#I hate west bengal with my entire heart.

[itwillallbeokay]

Imagine you're a girl, a woman, living in West Bengal. You see the news, you see how a fellow woman was brutally raped and murdered. You've been told your entire life to not stay out late, wear certain kinds of clothing, or visit certain places. But now, you realise this : all of that was useless. The men who did that to her, they were in her workplace. She was a trainee in a goddamn hospital, one of the top hospitals in the state. And yet, the men who did this to her are being shielded by the administration. So, this is what it is, is it? You have a high enough seat in the WB government run syndicate in the state, and all your crimes are absolved? Why are you waiting until Sunday to hand this over to the CBI? Is it because you're going to produce another possible scapegoat by the end of this week to hide the real perpetrators? Is that it? The state which grants 85000 rupees per fucking club for Durga Puja cannot guarantee the safety and dignity of its women. Fuck this state and fuck your bangaliana. You sold yourselves for a 1000 rupees per month, now the women are the ones paying the price.

[amateurfan227]

Shitlist Christmas Reviews - The Avengers revisited - 2012

Hello Ladies and Gentlemen, I’m Amateur Fan 2.27 and welcome to the Shitlist, where bad movies burn, and this is the Christmas edition of 2017; a while ago I reviewed this movie when I first started the site and yet I’ve been getting comments over why this movie is the best, and after re-watching the movie, I can see some major flaws..... The movie I’m of course referring to is Joss Whedon’s The Avengers...

Ah Joss, what happened to you man, you were the king of fan culture with Buffy the Vampire Slayer and yet you set your career on self-destruct with the Justice League (though I’ve heard very bad things from due to direction of characters), but seeing that you’ve changed your mind in destroying the franchise I loved most through my childhood (DC) let’s have a look at one that you did indeed bastardize... Marvel...

Before I start the reviews and with the production history for that matter, there is some that I must address first on why I hate Marvel so much, granted I love Stan Lee,  his work makes me believe that Superheroes are real, from the teenage years of the Amazing Spider-man to the science beyond mutation in the Uncanny X-men.

There are other words that I can describe on how Stan Lee has indeed affected my life growing up, like he’s possibly one of the greatest living icons by far with such incredible work. Other characters were established as well which were created by other writers such as Deadpool or my particular favourite character, The Punisher. Those two characters drew me into the Marvel Universe because of one genius,

Though something comes to mind about this, other characters I admired from Marvel are interesting with incredible breakthroughs such as Spider-man’s guilt or Iron Man’s Alcoholism but with DC it’s entirely different as their characters have more personality as well as more problems when it comes to their own identities, I’ll get to this in a different review, hopefully when I review BVS...

Marvel through-out the years when it comes to producing their films has an interesting basis, mainly towards different companies like SONY or most recently Disney, some movies I did previously reviewed were interesting taking interesting takes on independent characters, such as Hulk, The Punisher (which is to be reviewed) or Spiderman.

But with the MCU however comes with one major problem.... S.H.I.E.L.D...   for those out there who don’t know S.H.I.E.L.D. is the fictional agency that deals with Paranormal or Superhuman ‘Mutant’ events through-out the world of Marvel, think of them like the Agency or Project Cadmus from DC but less ‘scientific’ (which I use loosely.... looking at you Agents of Shield...) and more on fantasy.

Through the M.C.U. Shield have been through nearly every film mention but this raises one major question on a particular level... why? Granted they are there to monitor the heroes and villains but yet through the movies.... they don’t seem to do very much about the situations the heroes (or so-called heroes for that matter) are trapped in apart from one in particular and that are Captain America.

But speaking of which we are going back into the movie that started it off to trope of SHIELD’s involvement, Avengers Assemble from 2012 directed by Joss Whedon, before I commence with the review, I’m removing to dive into the Production history due to the involvement of Disney attempting to make the heroes and the story more light hearted which divides the tone of the movie.

Especially that Disney have now purchased the rights to 20th Century Fox which also host a series of interesting movies based on the Marvel Universe (X-Men and Deadpool, Spiderman trilogy previously reviewed).

I have to admit that rebooting the Marvel Universe in the cinematic form was incredible but also difficult at the same time as it would achieve some fans in the comics as well as a fan base towards the films, though I’m not the biggest fan of the MCU but there are some moments in the franchise I do admire, as some of the problems with the heroes are mixed with some of their own characteristics, which is destroyed by Civil War which I will get to on another time as the movie and the comic it’s based on tells different stories and spawns bigger controversies.

