I liked it, but it's nowhere near as good as The Avengers and honestly the more I think about it the more I can't decide if I would even put it over Guardians or The Winter Soldier which I re-watched last night and surprisingly gets better in repeat viewings. The opening Bond esque action sequence was great and the Hulk Buster fight was pretty EPIC!, but those two action scenes are really the only standouts in the movie IMO. The final battle was meh until War Machine got in on it which was a nice surprise, but other than that it's forgettable.

Ultron was an ok villain and I really dug his intro at the party which is probably his strongest moment in the movie, but it's not long until he gets turned into another jokey/punching bag. Once the twins who are far more dangerous and make him a worthy adversary leave his side, the threat level diminishes quickly and the generic/expendable robot army did nothing to change that. It's sad they didn't use him to his full potential either, because Ultron is really fucking scary in the comics/cartoons and James Spader nails the voice work, but instead of getting the soulless monster that was depicted in the comic-books we get this witty almost Disney like version who makes a bunch of weird references to God for some reason. I mean I understand he wanted to annihilate The Avengers along with the rest of mankind, but the Noah and the JESUS CHRIST! joke was just too much.

Didn't care for the pointless romance between Banner/Widow although that one scene in the woods was well done. Hawkeye getting more fleshed out was nice too, although that family bit ends up really slowing down the movie in the middle portion. Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver were cool and I liked how their different powers were portrayed. Scarlet Witch was especially badass and c'mon Lizzy Olsen was a complete smokeshow in her new uniform at the end. Oh! and you can't forget The Vision. I loved what Paul Bettany did with the character and when he's introduced in the third act things finally do get interesting. As soon as he picked up and casually handed Thor his hammer I instantly dug him. Also, the scene with him using it on Ultron was kind of amazing aswell and I hope those two have more great interactions in future movies.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Avengers: Age of Ultron
The Avengers
Captain America: The First Avenger
Iron Man
Iron Man 3
Guardians of the Galaxy
Thor
The Incredible Hulk
Iron Man 2
Thor: The Dark World

Seriously this was just terrible.

One moment I am unsure how to respond to: Natasha embracing Bruce near the end, but then pushing him into a pit so he will fly into a rage and become green. Is this meant to have serious implications (she cares for him to a certain extent, but also exploits him and his "curse" when she feels she must)? Or is it just a ha-ha-Whedon type of moment?

I'd bet more of the latter, a break-the-tension moment was badly needed at that point, but it also shows that Widow will always put the mission first, no matter what she says in sweet-talk time. I do hope she and Liv Tyler have a scene together at some point now. Would be super awkward!

Rankings! And I think it fits in here perfectly:

1. Guardians of the Galaxy
2. The Avengers
3. The Winter Soldier
4. Thor
5. Iron Man
6. The Incredible Hulk
7. Age Of Ultron
8. Captain America
9. Iron Man 3
10. Iron Man 2
11. The Dark World

All are B+s or better with the top two being A+^1000000.

01. Guardians of the Galaxy (A-)
02. The Avengers (A-)
03. Avengers: Age of Ultron (B+)
04. Captain America: The Winter Soldier (B+)
05. Thor (B+)
06. Thor: The Dark World (B)
07. Iron Man (B)
08. Captain America: The First Avenger (B-)
09. Iron Man 3 (C+)
10. Iron Man 2 (C+)
11. The Incredible Hulk (C)

Captain America: The Winter Soldier (A-)
Captain America: The First Avenger (A-)
The Avengers (A-)
Iron Man (B+)
Iron Man 3 (B+)
Guardians of the Galaxy (B+)
Thor (B)
Avengers: Age of Ultron (B-)
The Incredible Hulk (B-)
Thor: The Dark World (C-)
Iron Man 2 (C-)

1. Iron Man (A-)
2. The Avengers (B+)
3. The Avengers: Age Of Ultron (B)
4. Guardians of the Galaxy (B)
5. The Winter Soldier (B-)
6. Iron Man 2 (B-)
7. The Incredible Hulk (C+)
8. Iron Man 3 (C+)
9. Thor: The Dark World (C)
10. Captain America: The First Avenger (C-)
11. Thor (C-)

Average = B- = Passably enjoyable franchise/time killer

This was miles better than the first, which in retrospect was shit. Winter Soldier is still my favorite Marvel movie but this was a blast. James Spader stole the show as Ultron and Elizabeth Olsen was a great addition. Aaron Johnson was horrible but whatever.

1. Avengers: A
2. Iron Man: A-
3. Captain America 2: B+
4. Captain America: The First Avenger: B
5. Iron Man 2: C
6. Iron Man 3: C-
7. The Incredible Hulk: C-
8. Thor 2: D
9. Thor: D
10: Avengers 2: D-
11. Guardians Of The Galaxy: F

Most people have stated my opinions already. An entertaining movie that isoverstuffed and leans on goodwill. Thar Thor subplot was very weak and was stolen straight from Paul Walker's sojourn in Fast&Furious 6. My two biggest qualms
1. Joss Whedon is not a film director. No matter how much money he gets his movies feel like really expensive TV shows.
2. Whoever decided on the sound mixing and editing made interesting choices that continue to bug me 24 hours after seeing the movie.

