As a comic fan, you know what a big day May 4, 2012 will be.
That’s when Marvel Studios will release The Avengers, the big-screen fanboy dream that will see Thor, Captain America, Hulk and Iron Man join forces to fight evil I the name of justice and box-office riches.
The Avengers is what Marvel Studios has been building towards since 2008’s Iron Man, which featured a then-risky choice of Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark, the millionaire industrialist turned metal-clad superhero. Weaving together the story of a shared superhero universe, we’ve since seen The Incredible Hulk (2008) feature the green goliath fighting Stark technology, while 2010`s Iron Man 2 tease that Tony Stark’s father had a bit to do with the origins of a certain flag-wearing super-soldier.
2011 brought the most recent stops on the journey to The Avengers with Thor in May and Captain America: The First Avenger in July. With both films now available on DVD and Blu-Ray, you can give two of the best superhero films of the year this holiday season.
Thor stars Chris Hemsworth as the titular hero and Norse God of Thunder, cast out of Asgard by his father Odin (Anthony Hopkins) to learn humility on Earth. Banished and alone, Thor meets kindly scientist Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) and learns to care for others as he fights to protect the world against the evil machinations of his half-brother, Loki (Tom Hiddleston).
Captain America: The First Avenger sees Chris Evans as Steve Rogers, a patriotic weakling wanting to do his part in the fight against Nazis in World War II. Given a chance to become a super-soldier by a kindly scientist (Stanley Tucci), Rogers becomes Captain America and fights alongside allies Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) and the beautiful Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell) the evil Red Skull (Hugh Weaving), plotting to take over the world with a weapon that might be from a place a certain Thunder God calls home.
For a Marvel Comics and movie fan, you can’t give one without the other. While both standalone, they’re also Marvel’s last stops in their film universe before we see what writer/director Joss Whedon has in store with The Avengers.
Thor and Captain America: The First Avenger cost between $20 and $35 depending on the format of your choice (DVD, Blu-Ray, 3D Blu-Ray).