I have to admit it that the movie I’m reviewing today was previously reviewed but I dived into it at the wrong time as I reviewed Iron Man before it which skipped 4 additional films which would corrupt the saga, but now that I’ve finished reviewing the last 4 movies (ending Iron 2) I think it’s a better idea to dive into the movie in a more appropriate manner and see if there are any problems with the movie, and trust me, there are a lot.

This is the Avengers Assemble.

 The movie begins with a monologue from an antagonist known as the Other; the leader of the race known as the Chitauri, a species from the Marvel universe similar to the Skrulls; the Other speaks towards an unknown person (see ending of Thor) that he will give Loki an army to take over Earth in return of a source of unknown potential energy known as the Tesseract (First Infinity Gem – it’s not like it’s a spoiler or anything).

In the present however, Director of SHIELD, Nick Fury (played by Samuel L. Jackson, you know what he’s been in) and his Second in Command SHIELD agent, Maria Hill (played by Cobie Smulders from How I Meet Your Mother) on a secret remote SHIELD research facility where they are performing experiments on the Tesseract as everyone is evacuating due to an energy surge.

Fury speaks to future red shirt, I mean SHIELD agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg) about the problem only for the reaction to state that it woke up, being unsure that the Tesseract was activated with no-one touching it; Fury speaks about Selvig being involved with the projected stating that he can’t shut it down...

This raises a question on how a meteorologist of all people can suddenly change occupations towards a scientist responding towards Energy; but saying that, this question will respond with no answer towards the end of the movie, including the other films relating to the same character.

Agent Hill... you know I’m just gonna call her Maria from now on, Maria informs Fury that it’s a bad idea to do a minimum evacuation due to the source of the energy but Fury has other plans on stating that the Phase 2 prototypes should be sorted out first, (we will see this later on) ignoring her recommendations.

All in seriousness, it comes to show that SHIELD are shown as a reckless force than they were told in the comics, as Fury had other ideas on scrapping the secondary projects in case of situations like this, especially when it comes to times of desperation involving combinations between Primary and Secondary tasks. I will get to this later on.

Fury speaks with Selvig about the source only for him to state that the Tesseract is misbehaving, so the energy source is a sentient being all of a sudden? This also comes to a downplay when he states that it also sparks interference with electrical equipment and minimum levels of radiation, only for Fury to speak to Barton (Jeremy Renner) about the Tesseract stating that something might be coming through in response of the misbehaviour of the source.

Suddenly a wormhole opens leading to the reveal of the movies villain, Loki (Played by Tom Hiddleston), who then appears to brutally kill off a few more red shirts before brainwashing a few agents, including Selvig and Barton. Fury attempts to steal the Tesseract away (wise to take it in your bare hands dumbass) only for Loki to stop him by stating that he needs the Tesseract for a future purpose.

Loki trades a few threats towards Fury only for Barton to state that Fury is stalling and Selvig to prove that the wormhole is collapsing on itself leading them to have two minutes exactly to leave before it goes to a critical level. Fury gets shot leading for Barton to take the Tesseract leading Loki to follow as they leave the facility, only for Fury to warn Maria about the situation leading for a chase sequence to launch through the tunnels of the facility.

I have to admit, it’s a pretty creative fight scene, only problem is that it reminds me strongly of the Metal Gear Solid when Liquid chases you in Shadow Moses... Anyway Fury manages to follow Loki via Helicopter only for the facility to collapse on itself; Coulson and Maria are a safe distance from harm but Fury as some trouble as the helicopter is attacked by Loki leading him to call for action... his call for war.

The next scene we see Natasha Romanoff aka Black Widow (played by Scarlett Johansson) stuck in interrogation with a Russian suspect of a presumed arms dealer only for Coulson to call her during the interrogation leading her to an able escape and the ability to take down the interrogators only for her to receive the information on what’s happened with Barton. He informs her to go after the big guy while he goes for Stark.

In Calcutta (a city in West Bengal, India) we see Dr Bruce Banner (Played by Mark Ruffalo from Shutter Island) treating patients as a general doctor, only to be called away when a girl asks for his assistance only for him to follow leading to be a trap set up by SHIELD, Banner is disproval of this when Agent Romanoff appears stating that they need his help with something, only for him to state that other guy (HULK) won’t comply.

She debriefs him by stating the Tesseract releases small pulses of gamma radiation that are too small for them to find though Banner can... which is weird because they could have asked Betty Ross who also shared Banner’s experience when it came to Gamma Radiation, or General Ross for that matter.. He tests her patience and wins over to her approval leading him to be on the team for the moment.

The next person shows Fury in a meeting with the World Security Council showing their disapproval of what Fury has planned stating that he need to stay focused on the Phase 2 project and not on Loki or the ‘handful of freaks’ only for Fury to decline by stating they only hired a response team to retrieve the Tesseract... see what I mean by reckless force?

