Check out this new Avengers trailer from Japan – it’s got some sweet new clips we haven’t seen yet in North America!

-vs

May 4th cannot come soon enough!!!

This morning I got an email from Petsmart. It was the most wonderful email. Vintage Marvel toys and clothes for my dogs! There has been Marvel stuff for dogs before but it was from Tokidoki and was stupidly expensive. $80 for some dog clothes? No. Just no. $6? Yup sure enough. I planned to get my ass down to the store as soon as I could. Without even talking all day Arse-bot had the same plans and sent me a picture of the Avengers Bandana he got for his dog. For folks like us this is great. I will buy my dogs stupid stuff anyway but now it has Marvel characters on them. I can play tug of war with a Hulk Hand, and I’ve changed my dogs into superheroes! If you want to spoil your dogs with some Marvel branded fun get down to Petsmart before April 22nd when they take it off the shelves.

This was amazing. I’m going to watch it again now.

I think this tells us quite a lot, though. The threat the Avengers are facing seems to be extra terrestrial. Skrulls? We can only hope.

Word has it this game has been axed and Marvel is looking for a new studio, but I still thought the footage was worth showing…

(Source: Marvel Movies)

Big Shiny Girlcast is back and due to several requests we will now be recording about once every two weeks (so there’s lots of the Girlcast in your future!). The latest episode of the podcast, “Issue #2: The Guinea Pig of the Sea,” discusses Bandai, SOPA and Cosplay, DC’s New 52 2nd Wave, Thor, Avengers, Ghost Rider, Green Arrow’s possible CW Pilot, Otaku / Geek Dating, Skyrim and more! This week’s “Ask the Geek Girls” segment finds us discussing the pro’s and con’s of online geek dating – you won’t want to miss it!

On this week’s podcast: Jessie – Miss Mecha on Big Shiny Robot!, Kelly – Scarlett Robotica on Big Shiny Robot! and Darcy from geekgirlsftw.blogspot.com

You can find it here on the site or download it over on our Big Shiny Robot iTunes feed.

To comment on this week’s episode, send us a question, or answer on of our burning questions, just leave a comment here at the bottom of the post or email the podcast at jessie@bigshinyrobot.com

Topic Timeline (for your fast forwarding pleasures):

Bandai Leaves North America = 3:58 – 18:23; SOPA and Cosplay: Yes? No? Bad? = 18:23 – 25:02; DC’s 2nd Wave of New 52 Comics: The How, What, Why and an overview of the DC Earths…there are a lot of them, and we’re somewhat confused by it. = 25:02 – 31:20; We hear ourselves echoing but forget to edit it out later (don’t judge us!)= 31:20 – 23:03; Fox News wants you to be afraid of everything – Comic Books included = 23:03 – 44:22; Movies and TV: Thor is sexy even during re-writes, The Avengers rock our world, and Ghost Rider…yeah… = 44:22 – 59:39; Green Arrow might get a CW Pilot! Is this good news or bad news, both? = 59:39 – 1:12:05; “Ask The Geek Girls” – Otaku/Geek Dating = 1:12:05 – 1:34:25; Recommendations / Ending stuff = 1:34:25 – 1:40:24.

There has been a lot of speculation as to who the villains aside from Loki may be in the upcoming Avengers film, but it appears Kevin Fiege and Joss Whedon have debunked two of the more popular theories: The Skrulls and Red Skull. Fiege had this to say first, regarding the Skrulls:

“…It’s not Skrulls, I’ve been clear about that. Beyond that, we want to hide it. The identity of the alien race is not impactful. It exists in the comic books, but we’re not setting up the Kree-Skrull war or anything like that.”

He followed it up with this regarding Red Skull:

“Was Skull vaporised at the end of the movie, or thrust into another realm?” asks Feige. “That remains to be seen. It would be fun to see Skull in future, but he’s not in this one.”

Joss Whedon also had a comment on Red Skull, but was a little more “beat-around-the-bush-y” with his non-answer:

“I do have a comment on that, it’s…oh, you’re breaking up!”

