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- Avengers: Age of Ultron [2015]
- Captain Marvel [2019]
- Iron Man 2 [2010]
- Justice League [2017]
- Marvel's The Avengers [2012]
- Thor: Ragnarok [2017]
- Wonder Woman [2017]
Add Your Comments
Odds & Ends Articles
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- West Allis, WI: OnMilwaukee Tours the Former Paradise Theatre [Feb 29]
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With Justice League coming soon, and superheroes on the brain with yet another Thor movie in theaters tomorrow, it seems that this new superhero collaboration is DC’s answer to Marvel’s Avengers. The movie will feature Gal Gadot reprising her role as Wonder Woman for a third time, alongside several other key characters including Superman, Batman, and Flash. Like Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) in the Avengers, she is one of the only female superheroes (and main characters) in the film.
While I typically favor the Marvel Universe, DC has an aspect I can’t ignore. DC made waves when they released the Wonder Woman solo movie, featuring her and only her. While Chris Pine made a nice sidekick, it was clear from the beginning that this was her story, and she was in control. It also leaves from for a very easy segue into a sequel (making it obvious that this character would not be neglected and lumped in with a group of superheroes as a token character). This is something that Marvel has not done.
Marvel continues to release movie after movie, featuring multitudes of their male leads. Thor: Ragnarok is opening tomorrow, and most of the other individual series (Captain America, Iron Man, etc.) have at least two, if not three, installments. Notably missing from this repertoire of solo films is the story of Natasha Romanoff, known as Black Widow. Her character was introduced in Iron Man 2, and she continued to appear in various films, most prominently in Marvel's The Avengers. She was the only female superhero in the first Avengers movie, and was joined by Scarlet Witch in the second.
Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow in Avengers.
© 2011 MVLFFLLC. TM & © 2011 Marvel. All Rights Reserved.
Her background is obviously shrouded in mystique and uncertainty, and its clearly fodder for an amazing plotline. Unfortunately, Marvel has been unable to give fans a straight answer as to when a Black Widow solo movie will be made. Directors and screenwriters avoid the question as cleverly as the best of politicians, while the cast of superheroes continually voices their support to showcase the story this strong female lead has to share.
DC did an amazing thing when they executed a well-planned, well-thought-out, and extremely accurate movie that gave women what they had been asking for forever: a female character that wasn’t oversexualized, drowned out by distracting aspects, and overall just had an awesome action movie. Marvel hasn’t done this, although they have the perfect stage to transition the action genre (and the movie industry in general) into more equal representation.
I applaud DC for pulling off such a well-done film and for keeping Wonder Woman’s character in the camera’s focus, and I hope Marvel will soon wake up and realize that there is a more than eager audience and an alluring story to match it.
Would You Watch a Black Widow and/or Scarlet Witch (et al) Movie?
Let's talk about it in the comments below!
Post-Script
I do realize that the Captain Marvel solo film is set to come out in March of 2019. This is a great step, but a previously unknown (cinematically) character would not have the same impact as a Black Widow movie or one about Scarlet Witch. I also worry that once the movie is out, the character will fade into the background, forgotten. And most importantly, don’t you want to know more about Black Widow’s story? The Red Room, the Winter Soldier, how she met Hawkeye and joined S.H.I.E.L.D… The possibilities are endless. As a writer, I would love to play around with that goldmine.
The top photo is © 2016 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc., Ratpac-Dune Entertainment LLC and Ratpac Entertainment, LLC.
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- Avengers: Age of Ultron [2015]
- Captain Marvel [2019]
- Iron Man 2 [2010]
- Justice League [2017]
- Marvel's The Avengers [2012]
- Thor: Ragnarok [2017]
- Wonder Woman [2017]
Add Your Comments
Odds & Ends Articles
- All the Spider-Man Movies Coming Back to Theaters Starting April 15 [Mar 19]
- How to Watch the Academy Award Winners in Theaters and at Home [Mar 11]
- West Allis, WI: OnMilwaukee Tours the Former Paradise Theatre [Feb 29]
- Berkeley, CA: Group Hopes to Save Closed Regal UA Berkeley From Demolition [Feb 8]
- Movie Music Winners at the GRAMMY Awards [Feb 6]
- Read more »
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