‘Captain America: Civil War’ – pick a side

More-likely-than-not pre-production art for “Captain America: Civil War” hit the web today.

We know that the star-studded movie, due for spring release, pits teams headed by Cap and Iron Man against each other.

Although I bet we’ll see some allegiances change during the movie, the initial lineups are pretty interesting.

Here’s Cap’s team. Hawkeye, Sharon Carter, Falcon (with Redwing above!) and Winter Soldier.

And here’s Tony Stark’s team. War Machine, Black Widow, Black Panther and Vision.

In the shot of Cap’s team, did you notice Ant-Man on Hawkeye’s shoulder?

That means we’ve got to see this.

Marvel wouldn’t tease that and leave us hanging, would they?

New Cap, new Thor and ‘Avengers: Ultron!’

Again, which of us, as little geeks, thought this would happen? All this superhero movie madness?

And who could have imagined it would be so much fun?

Entertainment Weekly – which I haven’t seen yet – has a big preview of next May’s “Avengers: Age of Ultron.”

Marvel announces that, in the comics, Thor will soon be a female who takes the Thunder God’s mighty hammer when the original Odinson is sidelined.

Marvel announces a new Captain America – most likely Sam Wilson, Cap’s longtime partner as the Falcon – will take over for Steve Rogers, also in the comics.

You know, this isn’t entirely new. Thor has been replaced before – once, notably, by a giant frog – and so has Cap (so many times I couldn’t begin to count, but most notably by Bucky Barnes/The Winter Soldier).

But it’s all fun and fair and will juice up publicity leading up to the “Ultron” movie next May.

So to reiterate: Hell to the yes.

 

‘Agents of SHIELD,’ ‘Winter Soldier’ building to … ?

It shouldn’t be surprising that Disney/ABC/Marvel is practicing synergy in how it’s handling ABC’s Tuesday-night series “Agents of SHIELD” and the April 4 release of “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” the second Marvel movie – after “Thor: The Dark World” – released since “SHIELD” debuted last fall.

There was a “SHIELD” episode earlier in the season that tied in, in a minimal way, to the “Thor” sequel. And Jaimie Alexander guest-starred this week as Sif on “SHIELD,” tracking down fellow Asgardian Lorelei.

But it’s increasingly obvious, as I noted in an earlier piece, that both “SHIELD” and “Winter Soldier” seem to be building to something.

On “SHIELD,” Agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg) has had a season-long arc of discovery as he tries to determine how and why he was brought back from the dead after Loki inflicted a fatal goring in “The Avengers.” So far, we’ve learned that Coulson – and SHIELD team member Skye – were saved by a mysterious liquid that appears to be generated from the half-missing corpse of a blue alien bottled up in a remote SHIELD facility. In last week’s episode, Coulson asks Sif about “blue aliens” and she mentions several, from frost giants (obviously not the answer in this case) to the Kree, the longtime Marvel alien race that spawned not only the original Captain Marvel but also is the mortal enemy of the Skrulls (or the Chitauri, as they were depicted in “The Avengers.”)

By episode’s end, Coulson – frustrated that alien biologics were used in his resurrection and to save Skye – is seeking answers and demanding to speak to Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson, who’s already appeared on the series).

Promos for the series – using the subtitle (“Uprising”) – would lead us to believe that Coulson’s quest for knowledge may shake up the prevailing image of SHIELD.

As I’ve stated before, SHIELD’s been the subject of sinister undertones in the big-screen Marvel movies, most notably “The Avengers,” when our heroes discovered that SHIELD was experimenting with Hydra weaponry.

I have a feeling this will tie in, more or less, to “Winter Soldier” when it comes out on April 4. The promos for the movie indicate Cap, Black Widow and new partner Sam (aka The Falcon) Wilson might find themselves pitted against SHIELD itself or at least leader figures like the one Robert Redford plays. I’ve previously speculated the role Robert Redford’s character plays in all this (spoilers here if you look).

So what can we infer from this?

Marvel is trying to pull off something that’s extremely tricky. It’s making some pretty big changes to SHIELD, the organization that has been, more or less, the glue that’s held its cinematic universe together from the start.

