if I recall). The Wolverine film was, naturally, much more bloody and violent than the Thor film.
Overall, as a package deal these two are great. I'm sure it's come down in price now, and if you want short animated films that are almost non-stop action, these two are pretty much perfect for that.
Next up is Doctor Strange.
Marvel Animated Films
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Tragic Angelus
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Tragic Angelus
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Ok, so I just finished up Doctor Strange.
Not so bad, but to be honest, I have little interest in that character and his world to begin with. I don't care for too many magic based characters, especially Marvel ones outside of them being oin a team setting. This wasn't too bad though, and it updated his origin a bit from what I know.
He still has the accident that ruins his hands and leads him to search for a cure, but he ends up joining the Ancient One and his other followers in training to stop Dormammu from entering earth. It took me awhile to realize two of the other mystics were Mordo and Wong as well, until those names finally rung the right bell in my mind (though I must admit I wasn't paying full attention).
If you dig Doctor Strange and mystic storylines, it'd be a good one to watch or check out if you come across it for free. Can't say I'd have been too happy if I had rushed out to buy it myself, though I most definitely wouldn't have since it's not a character I'm interested in.
That being said though, kudos to Marvel for having the guts to make a movie about a lesser known character. Making an Avengers film that focuses on Black Panther is one thing, but a film dedicated to Doctor Strange? That's a risk, and Marvel did a good job with it here. I wish DC would do the same and branch out from the Batman/Superman fields. 1 Green Lantern film every 3 movies isn't exactly taking a risk. I get WW and GL didn't turn the profits they wanted, but it's leaving an annoying trend of repetitive movies instead. Look at how well received your shorts have been on other DVDs DC, that proves you could make a lesser known character a success on the DVD market.
Not so bad, but to be honest, I have little interest in that character and his world to begin with. I don't care for too many magic based characters, especially Marvel ones outside of them being oin a team setting. This wasn't too bad though, and it updated his origin a bit from what I know.
He still has the accident that ruins his hands and leads him to search for a cure, but he ends up joining the Ancient One and his other followers in training to stop Dormammu from entering earth. It took me awhile to realize two of the other mystics were Mordo and Wong as well, until those names finally rung the right bell in my mind (though I must admit I wasn't paying full attention).
If you dig Doctor Strange and mystic storylines, it'd be a good one to watch or check out if you come across it for free. Can't say I'd have been too happy if I had rushed out to buy it myself, though I most definitely wouldn't have since it's not a character I'm interested in.
That being said though, kudos to Marvel for having the guts to make a movie about a lesser known character. Making an Avengers film that focuses on Black Panther is one thing, but a film dedicated to Doctor Strange? That's a risk, and Marvel did a good job with it here. I wish DC would do the same and branch out from the Batman/Superman fields. 1 Green Lantern film every 3 movies isn't exactly taking a risk. I get WW and GL didn't turn the profits they wanted, but it's leaving an annoying trend of repetitive movies instead. Look at how well received your shorts have been on other DVDs DC, that proves you could make a lesser known character a success on the DVD market.
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Mr Wallstreet
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I've only seen the Hulk vs. animated film. I had always wanted to see the rest of the animated film but lacked the motivation to rent them. I think I'll probably rent the rest soon though.
I agree with you about Marvel. Say what you will about Marvel's sketchy marketing, price gouging and overall smarmy business ethics, they more often than not, take chances with lesser known characters. Putting out a Doctor Strange film makes good business sense in the long term as they'll probably want to make a live action film about him down the line. DC needs to take a page from Marvel and make a film that isn't about Superman or Batman.
What was the animation like for the films? Was it in the style of the classic DCAU or similiar to the Jim Lee inspired X-men show from the 90s or something all its own?
I agree with you about Marvel. Say what you will about Marvel's sketchy marketing, price gouging and overall smarmy business ethics, they more often than not, take chances with lesser known characters. Putting out a Doctor Strange film makes good business sense in the long term as they'll probably want to make a live action film about him down the line. DC needs to take a page from Marvel and make a film that isn't about Superman or Batman.
What was the animation like for the films? Was it in the style of the classic DCAU or similiar to the Jim Lee inspired X-men show from the 90s or something all its own?
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Tragic Angelus
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They're all much better than the 90s X-Men series. Much more like the X-Men Evolution or even Wolverine and the X-Men. Higher quality, but unlike DC, Marvel really has nothing to measure up their animation to. Sure they have the 90s Spider-Man/X-Men series, but DC series had a standard style used in all of their shows that has been reflected in all of their movies to an extent since then. Marvel only has room for improvement when you compare it to their 90s series. But if I had to say so, I'd put them more like the Wolverine and the X-Men series.
Watched Next Avengers: Heroes of Tomorrow and it wasn't too bad.
The opening is one of the best I've seen to date. It gives you the story of the Avengers and what happened in their final battle, and sets the stage for their children and who the kids are the children of. But the opening, and the Avengers team of the past, where pretty amazing.