It’s probably safe to say at this point that we will most likely not being seeing the Skrulls in the Avengers film, but I’m still a little unsure on the subject of Red Skull. Upon my latest viewing of Captain America: The First Avengeron Blu-ray a week ago I strongly believe that Red Skull isn’t completely vaporized after grasping the Cosmic Cube during his final bout with Cap. If you pay attention the effect is incredibly close to the same effect that occurs in the Thor film as our heroes are transporting between the realms, right down to the sound effect. It really wouldn’t surprise me if Red Skull was transported to one of the Nine Realms and we see him at some point in the future make a villainous return . . . Perhaps and after-credits scene in the Avengers? . . .

In any case, it’s still wide open for debate as to what allegiances Loki will make to wage war on Earth and The Avengers, but luckily we only have a few more months to wait before we find out! In the mean time you can check out Empire’s Avengers covers below!

The Avengers hits theaters on May 4, 2012, is directed by Joss Whedon, and stars Robert Downey, Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Tom Hiddleston, Mark Ruffalo, and Samuel L. Jackson.

[Empire]

Who from the Marvel Universe would you like to see Loki join forces with to battle the Avengers? Sound off in the comments below!

Press Release 1/9/2012

AVENGERS VS X-MEN: ROUND 1!

The biggest superhero brawl in the history of the Marvel Universe begins this April in Avengers Vs. X-Men #1!

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

AVENGERS VS. X-MEN #1 (JAN120625)

Written by BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS, JASON AARON, MATT FRACTION, JONATHAN HICKMAN, ED BRUBAKER

Art by JOHN ROMITA JR.

Cover by JIM CHEUNG

FOC – 2/27/12, ON SALE – 4/3/12

To find a comic shop near you, visit www.comicshoplocator.com or call 1-888-comicbook.

Disney have just announced that they are going to have a block of all Marvel comics programming on Disney XD starting on April 1st. The animation block, called “Marvel Universe,” will feature the Marvel animated shows. At this time they’ve only said that the upcoming “Ultimate Spider-Man” cartoon will be a part of it, but one can assume that the returning “Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes” will also be included. This now means that there will be full nights dedicated animation from the big two, DC announced their “DC Nation” block of programming for Cartoon Network late last year which will include Young Justice, the Green Lantern Animated Series, and a slew of short spotlighting other characters in the DC Universe. Below is the full press release from Marvel/Disney:

Disney XD will launch Marvel Universe, a dedicated Marvel programming block, with the new series “Ultimate Spider-Man” as its centerpiece, on SUNDAY, APRIL 1, it was announced today by Gary Marsh, President and Chief Creative Officer, Disney Channels Worldwide at the Television Critics Association Press Tour in Pasadena, California. Marvel Universe on Disney XD will be the ultimate place for fans to find exclusive Marvel content, including new animated short-form series, live-action interstitials and the series return of “The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.”  The block will be home to Marvel’s biggest superstars, such as Spider-Man, Iron Man, Hulk, Thor, Captain America and many more to introduce dynamic stories of action, adventure and heroism to a whole new generation.

Marsh said, “Iconic Marvel heroes and villains and stories with core values of accomplishment, discovery and growth make Marvel Universe a perfect complement to Disney XD and a destination for parents and kids to experience together.”

“Marvel Universe block is an incredible animated ride filled with fantastic action and adventure,” said Jeph Loeb, Head of Marvel Television. “The spectacular team of writers and animators capture stories with all the dynamic fun you can imagine. Disney XD is the perfect place for families and Marvel fans of all ages to come together every Sunday.”

Acting as the keystone of the Marvel Universe block, “Ultimate Spider-Man” features a teenage Peter Parker juggling the typical growing pains of high-school with the not-so-typical growing pains of being a Super Hero.  As the newest member of Nick Fury’s S.H.I.E.L.D. organization, Peter finds himself on a team with four other teenage Super Heroes.

