Marvel Madness: Ultron Region – Round 1

There have been a few more movies and of course the mini-series that have come out while I’ve been neglecting my duties here, but I’m determined to finish what I started. Round 1 – Ultron Region results. Let’s Go!

The Ultron Region:

1 vs 16 Age of Ultron is undoubtedly the weakest Avengers outing (although not as bad I feel as most people); however, Kick Ass 2 took all of the underdog indie charm of the original and tried to commercialize, resulting in a movie that is neither gritty-low budget fun, nor blockbuster extravaganza.

8 vs 9 A tough call here, both of these movies serve up excellent characters and acting on a pretty flimsy story. ultimately, this comes down to originality. Iron Man 2 took a big swing a fell down a bit, while Thor’s story is very predictable. Thor takes this one in overtime by introducing the MCU’s most interesting character.

5 vs 12 X-Men: First Class isn’t great, but I’m biased against the Andrew Garfield Spider-Man movies because i feel like they robbed Sam Raimi and Toby McGuire of some great untold stories.

4 vs 13 I think I’m one of a very few people who doesn’t hate the 2003 Hulk – “you wouldn’t like me when I’m Ang Lee” – but it doesn’t stand a chance against Thor: Ragnarok.

3 vs 14 Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 2 is up and down, but it does have some really incredible character beats for Rocket, Peter Quill, and Yondu. It’s definitely enough to get passed Ghost Rider, whose main strength is Nicholas Cage at his Nicholas Cagiest.

6 vs 11 Another 11-6 Upset! The movie that really kicked the MCU into Avengers mode gets my sentimental vote over a pretty good X-Men outing in Days of Future Past. Call me a sucker for a man in uniform, but I just really enjoy everything to do with Captain America.

7 vs 10 Ant-Man and The Wasp is really interesting. The villain is complex and multi-dimensional. It’s not your typical superhero movie, which is it’s biggest strength. Men In Black II is ultimately just a little too weird and forgettable.

2 vs 15 Kick-ass’s quirky energy could have gotten it past a lot of the front runners in this bracket… but not Black Panther. I mean, where do i start? the cast: perfect, the production design: brilliant. The Themes: so strong. Ultimately, the only complaint i have with Black Panther is that I wish there were slightly larger stakes, but the more focused conflict suits the intimate setting. Black Panther Kicks Ass.

I’ll try to keep the momentum going with the Infinity Region – Round 1 results as soon as I can

Infinity Region – Round 1 here

The Endgame Region – Round 1 results are here if you want to check them out. If you want to go back and see the original post setting up the bracket, it’s here