The Avengers of the Past were Captain America, Thor, Iron Man, Hawkeye, Vision, Black Widow, Black Panther, Giant Man, and Wasp, and they were all in their classic outfits. The art used even reflected some classic Avengers stories from when they were all on the team together. Though it wasn't exactly animated as much as a quick movement of paper like images as Tony Stark related their history, it was really well done and enough to hook me in early.
You learn that Cap and Black Widow have a son named James, Giant Man and Wasp have a son named Hank Pym Jr, who goes by Pym, Thor has a daughter named Torunn, and Black Panther had a son named Azari (And Storm is his mother, though you have to know how to recognize her in the art and symbols used, and his powers as well). Each has powers like their parents, where Azari has electrical powers and Panther's abilities.
Iron Man trained the kids and kept them hidden from Ultron as he conquered America and killed the Avengers. Vision eventually shows up with information, and the events after eventually alert Ultron of Iron Man's whereabouts, forcing the kids to invade his city to free Stark. There they meet the son of Hawkeye who everyone thought was dead, and Betty Ross, who helps them find the Hulk in the desert as well to stop Ultron for good.
Overall the story was pretty good, and acts like a third film in the Ultimate Avengers series. All of the Avengers that take a primary focus are from those films, and you add in Hawkeye and Vision. My only complaint was that some of the kids grew annoying at times, mostly Pym as he's the youngest. I was more interested in this than Doctor Strange, but it's still not as good or entertaining as Hulk Vs. That still is the top spot of these Marvel films.
Watched Next Avengers: Heroes of Tomorrow and it wasn't too bad.
The opening is one of the best I've seen to date. It gives you the story of the Avengers and what happened in their final battle, and sets the stage for their children and who the kids are the children of. But the opening, and the Avengers team of the past, where pretty amazing.
The Avengers of the Past were Captain America, Thor, Iron Man, Hawkeye, Vision, Black Widow, Black Panther, Giant Man, and Wasp, and they were all in their classic outfits. The art used even reflected some classic Avengers stories from when they were all on the team together. Though it wasn't exactly animated as much as a quick movement of paper like images as Tony Stark related their history, it was really well done and enough to hook me in early.
You learn that Cap and Black Widow have a son named James, Giant Man and Wasp have a son named Hank Pym Jr, who goes by Pym, Thor has a daughter named Torunn, and Black Panther had a son named Azari (And Storm is his mother, though you have to know how to recognize her in the art and symbols used, and his powers as well). Each has powers like their parents, where Azari has electrical powers and Panther's abilities.
Iron Man trained the kids and kept them hidden from Ultron as he conquered America and killed the Avengers. Vision eventually shows up with information, and the events after eventually alert Ultron of Iron Man's whereabouts, forcing the kids to invade his city to free Stark. There they meet the son of Hawkeye who everyone thought was dead, and Betty Ross, who helps them find the Hulk in the desert as well to stop Ultron for good.
Overall the story was pretty good, and acts like a third film in the Ultimate Avengers series. All of the Avengers that take a primary focus are from those films, and you add in Hawkeye and Vision. My only complaint was that some of the kids grew annoying at times, mostly Pym as he's the youngest. I was more interested in this than Doctor Strange, but it's still not as good or entertaining as Hulk Vs. That still is the top spot of these Marvel films.
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Tragic Angelus
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Trying to watch the animated Invincible Iron Man film. Have to say, it's not all that great.
It updates Tony's origin so far to him being wounded when he goes into China after his company's plans to raise an ancient city have been compromised, including James Rhodes being kidnapped. So far I'm not too impressed, as I hoped it would have the origin sort of recapped in the credits rather than the whole story. This came out like.. right after the first movie right? Good to capitalize there, but retelling the origin would just confuse most of the public.
It updates Tony's origin so far to him being wounded when he goes into China after his company's plans to raise an ancient city have been compromised, including James Rhodes being kidnapped. So far I'm not too impressed, as I hoped it would have the origin sort of recapped in the credits rather than the whole story. This came out like.. right after the first movie right? Good to capitalize there, but retelling the origin would just confuse most of the public.
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Tragic Angelus
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Ok, so I'm just about finished with Iron Man, so I'm going to start up the review.
It turns out as the city is raised, Four Elementals are sent out in search of finding the remaining rings needed to raise the Mandarin. When Stark and Rhoddy break out of their make-shift prison in China via a prototype of armor like the film, SHIELD tries to arrest them as fugitives for selling arms to rogue Chinese militias, the group who captured them to prevent the raising of the Mandarin.
Turns out, Stark has tons of Iron Man suits pre-made as a precaution but he hadn't found a need for them just yet. We see glimpses of Hulkbuster Armor, Ultimate Iron Man, and tons of others as he prepares to take on the four elementals who are collecting the last rings to raise the Mandarin.