Produced by Marvel Animation, the series’ award-winning creative team includes Joe Quesada (Marvel’s CCO), Paul Dini (“Batman: The Animated Series,” “Lost”), the creative powerhouse Man of Action Studios (creators of “Ben 10” and “Generator Rex”), comprised of lauded creators Joe Casey, Joe Kelly, Duncan Rouleau and Steven T. Seagle; and Brian Michael Bendis (visionary behind Marvel’s Ultimate Spider-Man comic series).

The voice cast includes Drake Bell (“Superhero,” “Drake & Josh”) as Peter Parker/Spider-Man, Chi McBride (“Boston Public,” “Pushing Daisies”) as Nick Fury, JK Simmons (“Spider-Man”) as J. Jonah Jameson, Stan Lee (“Spider-Man”) as Stan the Janitor, Clark Gregg (“Iron Man”, “Thor,” “The Avengers”) as Agent Coulson and Steven Weber (“Wings”) as Norman Osborn.

Disney XD is a basic cable channel and multi-platform brand showcasing a compelling mix of live-action and animated programming for Kids age 6-14, hyper-targeting boys and their quest for discovery, accomplishment, sports, adventure and humor. Disney XD branded content spans television, online, mobile and VOD platforms. The programming includes series, movies and short-form, as well as sports-themed programming developed with ESPN. In the U.S., Disney XD is seen on a 24-hour, advertiser supported network that reaches over 78 million households via its basic cable and satellite affiliates. For more information visit http://www.DisneyXD.com/

Marvel Entertainment, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is one of the world’s most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of over 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media over seventy years. Marvel utilizes its character franchises in entertainment, licensing and publishing.  For more information visit http://www.marvel.com/

I haven’t seen any footage myself from the Ultimate Spider-Man show, but I have heard that it looks like a very fun show. However the most important bit of news, to me, from the above press release is that Clark Gregg will be playing Agent Coleson in the animated universe. This makes me very excited!

Press Release:

AVENGERS VS X-MEN Leads to The Can’t Miss Digital Comic 99 Cents Sale!

New York, NY—December 21, 2011—Not only is everyone talking about Avengers VS X-Men, the comic book event of 2012, but it’s also the holiday season—and that means it’s the perfect time for the most exciting digital comics sale ever! From December 21^st (at 12:01am EST) to December 30^th (at 11:00PM EST), experience the AVENGERS VS X-MEN: MAJOR PLAYERS sale on the Marvel Comics app , featuring some of the most important stories in comics history for only 99 cents per issue!

The world’s greatest super heroes—Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Spider-Man, Wolverine and more—go to war with each other in 2012, but now’s your chance to learn all about the Avengers and the X-Men before the first punch is thrown!

Don’t miss a single issue of the Avengers VS X-Men Major Players Sale, including:

• Amazing Spider-Man #546-601
• Astonishing X-Men #1-24 and Astonishing X-Men Giant Size #1
• Captain America #1-24
• Invincible Iron Man #1-24
• New Avengers #1-25
• Thor #1-12, #600-603 and Thor Finale
• Wolverine: Weapon X #1-16

But remember, this is a limited time offer—it all ends on December 30^th! So fire up the Marvel Comics app right now to take advantage of the Avengers VS X-Men Major Players Sale!

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

For exclusive Avengers VS X-Men desktop wallpapers visit www.marvel.com

To find a comic shop near you, visit www.comicshoplocator.com or call 1-888-comicbook.

We are giving away a copy of The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes Volume 3 and 4!

This is a fantastic show and since the first two volumes are available to watch on Netflix, this is the perfect way to get ahead on episodes. Trust me, this is maybe the best animated series Marvel has been ambitious enough to do and it’s not afraid to take its time and develop one character at a time before bringing them all together.

And they’re fun as hell.

The contest will be open until Monday, November 21. Winners will be announced on Tuesday, November 22.

To enter, all you need to do is shoot us an email at editor (at) bigshinyrobot.com. Make the subject “AVENGERS ASSEMBLE!” For an extra chance to win, post on your Facebook wall asking all of your friends to like our Facebook page. Or you can ask your followers on twitter to follow us @BigShinyRobot. Or both.

Just be sure to mention in your email that you’ve done it.

If you can’t wait, you can get it on Amazon now for $14.99 per volume.

Good luck.