Marvel Archives - Page 2 of 2

MARVEL ous Movie Adventures

So, I just came home from watching Marvel’s Thor: The Dark World, and I wanted to take this opportunity to take a look back at my adventure through the Marvel movies released to date. Just to be clear, this is going to focus primarily on the Marvel Cinematic Universe put out by Marvel Studios, but will also cover other Marvel movies. First off, I have never once in my life picked up a comic book or graphic novel, so everything I am basing my opinions on came from my impressions from films. I’ll try to keep it spoiler free, but there may be some included, so if you haven’t seen any of these films and wish to, you’ve been warned.

I’ve never really been a huge fan of the superhero genre generally speaking, and if asked, I’d probably say my favorite superhero was Batman (of the Adam West variety of course), but that’s DC, however I have seen all those movies. I think my introduction to Marvel films came by way of the first X-Men film. I didn’t see any of the first three in the theater, but own all three after discovering my affinity for the characters through renting the movies. My love of Logan/Wolverine is deep seeded, and probably isn’t hindered by the fact he is played by the gorgeous Hugh Jackman. Having said that, the only X-Men film I had the misfortune to choose to see in the theater was X-Men Origins: Wolverine. I rebounded from that catching the far superior First Class on tv, and still haven’t seen what I’ve heard is decent in the new The Wolverine film. I prefer the first film, then the second, then First Class, and I’d forget about Last Stand and Origins. I’ll be interested to see where The Wolverine falls within these.

Between the X-Men films I watched the first two of the Spiderman films with Tobey Maguire. I wasn’t all that into it and haven’t to this day seen the third film or the reboot with Andrew Garfield. Also falling in the category of I really wasn’t impressed with it so I didn’t see the sequel is Daredevil (loosely referring to Elektra as the follow up). I vaguely recollect the highlight of Daredevil for me being the appearance of Colin Farrell as a baddie, Bullseye. Not much else about the movie stuck in my memory. Just this year did I get around to watching the Fantastic Four movie, partially because I heard Chris Evans was in it. Are you sensing a trend here? Hot guys are sometimes enough to get me to watch a movie. There, I said it. Feel free to judge away.

Along with these movies, there are several others that I didn’t even realize were Marvel until I did a little research for this post. Among these include the Ghost Rider series starring Nicolas Cage, Blade series with Wesley Snipes, the Punisher (two movies?), the Man-Thing (never heard of it), and Howard the Duck?!?!?!? I have not seen any of these films, but as I do tend to be a completionist, I may have to go back and watch them along with Elektra, the two Spiderman movies, the second Fantastic Four, and the new Wolverine movie.

Now we come to the beginning of what is referred to as the Marvel Cinematic Universe; the first film to be released in this series was Iron Man. For whatever reason, I must have been living under a rock for a bit, or maybe I still wasn’t sold on this superhero business, I didn’t see Iron Man in the theater. I caught it on dvd through Netflix in the following months and really enjoyed it. I don’t know why, but I didn’t rush out and buy it right away. Much like my feelings for Tony Stark himself, it is a love/hate slow burn to a crescendo kind of feeling. He is a bad boy, an antihero, but like a moth to a flame, you are drawn to him eventually. Part of his charm is his snarkiness, but also his superior intelligence, oh, and being played by Robert Downey, Jr. doesn’t hurt either. Genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist indeed.

I found myself enjoying Iron Man enough to catch the second installation in the theater. Again, I pick the wrong times to catch on to thing (much like computer operating systems) and this was no exception. Although Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury does deliver one of my favorite lines (re: donut), and I like the introduction of the Black Widow, this film was lacking the energy and cohesiveness of the first one. I liked the flashbacks to Howard Stark, but I didn’t connect with this as much as I had the previous movie.

