I, like many of you, are very excited for the impending May 4th release of Marvel Studios The Avengers. What you may be surprised to know though, is that the silver screen epic is actually a remake! Not only that, but this is the 2nd time it has been remade! While the original movies are lost to time due to not being available on home video, thanks to the internet we can at least see the trailers for these epic films. First, the movie that started it all: 1952’s The Avengers!

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The most amazing thing about this film, aside from the absolutely dead-on Hulk and cameos by no less than 18 Marvel characters is the fact that the film debuted 9 years before the dawn of Marvel Comics! How is such a thing possible? I’ll get to that, but first, here’s the campy made-for-TV remake from 1978: Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes!

Man I swear, KISS was freaking everywhere in the late 70’s. Honestly I can’t say I’m too fond of this movie. Lou Ferrigno is still great as the Hulk, and this is was the best screen depiction of Tony Stark until Robert Downey Jr. However, I can’t abide by Reb Brown’s Captain America spending half the movie on a motorcycle like a low-grade Evel Knievel. Also, who’s idea was it to make Thor a beer-swilling viking? Thankfully, the new movie looks to erase the above movie’s bad memories, even if they aren’t using Skrulls this time out.

In all seriousness, these two clips are of course very clever fan-made YouTube offerings, but how cool would it be if they really existed? Well, the 50’s one anyway. Speaking of that masterpiece, the author actually has an annotated video to show all the cameos you may have missed. It’s pretty amazing how flawless it all looks.

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The Avengers features a superhero line-up the likes of which the big screen has never seen before with Captain America, Thor, Iron Man, Hulk, Hawkeye, Black Widow and Nick Fury all teaming up to defend the Earth from Loki. But there is one character who has played a supporting role in films leading up to this legendary team-up who has garnered a fanbase that could possibly rival any of these heroes, and that is Agent Coulson, played tremendously by Clark Gregg.

After his first appearance in Iron Man, I immediately wanted to see more of this character and I wasn’t alone. Luckily, Marvel recognized this and gave Coulson more to do in Iron Man 2 and Thor, along with a couple of short films featuring our favorite agent. From what I hear, Coulson plays an even larger role in the upcoming Avengers and I couldn’t be happier. There is just something about his smart-ass attitude, his consistent calmness about every situation, and – as we saw in the short, “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Thor’s Hammer” – his capability of being a complete badass.

Gregg visited Travis Smiley on PBS and discussed his experience in filming The Avengers and brought along a new clip from the film featuring Agent Coulson stumbling over his words as he speaks to Steve Rogers aka Captain America, apparently someone he has admired for a long time. You can check out the clip in the interview below, which starts at the 30-second mark, but I would encourage you to watch the whole interview.

The Avengers hits theaters in just over a week on May 4! (SQUEEEE!!)

Watch Actor-writer-director Clark Gregg on PBS. See more from Tavis Smiley.

Vivid Entertainment and Axel Braun are at it again.

This time, they have released their cover for the new Avengers porn parody. I’m really conflicted about these releases. Their Hulk release was boring as hell… The Batman release was fantastic… The Star Wars release… There’s a lot I’d like to say about how I feel about their Star Wars release (I’ve struggled trying to write something about it because of how conflicted I am about it.)

And they must have, hands down, the best copyright attorney in the galaxy.

I wonder how many other franchises we’ll get. Aliens? Wonder Woman? Terminator?

Who knows. It seems as though the well of their pornographic geek ideas is limitless.

And is it just me or does She Hulk look like a dude in drag? Which, I guess, would be fine, but she’s a pretty sexy character otherwise. What Ultimate Team Up would you like to see in this universe?

The Avengers is less than a month away, and I don’t think there is one person that isn’t excited for it. If you do happen to be that person then you just flat out hate fun! Anyway, I stumbled across 2 clips from the movie that spotlight two of the female leads. The first shows a very bad ass Scarlet Johansson as the Black Widow. The second is a clip that was shown when Cobie Smulders, who plays Maria Hill,  was on The Late Show with David Letterman. So for your viewing pleasure, enjoy these snippits from The Avengers!

