The Avengers is a team of superheroes, appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team made its debut in The Avengers #1 (Sept. 1963), created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby, following the trend of super-hero teams after the success of DC Comics' Justice League of America.
Labeled Earth's Mightiest Heroes, the Avengers originally consisted of Iron Man, Ant-Man, the Wasp, Thor, and the Hulk. The original Captain America was discovered, trapped in ice (issue #4), and joined the group after they revived him. A rotating roster became a hallmark, although one theme remained consistent: the Avengers fight "the foes no single superhero can withstand." The team, famous for its battle cry of "Avengers Assemble!", has featured humans, mutants, robots, aliens, supernatural beings, and even former villains.
Some of the media based off the team include an animated television series titled The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes, which ran for two seasons and received positive acclaim from fans. The 2012 live-action feature film The Avengers, directed by Joss Whedon, set numerous records during its box office run, including the biggest opening debut in North America, with a weekend gross of $207.4 million. A second Avengers film titled Avengers: Age of Ultron is set for release on May 1, 2015.
Labeled Earth's Mightiest Heroes, the Avengers originally consisted of Iron Man, Ant-Man, the Wasp, Thor, and the Hulk. The original Captain America was discovered, trapped in ice (issue #4), and joined the group after they revived him. A rotating roster became a hallmark, although one theme remained consistent: the Avengers fight "the foes no single superhero can withstand." The team, famous for its battle cry of "Avengers Assemble!", has featured humans, mutants, robots, aliens, supernatural beings, and even former villains.
Some of the media based off the team include an animated television series titled The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes, which ran for two seasons and received positive acclaim from fans. The 2012 live-action feature film The Avengers, directed by Joss Whedon, set numerous records during its box office run, including the biggest opening debut in North America, with a weekend gross of $207.4 million. A second Avengers film titled Avengers: Age of Ultron is set for release on May 1, 2015.
The Avengers are Earth's foremost major organization of costumed superhuman crimefighters, adventurers and heroes dedicated to safeguarding the world from any threat beyond the power of conventional peacekeeping forces or any which any of them can't handle alone. Founded several months after the incorporation of the hero team Fantastic Four, the Avengers became the first superhuman team to be granted full official government sanctions by the National Security Council of the United States, the General Assembly of the United Nations, and later by the international intelligence/law enforcement agency S.H.I.E.L.D.. Their success has resulted in various splinter-teams and spin-off teams, both nationwide and worldwide, and with different members.
by The Centurion October 17, 2014
Get the Avengers mug.Loki is a fictional character, a supervillain and sometime anti-hero that appears in comic books by Marvel Comics. He is the adoptive brother and archenemy of Thor. He is based on the being of the same name from Norse mythology. The character first appeared historically in Venus No. 6 (August 1949) and in modern day in Journey into Mystery No. 85 (October 1962). The character was created by writer Stan Lee, scripter Larry Lieber, and penciller Jack Kirby.
Loki has appeared in several ongoing series, limited series and alternate reality series, including his own 4-issue series Loki (2004). He appeared in the new issues of Young Avengers in 2013. He will appear in his solo series Loki: Agent of Asgard in 2014. The character has also appeared in associated Marvel merchandise including animated television series, clothing, toys, video games, and movies.
In 2009, Loki was ranked as IGN's 8th Greatest Comic Book Villain of All Time.
Tom Hiddleston first portrayed Loki in the 2011 live action film Thor then again in The Avengers (2012), Thor: The Dark World (2013), Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) and Thor: Ragnarok (2017).
Loki has appeared in several ongoing series, limited series and alternate reality series, including his own 4-issue series Loki (2004). He appeared in the new issues of Young Avengers in 2013. He will appear in his solo series Loki: Agent of Asgard in 2014. The character has also appeared in associated Marvel merchandise including animated television series, clothing, toys, video games, and movies.
In 2009, Loki was ranked as IGN's 8th Greatest Comic Book Villain of All Time.
Tom Hiddleston first portrayed Loki in the 2011 live action film Thor then again in The Avengers (2012), Thor: The Dark World (2013), Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) and Thor: Ragnarok (2017).