For now this is how I'm going to rank them:

1. The Avengers
2. Iron Man
3. Guardians of the Galaxy
4. The Winter Soldier
5. Age of Ultron
6. The Incredible Hulk
7. Thor 2
8. Iron Man 3
9. The First Avenger
10. Thor
11. Iron Man 2

Who knows AOU could get better in repeat viewings like TWS did for me, but as of now I just can't put it over Guardians or CA2, especially with that weak final battle.

This is actually very, very true.

1. Guardians of the Galaxy - A
2. Avengers: Age of Ultron - A
3. Captain America: The Winter Soldier - A/A-
4. Iron Man - A-
5. Thor: The Dark World - A-
6. The Avengers - B+
7. Iron Man 3 - B+
8. Thor - B+
9. Captain America: The First Avenger - B
10. The Incredible Hulk - B
11. Iron Man 2 - B-

1. Guardians of the Galaxy- B+
2. Captain America: The Winter Soldier- B+
3. Thor- B
4. Captain America: The First Avenger- B
5. The Avengers- C
6. Thor: The Dark World- C-
7. Iron Man- D

Not seen IM2 or 3, probably won't cuz IM1 was so boring. Hope to catch AOU on DVD. The Incredible Hulk I will probably check out soon.

Do you see anything in theater, just wondering?

Quite a bit of fun, but also quite a step down from the first one. If I had to guess, I'd say it's because the first felt unique and it felt like it had Joss Whedon all over it. While this one has Whedon's name on it, the sequel feels like it's been run through the Marvel grinder into blandness. The only thing that feels uniquely like Whedon is a party scene early on in the film. That and a quick shot Iron Man super-punching Hulk repeatedly. That's about it for wit aside from a couple of one-liners.

Problems aside, I still had a lot of fun. Marvel knows what it's doing with this finely oiled machine. But I don't like this ongoing trend that the movies are losing a little bit of heart in favor of being a little generic.

Good luck Russo Brothers.

***1/2 (B+)

The Avengers
Iron Man
Captain America: The First Avenger
Iron Man 3
Captain America: Winter Soldier
Guardians of the Galaxy
Avengers: Age of Ultron
The Incredible Hulk
Thor: The Dark World
Iron Man 2
Thor

A little generic? lol

Apologists aplenty here.

Aww aren't you cuuuuuuuuute!!!

You have a Brave poster as an avatar. Don't go throwing rocks in glass houses now.

Brave > MCU

Comparing one film to eleven. Good one.

Don't you have a post about the Batmobile to make?

Generic non-offensive faceless alien hordes > generic non-offensive faceless robot hordes.

Films I saw in theaters that I can remember
The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
Into the Woods
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1
Big Hero 6
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
How to Train Your Dragon 2
Maleficent
X-Men: Days of Future Past
Muppets Most Wanted
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
Frozen
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
Gravity
The Lone Ranger
Despicable Me 2
Monsters University
The Great Gatsby
Oz the Great and Powerful
Les Miserables
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Rise of the Guardians
Wreck-It Ralph
Ice Age: Continental Drift
Brave
Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted
The Hunger Games (2X)
Puss in Boots
Cars 2
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 (2X)
Kung Fu Panda 2
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
Toy Story 3
Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief
Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
Up
Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian
Monsters Vs. Aliens
Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa
High School Musical 3: Senior Year
Star Wars: The Clone Wars
The Mummy: The Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
Journey to the Center of the Earth
Wall-E
Get Smart
Kung Fu Panda
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
The Spiderwick Chronicles
The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything: A Veggietales Movie
National Treasure: Book of Secrets
Enchanted
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Transformers
Ratatouille
Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
Shrek the Third
Meet the Robinsons
Bridge to Terabithia
Night at the Museum
Charlotte's Web
Happy Feet
Barnyard: The Original Party Animals
Zoom
Monster House
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
Superman Returns
Cars
Over the Hedge
RV
Ice Age: The Meltdown
The Shaggy Dog
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2X)
Corpse Bride
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Fantastic Four
Herbie: Fully Loaded
Madagascar
Robots
The Incredibles
Shark Tale
Shrek 2 (2X)
Elf
Spy Kids: 3D Game Over
Finding Nemo
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
Jonah: A Veggietales Movie
Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones
Monsters Inc. (2X, first theatergoing experience I remember)

This year, I plan to see
Inside Out
Minions
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2
The Good Dinosaur
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

KJ is way too kind with their comic book grades.

KJ is too kind to Nolan films and Emily Blunt.