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With each new television spot, my excitement for the Avengers grows that much more. It’s like pain making the Hulk stronger.

This whole spot just made me happy across the board. I really do feel like Joss Whedon most likely knocked this film out of the park. Each of the Avengers was on base with their own films and Whedon is stepping in to hit a grand slam.

This spot features Captain America giving Hulk some orders and I squeed in delight.

The Avengers hits movie theatres in just under a month.

Big column today so let’s jump right in:

If you’ve seen the cartoon at all, or the shadowed promo image, the main playable characters in Young Justice: Legacy should come as no surprise. [By the way, if you haven’t seen the show, what’s wrong with you? It’s awesome!] The upcoming action-RPG from Little Orbit will feature the whole regular cast of Kid Flash, Artemis, Superboy, Robin, Miss Martian, and Aqualad. Six additional characters will be rounding out your upgradeable squad when the game launches in February 2013 (PS3, 360, Wii, DS). Before you start guessing though, remember that the game i set to take place between seasons one and two. You may have to think back and try to remember when Zatanna and Captain Marvel first started hanging with the team. Red Arrow (Speedy) is probably a safe bet regardless. The developers have also announced the first six villains you’ll be facing. This is a pretty heavy duty line up for the youngsters, including Lex Luthor, Sportsmaster, Cheshire, Icicle Jr., Killer Frost, and Black Manta. Six more baddies are also on the way.

Codemasters isn’t exactly a developer at the top of watch list, but they do have a pretty solid record for racing games (like DiRT and F1). Not being as flashy or sexy as some of the iterative FPS or franchise tie-ins it’s easy to write them off. Which I almost did since their only story right now is the expansion of two more facilities Warwickshire and Birmingham, creating 125 more jobs in the UK. Then I remembered how many sudio closures and job losses I’ve written up lately. In light of so many studios having financial troubles, it’s nice to be able to mention a good story as well. So congratulations to Codemasters for succeeding in a business that tends to only favor the Activisions and EAs of the world.

Did you just look at your calendar and realize you forgot to pre-order the special edition of Max Payne 3 by the April 2nd deadline? Whoops, now what? Pay a fortune to a reseller on eBay? Nah. Rockstar has extended the special edition orders until the May 15th release date. What changed their mind? It apparently comes from “unfortunate recent retail issues in the UK and elsewhere in Europe which have affected preorder availability.” They aren’t calling out GAME, a high-profile UK retailer that recently came under administration (British for bankruptcy), but it’s pretty clearly related. Those still seeking the special edition are encouraged to order from the Rockstar Warehouse, though it’s also available at GameStop.

Did you think the music gaming fad was dead? You’re probably right, but not totally. Harmonix has got a new game in the pipe for PSN and XBLA, Rock Band Blitz. Despite the name, this won’t feature a full plastic instrument band. It’s actually played with a standard controller and is more of a throwback to Harmonix’s original rhythm games, Amplitude and Frequency. Comparisons to Rock Band Unplugged on PSP are also reasonable. The game will come with 25 songs, but could have a library of nearly 3,700 (over that byt the time the game launches this summer) depending on how much DLC you’ve bought for the Rock Band franchise. Not only will all of your previously downloaded content work in the new game, the 25 it includes will also be playable in Rock Band 3. The first five of the 25 songs have been announced:

Grasshopper Manufacture has had some great, if not completely successful, games over the years. This is mostly due to Suda51’s brilliant concepts, that sometimes just don’t make enough sense. Still Killer 7 was one of the games that really put Suda51 and Grasshopper Manufacture on the map and it’s a little odd for the industry that it’s been idle so long. Their newest game announced, Killer is Dead – 2013, may make you think that’s changing. But, despite the similarity in the title, the new game is an all new IP. The player is a prisoner, sentenced to death, who must kill his own assassin before the execution takes place. Suda 51 promises this will be in the spirit of Killer 7 and No More Heroes, a “dark side 007” with sexy ladies. The No More Heroes style swordplay also returns with some new elements in the mix. As always with Grasshopper, I’m looking forward to seeing more, even though I’ll never understand what I’m seeing.

