Weekly MCU Review for 10/8

Another week, and more MCU news!  Just about everything exciting is on Netflix: Luke Cage is out, The Punisher is filming, and The Defenders is close to starting filming.  Put some ketchup on your eggs, and catch-up on your Marvel news!

Captain America: Civil War RETRO-REVIEW

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So unfortunately there was no new Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. last night because the Vice-Presidential Debate between Democrat Tim Kaine and Republican Mike Pence took precedence.  So, like any good, patriotic American, I turned on my television to watch two men, one with red in his suit and one with blue in his suit, coming from opposite ends of the ideological spectrum in terms of the security-vs.-freedom debate, fight it out on an international stage.

That’s right:  I watched Captain America: Civil War.

(What, you thought I would actually watch the Vice-Presidential Debate???  Come on!)

Consequently, this seems like as good a time as any to look back at my original review of Civil War from May and see how time and repeated viewing (and deleted scenes) changes/improves opinions of the movie.

Weekly MCU Review for 8/27

Another week, and more MCU news!  Not a ton of stuff, but there are a few movie-related things this week.  Put some ketchup on your eggs, and catch-up on your Marvel news!

How Do We Define a "Tie-In"?

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In talking about Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and its connections with other media (particularly the movies), it has occurred to me that I use the words “tie-in” and “crossover” without really defining them.  And considering how frequently we talk about “tie-ins” and “crossovers” between Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the movies, it’s a pretty good bet that I’m not the only one who uses them in a number of different ways.  This can be confusing!

So partly to help myself out—and partly to help everyone else out—let’s take some time to define some terms when it comes to “tie-ins” and “crossovers.”  Next week I will apply these terms in talking about possible tie-ins/crossovers with the movies coming out during season 4 of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.:  Doctor Strange and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.

Before we get started, remember that these are the definitions I’m using; I’m not saying this is what we have to use.  Though you’re welcome to adopt them for yourself!

Weekly MCU Review for 7/2

Another week, and more MCU news!  A lot of rumors, but not a lot of specific news.  Put some ketchup on your eggs, and catch-up on your Marvel news!

Captain America: Civil War Follow-Up: Zemo

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When I was originally putting together this series of articles, I intended to include Zemo in the previous article with “The Rest.”  However, as I considered further, I realized that there is so much more to talk about with regard to Zemo, particularly because I think he will come back to become a major player several years down the line in Phase 4.

After watching Captain America: Civil War, we now have a very good idea exactly where this thing is going to be going over the next few years as the MCU ramps up for the Infinity War in 2018 and 2019.  Each hero who appeared in Civil War received a satisfying arc, and at the end of the movie each of them had a definite trajectory of where their next appearances will come from.  However, the presumptive villain, Helmut Zemo, did not get to do quite as much in this movie as the heroes did—even if he did exactly as much as he needed to do!

Over the last four weeks, I talked about the members of the “Secret Avengers” and “Mighty Avengers,” as well as Captain America’s abandoned shield and the other heroes who do not fit into the other categories and a replacement Captain America.  This time around, I will talk about Zemo and how I think he fits into Marvel’s larger plans moving forward.

This is my last planned article for Captain America: Civil War; next week we’ll get into Daredevil season 2 and how it sets up future Netflix series.

Captain America: Civil War Follow-Up: The Rest

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After watching Captain America: Civil War, we now have a very good idea exactly where this thing is going to be going over the next few years as the MCU ramps up for the Infinity War in 2018 and 2019.  Each hero who appeared in Civil War received a satisfying arc, and at the end of the movie each of them had a definite trajectory of where their next appearances will come from.  So let’s talk about where these heroes will be going from here!

I’m going to break this down into three articles based on the teams that we see established by the end of the movie.  First I talked about the “Secret Avengers.”  Next was the “Mighty Avengers,” followed by what could happen with Captain America’s shield.  This week we will continue this series by discussing the heroes that don’t fit into either category.  Next week I have another article lined up to talk about Baron Zemo and his presumptive role in the MCU going forward.

Without further ado, let’s get started!

Captain America: Civil War Follow-Up: Captain America's Shield

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This was originally included in last week’s article about the Mighty Avengers, but I realized that it needs to be separated out as its own thing.

After watching Captain America: Civil War, we now have a very good idea exactly where this thing is going to be going over the next few years as the MCU ramps up for the Infinity War in 2018 and 2019.  Each hero who appeared in Civil War received a satisfying arc, and at the end of the movie each of them had a definite trajectory of where their next appearances will come from.  So let’s talk about where these heroes will be going from here!

I’m going to break this down into three articles based on the teams that we see established by the end of the movie, with an additional two added to deal with extra concepts which deserve further consideration.  First I talked about the members of the “Secret Avengers.”  Last week’s subject was the members of the “Mighty Avengers.”  Next week I will discuss the heroes that don’t fit into either category.  The week after that we will conclude with Zemo.  But this week, we’re focusing in on something that deals with both the Secret Avengers and the Mighty Avengers:  Captain America’s shield.

Without further ado, let’s get started talking about Captain America!

Weekly MCU Review for 5/28

Another week, and more MCU news!  Not a ton happened this week, so the news is pretty light.  Put some ketchup on your eggs, and catch-up on your Marvel news!

Captain America: Civil War Follow-up: The Mighty Avengers

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After watching Captain America: Civil War, we now have a very good idea exactly where this thing is going over the next few years as the MCU ramps up for the Infinity War in 2018 and 2019.  Each hero who appeared in Civil War received a satisfying arc, and at the end of the movie each of them had a definite trajectory of where their next appearances will come.  So let’s talk about where these heroes will be going from here!