We then see Captain America, Steve Rogers (Chris Evens) fighting against a boxing bag whilst having flashbacks from the world war only to literally punch it off the hanger only to be greeted by Fury to appear and informs him about the current situation at hand, which Rogers quickly agrees to as long as it’s to stop the threat as well as to return the Tesseract when he responds that they ‘should have left it in the ocean’.

We then skip to Iron Man himself Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr) who is in the process of repairing an electrical line under the water of New York to power up his building using pure clean energy which he himself invented (Iron Man 2) named Stark Tower. Just out of curiosity, wouldn’t that new source of energy also boost his reputation for being a scientist aside from a former weapons engineer?

As he leaves for Stark Tower, we see his assistant/girlfriend, Pepper Potts (played by Gwyneth Paltrow) who recommends him on going to the press which he’s dismissive of, only for his A.I system Jarvis (once again voiced Paul Bettany) interrupts him on Coulson’s intrusion only for Tony to ignore them numerous times. Coulson does eventually get over to Stark to consult him on joining the Avengers Initiate to Stark’s dismay on the matter at hand as he wasn’t qualified for the team.

Though he reluctantly agrees to join them over Pepper’s use of persuasion, mainly the 12% theory that Marvel has thrown out for the sake of it; Steve and Coulson are on a Quinjet on their way to the SHIELD Heli-carrier and discuss the people that he’s about to meet, which is an interesting session as Coulson literally states that he idolised Captain America but meeting him in the flesh is something of a treat.

Loki on the other hand speaks with the Other who is strongly displeased with the results that Loki is performing with the Tesseract, mainly towards Loki’s attitude against the Chitauri Army leading for a threat of the Other stating that is Loki fails, then He will come for him and no matter where he hides, He will remove everything from his existence.

However when Banner comes to meet him, he’s quite displeased that he will be locked with in a floating fortress, especially that he is suspicious about the fact that he agreed to team up with a high military force whilst searching for a device which has unlimited amount of energy. As they are brought inside for debriefing of the situation at hand, the Heli-carrier begins to ascend as well as be placed on camouflage, this raises a question on the technology itself that SHIELD are using.

If the camouflage is extended around the base of the Heli-carrier, what about the planes that are on the ship? Would they be camouflaged as well or do they run on a separate system entirely?

Meanwhile Selvig needs to acquire some iridium to stabilize the power of the Tesseract only to locate the Iridium in Stuttgart, Germany leading for Barton to state that he needs a distraction as well as an eyeball; SHIELD have managed to track Loki at a museum leading SHIELD to send Captain America with a team to assist.

At the Museum, Barton kills several guards outside to get to the safe holding the iridium while Loki performs a distraction by killing several guards also abstracting an eyeball (in quite a gruesome manner especially for a family film) to Barton to unlock the safe, Barton steals the Iridium giving Loki the advantage on taking several hostages while destroying the authority nearby.

An elderly man rises above him to confront him stating that he doesn’t fear monsters like him, only for Loki to shoot a bolt from his sceptre at him only to be defended by Captain America’s Shield just in time and oh boy...

What the actual hell have they done to his costume, it looks like he’s going to a strip club, not become a superhero, hell the early nineties Captain America costume was better than this, and to make matters worse, that this was Coulson’s idea when he mentioned that he placed something in the costume to update it, for what to announce that he’s in the closet?

A fight ensues when Romanoff arrives in the Quinjet leading Loki to gain the upper hand only for Iron Man to interrupt the fight overpowering Loki and saving Captain America before it escalates, knowing that he’s surrounded; the god of mischief surrenders and places himself arrested by SHIELD.

On route back to the Helicarrier, Stark and Rogers discuss on Loki’s performance that he’s too quiet to be remain a prisoner but something in the clouds disagree with them, a storm suddenly emerges only to be revealed by the god of Thunder himself arriving, behold the almighty Thor (played by Chris Hemsworth) who forces his way in the Quinjet and steals Loki away for a private negotiation, leading Iron Man to pursue along with Captain America.

Thor throws Loki to a mountain and starts an interrogation on where the Tesseract is but breaks down on the fact that they all missed him (referring to the Asgardians) only for Loki claims his right to the Kingdom of Asgard only for Loki to mock his brother’s love of Earth only for him to state that he will take Earth as his own.

Thor is immediately taken down to a forest by Iron Man only for a confrontation leading Stark to mock him for his clothing, which escalates into a fight between the crimson avenger and the Norse god of thunder. Err Stark, I would run if I was you, he is literally a god and you are just a mere man. Loki is literally watching them go at it only for one question is why doesn’t he run away? Captain America stops the fight leading to Thor to slam Mjolnir against the Shield only for the Shield to deflect the mighty blow.