The Sony version of Super Smash Bros. looks to finally have an official name. Previously going by the temporary moniker Title Fight, PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale will get its official reveal and preview at E3 in June. wow, that name is a mouthful! Title Fight is a little too generic, but friendlier. While we still have to wait until June for official announcements, there are a few tidbits already known about the game. For instance, Kratos, Sweet Tooth, Sly Cooper, Nathan Drake, Colonel Radec, Fat Princess, and PaRappa are al expected in the melee. Expect to be brawling in levels based on Buzz!, LittleBigPlanet, Hot Shots Golf, and Sandstorm Village. BSR! will have a few ‘bots on the ground at E3, so expect to see more about this one the first week of June.

Still playing Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning? Want to be playing it, but you’ve done it all? Good news, more DLC is dropping this month. “Teeth of Naros” will feature an all new city, new enemies, new dungeons, new etc. Expect plenty of additional armor, weapons, and cards. The floating city, Idylla, is named for an ancient Troll god. The add-on will be available April 17th for 800 points ($10).

With the future of media consumption in constant flux, Netflix has had one solid advantage over Amazon Instant Video, availability on gaming consoles. That’s all changed this week with the service now available on PlayStation 3. It’s currently the only console running this service but I wouldn’t expect that exclusivity to last. Installing the app is simple to do directly from the XMB under “TV/Video Services.” The service currently boasts over 120,000 movies and TV episodes for rental or purchase. The real boon, of course, comes from Amazon Prime membership, allowing free access to over 17,000 videos. Prime membership is $79 per year and comes with a free 30 day trial. Signing up for Prime, full year or trial, can also be done directly from your PS3. One of may favorite parts of Amazon’s service is that buying many of their DVDs and Blu-Rays gives you temporary access to stream that same content immediately. So if you buy a new release, you can usually watch it streaming while you wait for your disc to arrive.

In addition to Epic Mickey: The Power of Two making its way to home consoles, the franchise is also going portable with Epic Mickey: The Power of Illusion for Nintendo’s 3DS. Zombietron’s got full coverage with the press release. While the game does take place in Wasteland, it also harkens back to Mickey’s Genesis days as he’ll be squaring once more with Mizrabel in the Castle of Illusion (which has fallen into Wasteland). Gameplay seems to be equal parts sidescrolling platform (a la Castle of Illusion), paint and thinner mechanics (a la Epic Mickey), and incorporating player drawings (a la Drawn to Life?). Is it weird that I might be more excited for this one than its console brother?

Few things can make an old fart like me grin as much as this one. It probably doesn’t hurt that I’m listening to The Muppets Soundtrack as I’m doing this column. Anyway, Wayforward Technologies and Majesco have announced a reboot of their Double Dragon franchise from 1980’s. Thankfully the reboot isn’t an update in the same way GRIN attempted with Bionic Commando. Instead, Double Dragon: Neon is an old school, side-scrolling, beat ’em up. Just how retro are they going to go? Neon health bars with synth and guitar solos for the soundtrack. Billy and Jimmy Lee will be brawling down Adobos on PSN and XBLA this July. Pricing is not yet announced. I guess we’ll find out at the end if you still have to fight your brother or not.

It’s no secret that the ‘bots around here have been huge fans of Marvel [Zen] Pinball. We’ve been eating up every table on release day since the game launched. The next table to hit is going to be no different. World War Hulk will be the first table released in the Avengers Chronicles set. When the Gamma Giant returns from involuntary exile, it’s a bad time to be Illuminati, X-Men, or the Fantastic Four. This table will be dropping sometime this spring, with the remaining tables in the set (The Avengers, Infinity Gauntlet, and Fear Itself) soon to follow.

