Why So Blu?

15 Reasons Why ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ Will Bewitch You

Do my words here really even matter?  In all honesty, it makes no difference if I write this Avengers: Age of Ultron review lazily or as proper and refined as I possibly can.  You want to know why?  It’s because regardless of what I conjure up here, you’re still all going to put your money down at the ticket window this weekend and see it.  Like comparing the size of the Hulk to a mere mortal man, Avengers: Age of Ultron will be a colossal cash cow and not you, me or anyone else can argue that point.  That check has already been taken to the bank, cashed and deposited as it’s on track for the biggest opening ever and it very well just might claim that honor.  That’s why I’m keeping this review very simple.  However, all that said and done is great, like Cyndi Lauper or Sheryl Crow in life, all I wanna do is have some fun with the Avengers again.  Did I have some?  Read on and find out…

Like the legendary rock band KISS, the Marvel Cinematic Universe is a huge, business juggernaut.  It should come as no surprise that this sequel was immediately green lit upon the instant success of 2012’s The Avengers and in doing so Phase Two was essentially birthed with Iron Man 3.  It wasn’t immaculate conception, it was divine intervention by the brains behind it all.  I’m talking about you Kevin Feige (I need to buy more Disney stock as soon as I get my next dividends), and of course the film’s developer and captain, Joss Whedon.  It’s also kind of impossible to resist that ever impressive ensemble cast of Robert Downey Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Don Cheadle, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Elizabeth Olsen, Paul Bettany, Cobie Smulders, Anthony Mackie, Hayley Atwell, Idris Elba, Stellan Skarsgård, James Spader and Samuel L. Jackson.

So what’s all about this time out?  Really, it’s all more of the same, but on a grander, more personal scale.  What I really like about Avengers: Age of Ultron is for the most part we already know the world they inhabit and who all the major players are.  Therefore, there’s no need for an hour of backstory, yawns, etc.  What you get instead is a film that opens up with a bang much like a James Bond flick would.  Yes, we meet some new characters along the way, but essentially the gist of Avengers: Age of Ultron, sees our favorite Avengers from the last entry working together again (complete with the  hysterical bickering amongst themselves we all loved from their first adventure) to stomp out the remnants of HYDRA (think the continuing storyline leftover from Captain America: Winter Soldier) to defeat the menacing Ultron, an AI enemy seemingly hell bent on human extinction despite being cultivated for peacekeeping reasons.

Not that he did a bad job last time, but Whedon really hit a home run this time around with character development.  Let’s take the character of Hawkeye, portrayed by Renner.  He was kind of a minor player in the first entry.  Not this time!  I’m pleased to report he’s completely fleshed out and alive here.  I was even shocked that he made me care about two newbies, which going in I really had no interest in, Quicksilver (Taylor-Johnson) and Scarlett Witch (Olsen).  While Quicksilver wasn’t as great as his X-Men counterpart and was kind of a throwaway for me, it was the Scarlett Witch who really enamored me.  Her onscreen FX powers were one thing, but her screwing with superhero minds gave Joss Whedon a strong essential ingredient prime for good storytelling, CONFLICT.  Yes!  Scarlett Witch singlehandedly brought the conflict, and I didn’t even mention that pesky robot Ultron or even all the ridiculously awesome and fun action sequences yet.  Don’t worry, I’ll get to all that below.

So what I thought I’d do since it’s so wildly successful on other mass media sites (even the bad ones) is give you my Top 15 reasons as to why I think you’ll be cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs over Avengers: Age of Ultron.  There’s really no reason why to prolong the inevitable or litter this page with anymore paragraphs of critical fluff as to why I liked it.  You’re all going to see this anyway so we might as well strip down to the basics, and what better way than with a Top 15 list.  You ready to rock this?  I am!  Let’s get this party started!

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15. The story homogeneously picks up right after the familiar events of Captain America: Winter Soldier.  There’s no need for an extended prologue.  We’re dropped right into the heat of the action just like a James Bond picture.

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14. Speaking of the battles, they’re extra Hulk-sized this time out with Iron Man’s greatest weapon taking front, center stage…the Hulkbuster armor!

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13. We finally have a villain in Ultron who’s more menacing, diabolical and treacherous than Loki ever was.

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12. As talked about endlessly in the online rumor mills, we do suffer a casualty in the family!  Who is it?  I’m not telling you!

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11. We travel to and expand the Marvel universe in some new locations, not the same old city/metropolitan landscapes we’re all so accustomed to in these features.

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10. The original superhero cast we all know and love from the first film are all back with no Hollywood recasting necessary.

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9. Anyone who felt they skimped on the Hulk in the first Avengers film definitely won’t leave feeling slighted here in the least bit.

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8. The Black Widow is not the sole female action hero in this one.  I’m ecstatic to report that the Scarlett Witch (minus her bad accent) kicks some serious butt too alongside the other caped crusaders.

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7. The humor, wit and bickering conflicts between Earth’s mightiest heroes we all fell in love with in the first Avengers outing is back fresher, bolder and dirtier than ever here.  All their dirty laundry is aired.

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6. Since the stakes are raised, the conflict is greater and the locations are more exotic, it only makes sense that the action and VFX are BIGGER than ever throughout too.

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5. Yes people!  The Vision is real, and he ain’t too shabby.  I was worried on how he would translate on the big screen, but Whedon didn’t disappoint.  He was credible enough to have fun with.  And there’s that magic word…F-U-N.

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4. Like the tone of The Empire Strikes Back to the world of Star Wars, Age of Ultron is a darker entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but fret not because Whedon wields his magic and sticks to his guns with what made the first Avengers flick so wildly appealing to all.

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3. The Infinity War movie saga is set up well in this one.  That’s all I’ll say on the matter.

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2. Strong character development prevails.  No characters are neglected this time around.  Black Widow has a thing with Hulk and surprise, surprise…Hawkeye is three-dimensional.

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1. The F-U-N factor is ever present throughout the feature’s 2+ hour runtime.  It all goes by in the blink of an eye and I’ll guarantee you that you’ll have a blast!  Do you really need anymore reasons?  GO SEE IT!

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