After this, they agree to take Loki in as a team only for Thor to return the Tesseract where it belongs, on the Helicarrier, Fury places Loki into a prison cell which can descend from the atmosphere straight to the ground at a high velocity, as well as placing one final threat. The Avengers talk on Loki only for Thor to state what he knows on Loki, that he leads an army called the Chitauri as well.

The team also speak of the way Loki is planning the war at hand, also leading the fact that he needed iridium to stabilize the Tesseract only for Stark to act like he normally does and pretty much becomes a jerk to everyone aside from placing a tracer connected to JARVIS on one of the SHIELD computers, aside from stating that they need a high energy frame to support the portal that Loki requires to open the portal, which causes Maria to ask why he knows so much...

Maria... you did your homework on Stark, right? It appears that the character is heavily downplayed rather the ones we see in the comics. Though after stating this Stark becomes friends with Banner due to his experience in military science and technology leading towards a cringe-worthy moment from Captain Boy-scout... no seriously can someone please change his bloody outfit?

Stark agrees to help Banner search for the Tesseract in using the sceptre only to notice that the sceptre is both powered by the Cosmic Cube as well as having the same radiation levels of the device; though this leads to a confrontation on Stark and Rogers over the idea of joining the Avengers, leading for Stark that it was due to desperation or possibly something else while Roger’s refuses to believe it.

Though Banner has some good points such as seeing that the Tesseract needed something with enough energy to supply a replacement source and then states that Stark Tower could have that energy due to the arc reactors that support the power, or another question entirely on why is SHIELD so involved with energy to begin with.

Rogers points out dismay at Stark stating on why they didn’t want Stark on the team though Stark proves it by stating they were scared of his intellect. This is why I think Captain America is the weakest Avenger alone, his story isn’t very interesting as it just debunks everything of his own premise, he’s just a man looking for a fight and that’s it, and people wonder why I prefer DC.

Though leaving Bruce and Stark, Rogers does have some thoughts over what Stark says and starts his own investigation in some of SHIELD’s secrets and eventually does come across something of interest which does raises his suspicions, HYDRA weapons from the World War 2 era. Selvig on the other hand has supplied the last of the iridium into a support frame for the Tesseract.

Thor speaks to Coulson about Jane Foster for a brief moment stating that she was safe and away from harm only for Thor to recollect his meaning of war from a young age. Especially stating that Loki has supreme vengeance upon him alone for what Thor has done by removing his Throne away from him.

Loki on the other hand has a visitor in the form of Black Widow whom he continuously threatens by stating that her friends will be dead all to the account of her only when she releases the Monster, though through her confession she does state some feelings for Barton due to a mission gone wrong, but she manages to recover from his threats by revealing that he was going to release the Hulk on the ship.

Though this comes to a problem as Stark finds out the Phase 2 program that Fury was desperately hiding, to use the Tesseract in order to make weapons because of Thor in case they go rogue causes a huge argument between Thor, Black Widow, Banner, Fury, Stark and Rogers leading them to distrust each other as Thor calls them petty.

And to be entirely honest, it was Fury’s fault for doing so as it was his original plan on using the Tesseract which resulted in bringing Loki to Earth as well as his army, remember what I stated about SHIELD being incompetent... at least you don’t see Star Labs or A.R.G.U.S doing something this stupid.

Meanwhile in an argument between Captain America and Iron Man which leads them to suggest who would win in a fight. Barton on the other hand manages to assemble a team of corrupted agents that Loki used to attack the Helicarrier head on to retrieve the sceptre in order to awaken the portal to release the Chitauri only to shoot and explosive arrow that destroys one of the Helicarriers propellers.

This leads over to Banner stating that he attempted to commit suicide in return of living like a monster only for the Hulk to retaliate, he also states that it’s Fury who put everyone at risk for bringing him on board, this causes them to know the location of the Tesseract just in time for the explosion to hit them at full force, leading Fury to give orders to Stark and Rogers to repair the engine while Coulson to get to the armoury, Banner on the other hand is trapped with Romanoff and has no other choice but to unleash the beast.

Rogers and Stark manage to fix the engine due to broken debris whist preventing an invasion of the brainwashed henchmen from Loki, Black Widow on the other hand has some issues when Hulk starts chasing her leading him to fight Thor when he forces him away into the aircraft section, the henchmen invade the command centre leading Maria and Fury to stop them from killing the others only for Barton to shoot a virus headed arrow into the control panel disrupting one of the engines.