And it’s doing some while it’s producing a weekly TV series about that organization.

Is the series going to turn its “good guy” into a “bad guy,” with the rank-and-file agents on the outside? Or even on the run?

Ranking the Marvel movies

Here’s a pointless exercise but maybe a fun one.

I decided to rank, in order of how much I enjoyed them/how good I thought they were, the big-screen Marvel movies.

It’s not too hard to tell that I prefer the official Marvel Cinematic Universe movies over the random Fox and Sony movies, I know.

A few provisos:

I’m not dipping back into pre-history far enough to drag “Howard the Duck” into this. And I haven’t seen it in a couple decades.

And I’m not including the 1994 “Fantastic Four” movie because it wasn’t released – I’ve only seen it on a bootleg DVD bought at a convention – and it doesn’t belong on this list any more than the awful “Captain America” TV movies do. Same for the “Blade” movies, which had their moments but seem as remote as the 1944 “Captain America” serial now.

Be aware, I’ve only glimpsed moments of the “Ghost Rider” movies on TV. And I’ve never seen the “Punisher” movies at all.

Two lists: First, just the “official” Marvel movies, then the list with the non-Marvel-overseen movies mixed in.

The Avengers

Captain America: The First Avenger

Iron Man

Thor

Thor: The Dark World

The Incredible Hulk

Iron Man 3

Iron Man 2

If you add the other post-2000 Marvel movies that aren’t part  of the official Marvel Cinematic Universe into the mix, it’s still weighted pretty heavy toward the official Marvel canon.

The Avengers

Captain America: The First Avenger

Iron Man

Thor

Thor: The Dark World

X-Men 2

Spider-Man 2

X-Men

X-Men: First Class

The Incredible Hulk

Spider-Man

Iron Man 3

The Wolverine

The Amazing Spider-Man

Daredevil

Iron Man 2

X-Men 3

Fantastic Four

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer

Spider-Man 3

X-Men Origins: Wolverine

Hulk

Elektra

Looking at that list, it seems like “Iron Man 3” is way too far down. But maybe not. I need to see it again.

Something tells me my list will see a big shake-up next month, when “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” opens.

Cool: Falcon poster from ‘The Winter Soldier’

Good on you, Marvel.

Screen Caps: Shots from ‘Winter Soldier’ trailer

Last night’s Super Bowl had at least one highlight: A new trailer for “Captain America: The Winter Soldier.”

I’m hoping that, when the movie opens in April, we’ll all get just what we’re expecting: A smart and action-filled political thriller that pits Cap against dark forces that want to control super-spy agency SHIELD.

Not to mention his one-on-one bouts with the Winter Soldier, who comic book fans will know is the reincarnated and improved – into a killing machine – version of his old sidekick Bucky Barnes.

The images in the trailer continue to be among my favorite from any Marvel movie. It just feels like directors Anthony and Joe Russo have totally hit their marks.

There’s a lot of focus in the trailer on Cap’s former, current and future partners: Bucky/the Winter Soldier, Black Widow and Sam Wilson, aka the Falcon.

Bucky Barnes realizing he’s been turned into the Winter Soldier, a Russian assassin.

The Winter Soldier process, apparently.

Not the face of an ally. Yet.

Nick Fury after the Winter Soldier tries to kill him.

Who’s the body on the table? Who would Natasha be mourning? Surely it can’t be fury. SHIELD agent Hill is out in the hallway. Who’s dead?

Not a good day to be in the SHIELD helicarrier. Or in SHIELD headquarters.

Sam Wilson gets in on the action.

Cap and the Falcon, reporting for duty.

We even get a look – in the UK trailer, at least – of whom we suspect to be Sharon Carter, SHIELD agent and (likely) granddaughter of Agent Carter, Cap’s old flame.

I can’t wait for this movie.

 

‘Winter Soldier’ and ‘X-Men’ marketing 101

Apparently someone at Fox believes the old saying that any publicity is good publicity.

That must be the idea behind the 25 different covers released by Empire magazine featuring 25 different characters (including a non-character, director Bryan Singer) for “X-Men Days of Future Past.”

Some of them aren’t bad, like the ones above featuring Magneto, Professor X and Wolverine.