I’m going to break this down into five articles based on the teams that we see established by the end of the movie, as well as additional articles to discuss special cases.  Last week I talked about the members of the “Secret Avengers.”  This week’s subject is the members of the “Mighty Avengers” (I’ll explain that name in a bit).  Next week I will focus in on a specific element for the “Mighty Avengers.”  The following week I will discuss the characters that don’t fit into either category.  Finally, the last article in this series will talk about Zemo.

Without further ado, let’s get started on the Mighty Avengers!

Weekly MCU Review for May 21

Another week, and more MCU news!  Civil War has passed the billion-dollar-mark, we're learning more about the upcoming movies, and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 3 is officially in the books.  Put some ketchup on your eggs, and catch-up on your Marvel news!

Captain America: Civil War Follow-Up: The Secret Avengers

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After watching Captain America: Civil War, we now have a very good idea exactly where this thing is going to be going over the next few years as the MCU ramps up for the Infinity War in 2018 and 2019.  Each hero who appeared in Civil War received a satisfying arc, and at the end of the movie each of them had a definite trajectory of where their next appearances will come from.  So let’s talk about where these heroes will be going from here!

Obviously, there are spoilers ahead!

I’m going to break this down into three articles based on the teams that we see established by the end of the movie, with a couple extras thrown in for good measure.  First we will deal with the members of the “Secret Avengers” (more on the name in a bit).  Next week I will talk about the members of the “Mighty Avengers” (I’ll explain that name next week), followed by an article dealing with the special matter of the shield.  I will discuss the couple characters that don’t fit into either category the following week.  Finally this will conclude (maybe) the week after with an article about Zemo.

First up is Cap’s team of “Secret Avengers.”

Weekly MCU Review for 5/14

Another week, and more MCU news!  Captain America: Civil War has been out for a week, Black Panther has started casting, and we got some disappointing news on the TV side of things.  Put some ketchup on your eggs, and catch-up on your Marvel news!

The Hero-vs.-Hero Movies: How Do They Compare?

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Are the comparisons between Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice and Captain America: Civil War valid?  Both movies came out the same year—they were both originally scheduled for the same weekend!  Both movies feature the major heroes of their respective comic book universes going at it.  Even the motivations are similar in some cases.  So can—or should—fans compare these two movies to each other?

Personally, I don’t see any issue with comparing movies to each other as long as it is understood that how the movies stack up against each other is independent of each movie’s individual merits.  In other words, I can compare Batman v. Superman to Civil War all I want, but at the end of the day I need to also be able to watch each movie by itself and examine how it does as a movie without the comparison.  If you’re looking for how each movie succeeds on its own merits, check out my reviews (BvS and Civil War).

The value of the comparison becomes all the more true when you are talking about two movies which share so much in common and which are released so close together.

Let me just get this out of the way now:  I know that I am comparing a DC movie to a Marvel movie.  I know that I am doing this on a blog called “Mostly MCU Reviews.”  I know that sort of makes me a “Marvel fanboy.”  That doesn’t mean that I am going into this wanting to rip DC apart; I actually was really hoping that Batman v. Superman would be an amazing movie and pave the way for more amazing movies in the future.  If I sound like I’m favoring Civil War over Batman v. Superman, it’s (mostly) because Civil War did everything right that Batman v. Superman should have done.

Note:  There are spoilers beyond this point!

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 3, Episode 20, "Emancipation" REVIEW (SPOILERS)

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Overall, the penultimate episode of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 3 (counting the 2-hour finale as a single episode) definitely did its due diligence in setting events into motion for the season finale.  The battle lines between the two sides are drawn.  Hive’s plan is now in perfect focus.  If Hive succeeds, it is clear that that would mean the end of the world—or at least the end of the human race’s dominance on this planet!

At the same time, “Emancipation” also succeeded in presenting the natural tie-in between Captain America: Civil War and this show.  It made perfect sense in the context of the show, and the position taken by Coulson and his team fits with both what we know of their characters and the events of the show.  It isn’t as game-changing as the Captain America: The Winter Soldier tie-in from 2 years ago, but it does set S.H.I.E.L.D. on a new path moving forward as they consider how best to address the government’s desire to register and document all enhanced individuals.

This episode does just about everything it needs to do, and it does it all quite well.

Warning:  There are spoilers for both Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Captain America: Civil War in this review.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Captain America: Civil War Tie-Ins--Are there Spoilers?

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 So I just finished watching Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s Captain America: Civil War tie-in episode and, as promised, here is my verdict on whether or not you need to worry about spoilers.

Answer:  you really don’t need to worry about it.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 3, Episode 20, "Emancipation" EXPECTATIONS

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Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. returns tonight with “Emancipation” (3x20) at 9:00 PM Eastern/Pacific.  What do we expect from tonight's episode?

Captain America: Civil War SPOILER REVIEW

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If you read my spoiler-free review a couple days ago, you know that I thought this movie was pretty much amazing.  The characters are all handled very well.  The motivations are clear and consistent.  The plot makes sense.  The villain is kind of one-note, but that’s really all he needs to be in this movie.  The emotion of seeing the Avengers at each other’s throats was huge.   All in all, this is an incredible movie, one that you definitely need to see.

If you’re looking for more than that (and don’t mind spoilers) keep reading.

Weekly MCU Review for 5/7

Another week, and more MCU news!  So Captain America: Civil War came out this week, and it’s already made its budget at the international box office.  Put some ketchup on your eggs, and catch-up on your Marvel news!

Captain America: Civil War SPOILER-FREE REVIEW

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Let me just start off by saying WOW!  This movie is absolutely incredible!  Pretty much everything works, from the story to the characters to the motivations to the action.  If you are looking for a recommendation of whether or not to see this movie, stop right here:  GO SEE THIS MOVIE!