All Hail Joss Whedon

The moment all the nerds have been waiting for has arrived. Summer movie season is upon us and The Avengers is finally in theaters! Opening on Friday it has numerous rave reviews and has already made over 280 million dollars overseas. The Avengers is directed by Joss Whedon, creator of Firefly and Buffy the Vampire Slayer fame. Bringing all of the characters from these multiple blockbuster films into one movie surely was no easy task. A big thanks goes out to Mister Whedon for bringing this film to the big screen.

Everyone has their favorite Avenger, the one whose t-shirt they wear to the midnight premiere and the DVD they constantly keep on repeat. For me that guy is Tony Stark aka Iron Man. While I appreciate all the other Avengers I have no doubt that Iron Man is the best of the group. The majority of the members have help from science or genetics in order to gain their super human powers. Tony is just your average every day genius who is using his powers for good which in my book makes him the best Avenger. But I have a soft spot for all the super heroes trying to make the world a better place.

The Avengers

Captain America is genetically engineered to be a super hero. Considered the first Avenger he is what he is thanks to Iron Man’s father, Howard Stark. (Point for Iron Man, his family is made up of geniuses.) Everyone loves a good underdog story, which is exactly what Captain America is. Small guy Steve Rodgers takes an experimental serum and transforms into what comes to be Captain America. This is the ideal story for nerdy kids hoping to become a super hero. But the odds of getting your hands on that serum are pretty slim.

The Hulk is a science experiment gone awry. Sure, he’s super strong and you really don’t want to be around him when he gets angry, but he looks like the green giant from the string bean can. The Hulk looks like a super hero vegetable. Like Iron Man, Dr. Bruce Banner is also quite intelligent. He is a fantastic part of the Avengers; every group needs a super strong giant on the team.

Hawkeye-Archers seem to be the new upcoming athletic event to try. It has proven to be quite popular recently in pop-culture. Katniss Everdeen, star of the Hunger Games was into archery as well as Disney’s new princess, Merida. Then there is always the classic Robin Hood who was known to carry around bows and arrows around Nottingham. Sure Hawkeye, you are the coolest archer I can think of. But out of a pool of a teenage girl, a Disney princess and a cartoon fox it’s not really anything to brag about.

   

Thor-Of course Thor is a superhero, he’s the God of Thunder!  It’s in his blood. He has this killer hammer, Mjolnir, which is the main source of his power. It looks like Thor is going to have a lot to deal with seeing as his adopted brother, Loki, looks to be the villain of the movie. He’s destined to be the King of Asgard so I am sure he can handle a little sibling rivalry. (Side note: Why does Natalie Portman get to be the love interest for Thor AND Anakin Skywalker? My jealous meter is off the charts.)  

Black Widow – Of course I have to support her being that she is the only female in The Avengers team. What I like about her is that she is a girl who has obviously had an insane amount of training to become an incredible martial artist successful enough to join a group of super heroes. While I enjoy seeing a girl mixing it up in the group, any member of Charlie’s Angels can do what Black Widow does. They should have given her a more powerful weapon or intense suit. You can’t blame them though for putting her in all spandex.

Finally finishing it off and bringing it around to my overall point: why Iron Man is the best. Tony Stark is a sarcastic, self indulged, genius rich guy. Or as he likes to describe himself, "a genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist." He has no physical super powers only uses his money and his brain, like Batman but with a better personality and no annoying deep voice. He is an inventor extraordinaire and always has something to say in any situation. He is a hero for all those nerdy science kids out there who would rather watch Bill Nye & stay inside studying then practice their lay ups or slapshots. (Side note to the bullies out there: watch out who you give your next wedgie to because nerds are taking over the world.)

While I love all superheros, my ideal hero is just an everyday guy who is fighting for what he believes in. It’s great to have super human strength, be invisible or have lasers for eyes, but what is most impressive is just your every day guy in spandex fighting against evil. That is exactly what Iron Man is. Obviously he has an insane amount of wealth and he is an incredible genius, but at the end of the day he’s just a regular guy. If I happened to be captured by some mad man taking over the city the first guy I would yell at for help would be Iron Man.

I hope everyone gets a chance to see The Avengers this weekend. I have only heard good things about it so far and cannot wait to get to the theater this weekend!