Amidst the uproar about the ending, Ray Muzyka (Bioware, co-founder) has unveiled the plans for their tweaks to the ending of Mass Effect 3. The Extended Cut DLC will be free and releasing this summer. In what seems to be a case of severely missing the point, it appears the only extension will be additional epilogue scenes, rather than addressing the most vocal concern: that the choices that supposedly mattered really didn’t. According to Muzyka, “Since launch, we have had time to listen to the feedback from our most passionate fans and we are responding. With the Mass Effect 3: Extended Cut we think we have struck a good balance in delivering the answers players are looking for while maintaining the team’s artistic vision for the end of this story arc in the Mass Effect universe.” I still haven’t decided exactly how I feel about the whole controversy, but I’m already inclined to think this won’t actually satisfy (or silence) the critics. I’ll still wait and give it a fair shake this summer, which is probably about the time I’ll be finishing my Insanity run, if I can even make it that far. Arse-bot has covered this a little more extensively. I think we disagree on a few key points, but I can’t really explain why.

The media releases for Aliens: Colonial Marines have been releasing at a steady clip. It’s about time too. Hasn’t this game been in development for at least a decade? Then again, who cares when it looks this aweseome? Check out the videos Zombietron’s posted.

Are you still having trouble with glitches in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim? Bethesda is rolling out patch 1.5 to help. There’s the obvious glut of fixes for stability and abnormalities that, generally, have seemed to improve the way the game runs. But, for those that haven’t actually had any problems, there adding a few things for you as well. For the full list of bug fixes, check out Bethesda’s blog. For the short list of other tweaks:

As revealed a few issues ago, four new maps for Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception are coming soon. Two of the four, Graveyard and Old Quarter, were revealed at that time. The other two are London Streets and Oasis. London Streets is a bar brawl at the Pelican Inn. Oasis is a Bedouin camp. All four maps will have dynamic events that Naughty Dog is keeping under wraps for now. The pack will be available for $9.99 on April 11th. It does come free with the Fortune Hunter’s Club. Speaking of which, if you want to join that club you’ll need to do so by April 17th. If you’re still planning to get all of the DLC for this one, you’ll want to join the club by that date in order to get the best deal.

Finally, that seems to be it for the week. Check back Tuesday for all of the weekend’s updates.

Doing the math, there’s about a month and 4 days until our heads are exploded by this film.

There’s no two ways about it, it looks incredible and it seems like Joss Whedon nailed it. They keep showing us one tiny little shot or two extra with every trailer and I know they’re still holding stuff close to their chest.

But simply put, this movie looks amazing. Just this 30 second spot brought a tear to my eye.

We recorded an episode of The Big Movie Mouth-Off tonight and there was some speculation that the bad guys could be the Titans of Thanos. But I don’t care who they are. This movie looks amazing.

Walt Simonson is one of my favorite writers and artists ever and to see him still doing top-notch work on books I want to read makes me very happy.

Here is a first look at his work on Avengers #25 with Brian Michael Bendis, which is an Avengers Vs. X-Men tie in.

From the press release:

Marvel is proud to present your first look at, Avengers #25, an explosive tie-in to the hotly-anticipated blockbuster event of the year – Avengers VS. X-Men! From superstar writer Brian Michael Bendis & legendary artist Walter Simonson; Captain America has declared war on The X-Men! The impending doom of the Phoenix Force lurks ever closer; forcing The Avengers to suit up and join the battle to save the Earth! But, which Avengers will follow Captain America to the front lines? Find out in Simonson’s epic return to Marvel with Avengers #25, hitting comic shops everywhere and the Marvel Comics app, this April!

You’ve heard It’s Coming—and this April The War Is Here in Avengers VS X-Men! All your favorite super heroes enter—and only one team will emerge victorious!

Which team will reign supreme? Join the conversation on Twitter with #AvX!

For more on Avengers VS. X-Men, please visit http://avx.marvel.com

I really love this show and I’m glad to see that it’s continuing. I can’t wait to see more episodes.