Maria orders a soldier to distract the Hulk via aircraft to stop him from shredding the Helicarrier apart, which he does get distracted leading him to attack the pilot leading the plane to explode causing him to fall to the earth; Iron Man manages to fix the engine on the other hand keeping the Helicarrier up in the air, leading Widow to find Barton only to knock him out of his brainwashed mind.

Thor attempts to stop Loki from escaping only to get trapped in the cage leading for Coulson to confront the god of Mischief with a gun they made from the Destroyer (Thor). Coulson gets fatally stabbed by Loki leading for Thor to get sent straight to the Earth leading for Loki to gloat about his deeds leading for Coulson to shoot him through the wall via the Destroyer’s gun.

Thor manages to break out in time leading him some temporary misuse of the Mjolnir, Loki eventually escapes but to Coulson’s death shocking the group, including Rogers and Stark. Later that day, Fury states that he found several cards that related to Captain America that belonged to Coulson which he throws at him, leading me to believe that he is blaming them.

Fury... you are aware that all this is entirely your fault, if you didn’t mess around with the Tesseract to begin with, none of this would have eventually happened, I know I’m being a bit overboard on this but you have to agree in some points that Fury in the MCU movies is portrayed somewhat over confident towards their goals but somehow manipulates others into to stating that it’s their fault for losing.

Fury states the truth that they were planning on making weapons with the Tesseract and then states that the Avengers Initiate based on a group of remarkable people on stating that they can do something more to help them with their lives... such as a being of Nordic mythology, a man whose only skill is in archery, a man who would easily drop dead from exposure to radiation, a man with severe memory problems in resulting in flashbacks, a guy with a hole in his chest which could kill him due to metallic poisoning as well as heart problems (trust me I’ve been there) and a Russian assassin... so much of a team of remarkable people there Fury.

He also performs the dead person card which is too much for Stark to handle and plainly leaves for a moment of himself... all I have to say to you, Whedon, is screw you for writing a meaningful character from the comics and turning him into an utter moron as well as a disrespectful immature child who only wants things done for his own personal need. This is why I hate the MCU... Christ, Amanda Waller in Suicide Squad was a better leader than Nick Fury in this.

Banner wakes up in a broken warehouse as well to a cameo of a celebrity who is no longer with us (Harry Dean Stanton you are missed) Henry states that he saw pretty much everything that Banner once was and states that he needs serious help. At the Helicarrier, Barton comes round from his injury and remembers who he was and apologizes to Natasha for what has happened.

Rogers and Stark have a brief moment alone and states a few good words on Phil only for Stark to literally go into a meltdown on how they are going to take down Loki which results in him remembering that he wants to hit the Avengers hard by taking down the Stark Tower as he stated to gain an audience. Where we see Selvig set up the Tesseract in the support and waiting for Loki’s permission to start.

The Avengers prepare themselves for one final fight as Thor regains his power, Stark repairing his Iron Man suit and Captain America going to a LGBT Parade; sorry I mean getting on a Quinjet and taking it to New York. Fury manages to track were they are heading and forces Maria to obtain the communications to collect backup.

Iron Man arrives first and after attempting to destroy the wormhole machine itself, he realises that he must face Loki alone, which he does so whilst preparing to obtain a newer updated Iron Man suit, this is where it loses me for a bit, Stark debunks that Loki has pissed the Avengers off only for him to reply with that’s the plan... What the Hell... so his plan was to fight a group of people who can easily over power and beat him.... what is Loki’s Motivation again? Something to do with conquering earth in return for the Tesseract...

Stark manages to threaten him that they will easily defeat him only for Loki to state that will not happen... Loki... you are as threatening as a villain as Scarecrow from Batman Begins... maybe cool and threatening once but easily overused and easily beaten...

Loki throws Stark through a window leading for Stark to activate the new suit in mid air whilst shooting Loki in retaliation for Phil, just in time for the Chitauri Army to arrive to destroy New York City... I have to admit one thing... it’s actually surprisingly amazing as well as the CGI meets Practical effects... kudos...

Thor fights against Loki for a bit leading for the others to arrive bar Banner leading to a fight between the 5 against an entire army... Loki manages to evade Thor by jumping on the Chitauri craft leading for the Avengers to separate ways to defend others as Black Widow and Hawkeye to defend a bunch of civilians and Captain America to defend the police, while Iron Man and Thor to clear the skies.

However seeing that they are overmatched, Banner arrives to assist by transforming in to the Hulk once again, which I have to admit, is a pretty amazing scene as well and a highlight from the movie in point of view especially punching on the Chitauri, killing it in the process, leading the camera to cycle around the heroes.

The team go separate ways to stop the war from spreading leading for Fury to engage a conversation with Council once again, leading for them to state that they need to launch a nuclear strike on the city to prevent the war from spreading across the country, this is also due to the national guard arriving to help defeat the aliens. Though Fury has doubts about this and cancels the communication about them.