Next up in my Marvel movie adventure came the discovery of Thor. Like Iron Man, I found a lot of humor in this movie, much more than I expected from something directed by Kenneth Branagh. This brought in more of a sci-fi/fantasy element than Iron Man, which was more Earth-based. Sure, Chris Hemsworth is all muscle-y and such. Despite science fiction not being one of my favorite genres of film, I enjoyed this more than I thought I would, but not as much as Iron Man.

And then came Cap. Ah, Captain America, Steve Rogers, my favorite Avenger (albeit after some deliberation). I do like bad boys, a habit I think I’ve broken now in my mid 30s, but I can appreciate the chivalry and boy next door charm and gentility of Cap. He is the quintessential good guy, maybe why he’s been given the nickname boy scout? A man displaced in time, who has experienced so much, but is still so innocent. Part of what I love from the film is the WWII era setting. The rest is all about the man and his journey, and Chris Evans. 🙂

After this, I forced myself to watch the Incredible Hulk in preparation for the Avengers. My knowledge of the Hulk came from growing up watching Lou Ferrigno in the early 80s. This was a very different, darker monster than what we had seen on tv previously. I thought Edward Norton did a passable job as Bruce Banner, but I struggled to get through this one.

May 4th, 2012. A day emblazoned in my memory by the fine folks at the Disney Film Project Podcast. It became a mantra. The day arrived. I had to wait since I was working until a couple of days later, but caught a matinee at Downtown Disney by myself and absolutely loved it! I could not wait to see it again. This is the film that brought them all together, with the introduction of Mark Ruffalo now as Dr. Banner/Hulk. Before this movie, I had never paid to see a movie more than once in the theater. This one got my money three weekends in a row. I could not get enough. There was action, adventure, humor, and it was larger than life!

This year introduced us to the second round of Marvel films since Disney acquired the Marvel Studios. Loving Iron Man as I do, I had really high hopes for Iron Man 3, and I wasn’t disappointed. The film falls between 1 and 2 for me, but is definitely closer in quality to the first film than the second. I liked the humor and the action and Tony’s reaction to the events of the Avengers film. It is nice to know the man inside the machine is still human and has feelings.

That brings us to tonight’s viewing, Thor: The Dark World. I didn’t realize there was going to be as much sci-fi/fantasy (I feel there was way more than the first one), but still really liked it. I laughed out loud (literally) at several points in the movie, but, like Captain America and the Avengers, it also made me cry. I saw some things telegraphed before they occurred, others, not so much. As a whole, it was a very enjoyable film, which I will definitely be adding to my collection. Plus, Tom Hiddleston as Loki is hilarious, and there is a cameo that had me clapping and laughing so hard, I was glad the theater was almost empty.

From here, what’s next you ask? The next date to remember is 4/4/14 when Captain America: The Winter Soldier is released and man does it look good. It will be interesting to see more introspection from Cap on the happenings of the Avengers and also being displaced in time. This reminds me I also need to watch the short on the Iron Man 3 Blu Ray of Agent Carter. Speaking of agents, I would be remiss to not mention the wonderful Son of Coul, Agent Phil Coulson (his first name is not Agent despite Tony Stark’s insistence). I am really liking the new Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. tv series on ABC. It is a nice combination of superhero/sci-fi/spy genres.

So, as far as my collection of movies goes at this point in time, I currently own the first three X-Men films, all three Iron Man movies, Thor, Captain America, and the Avengers. I will definitely be adding Thor 2 to that list when it comes out ostensibly in the spring. I am already counting down the days til we get the next Captain America film, but in the meantime, make sure you check out the latest trailer.

httpv://youtu.be/NLWsK1ZFunA

Have you seen any or all of the Marvel films I mentioned? What are your favorites so far? Who is your favorite character from the Marvel Cinematic Universe? Who would you like to be? I wouldn’t mind growing up to be a kick ass babe like Sith from Thor, or Agent Romanov aka Black Widow.

