The nerdiest of us have been fan-casting this moment for years, but it finally happened, as July 25th marked the first ever assembling of the Avengers. But we’ll get to that in a moment, as there’s a lot to cover about the Marvel panel at the San Diego Comic-Con.
The first and most important moment, however, happened during an ugly melee between presentations for “Resident Evil: Afterlife” and “Paul” as a dispute erupted over seats in Hall H, where most Con guests merely camped out in expectation of the Marvel panel. One attendee actually stabbed another in the face with a pen, and while onlookers subdued the perpetrator before an arrest was made, the victim was taken to the hospital, with no further updates on his condition. We’re surprised this only led to a 45 minute delay and a somewhat tacky joke by Robert Downey Jr. (“Nobody stab anyone”), as overcrowding and overzealousness often spoils these events for casual guests. We hope the victim makes a full recovery, and that the guests of such events can control themselves in the future.
“Captain America: The First Avenger”
Footage: Joe Johnston’s WWII-set adventure had only been shooting for eight days before Comic Con, so it was a surprise they were able to show any footage at all. At the start, a teaser, showcasing the voice of President Roosevelt lamenting, “a day that will live in infamy” showed just how seriously they are and shouldn’t be taking the material. After a full shot of Chris Evans as Cap throwing his shield (specifically costume test footage), a fade to black.
A second clip showcased Hugo Weaving, apparently basing his character Johann Schmidt (aka the Red Skull) on Werner Herzog, unearthing a mysterious cube in a hidden tomb with Asgardian origins, which he claims is “the prize of Odin’s treasure room.” CHUD did some digging with Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige and found that the item is actually the Cosmic Cube, an important item from Marvel continuity that suggests “Captain America” won’t necessarily be afraid of the outlandish.
Inspirations: Johnston claims that, if done right, the movie will resemble “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” which is to ignore that, if done wrong, it will be like “Jurassic Park III” or “The Wolf Man.” They’re also apparently taking cues from Ed Brubaker’s recent run on the comics, which is probably because those are the easiest to find.
“Thor”
Cast Showcase: Kenneth Branagh emerged to compare “Thor” to “Henry V” before bringing out the cast of Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Clark Gregg, Tom Hiddleston and Kat Dennings. Dennings earns our MVP award by saying she doesn’t read comics and that no one cares about her character, though the audience reacts with predictable, Kafka-esque silence.
Footage: A big, meaty, action-heavy teaser showcases Thor being banished to Earth and dealing with SHIELD agents before finding his beloved hammer, as seen in the final moments of “Iron Man 2.” After some short patter where Clark Gregg admitted he had no idea what Mjolnir was, a short 3D clip gave fans a brief tutorial about the differences between Earth and Asgard. This gives the audience their first glimpse of fan-favorite Asgardians Sif, Balder, the Warriors Three and Heimdall.
“The Avengers”
Showing Off: A brief teaser showing absolutely no footage screened with a Samuel L. Jackson voice-over, before a Beatles-like reception for Jackson, Clark Gregg, Scarlett Johansson, Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr. and brand new Avengers Jeremy Renner and Mark Ruffalo. Downey claimed that “The Avengers,” despite being a mega-blockbuster handcuffed to the continuity of five previous films and meant to start a risk-free franchise, would be more ambitious than “Inception.” Whatever, Tony Stark.
Director Joss Whedon then entered, and, starstruck, told the audience, ” I have had a dream all my life and it was not this good . . . This cast is more than I could have ever hoped for. And I am going to blow it. So I need your love, I need your support.” Also, check out the brand new “Avengers” movie website, which has… well, nothing yet.
Roster: The cast announcement confirmed what we all knew, that Ant-Man would not be a part of the roster, while Natalie Portman confirmed during the “Thor” panel she wouldn’t be a part of the “Avengers.” Also not returning, obviously, is Edward Norton, which drew boos from the audience. Feige drew boos when discussing the recasting, generously borrowing from Norton’s prepared statement about the Hulk character being bigger than all of us, before changing the subject. [photos: Wired/USA Today]