So some reason Black Widow manages to get her way to the Tesseract only for Selvig (now out of his mind control) to reveal a weakness, Loki’s sceptre which will disrupt the wormhole destroying the invasion; The Council have managed to override Fury’s command and sends a plane to nuke New York City, Fury warns Stark about the missile which Stark attempts to trace down with the remaining battery power he has left.

Black Widow manages to obtain the Sceptre and prepares to close the portal only to stop when Stark tells them that a nuclear missile is inbound, leading Stark to grab the missile and force it through the portal in order to stop the invasion. He does so, stopping all power to his suit sending his body into a freefall while destroying the Chitauri mothership leading for Romanoff to close the portal fortunately saving Stark from being trapped.

Though this is a problem when Stark is still in freefall only to be saved by the Hulk leading the Avengers to attempt the bring Stark round from his death-like encounter, which again is saved by the Hulk as he screams which somehow brings him back to life; which brings them to the realization that Loki is still on the loose.

Loki is quickly captured and taken under custody of SHIELD who give him and the Tesseract over to Thor to return to Asgard in safety and preparation for future invasions, Fury on the other hand is in a conference call with the Council whom states that if they place a call like that then the Avengers would be at war with the council, hell even Maria Hill brings it up leading Fury to state that they will be needed when a situation will be at hand.

During the credits, Stark is changing Stark Tower to the Avengers Tower following some blueprints that he’s created, and through the mid credits, the Other speaks with his leader, the one they gave the sceptre to Loki is revealed that it is indeed Thanos.

 And that was Avengers Assemble, I have to admit one thing, it has major flaws in some areas, such as Loki’s change of motivation, Fury’s need for his own authorisation, his ideas towards making weapons on someone who didn’t expose them as threats, and another thing is the costumes towards one character in particular.

I’ll go over the good points to start with, the music alone is a plus for the feature especially done by Alan Silvestri who also worked on the Back to the Future series, or in particular Forrest Gump, the theme actually works in some scenes, especially the fighting scenes.

The acting from the main Avenger characters is incredible especially when it comes to symbolising each character from Captain America’s war fetish to Iron Man’s ego, the acting is quite spot on, though some of the characters didn’t get enough screen time possibly due to neglect from the script or mainly screen time on said characters.

Let’s look at Maria Hill for example; she needs to be explored more than just an agent as she was more closer to the characters rather than Fury was, she was more of an open character who dealt with things in a more manual position than Fury did, especially when it came to one event entirely that Fury wasn’t in... Civil War, I’ll get to that another time. Another character was Selvig as he didn’t get enough time to explain his change of career or his interest in physics.

Now for the bad side of the film, the motivation of 2 characters in particular really pissed me off with the film entirely, Loki who changed from messenger to godlike figure then back to messenger, this is a Nordic god for crying out loud and yet they down play him as just a beat up boss from a video game. It seemed like there was something different changed for the character from the first movie, such how was he meant for the power without the staff or everything that Thanos gave him.

Nick Fury’s turn now and I apologize for disliking what I stated in the review but the truth is still there, as he was supposed to bring them up to speed and introduce them to each other yet in this , he’s turned into the second antagonist villain like material only to change to a protagonist during the third act.

They should have had someone better to write the characters rather than a person who only created franchise about a teenager who sleeps with demons and vampires. The writing of the character needs to be changed PRONTO as he was more ambitious as well as profound towards a child like manner.

The costume design now which I hate to say it is really close breaking some barriers, mainly towards Captain America as I thought it was more of a satire but after watching the film kinda forced the upper hand to make some crude comments on the decision but if you look at the outfit and judge it from a Superhero movie entirely then you would see the same thing that I saw. Why modify it into a slick outfit that not even Elton John would wear, the outfit was both humorous to watch as well as ridiculous to gander at.

And that was the Avengers Assemble, unfortunately I rushed myself in the last review I made on this but it was achieved with a good rating due to how close the movie was to the comics, but after re-watching and re-reading my previous review, I was wrong on how strange it moved itself away from the atonement of the comics.

The comedic tone of the film heaves it down a bit though for a family feature it was supposed to be light hearted yet it was dark in some scenes; the writing was badly done and needs to be developed further as well as the introduction to the other characters including SHIELD agents that were featured in this film.

Hell Suicide Squad was a better team based movie than this, and that is saying something...

Unfortunately Joss, you have failed greatly to achieve Marvel’s dream of an ideology towards superheroes and how to make a movie based on superheroes; Which means that this movie is on the Shitlist for poor character development on the main villain, side character, poor costume design and story towards main villain.