A Spoiler Free Look At Iron Man 3

As you know from my podcast the Disney Film Project Podcast, that I’m quite a geek when it comes to anything comic books, superheroes, Star Wars, etc. Just 5 short years ago, superhero movies, while popular, were considered by general audiences to be below the bar. Sufficient in making money for studios, few great successes, and many outright failures. Then in 2008 everything changed, because the bar was raised when the first Iron Man movie came out. For many years, even before the movie project was announced, fans had asked for actor Robert Downey Jr. (RDJ) to take on the role of Tony Stark. Fans saw his own addiction to narcotics and recovery as a strong bond between him and the character whose own past includes an addiction to alcohol. The industry listened to the fans. The actor was completely on board. And the movie was a huge success.

Now, almost 5 years to the day, many people are going to be heading out to their local movie theater to go see the movie Iron Man 3. It’s hard to think that this may be one of the last times that RDJ might be playing the character though there’s a good chance that he’ll renegotiate his contract as long as the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) continues to be the blockbuster success that it has been. Which would be good news for fans like myself, the thought of anyone else playing the role is almost painful.

The first Iron Man movie was about how Tony Stark becomes Iron Man, whereas the second one was about the price of having that power, and the mortality of the man inside the armor. Iron Man 3 carries this theme that is very common in the Iron Man comic books forward quite a bit. Now Tony Stark isn’t just a guy in a suit of high tech armor doing his own thing, he’s a hero the world over. He’s a survivor of the “Battle of Manhattan” from The Avengers, he’s had his shawarma, and he’s at a loss of what to do next.

And he wanders through much of this movie in the same way many other victims of war do. Wrought with regret and anxiety for what he experienced, and how it changes his future. He can’t sleep, he’s angry, and he’s having anxiety attacks. And this has been going on for some time. The only real indication we have about how much time has passed is that at the end of The Avengers, Tony dons his Mark VII (7) armor. In Iron Man 3 he’s wearing a prototype suit of armor dubbed Mark XLII (42) – making this as little as 6 weeks later.

I’ll be honest, I loved this movie, but as you can see from everything above, I’m a bit biased. It has a feeling about it that is just the right way to go for what is essentially a downtime piece between Avengers movies more than it is the third part of a trilogy. It missed the mark for me on exactly one point where I thought to myself that I don’t care how riddled with crazy Tony’s head is, at this point I want to see him do *this* and he didn’t. But there is just an amazing amount of both heart and humor that will endear people to this character even more than he was before.

It paves the way for some of my MCU predictions like the now ever popular Coulson Lives in a way that is really going to prove more interesting than such a thing was ever depicted in comic books. But we’re talking about a series of movies that made the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier believable – a movie moment that I’d wanted to see my entire life and literally made me cry tears of joy. That said, this movie didn’t have a moment like that for me. But that didn’t lessen it for me – as I said, it’s a downtime piece. And I very much enjoyed seeing Tony be more than just a man outside the armor, yet still need the armor to be the whole set piece of the character.

Be forewarned, once you see this movie you will realize that you have been played. I won’t say how or why, but know that this movie does something that I feel that no one could have foreseen or predicted from any of the advertising material (posters, trailers, etc.). And it’s totally awesome on so many levels. To the point where I feel it changes movie advertising quite a bit.

As has been the case with all of the previous MCU movies, it’s important for the viewer to stay past the credits for the “bonus scene”. This one is cute and clever and is more like a “bookend” for the movie as a whole then an “extra moment”. The end credits are simply amazing. They will have you leaving Iron Man 3 and wanting to go watch old television shows like Magnum P.I., Charlies Angels, and the original Hawaii Five-0.

Overall every fan of Iron Man will definitely want to rush out to see this movie as planned. Non-fans may not like it so much, mostly because they’ll be watching for it to be a typical action/adventure movie, which it clearly is not. If you’re somewhere in between the two, then YMMV (your mileage may vary).

In addition to doing the web design and programming for the On the Go in MCO website, Todd Perlmutter is a host for the Disney Film Project Podcast. You can join him and his fellow hosts for a Live Review of Iron Man 3 on Thursday, May 9, 2013.

