Loosely based on the Ultimates comic by Mark Millar this straight to video animated adventure follows the formation of the Avengers team with Captain America, Iron Man, Hulk, Giant Man, Wasp and Black Widow. If you are familiar with the comic book series the Ultimate books take the classic Marvel characters and hypothesize what it would be like if the Avengers had formed in the modern world.
The animated movie is a little on the short side. It times in at a scant 71 minutes which means that it seems a little rushed and we don’t have as much time for character development as there was in the original comic books. But then again when is the book not better than the movie?
The story takes off, much like in Miller’s book, with Captain America back in WW II on a mission to stop an experimental Nazi nuclear missile before it gets shot at the good ol’ USA. Cap finds that the Nazis are in league with weird shapeshifting aliens. At the end of the mission Cap is frozen in an iceberg after stopping the dastardly plot and he’s not thawed out until modern times.
Cap is thawed into 2006 and he finds himself as a reluctant leader to a group of super powered heroes. The Avengers are assembled to defend the earth against the same aliens that aided the Nazis back in the day. The rest is a basic over-the-top superhero action film that most people would expect.
The animation throughout the film is top notch. Its 2-D characters with some 3-D animation for the larger vehicles and such. The characters are well defined, and for the most part well acted. My favorite performance comes from Justin Gross who provides the strong, but reserved voice of Steve Rogers/Captain America. Other performances that I felt were strong were David Boat as Thor, and Grey DeLisle (Vicky in Fairly Odd Parents) as Janet Pym/The Wasp.
My major problems with the movie are that first of all they don’t seem to know their audience. The movie is a little too immature for most adults and its too violent for younger kids. I also felt that it followed the Ultimates storyline loosely, but close enough to invite comparison. Which is not to the credit of Ultimate Avengers because it just doesn’t measure up to the book.
So, bottom line. If you’re a fan of action cartoons you’ll probably enjoy this. For fans of the Ultimates comic line, you’ll probably enjoy this movie if you watch it on its own merits and don’t compare it to the book.
it doesn’t seem time for a movie like this. but then i can’t think of a time for it. it appears to me that they wanted another superfriends kinda thing, but not the same ones because they wanted to be different. but they picked the (in my opinion) worst collection of superheroes for this. captain america, the hulk, iron man, etc. it … gah, i can’t do it justice (no pun intended). i give up.
Umm… dude. Cap, Iron Man, and Hulk have been Avengers since before the Superfriends. Maybe they’re not as iconic as Spider-Man, but those characters are staples of the comic community. Plus Avengers is a Marvel product and Superfriends are DC characters. But I don’t want to get off on too big a rant here because you clearly aren’t a comic book person at all.
no i’m more of a superhero person than a comic-book-specificallly person
you’re probably right, in the comic books they were probably awesome, but on tv they were never in the same league as spiderman, batman, superman, or even the flash.
Personally, I always loved the Avengers which is a Marvel creation while the Justice League (superfriends) is a DC creation.
I’ve found in myself that when I was a pre-teen I liked Marvel comics a lot because they had more nihilistic characters, and I think that matched my mood. Now, when I think about Superman I sometimes get tears in my eyes (I’m serious here) because the character represents everything that’s good about a person.
Someday I will write an article about how Superman almost has to be inspired by Adlerian psychology as a response to Nietzschian concepts. Superman is a much greater character and provides an amazing message than most people realize.
I hate Superman. Not just because he’s a lame-o, but more because he’s got all these powers that spring out of nowhere, Deus ex machina style. A character like him is the opposite of a team like the Avengers. He’s faster than Flash, stronger than any other regular DC character, etc etc. It pretty much makes teamwork irrelevant when one character is the “best” at everything. He’s a swiss army knife, and having so many powers and abilities just makes him seem unfocused.
Plus, even for a medium considered by most to be juvenile, Superman is the most juvenile. It seems like some unclean wish fullfillment. I much prefer Batman. Although I don’t care much for DC comics as a rule.
I almost bought that Avengers DVD at BB. They had it on sale for $13, but I had no idea if it was well done or just a grab at the cash, now that comic book films are “hot” at the moment.
Whether you pick up kind of depends on whether you like action cartoons. Its definently for those types of people. I would say if you enjoy the Marvel movies its a definent rental. For big comic fans its a definate buy.
Plus I agree with Adelarian here. While I’ve spend a lot of time in my life in adoration of Batman I now look to Superman with a new level of respect and intrest. Especially after the series fanale where he says that he feels like he lives in a world of cardboard, always afraid he’s going to break something and end up killing someone. It was a very interesting idea that I’ve thought about but I’ve never seen anyone bring up.
I just hate that he’s so one dimensional. There’s no complexity to his character, nor any sublty. And I just don’t think any of the books were well written (we’re talking about the time span that I was most into comics, circa '85-2000).
batman is easily the coolest superhero ever. and i am prepared to back that up. he’s a ninja, but
he wasn’t born with superpowers either. he didn’t gain any powers, he wasn’t transformed by ooze, he isn’t a mutant, he didn’t narrowly escape the destruction of his home planet.
BTW, one problem I have with animated superhero movies is that after reading the books for years, I know what the character’s voices “sound like” in my minds ear. Often no actor really sounds right to me.
A notable exception is Toby McGuire in Spiderman. He’s just dead on perfect, both as Parker and Spidey. I was never a huge fan of the book or character, but I think the movies are terrific. They’re a textbook example of a comic book movie done right.
Compared to Superman, “Tango & Cash” was subtle. You obviously are not a conneseur of comics. You’re like a fifteen year old girl explaining why Britney Spears songs are so beautiful and brilliant.
I know everything about comics and can explain the deep psychological reasons behind Superman’s creation and how it relates to both psychology and philosophy.
how flat a character is depends on the writer/s, if the writer cares about the character, it can be great. if the writer is doing the comic because he’s paid for it, it sucks. superman like many of the oldest comic heroes has been writen by many different people, so stories are great, some suck.
You’re like a fifteen year old girl explaining why Britney Spears songs are so beautiful and brilliant. 