Many years ago, when Bor, ruler of Asgard, was battling frost giants, he followed a wounded giant to a powerful sorcerer that was waiting for him. The sorcerer caught him unaware, turning Bor into snow. Bor's son, Odin, found his father as he was blowing away; Bor begged Odin to find a sorcerer to free him, but Odin made no attempt to save his father. Bor cursed Odin saying that he would take in the son of a fallen king and raise it as his own. Not a week later, Odin himself led the Asgardians into battle against the Frost Giants and killed Laufey, who was the King, in personal combat. After slaying Laufey, Odin found a small Asgardian-sized child hidden within the primary stronghold of the Frost Giants. The child was Loki and Laufey had kept him hidden from his people due to his shame over his son's small size. Odin took the boy, out of a combination of pity, to appease his father, and because he was the son of a worthy adversary slain in honorable combat, and raised him as his son alongside his biological son Thor.
by The Centurion December 26, 2014
Get the Loki mug.The Justice League, formerly also called the Justice League of America or JLA, is a fictional superhero team that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. First appearing in The Brave and the Bold #28 (February/March 1960), the Justice League originally featured Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Green Lantern, Aquaman, and the Martian Manhunter. The team roster has been rotated throughout the years with characters such as Green Arrow, Captain Atom, Captain Marvel, Black Canary, the Atom, Hawkman, Elongated Man, Red Tornado, Firestorm, Zatanna, Hawkgirl, Cyborg, Vixen, and dozens of others. Sidekicks like Supergirl, Robin, Aquagirl, and Speedy tend to support the main hero or heroine.
The team received its own comic book title in October 1960, when the first issue was published. It would continue to #261 in April 1987, which was the final issue. Throughout the years, various incarnations or subsections of the team have operated as Justice League America, Justice League Dark, Justice League Europe, Justice League International, Justice League Task Force, Justice League Elite, and Extreme Justice.
The team received its own comic book title in October 1960, when the first issue was published. It would continue to #261 in April 1987, which was the final issue. Throughout the years, various incarnations or subsections of the team have operated as Justice League America, Justice League Dark, Justice League Europe, Justice League International, Justice League Task Force, Justice League Elite, and Extreme Justice.
The Justice League of America is the DC Universe's most powerful and premier superhero team, a strike force comprised of the world's mightiest heroes. They act as stalwart protectors of sentient life; Earth's first line of defense against terrestrial, extra-terrestrial, inter-dimensional and supernatural threats. There have been many members over the years and several incarnations of the team, but the original group was founded by Aquaman, Batman, The Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter, Superman and Wonder Woman. The Justice League of America was created by Gardner Fox during the Silver Age as a spiritual successor to the Golden Age's Justice Society of America, first appearing in Brave and the Bold #28. (1960)
by The Centurion October 18, 2014
Get the Justice League mug.Captain America: The First Avenger is a 2011 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character Captain America. It is the fifth installment of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The film was directed by Joe Johnston, written by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, and stars Chris Evans, Tommy Lee Jones, Hugo Weaving, Hayley Atwell, Sebastian Stan, Dominic Cooper, Neal McDonough, Derek Luke, and Stanley Tucci. It was distributed by Paramount Pictures. Predominantly set during World War II, the film tells the story of Steve Rogers, a sickly man from Brooklyn who is transformed into super-soldier Captain America to aid in the war effort. Rogers must stop the Red Skull – Adolf Hitler's ruthless head of weaponry, and the leader of an organization that intends to use a device called a "Tesseract" as an energy-source for world domination.
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
(a body is discovered in the Arctic)
Search Team Leader: Get me the Colonel! I don't care what time it is! This one's waited long enough...
(Schmidt admires a wooden Norse carving)
Johann Schmidt: Yggdrasil. Tree of the world. Guardian of wisdom. And fate, also.
(discovers a wooden drawer, uncovers the Tesseract)
Johann Schmidt: And the Führer digs for trinkets in the desert.
Gabe Jones: Who are you supposed to be?
Steve Rogers: I'm... Captain America.
(Steve walks off to free the soldiers trapped below)
James Montgomery Falsworth: I beg your pardon?
Timothy 'Dum Dum' Dugan: Are you sure you know what you're doing?
Steve Rogers: Yeah. I punched out Adolf Hitler 200 times.
