TheLittleSongbird I saw Ultimate Avengers as someone who loves animation and superheroes. I don't think it is as good as some reviewers say, but it is also nowhere near as bad as others(some of which have a very ignorant tone to them, especially the ones who unfairly accuse those who liked it shills) say. As an adaptation, and I'm not sure if it was intended to be, it may be left wanting. As a standalone, which I think is a fairer way of judging it, it is decent. Ultimate Avenger was flawed for me, the film was too short, but that wasn't as big a problem as the pace, character designs and one character that could have been written better. The pacing is very uneven, it takes some time to get going and the very end is rushed and anti-climatic. The characters were for my tastes lacking fluidity and seemed jerky too much. I also wish that Thor was more interesting, he is rather stubborn and does little more than whine and threaten people. Aside from the character designs though, the rest of the animation is great, the backgrounds are very detailed and the colours are atmospheric. The music is driven and gives a haunting undercurrent to everything else forming the film. The writing is sharp, the story is compelling with an exciting final action scene and the action is well-choreographed and intense. The characters apart from Thor are interesting, with Bruce Banner/Hulk and Captain America very sympathetic characters and it was a pleasure to see The Wasp again. The voice acting is solid I thought, Olivia D'Abo's Russian accent was a little overdone for me and unidiomatic but the rest do spirited jobs. Overall, decent film but for me not a great one. 7/10 Bethany Cox

crispy_comments Having only basic knowledge of a few of these characters (Thor and The Hulk), I watched this movie on a whim. I enjoyed it more than I expected, although I was a bit confused at first, trying to figure out "who's that and what's their motivation/ability?" - but I understand there wasn't enough time to go into every character's history. Plus the target audience is probably familiar with it all and impatient to get on with the action. Still, Black Widow, Giant Man and The Wasp especially needed more screen time and fleshing out.Much of the time and development is devoted to Captain America and I just fell in love with this character! First the movie grabbed me with an audio excerpt from Command Performance radio show and an awesome WWII opening sequence - I'm a big fan of this era and immediately perked up. I was impressed by the battle scenes, which reminded me of many live-action war films from the 1940s. It felt authentic... well, until we find out that the Nazis were in cahoots with...aliens! :)Anyway, Captain America's character is very sympathetic and I really felt for him - the storyline of an old-fashioned hero, a decent guy from the past, who has to adjust to modern times, just resonated with me. I'm sure part of that is because I can relate a bit, due to my own feeling of not belonging in this time period - but part of it is the truly good writing and voice acting. Not only does Cap have to deal with culture shock, but the fact that many of his friends are dead, and other loved ones have aged and moved on with their lives without him. This is really only touched on in a few minutes, but manages to be very moving nonetheless.The majority of the film deals with Captain America becoming the reluctant leader of the Avengers, a group of superheroes who aren't used to working as a team, and whose personalities, of course clash. They must combine their powers to deal with a major threat to the world ... those pesky aliens again! This basic idea reminds me of the Justice League animated series' pilot - but I enjoyed the execution of Ultimate Avengers much more! I bought the JL DVD containing those first few episodes packaged as a mini-movie, and I remember finding it...boring. Dull characterization and just not emotionally engaging. It did not make me interested in watching the rest of the series. But if Ultimate Avengers was the pilot for a TV series...Another sympathetic character here is Bruce Banner, who is desperate to find a way to control The Hulk and harness his violent strength for good. I liked the fact that he turned out to be the *real* threat at the movie's climax, rather than those paper-thin aliens. I sometimes get annoyed by tragic backstories and inner demons and so on - sometimes you just want a black and white, clear-cut good vs. evil story (like I said, I belong in the "good" old days with the Nazis! Well, not *with* them exactly, but youknowwhatImean) - but Ultimate Avengers' treatment of The Hulk was a great exception. Just enough angst to give him depth. I didn't find him too whiny like some people apparently did.I'm not sure I like this treatment of Thor though. Seemed like the writers just weren't respecting him enough - what with the other characters thinking he was delusional and not a real God... and calling him a chick, and all. And doesn't he have anything better to do than hang around wharfs threatening fishermen?! Although the female characters were underused and underdeveloped, it was nice to see Black Widow and Betty Ross make significant moves to help end the final fight.Last but not least: the animation. I don't know why some reviewers found it lacking. At no time did I think to myself "oh it's okay...for direct-to-video." Seems to me it would be more than good enough for a theatrical release. (I actually assumed it *was*, until I came online and read otherwise.) Cool character designs, some great background art, nice effects, and just the right blend of traditional hand-drawn animation and CGI. I hate the overuse of CGI these days, preferring subtle enhancements that aren't too distracting.Mainly though, the story is the thing. And, despite the flaw of having too many characters to develop in such a short running time, I found Ultimate Avengers a lot of fun. Not perfect, but better than the average action/adventure/superhero movie. Better than most animated OR live-action films in general, from this disappointing decade.

brando647 Let me preface this by saying that, while I am a huge Marvel fan, I am still new to the comics. So, I am not completely up-to-date on all of the intricate details of the characters and existing stories. In a way, I feel that makes watching movies like this more enjoyable because I can watch it for what it is, without distracting myself with little plot inconsistencies that don't coincide with the comics.Personally, I enjoyed this flick. I didn't rush out to buy it when it came out because I wasn't sure what to expect. I figured it would be sugar-coated for the kid population. But I was definitely surprised, in a good way. Marvel knew that the majority of its fan base is over 10 years old and took that into account. The movie has some good action scenes that don't always soften the punches (poor Iron Man...). From what I can tell, they stayed pretty true to the Marvel comics characters, even going into detail as to the origins of Captain America.While I'm on the topic, I do have one complaint in that aspect. The only problem with starting with a movie about the Avengers, Earth's mightiest team of superheroes, is that there are a lot of characters and, with a 90 minute runtime, not enough time to give good development to all of them. Character's like Thor get too little on-screen time (though the time he does get is awesome). I did enjoy the Avengers Trivia Track option in the Special Features, allowing for a little more background and information on the characters and Ultimate Marvel universe.My only complaint is that the animation is a little weak when it came to close ups of characters and the showing of emotion. The faces did not give a whole lot of expression and in certain moments when emotion was primary over action, it took away from the scene. It wasn't a drastic problem, though it did bug me a little.Overall, this is an awesome start to the line of Marvel animated movies. These movies are gonna be a great addition to Marvel's live action line-up. They got off on the right foot with "Ultimate Avengers" and, the way I see it, it can only get better from here.

helmutty Boom! Bam! Those who like big action fights, here is one for you. Everywhere, things explode when aliens come and it is up to the chosen avengers to protect the city. Amazing! But the slow-paced plot can't keep the action up. The director did a great job in making it intense and great battles. Although it is short-running, the pace is not there. There was some unnecessary talking which can go to the deleted scenes. Anyway, the story has some good meanings, they must do teamwork in order to fight. It seems like it is some short special show that looks like a movie. But I did have fun while watching the movie, but it is short, 1 hour 12 minutes. Bravo to the last battle, it totally blew me off with great animation that is intense! The DVD's special features are something, a sneak preview of Ultimate avengers 2, a featurette and a voice talent search are something to look out for but the others are not. Good time watching the movie and the special features.