From the press release:

Assemble!! Marvel’s The Avengers hits the big screen May 4… But in the meantime, get your hero fix with Marvel TV’s trailer for season 2 of The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, premiering April 1 inside Marvel Universe on Disney XD! The Avengers have fought against some of the most powerful and dangerous super villains in the world. But just when the team thought they had things under control, new threats emerge… Caught in the crossfire between two warring alien empires — Earth’s Mightiest Heroes must make a stand. But whom can they trust when they learn not everyone is who they seem to be?

Tune in for The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes season two premiere, along with the series premiere of Ultimate Spider-Man inside Marvel Universe on Disney XD April 1 beginning at 11am/10c

Folks, it has been a long, awesome SXSW. So color me flabbergasted when suddenly I’m deluged with news that Joss Whedon made a major announcement about the identity of the villains in The Avengers in his panel on Saturday. I had previously given a cursory overview of this in my wrapup because I really didn’t think it was news.  But yet here we are, and every day someone tells me “I heard Joss Whedon said it was ( _____ ) in The Avengers!”  Let’s clarify.

I was in the room at the time, and Whedon was clearly joking when someone asked him about whether the villains were Skrulls or not, he replied, “It’s the Vulcans. . .I don’t know a lot about the Marvel Universe, and I thought there were Vulcans. I know we’re going to get a lot of emails about that one.”

Some people have hypothesized that because of their Vulcan-like appearance, Whedon might have been teasing that Atlanteans were the villains. I want to put in a pin in that balloon based on other things I heard in that panel, and basically tell people to cool their jets.

First, let’s look at what Whedon said there: 1) He doesn’t know the universe all that well. 2) “We’re going to get a lot of emails”… I think that second statement he’s playing on the fact that he knows he’s mixing sacred genres. It would be like talking about the Enterprise landing on the Death Star, or Superman visiting Kashyyyk.

Furthermore, Whedon added the following: (from EW)

“I will say only this: It is not the Kree or the Skrulls.”

Oh, really? “Those two aliens are Marvel mainstays and have enormous backstories,” Whedon explained. “They have a big life of their own that just could not be contained in a film where I already had seven movie stars.” I asked Whedon why everyone was being so coy about who these aliens really are — was it because they knew they weren’t including either of these high-profile Marvel aliens, or is there some other revelation they’re concealing? Whedon ably dodged the question with another, perhaps less surprising revelation: “What’s probably happening is that I just said something that Marvel didn’t want me to. It’s weird to be fired so late!”

Whedon elaborated that after reading so much speculation that the identity of the aliens had to be the Skrulls or the Kree, he didn’t want anyone to go into the film and be disappointed. “The Skrulls — they can shape change. That’s a whole thing,” he said. “I’ve already got Loki. He’s got magic. Once you got magic along with your Iron Man and your Black Widow — it’s a real juggling act.”

So, would Whedon really dismiss Kree and Skrulls as having too much history to shoehorn into a movie like Avengers, but then the real villains were Atlanteans, who have, arguably, just as big of a history and influence on the 616 universe? And, uhhhhh, Namor? Could you include Atlanteans and NOT include Namor? And how, then, does that become any less complicated than what would have happened with Skrulls and Kree?

Bottom line? Whedon has re-emphasized the villain is Loki. The mooks in his army? Who cares who they are?!?! The movie is THE AVENGERS. Not The Skrulls, not The Kree, not The Kree-Skrull War, not The Atlanteans. . . I don’t care if they team up to fight adult illiteracy– it’s going to be awesome. And the speculation is pointless. Let’s say you’re right– and it is the Atlanteans.

And so,” target=”_blank”> good for you. You figured it out. Is your self-satisfaction going to add to your enjoyment of the movie? It won’t for me. And if you’ve built up your expectations so high that it’s going to be Atlanteans or The Watcher is going to show up, or Cobie Smulders is really Super Skrull. . . whatever your pet theory, if you’re wrong, you’re going to be disappointed. So don’t try.

Just wait patiently like the rest of us. You’ve got just about 2 months to wait. Enjoy John Carter and The Hunger Games in the meantime. And let’s cool it on the speculation.