LogFAQs > #950378805

GavsEvans123
Avengers: Age of Ultron (because A few days of Ultron, like, a week tops doesnt sound nearly as impressive) is rather disappointing, and is inferior to the original overall, which I didnt rate too highly (spoiler alert assuming the first film hasnt dropped yet). Thats not to say that it doesnt try though. The typical sequel approach of more characters, more plots and more big action setpieces is here, and some aspects are better this time, to be fair.

Hawkeye got shafted in the last Avengers, but Age of Ultron makes up for it. He carries this film, with plenty of interaction between him and other characters, like Black Widow and the twins. Hes also seemingly the most competent member of the team here. This is likely the closest hell ever get to having his own film, and he makes the most of it.

I used to not mind Ultron, but I didnt like him as much this time, because his jokeyness and quips diminish all the tension that was so effectively built up for him in the trailer (which worked so well that it briefly turned slower, darker versions of classic songs and nursery rhymes into a trailer clich). We were promised the Terminator and instead we got Bender. That said, I did laugh at his exasperated Oh for Gods sake! near the end when Hulk jumps into his plane. The scenes that do try to play him more seriously clash tonally with him being silly in the rest of the film, like the groan-worthy little people bit that brings about mood whiplash mid-scene. Baron Strucker also disappointingly jobs to hype him up, like how that Mouth of Sauron type guy Loki was hanging out with in the Avengers jobbed to hype up fellow chump Ronan.

The romance subplot between Hulk and Black Widow is a crack pairing that comes out of nowhere, since their most notable previous interaction involved Black Widow being terrified for her life as Hulk rampaged after her. For extra weirdness, this is fresh off Winter Soldier, where she spent a lot of time with Captain America, and Betty Ross isnt mentioned at all, which one would expect Bruce to at least think about as he was letting another woman close to him. Nevertheless, even if the idea doesnt work, I can at least appreciate what it was going for with trying to create a bond between two emotionally broken people, and Lego Avengers at least foreshadowed it a little thanks to the benefit of hindsight. (On a side note, Lego Avengers is one of my least favourite Lego games because I think its too big for how simple the gameplay is, and the unlockables are unusually lame. I guess Travellers Tales wanted to make a point of using different characters from Lego Marvel, but the upshot is that Lego Avengers is left with D-listers at best, and the only notable names are the handful of brand-new characters who had debuted since the previous game, like Kamala Khan and Jane Foster Thor.)

The action and setpieces are the most successful element of the film. These are great to look at and are very impressive in their scale, with the highlight being the big grudge match between Hulk and Iron Mans Hulkbuster armour, although the climax does feel a bit overly familiar. Its too similar to the first film, except with robots instead of aliens, and its the fourth MCU film in a row to end with a giant thing falling from the sky. Then again, it does set itself apart with scenes of the Avengers working together to save civilians caught in the battle.

I mentioned it earlier with Ultron, but the biggest problem with the film is that because everyone talks almost entirely in witty quips, you dont feel the stakes. Its funny at first, but it quickly gets tiresome, especially when characters start being dumbed down from how they are usually (looking at you, Caps Language! running gag), although there are a few good ones here and there (The entire film was building up to Visions I was born yesterday line, and no-one can convince me otherwise). At least the first film took itself seriously in a few scenes, a lesson thats been forgotten this time around.

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