I hope you guys enjoy the review and yes this is my official review for Christmas of 2017, join me next year as I dive into a review on a game that has been around since the early 1990s. I hope you guys have a lovely Christmas and if I don’t speak to you till then, I’ll see you next year...

Yours Truly,

Amateur Fan 2.27

[viswas]

Shattered Illusion

Dear Aunt,

You were born in Gangapur, Bihar, the fifth child in a schedule caste family. You had three elder brothers and an elder sister. Your don't recall your father, he died of tuberculosis shortly after you were born. Your mother was the sole breadwinner, earning daily wages through labor in construction sites. Your brothers squandered their lives and times smoking marijuana and playing cards. Your sister was married off at a barely legal age.

In a place where getting children to go to school was an ordeal, you were the first person in a long time to clear secondary and high school examinations. I have heard mom tell stories of you studying under the street light, just like Ambedkar. You got admitted into a science college and completed your B.Sc Physics. You then found a job at the motor company in Samastipur and became one of the first literate wage earners in our village.

When you had some work experience in the motor company, you felt the need to study further. So you applied and got admitted to an M.Sc Nuclear Physics program in Calcutta, West Bengal. I vaguely recall our family's excitement when we had come to see you off at the Samastipur station. You were the first person from the village who was going to do a master's degree. You were going to be alone by yourself in a different state, hundreds of kilometers away from us. I didn't realize then what a momentous yet scary occasion it was for our family. I recall mom asking me to study and become like you.

One of my fondest memories from childhood is at the Samastipur railway station. While we waited for the train to Calcutta to arrive, you would play Snake and Ladders and Ludo with me. I was so happy once when the train was 12 hours late. You asked me to study English well, you said it was important. You bought me English comic books from the bookstore in the Samastipur station. I was hooked. There was nothing I looked forward to more than being at the railway station, first to receive you and then to send you off just so I could read English comics and play games with you.

I recall the orange pen-pencil with the metal clip that you gifted me when you visited us one vacation. I was in the fourth standard then. All I wanted to do was write until the lead was exhausted. And so I came back from school and started writing, though I don't think I learned anything from the process. I finished half the pencil leads you had given in two days. When the pen-pencil was stolen the next day, I was shattered. Not for the beating that mom would give, but because I loved the pen-pencil, especially because it came from you.

After your post-graduation, you went on to do your Ph.D. By then you had become a legend in our village. Later, you found a job with the department of atomic energy in the role of a junior scientist. That was the first time I heard the word 'scientist'. Science became my favorite subject and I started paying more attention to it in school. I remember you talk to me about rockets and satellites launched by India. I was blown away by the idea of going to the moon and distant stars. Any time after that, whenever I was asked what I wanted to become in life, there was only once answer. For the first time, I became consciously aware of the importance of studying. I wanted to study well and grow up to be like you, a scientist.

When they diagnosed the defective valve in your heart, I was shattered along with the rest of our family. I recall borrowing a biology book from my senior and reading about the anatomy of the heart. I didn't understand much. The doctors were going to perform a surgery to save you. The whole family left for Calcutta together for the first time for your surgery. I was excited and sad at the same time. Sad because I was afraid you might die on the operating table. Excited because I was going to a city I had always heard about but never visited. It was my first time traveling beyond Samastipur. Thankfully, the surgery went well. You came out healthy. You went back to work, became a scientist and then a senior scientist. You were a tour de force.

Then you got married. Your husband was a scientist too. You were my favorite couple. I wanted to live with you. You told me to study well and you promised to take me to Calcutta if I did well in my secondary school exams. So I studied hard and tried to follow in your footsteps. I topped my class in every exam. Mom was proud of me. You said you were too.

You then visited us on a long break. You had a baby boy, my first brother. He was so adorable. I took care of him like he was my own child. I looked forward to waking up in the morning just to cuddle with him while he was sleeping. I looked forward to playing with him when I got back from school. He was going to be my best friend. Then one day, you both were back in Calcutta and life became less than ordinary.

Eventually, all my uncles got married, and they all had their sons. But your son held a special place for me. Years flew past quickly. I never came to Calcutta for an education. Instead, I ended up in Jamshedpur for my high school. I stayed in the school hostel. I still wanted to become a scientist.

And then I heard you were a mother again. This time you had a daughter. I came to visit you during my vacation. Your daughter was the most beautiful thing I had ever laid my eyes on. One day, I hoped I would also have a daughter like yours. She was so cute, I wanted to steal her for myself and take her back to Jamshedpur. Silly me. I was very happy. She was my first sister, the first daughter of the generation in our family. She was going to be like her mother and make us all proud. I couldn't wait to see what life had in store for her. I didn't want to go back to Jamshedpur at the end of the vacation.