Some are just inexplicable, including the one showcasing the movie’s version of Quicksilver.

In the comics, if you’re not familiar with the character, Quicksilver (along with his sister, Scarlet Witch) was part of the second wave of Avengers recruits back in the 1960s, serving under Captain America and replacing Iron Man, Hulk and Thor.

It was a plot point that the new Avengers, including Hawkeye, were drastically less powerful than the original team.

And I’m wondering if when Joss Whedon has Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch join the Avengers in the 2015 sequel, there won’t be some similar storylines playing out.

But in “Days of Future Past,” it appears that Quicksilver is … what, would you say, a punk kid with really bad hair and an outfit that’s even worse?

Here he is, side by side with the comic-book version.

The X-Men Quicksilver is a look that was certain to – and did – inspire derision.

Then there’s the latest marketing from “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” due out in April.

There’s this great poster featuring Cap and the main cast, including Robert Redford as SHIELD honcho Alexander Pierce. It’s right out of the Marvel marketing playbook and is reminiscent of posters for “The Avengers” and others in the Marvel cinematic universe.

And then there are the character posters, including those for Nick Fury and Black Widow (photoshopping aside).

That’s how you market characters. And I’m looking forward to one featuring Falcon. Please.

 

Comic book odd: Um, you sure about that, Cap?

Anybody’s who’s read this blog knows I love Captain America.

So this is one of my favorite comic book bloopers. I first saw it in a Marvel Comics “No Prize” collection a long time ago.

From “Tales of Suspense” 92, cover dated August 1967. Also in this issue, Iron Man returns to Vietnam.

‘Nuff said.

Today in Halloween: Captain America goggles

I think I might have to break down and get these.

Readers of this blog might know that Captain America is, in some ways, my favorite superhero.

My earliest comic-book experiences revolved around a copy of Avengers 4, the milestone silver age comic in which Cap returns from the dead, given to me by a neighbor.

Cap’s costume in the big-screen movies often includes some kind of cowl/mask but often features just helmet and goggles.

You can get Iron Man or Spider-Man versions of these goggles, but really, they only make absolute sense for Cap to wear.

Or Halloween-night versions of Cap.

If I could only find a set big enough for my big Roysdon-sized noggin.

Captain America on the Fourth of July

It’s pretty easy to draw a line between Captain America, the classic Marvel Comics character, and the Fourth of July, the U.S.’ most patriotic holiday.

The guy’s dressed in the Stars and Stripes, for pete’s sake.

But those who dismiss Cap and his alter ego, Steve Rogers, as an empty American symbol are wrong.

As a matter of fact, Cap’s real patriotism is what the Marvel movie producers got so right in “Captain America: The First Avenger” and “The Avengers.”

Like Superman, Captain America is a man without his own people. When Cap returned in Avengers No. 4, he was nearly 20 years removed from his era and his battleground, World War II. That “man out of time” feeling, which directors Joe Johnson and Joss Whedon captured so well in those movies, is what sets Cap apart from hip, funny heroes like Spider-Man.

Heck, the former Cartoon Network series “Superhero Squad,” which made Marvel heroes appealing and accessible to young fans, even got Cap right even as they poked fun at him. Cap in that series was always talking about some conversation he had with FDR or making some other “frozen in amber” reference. It was as funny as it was on-the-nose.

But besides Cap’s stranger in a strange land status, he’s also known for doing what’s right. Always. For a period in his comic in the 1970s, that meant forgoing the Cap name and costume and, thanks to disillusionment with the government, operating as Nomad, the man without a country.

I’m looking forward to “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” next year in great part because it looks like more of a political thriller than a spandex slugfest and in great part because it looks to pit Cap against SHIELD. Cap’s character in “The Avengers” certainly showed more than a little skepticism about SHIELD and Nick Fury’s motives. That’s perfectly in keeping with the character and I couldn’t be happier about that.

So while Steve Rogers would, if he existed, be enjoying a hot dog and some fireworks today, he’d also be mindful of what enabled him to enjoy the Fourth of July, the sacrifices of men and women that allowed that and the individual liberties of the people around him.

Because while Captain America might have been a man without his own people, he has embraced – and been embraced by – his new people.