While Avengers: Age of Ultron may have been a tad bit overstuffed, the addition of the Maximoff twins, especially Scarlet Witch, was a positive one, giving the well-worn group a shot in the arm. Additionally, James Spader’s performance as Ultron places him easily among the best Marvel villains so far.
With the upcoming Blu-Ray/DVD release of Avengers: Age of Ultron on October 2, keep your eyes peeled for the new promotional onslaught. First up is a new behind-the-scenes clip about Spader’s performance and the inclusion of the twins. In the clip, Kevin Feige claims that they “also wanted to have another powerful female character,” hence the integral role of Scarlet Witch. While it is great that this is acknowledged, the erasure of Black Widow from most Avengers merchandise and delaying the Captain Marvel film to make room for yet another Spider-Man seems to give a much louder message.
Anyway, let’s focus on the good. James Spader gave one hell of a performance as Ultron, and it is always amazing to see actors try to be serious in motion capture suits. You can strut around pontificating about absolute power all you want, but you’re still wearing a polka dotted leotard.
