At the end of the day, folks, we'll have no choice but to take what we can get. If Marvel Studios decides to kill Ant-Man in his first film or make Hulk the king of Asgard... well, we better enjoy it! But there's nothing wrong with us letting our inner Joss Whedons out and thinking about what we'd like to see on film--in this case, Age of Ultron. I have chosen things that I believe would not only help the plot of this film, but also would set up elements for the future of Phase 3. Without further delay, let's get started.
8. Strong Sense of Connectivity
One of the things I loved about 2012's The Avengers is that while you don't have to watch any previous Marvel movies to understand what's going on, there are several references to them. Bruce Banner: "Last time I was in New York, I kind of broke Harlem." Loki: "Your father! He did tell you my true parentage, did he not?" Black Widow: "Coulson, you know Stark trusts me about as far as he can throw me." Nick Fury: "Remind me again how you made your fortune, Stark?" Captain America, in reference to the Tesseract: "HYDRA's secret weapon."
There's even references to the Destroyer and the Hulk's origins. Very, very cool stuff indeed, and I hope Age of Ultron makes similar references to previous Phase 2 films. We know that Hydra has a presence toward the beginning of this film, and that'll harken back to The Winter Soldier. I don't see how this movie can't acknowledge that Stark had the shrapnel and arc reactor removed from his chest (or that his house got blown up by terrorists, for that matter). Perhaps someone will mention Thor's battle with Malekith, or it could be brought up that Loki is "dead." And if they could somehow sneak in a reference to Guardians of the Galaxy, that would be nice to see as well.
7. The Falcon
While I'm already worried about the Avengers' roster getting too crowded, to not include Falcon now just feels... wrong. Maybe it's just me, but Anthony Mackie's Falcon was one of the best parts of Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and it felt a little too soon when one of his wings got pulled off towards the end. It left me wanting more action with him. Mackie very much wants to be in the movie, so much so that he left his entire summer open so that he could be available, even though he had no idea if he was going to be in it or not. It seems there's going to be an army to take down Ultron, as there have been numerous soldiers spotted as well as rumors of Asgardian warriors fighting alongside. Anthony Mackie has apparently also been spotted on set in costume, which I hope is true. I think it'd be cool to see Captain America running past him and saying "on your left" in the final battle. The thing is, though, Falcon has been a longtime Avenger, so the ending needs to show him actually joining the team, not just stopping by to help out. Cross your fingers, folks.
6. Hulk's Inner Struggle
The four gifs above come from a deleted scene from the Avengers, and I think it tells a lot about what Banner thinks of himself. As Mark Ruffalo has said, Banner is scared of the Hulk, but the Hulk is scared of Banner as well. He's a walking identity crisis--that's something he struggles with day in and day out. Since Hulk has a "key role" in Age of Ultron, and obviously something huge happens that causes him to battle Iron Man, I'd like to see a similar scene to this one that addresses Banner's inner struggle with "the other guy," one that shows he's not even sure who rules their shared body anymore. It would definitely be interesting to see, that's for sure.
5. Hulk Launched Into Space
While a lot of fans are downright outraged at the notion of Hulk teaming up with the Guardians of the Galaxy, I think it would be very cool to see onscreen. For the most part, these fans also don't want to see a Planet Hulk adaptation, at least not any time soon. Their reasoning is the story doesn't involve enough Banner, as well as that they'd rather see Hulk back in his own "world" of characters, dealing with the Ross', the Leader, the Abomination and such. Honestly, I'll go for whatever, I just want another Hulk movie. But I think if they just took the basic premise of Planet Hulk and added their own bit of story, there could be plenty of Banner time--and I think his character would create some cool dynamics with the Guardians. While Feige, James Gunn and co. have consistently denied this, you never really know.
Will it happen? Time will tell.
4. Tony Stark Put In A Coma
Let's recap everything Stark will be up to in this movie. We know he creates Ultron as a 'replacement' for the Avengers. As Ultron's daddy issues are a HUGE part of his character in the comics, I can't imagine Whedon not including that in the film. We know he created an Iron Legion to back Ultron up as well. His sidekick AI, J.A.R.V.I.S., will be becoming his own hero (in some form or fashion) as the Vision. His best friend, James Rhodes, will be making an appearance as well.
This is going to be a very Stark-centric movie, and Whedon needs to make sure all of the Avengers--as well as the supporting characters--get plenty of development. I say Ultron putting Stark in a coma--probably towards the beginning of the third act--would help this movie for two reasons.
One, it would give the rest of the Avengers a chance to shine. Captain America could take over and lead the team, and the film would focus on their character dynamics without having to worry about Stark--or RDJ, really--out-shining them. Second, it would also explain Iron Man's absence in Phase 3. In my opinion, I just don't see another Iron Man movie being in the Phase 3 line-up, nor do I think it's needed.
3. Hawkeye's Departure
While it's true that Hawkeye has been an Avenger for a long time, and I have no beef with him as an Avenger, I do have beef with a roster simply expanding. Kevin Feige has promised us a rotating roster. With Age of Ultron, we have all six original heroes coming back, along with Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch, the Vision, Rhodey, and possibly Falcon. That's a lot of heroes. I don't want anyone joining the team without at least someone leaving, and Hawkeye leaving makes the most sense to me. Since I truly believe that Black Widow will die, Clint Barton could decide he doesn't want any of this Avenging business anymore. Also, it's hard to imagine what Hawkeye could do up against Thanos, who will most likely be Avengers 3's villain. Hell, it's hard to imagine what he can do to Ultron. While I don't think his death would serve the story, his departure would give us a rotating roster and give us a chance to focus on the other characters in future Avengers films.
2. The Death of Black Widow
The first time we met Natasha Romanoff, in Iron Man 2, she was working undercover for S.H.I.E.L.D., struggling to get along with Tony and Pepper. In The Avengers, she not only fought with the entire team but it was established that her and Hawkeye are basically best friends. In The Winter Soldier, she became pretty close with Captain America and flirted with him throughout. And in Age of Ultron, she's supposedly dating Bruce Banner. Not only these things, but she also is a fan favorite... though not exactly franchise potential. Oh, I'm sure she could hold a movie of her own, but she isn't Captain America or Thor, and that's the kind of heroes that Marvel is focused on right now.
Her death would cause a ripple effect amongst the Avengers, leaving scars for everyone on the team. Her death could even haunt some Phase 3 films. I think more than any other Avenger it would give the team as a whole the most determination to beat that bastard Ultron, as well as setting up a perhaps uneasy Cap's Kooky Quartet (Captain America, Hawkeye, Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch), which I'd love to see at some point during the film. Simply put, her death would help the overall story. She's had her time to shine, and the roster needs to rotate. Let's let her go.
1. Big Thor Moments
In the first Avengers flick, many people thought Hawkeye was put on the back of the shelf. But with Tony Stark being the reason behind the chaos, Hawkeye, Black Widow, and Hulk all having "key roles," and Captain America rumored to have flashbacks and "period pieces" it seems like Thor may be the original Avenger this time around to have the least character development. Understandable, since he'll be the 'outsider' in this Midgardian conflict, but how do we make up for this? By having some badass, memorable Thor moments. Examples? Maybe he gets frustrated and blows up on another character in a humorous way. Maybe he's the one who finally wins the battle for the Avengers in the end. Maybe he shouts the classic line: "Ultron, we would have words with thee!" No matter what, we need some cool moments with the Mighty Avenger.
So what do you think, folks? Would my ideas work for the film, or should they be scrapped altogether? Sound off in the comment section below, and remember--keep it classy!