Spring into Adventures

Spring is in the air. Hopefully the pollen and my allergies will clear up soon and it is heating up and starting to feel like summer here in Florida. I thought I’d take this opportunity to share some of the things I’m most looking forward to over the next couple of months instead of doing that spring cleaning that I probably should be doing. Now that I’ve found out my schedule for the rest of the spring and beginning of summer, I thought I’d start planning some weekend adventures. The parks across the area have some fantastic special events this time of year, and before the kids are out of school it is a great time to get away while the crowds are lower.

At Epcot we are already more than halfway through the International Flower & Garden Festival. I love this event each year and have been attending since 1998! I dearly miss Davy Jones of the Monkees, as his was always my go to concert for the Flower Power Concert Series. The thing I think I am most excited about (aside from the newly added food and beverage kiosks) is that my favorite HGTV celebrity, David Bromstad, is going to be hosting presentations May 17 – 19 and I’m now off that weekend!

Another of my favorite things that I will get to do for the third year in a row is Star Wars Weekends at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. This fabulous event has quickly become a must do for me! I still have so many things I haven’t done yet that are on my to do list. I need to get up early enough and get to the park to see the Stormtroopers on top of the entrance to the park above the turnstiles. Also, I really want to get my picture taken with as many of the characters as possible and go to some of the presentations and shows. And then, of course, there is Hyperspace Hoopla, my favorite of all! My apologies to anyone who now has that song stuck in their head (Hoooooooopla, Hyperspace Hoopla…).

Busch Gardens and Sea World are playing host to an awesome special event that I got to experience last year for the first time: Viva la Mύsica! This great offering is one that features Latin American food, merchandise, cuture, and of course, music. I got to go just for an hour or so to Busch Gardens after work last year and got to try to some amazing food, but was too late for the concert. This year I was hoping to catch at least one weekend at Busch Gardens and Sea World each. I was so excited when I found out that my favorite salsa band, El Gran Combo, was going to be playing at both parks. I know where I’ll be that weekend!

One of the greatest things about these three events is that they are all included in park admission. Food and beverages of course are extra, but the entertainment and most of the presentations are free of charge with your ticket. These add tremendous value to your vacation or even just a day in the park for us locals.

Water parks are definitely on my list for the next few months. I’ve lived in Florida for almost 20 years and I’ve only been to Typhoon Lagoon for a couple hours and did the lazy river and snorkled with the sharks before the park closed due to weather. This needs to be rectified. I’ve visited Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach for functions, but haven’t done a single water slide. This is a travesty! I also would love to check out some of the other area water parks like Sea World’s Aquatica and Adventure Island in Tampa.

Now we all know that sometimes with the spring come those showers that we need for those pretty flowers. What to do when it isn’t exactly park weather? Why not catch a film? Two movies I am ridiculously excited to see this spring are Marvel’s Iron Man 3 and Disney/Pixar’s Monsters University (visit this site if you haven’t already – it is hilarious!). I am a huge Avengers fan and loved the first Iron Man movie, enjoyed the second one, and adored the Avengers, so I cannot wait to see what they have in store for Tony Stark in this next installment. Monsters Inc was a great, feel good family flick and I think that this will be very entertaining to see some of Mike and Sulley’s adventures before they were best buds.

What are you looking forward to this spring? Did I miss any of your favorite spring special events? Have you been to any of these before? What are some of your favorite things to do in spring when the weather doesn’t cooperate? Hit us up and let us know.

The Week in Review: August 6 – August 10, 2012: Movies, DVC, and Orlando Sports…Oh My!

The Week in Review: August 6 – August 10, 2012

It has been another amazing week here at On the Go, and now let’s take a look back at how the first full week of August went down!!!

Let’s do this thing!

On Monday, Todd Perlmutter, of Disney Film Project fame, takes a break from taking the blame about everything around here to take a spoiler free look at The Odd Life of Timothy Green.