Life went by quickly. I completed my high school and went on to do my engineering, again in Jamshedpur. Another vacation I visited you in Calcutta, you had arranged an internship for me in your office. You were writing C++ code that operated medical imaging instruments. I finally got to see you at your best. I had so much to learn from you. Meanwhile, at home, your daughter and I were forming a special bond. She doted on me. She was young and she was already wise beyond her years. I saw you in her. When the internship ended, once again, I didn't want to go back to Jamshedpur.

Unlike you, my achievements were nothing to write home about. I had much more to do. After graduation, I got a job in IT in Bangalore, Karnataka. I couldn't become a scientist. But I loved computers, so no regret there. Mom wasn't too happy about me going that far and working. It was hard for me to convince her but I did. She couldn't believe the salary I was being offered. As long as I wrote to her often and visited her every six months, she was happy.

You continued to scale greater heights. You went on to become a chief scientist, divisional manager and finally the managing director. You reached the pinnacle of your career. I would talk proudly to my friends and colleagues about my scientist aunt. They too were impressed with your story. No one I knew had met a scientist in real life.

Years went by and I got busy at work. I enjoyed every moment of it. I loved solving problems using computers. I was being paid well. I got to travel a lot as a part of my job, so I went to the US, Europe, and Japan. Here I met different kinds of people and got exposure to different cultures. I fell in love with travel. I made it a point to travel every year for at least a month. My manager was a very agreeable person. So long as I met my deliverables, he was happy to let me take a month off every year. One time, I spent an entire month backpacking Rajasthan, Punjab, and Kashmir. Another month I split between Ladakh and Andaman. Another year, I took an unpaid vacation with paid leaves altogether for three months and backpacked seven countries in South East Asia. I was now experiencing a life more than ordinary, one conceived improbable for someone from Gangapur.

Meanwhile, I had graduated from comic books to fiction and non-fiction. I read biographies of historical figures, scientists, musicians and social activists. I read about social issues and dystopian societies. I read philosophy and religion. I read world history and Indian history. I even got back into comic books. They call it graphic novels these days. When I wasn't traveling the world, I was living vicariously through books. I read for that exhilarating feeling of magically being transported to another place and time, into the shoes of someone I would never be, to earn an experience I could never feel otherwise. Reading exposed me to the realities of the world we live in. I traveled the world through books. It was a replacement for real experiences, yet it drove me to travel more and seek new adventures. I was quenching my thirst for knowledge.

Through travel and books, I became more aware. I learned about women's rights and LGBT rights. I thought we were poor, then I got to know about Sudan. I learned about environmental exploitation and destruction, yet I found beauty in this world. I learned of oligarchies, dictatorships, and failed political constructs, but I also learned about panchayats and grass root development. I joined anti-corruption and cleanliness campaigns wherever I could. I wanted to deeply connect with this world. I wanted to make a difference.

From you, I learned the importance of education. From education, I learned about protecting humanity and the world we live in. I managed to gather moss from the stone that you had set rolling.

Then you changed.

When you shifted your daughter to a convent, you told me it was because you wanted her to have a better education. She said she hated the idea of losing all her friends from school.

A few years later, when she created a second Facebook account and sent me a friend request, I asked her why. She said she wanted a platform where she could express herself freely and wouldn't be judged by you. She said you were going through her Facebook Friends List and asking about every boy in it.

Once when she visited me on a vacation, I took her out shopping. She only bought slightly less than knee-length skirts and shorts. She said you would never buy such clothes for her, nor permit her to wear them. She asked me not to tell you. She would stock them at her friend's house so she could wear them when going out, without your oversight.

Meanwhile, your son completed his high school and wanted to do automobile engineering. He relocated to Delhi for this. You bought him a bike and supported his stay in a rented house with his classmates. You asked him to prepare for his GRE so he could do his masters in the US.

By now you had become the go-to person for advice for everyone in the village. When one of my distant cousins was about to complete her engineering with top honors, you advised her mother to get her married. You even selected a Bihari boy from the same caste for her to be married to. While she was waiting for her final results, she was fighting with her parents to be left alone so she could make a career. She hated you for it.

Two years later, when you daughter completed her high school, she wanted to study fashion design in Bombay. You were dead set against it. You didn't permit her to leave Calcutta. Your reason was the increasing prevalence of rape in society.

She called me yesterday. She cried to me about her fate.

Once a symbol of woman's emancipation, you are now the symbol of your daughter's oppression. I feel like I don't know you anymore. What have you become, a metaphor for the difference between literacy and education?

Sincerely,

your once loving nephew