Looking Back at 1999’s “The Avengers: United They Stand”

Countdown to “Avengers: Endgame”

While Marvel Comics has dabbled in animation since the mid-60s, it wasn’t until 1999, when they joined forces with Saban International and 20th Century Fox, that the publisher offered up its first animated series based on The Avengers. The series, “The Avengers: United They Stand,” was heavily promoted and much hyped among Marvel and comic based publications. The collective fan response upon its debut on FOX Kids, however, was less than enthusiastic, and even to this day, there’s a relatively middling response to “United They Stand” especially in the face of superior fare like “Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.”

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Marvel Rising: Heart of Iron (2019)

Countdown to “Avengers: Endgame”

I’ve managed to become a huge fan of the “Marvel Rising” TV specials as they’ve given a big spotlight to superheroes that don’t get their proper due or are overdue for their own spotlight very soon. Among them, there’s Squirrel Girl, Miss Marvel, Spider-Gwen, and Inferno. Disney has taken advantage of these specials to give some side adventures to some unique superheroes and heroines and I have enjoyed what has unfolded for this new team, as well as the diverse team of voice actors.

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Justice League vs. The Fatal Five (2019) [Blu-Ray/DVD/Digital]

After years of delivering a new style of animation for a new generation of DC and Warner fans, the DC animation department is going back to the well and reviving the classic Bruce Timm animation style for some brand new films. While they all haven’t been slam dunks, “Justice League vs. The Fatal Five” is a fine return to form for a part of DC Comics Entertainment that almost always delivers. It’s certainly better than the junky 2017 “Batman and Harley Quinn” movie, and even takes the time out to delve in to important overtones about PTSD, Mental illness, and overcoming our fears.

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Hellboy (2019)

Like a lot of previous efforts to reboot a property, Neil Marshall’s handling of “Hellboy” was the apparent product of studio interference and clashing ideas that resulted in a hectic shoot for just about everyone. That’s a shame since when Neil Marshall is allowed to unfold his own ideas and monsters, he gives us “The Descent,” and “Dog Soldiers.” It’s not to say that “Hellboy” is a bad movie, it’s just one half of a very good reboot that’s fun, and action packed, and one half of a sloppy studio film that’s boring, over explained, and sloppily tailored for sequels, prequels, and spin offs.

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Shorts Round Up of the Week – 4/15/19

For this week’s edition of “Shorts Round Up of the Week” I check out some rich dramas, a few ambitious fantasy films one of which involves bullying, and a pitch black revenge movie co-starring M. Emmet Walsh.

If you’d like to submit your short film for review consideration, submissions are always opened to filmmakers and producers.  

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The Silence (2019)

It was only a matter of time until studios would come along and start trying to duplicate the formula that “A Quiet Place” perfected. Hoping to strike lightning twice after the shocking pop culture success of “The Birdbox,” Netflix adapts yet another novel in to an apocalyptic thriller featuring monsters working on human senses, and a family trying to stick together, doggone it. And it stinks. Director John R. Leonetti’s horror drama has a good idea somewhere buried beneath this hacky often mean spirited mess, but damned if I could find out how to salvage it.

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Pet Sematary (2019)

Anyone who knows me knows that I hate the first adaptation of “Pet Sematary” from 1989 as well as its sequel. I think the first version is silly, exploitative, and looks more like a cheap TV movie than anything. It also sets up so many plot elements and a mythology that it never clarifies or resolves. While the new version of Stephen King’s novel “Pet Sematary” also never quite answers all of the nagging questions, it at least adds a brand new logic to it, giving many of the characters motivations for their irrationality. There’s also an explanation as to the allure of the pet sematary and why it’s stayed up for generations.

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