Thor: The Dark World/Guardians of the Galaxy/Avengers: Age of Ultron Panel [Comic-Con 2013]
Although Captain America was sandwiched between Thor: The Dark World and the final two announcements, I decided to blend them together. The bulk of the information actually came from an unexpected Guardians of the Galaxy panel. However, before that we got a surprise appearance from Loki (in full garb) and afterwards we finished with an exciting announcement from Joss Whedon about Avengers 2.
For the Thor: The Dark World panel, Loki pretty much took over right away, immediately making the room pitch black and poking fun at Hall H. When the lights came up, he took command and even said “you should’ve let me rule you,” and “where are your Avengers now?” I almost expected the rest of the guys to pop out and take him down. Still, the screams and chants during Loki’s performance rocked the house.
It was a fun experience that was followed with some footage for The Dark World. It was basically three different segments – the first being Thor (Chris Hemsworth) in a battle sequence kicking ass. The second part was what looked like an interesting team-up with Loki. However, the final part shows the true nature of their relationship and contained a graphic final shot that suggests Thor is in some serious danger.
It was a little disappointing Thor himself wasn’t actually there, but Loki in costume and character was pretty damn cool. The end of footage made me eager to see the film even more.
After Thor, Kevin Feige talked about one of the newer Marvel franchise Guardians of the Galaxy, which recently started filming. Not due out until August 1, 2014, I didn’t expect to get any footage. But Feige did reveal some of the cast had made it to Comic-Con all the way from London. Apparently some of them flew in just before the panel and were going back right after.
The panel included James Gunn (director), Michael Rooker, Karen Gillan (who shaved her head!), Djimon Hounsou, Lee Pace, Benecio del Toro, Dave Batista, Zoe Saldana, and Chris Pratt. They answered a few questions and basically explained their characters. The real fun came with the first footage (even after only 10 days of shooting).
The surprisingly long teaser introduced Quill/Star-Lord (Pratt) and his band of misfits. It was more humorous than anything else, but I think special effects would be tough at this point. However, there was more to see and I’ll say the footage was promising. My favorite part was seeing Rocket Racoon in action. When the teaser ended, we saw a line-up of the actual Guardians of the Galaxy.
Like it might sound, it was pretty awesome.
But we weren’t done. Not to be outdone by Warner Brothers earlier and 20th Century Fox later, Marvel decided fans hadn’t had enough. Feige introduced Joss Whedon who admitted he had nothing new to say, but had “something to add.” Lights dimmed and a teaser came out for The Avengers 2, but it didn’t reveal any actual footage. However, it did name the movie, which will officially be titled Avengers: Age of Ultron. Ultron, for those that don’t know, is a robot in the Marvel universe with superhuman powers including super-strength and stamina. There is a lot more to his character, but why should I spoil it for you? Be ready for another formidable opponent come 2015.
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