The battles are cool, but the art changes to pure CGI when it's Iron Man vs the Elementals, which I don't care too much for. At times, it looks really very bad to me, especially when it's CGI layered over the regular artwork. Poor job here, especially when this is the only film that I know of from Marvel that does this. Personally, DC has Marvel in the art department, but Marvel has the willingness to do different stories than you'd expect. Another thing I found irritating was that Stark's father was still alive, and part of the company.
And of course, Tony unknowingly aides in the resurrection of the Mandarin, and then has a difficult time battling the resurrected being, though not in the way you'd think. In a way, it's not exactly him who saves the day but someone else.
Have to say, this one wasn't as promising as I'd have thought. Hulk vs. is still the best out of them all, followed most likely by the Ultimate Avengers films. Strange, Iron Man, and the Next Avengers kind of all just tie together in a 'catch it if it ever airs on Cartoon Network or someone let's you borrow it for free' kind of radar. I wouldn't say go out and buy them. DC still makes the better movies but Marvel's willingness to experiment gives them a lot of credit. Out of all of these, I say you should definitely buy Hulk Vs. and make sure you get both Thor and Wolverine, as both are really good. The rest, very much passable.
It turns out as the city is raised, Four Elementals are sent out in search of finding the remaining rings needed to raise the Mandarin. When Stark and Rhoddy break out of their make-shift prison in China via a prototype of armor like the film, SHIELD tries to arrest them as fugitives for selling arms to rogue Chinese militias, the group who captured them to prevent the raising of the Mandarin.
Turns out, Stark has tons of Iron Man suits pre-made as a precaution but he hadn't found a need for them just yet. We see glimpses of Hulkbuster Armor, Ultimate Iron Man, and tons of others as he prepares to take on the four elementals who are collecting the last rings to raise the Mandarin.
The battles are cool, but the art changes to pure CGI when it's Iron Man vs the Elementals, which I don't care too much for. At times, it looks really very bad to me, especially when it's CGI layered over the regular artwork. Poor job here, especially when this is the only film that I know of from Marvel that does this. Personally, DC has Marvel in the art department, but Marvel has the willingness to do different stories than you'd expect. Another thing I found irritating was that Stark's father was still alive, and part of the company.
And of course, Tony unknowingly aides in the resurrection of the Mandarin, and then has a difficult time battling the resurrected being, though not in the way you'd think. In a way, it's not exactly him who saves the day but someone else.
Have to say, this one wasn't as promising as I'd have thought. Hulk vs. is still the best out of them all, followed most likely by the Ultimate Avengers films. Strange, Iron Man, and the Next Avengers kind of all just tie together in a 'catch it if it ever airs on Cartoon Network or someone let's you borrow it for free' kind of radar. I wouldn't say go out and buy them. DC still makes the better movies but Marvel's willingness to experiment gives them a lot of credit. Out of all of these, I say you should definitely buy Hulk Vs. and make sure you get both Thor and Wolverine, as both are really good. The rest, very much passable.
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Mr Wallstreet
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Mr Wallstreet
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Over the weekend I saw Dr. Strange, Iron Man & Ultimate Avengers.
Short version was I liked them, although they weren't in the same league as DC's animated movies in terms of animation quality or voice acting, they still provided solid enjoyment. I'm also not suggesting that Marvel adopt DC's animation style wholesale but I like that it's a work in progress for them. They are constantly tweaking the animation with each successive film and trying to find the right fit for them.
I also like the slight revisions on origins for each film like Iron Man, Dr. Strange & Ultimate Avengers. Though for Avengers, a lot of the adult content & political themes were removed entirely such as the domestic violence exhibited by Hank Pym & themes of terrorism.
Regardless great films all around.
Looking forward to Ultimate Avengers 2 & the Kid Avengers films
Short version was I liked them, although they weren't in the same league as DC's animated movies in terms of animation quality or voice acting, they still provided solid enjoyment. I'm also not suggesting that Marvel adopt DC's animation style wholesale but I like that it's a work in progress for them. They are constantly tweaking the animation with each successive film and trying to find the right fit for them.
I also like the slight revisions on origins for each film like Iron Man, Dr. Strange & Ultimate Avengers. Though for Avengers, a lot of the adult content & political themes were removed entirely such as the domestic violence exhibited by Hank Pym & themes of terrorism.
Regardless great films all around.
Looking forward to Ultimate Avengers 2 & the Kid Avengers films
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Tragic Angelus
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Ultimate Avengers is bar far the best of the films you listed, with Ultimate Avengers 2 coming in second. Those, and Hulk Vs are the tops of all the Marvel films from my point of view. It was about as close to the original story as it could be (minus the vulgarity, ultra violence, and yes, domestic abuse) and it really was pretty enjoyable. Ultimate Avengers 2 just takes on a whole life of its own, for better or worse, but it doesn't ignore the continuity of the last film, as it's a direct sequel, which was a nice touch for once in the animation of both sides.