Trailer Tuesday: The Avengers Super Bowl Trailer

Not an official poster, but still a sweet fan attempt. 

It's that time of the year again, when America celebrates its national, irrelevantly named sport in the annual football play-offs. While I may be scratching my head at the sheer hype around this (coming from a purely British point of view), I struggle to deny the awesomeness of the many trailers that get rolled out through the ad-breaks. Last year I covered the Captain America Super-Bowl spot, and this year I guess it's only fitting if I do the same for its "OMGWTFTHISISGOINGTOBESOAMAZING" predecessor, in the shape of The Avengers. 


   It may only be a minute in length, but by-jove it's SO tantalising for the ol' Nerd Glands (is that or thing, or does it just sound dirty?). Anyway, let's get on with this:

• 0:11 - After a brief into featuring the usual "Citizens running from explosions" and a lead in from Captain America, we're treated to the brief appearance of the Quinn-Jet (or at least something along those lines). This may or may not be on the mighty Helicarrier (a flying aircraft carrier)...
• 0:14 - More of NY getting bombed, but this time we can see the secret aliens behind it; flying bike things, eh? More on them later.
• 0:17 - The Chrysler Building as an electric conductor for Thor (supposedly)? That's some powerful voltage...
•  0:26 - Thor also gets to ride a jet himself, Norse style (which involves surfing it like a frigging bad-ass).

• 0:30 - Whoa, whoa, whoa: pause your players a second! That right there is our currently unknown alien force that allies with main villain, Loki. So, Bipedal: Check; Greyishly Skinned: Check; Lightly Armoured: Check; Tribal-Looking: Check; and 3 Toes: Check. Conclusion: Uncertain (still). While producer, Kevin Feige, has said that the alien menace have been in the comics, it's hard to determine exactly which ones from this. Feige also stated that their actual identity isn't going to be "impactful", teasing perhaps a lesser known race (no Skrulls for sure, then). My money is on the Badoon, a race of war-hungry, reptilian creatures with no superpowers to speak of, but a high disregard for the female gender. Now this is where my theory comes into play; the Badoon look like they have their spines on their front, and if you look at the armour of the aliens at this point, they look like they have a part running down that area. Also, the Badoon despise and enslave the females of their planet, and Writer/Director/My God, Joss Whedon is renown for his strong, female characters (just don't ask him why). For him, who better to write in as villains, than a race that opposes the very things he stands for? Of course that's just one idea, and there are dozens of other speculative thoughts out there (the name Thanos has been thrown around a lot...)

• 0:36 - Iron Man's little battle here looks to be one of the film's finest action sequences, with some beautifully colourful CGI in play, as well as some realistically shaky camera work (not unlike Whedon's Serenity flight sequences).
• 0:42 - Oooh, the money shot. Our six heroes in a badass, surround pan - yep even the Hulk's there. Have I mentioned yet that I'm rather excited for this movie?
• 0:50 - Ah, time for some Tony "Snark", courtesy of Whedon's Wit: "Earth's Mightiest Heroes, type thing" and "We have a Hulk" are certain to become quote classics. And may I say that Loki looks lusciously dapper in that Green/Black outfit of his, while Stark's Black Sabbath T-Shirt is another great example of Whedon's work; pop-cult references all the way, baby!
• 0:56 - And SMASH time. Hulk's new CGI upgrade and Motion Capture system sure does show here, in a great Jump'n'Smash example of rage. 
• 1:00 - Le fin... for now. Note: For Americans, that May 4th is correct, but here in the UK we have been blessed with an April 27th release. Midnight launch, anyone?

                                                                                                                                               

This is in fact the third trailer for The Avengers that I've broken down so far, but what can I say? April 27th, hurry the heck up! For more on The Avengers, as well as Trailers, Reviews and other kinds of Entertainment Awesome, make sure you stick with me, right here, at Dude Meister Blogs.

ATR

HULK SMASH OTHER PUNY TRAILERS!

RE:View: Plague

  If you don't know what he Gone series is about, here's a short introduction to interest you:

"The "Gone" series by Michael Grant (Gone, Hunger, Lies and now Plague) about everyone 15 and over, for reasons unknown, dissapear, leaving everybody 14 and under in an inpenetrable dome, is one of the best series out there for teens. The love child of "Lord of the Flies" and "X-Men", the Gone series is an intense, violent and sometimes saddening narrative, charting the stories of these teens as they deal with the problems obtained from living in the dome: being hungry, searching for water, trying to live some semblance of a life -- and don't forget how the children begin to mutate, gaining all sorts of powers, along with the animals of the FAYZ (Fallout Alley Youth Zone). And this is just the bare strands of what forms Michael Grants' "Gone" novels." - Amazon Reviewer

 Michael Grant's 4th book in his epic Gone saga, Plague, is perhaps one of the most edge-of-your-seat, heart-in-your-mouth, pulse-racing young-adult novels to ever grace the book shelves. Despite this being the latter middle of the series (a planned six), the quality is as good as ever. Gripping action, emotive characters and some shocking twits help to make this the best so far.

  The FAYZ is at it's lowest point in the 8 months since the dome went up. A deadly flu is sweeping the town, rendering kids to the point of death. And what with the water supply running out, things turn from bad to worse. Over the course of 72 hours and 7 minutes, friendships are tested, dark alliances are forged and blood is spilled.

  And when I say blood is spilled, I mean it. This is by far the most violent and gruesome of the series, and will make you wince and whine at the detailed brutality. And even the romance gets a bit more explicit, if you catch my drift. But luckily, it never feels over-the-top, as with all of Grant's superb story-telling. The Heroes-esque array of characters all still play perfectly into this installment, with their emotions and action laid bare by the tremendous display of thoughtful language, giving an overwhelming sense of relatability and realism.

 But then there is this new layer of historical and political allusion which has been magnified since the events of Lies. These underlying themes of democracy and fascism, racism and power, give the seemingly all-teen book very adult qualities. There are times when events such as the Russian Revolution and even Hitlers rise to power are echoed into the book, leaving faint traces of allegorical genius.

  Obviously, this is not a good point to jump into the series, and it's highly recommended you go from the start. But those familiar with the previous titles can dive in straight away and immerse themselves in this crazy world that is the FAYZ, and experience the finest teen novel out there.

10/10. Just saddened by the prospect of waiting till 2012 for the next one...