Looking for an opportunity to volunteer in the UCF area? Or are you looking for a 5K to run? Are you a huge college sports fan? If you answered yes, you might want to check out the Inaugural Orlando Health Gridiron 5K Challenge, that our friends at the Central Florida Sports Commission have created!

2012 Gridiron 5K Challenge Banner — 2012 Gridiron 5K Challenge

Check out our review of the latest Disney Chanel Original Movie Let It Shine on DVD and enter for your chance to win a copy!

LetItShine DVD(small) — Let It Shine Comes to DVD August 7, 2012

This week’s Wordless Wednesday takes us over to the Hollywood Drive-In Golf at Universal’s CityWalk!

8 8 2012 — Hollywood Drive-In Golf Golf at Universal Citywalk

Earlier this summer we told you about SeaWorld rescuing a pregnant manatee that gave birth to an adorable calf, and we updated you about their return to their home in Merritt Island, Florida.

20120802_Manatee Release_18 — SeaWorld Orlando’s Animal Rescue team prepares calf and mom for transport to Sykes Creek.

Thursday, we were really excited to let you know about Visit Orlando’s Magical Dining Month returning this year in September! This is definitely something you are going to want to check out!!!

We are all super excited about the Solar Bears returning to the ice in Orlando, and they will be returning under their 2001 Turner Cup Championship Banner!

And we wrapped up the week with Cheryl taking a look back at her DVC stay at the Beach Club Villas!

Beach Club Villas Studio Main Room (courtesy of Betsy Bates)

Then finally I took a look at the really cool tokidoki MARVEL merchandise that is available at DStreet!

Tokidoki MARVEL Men's T-Shirt — Tokidoki MARVEL Men’s T-Shirt

Thanks for joining us this week at On the Go, and we can’t wait to bring you even more posts next week!!!

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New tokidoki MARVEL Items Available At Downtown Disney Westside DStreet

Close up tokidoki MARVEL logo

When I wandered into DStreet, at Downtown Disney’s Westside, I was really excited to see that they had new tokidoki MARVEL T-shirts, sweatshirts, hats, and merchandise available…and this time in Women’s styles!

I excitedly walked over (maybe even a little bit of a run to be honest) to check out the new Women’s shirts. The last time that DStreet had tokidoki MARVEL items, they only carried men’s items so the addition of women’s items is amazing! My favorite (and MUST purchase item) was Thor riding a unicorn! The shirts are cut on the smaller side, but are printed on a very high quality shirt.

And then, of course, I had to check out the Women’s Sweatshirts. Much like the shirts, these are cut on the smaller side and are also on the heavier side of sweatshirts. The colors are great and vibrant, and the cartoon detail of the hood is a great touch!

But I couldn’t not look at the Men’s T-shirts and Sweatshirts.These, unlike the ladies, are cut on the larger side, and are printed on heaver shirt and sweatshirt material. The images on these are on the larger side this time, but they aren’t overwhelming.

And then I spied a really fun 59Fifty Spider-Man hat! I love the look of these hats, but they really aren’t my style…but if they are your’s you should take a peek at them!

Then, as we were at the register I looked to my left and found the tokidoki MARVEL Frenzies! These are about the same size that Vinylmation Jrs, and also come in blind boxes. There are 20 different Frenzies figurines to collect (Captain America, Cyclops, Doctor Doom, Doctor Octopus, Hulk, Human Torch, Invisible Woman, Iron Man, Magneto, Mister Fantastic, Punisher, Red Skull, Rogue, Silver Surfer, Spider-Man, Storm, Thing, Thor, Vision, Wolverine), and I want them all! They are designed as phone charms, but they could be easily attached to anything! These cute figures have only added to my tokidoki MARVEL obsession!!!

I was super proud of myself for not buying one of everything, but I can’t make that promise about my next visit!

I hope you enjoy this look at the new tokidoki MARVEL items at DStreet!