(last lines)
(Steve Rogers finds himself in New York)
Nick Fury: At ease, soldier! Look, I'm sorry about that little show back there, but we thought it best to break it to you slowly.
Steve Rogers: Break what?
Nick Fury: You've been asleep, Cap. For almost 70 years.
(Steve is silent with shock)
Nick Fury: Are you going to be okay?
Steve Rogers: Yeah. Yeah, I just... I had a date.
(After end credits)
Nick Fury: (finding Steve in a gym) Trouble sleeping?
Steve Rogers: You're here with the mission, sir?
Nick Fury: I am.
Steve Rogers: Trying to get me back in the world?
Nick Fury: Trying to save it.
(a body is discovered in the Arctic)
Search Team Leader: Get me the Colonel! I don't care what time it is! This one's waited long enough...
(Schmidt admires a wooden Norse carving)
Johann Schmidt: Yggdrasil. Tree of the world. Guardian of wisdom. And fate, also.
(discovers a wooden drawer, uncovers the Tesseract)
Johann Schmidt: And the Führer digs for trinkets in the desert.
Gabe Jones: Who are you supposed to be?
Steve Rogers: I'm... Captain America.
(Steve walks off to free the soldiers trapped below)
James Montgomery Falsworth: I beg your pardon?
Timothy 'Dum Dum' Dugan: Are you sure you know what you're doing?
Steve Rogers: Yeah. I punched out Adolf Hitler 200 times.
(last lines)
(Steve Rogers finds himself in New York)
Nick Fury: At ease, soldier! Look, I'm sorry about that little show back there, but we thought it best to break it to you slowly.
Steve Rogers: Break what?
Nick Fury: You've been asleep, Cap. For almost 70 years.
(Steve is silent with shock)
Nick Fury: Are you going to be okay?
Steve Rogers: Yeah. Yeah, I just... I had a date.
(After end credits)
Nick Fury: (finding Steve in a gym) Trouble sleeping?
Steve Rogers: You're here with the mission, sir?
Nick Fury: I am.
Steve Rogers: Trying to get me back in the world?
Nick Fury: Trying to save it.
by The Centurion July 07, 2012
Get the Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) mug.Captain America: The Winter Soldier is a 2014 American superhero film featuring the Marvel Comics character Captain America, produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. It is the sequel to 2011's Captain America: The First Avenger and the ninth installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). The film was directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, with a screenplay by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, who had also worked in The First Avenger. It stars Chris Evans as Captain America, leading an ensemble cast that includes Scarlett Johansson, Sebastian Stan, Anthony Mackie, Cobie Smulders, Frank Grillo, Emily VanCamp, Hayley Atwell, Robert Redford, and Samuel L. Jackson. In Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Captain America, Black Widow, and Falcon join forces to uncover a conspiracy within S.H.I.E.L.D. while facing a mysterious assassin known as the Winter Soldier.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
1. The Winter Soldier (Bucky Barnes) is able to match Captain America (Steve Rogers) move by move, even to the point of catching Rogers' shield. This foreshadows Barnes taking over as Captain America (which happened in the comics).
2. Jasper Sitwell mentions some high-risk targets that HYDRA is keeping tabs on. Among these are Bruce Banner (The Hulk), Dr. Stephen Strange, and "a man in Cairo". The latter is most likely Marc Spector/Moon Knight, an Avengers team member who hasn't made it into the movies yet.
3. UFC Welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre plays a French mercenary in the film. For the filmmakers, landing the popular MMA fighter for the role was a stroke of luck and good timing but is was equally a stroke of luck for Georges St-Pierre who was excited to get his first chance at being in a big action movie.
4. Sebastian Stan is contracted for nine films but according to him, when production for this film began he was not told of anything of which films he will be incorporated. Stan only realized he was playing the title role of Winter Soldier when the title was formally revealed in San Diego Comic Con 2013.
5. Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Elizabeth Olsen appear as Quicksilver and The Scarlet Witch in an extra scene during the end credits, which sets the stage for Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015).
1. The Winter Soldier (Bucky Barnes) is able to match Captain America (Steve Rogers) move by move, even to the point of catching Rogers' shield. This foreshadows Barnes taking over as Captain America (which happened in the comics).
2. Jasper Sitwell mentions some high-risk targets that HYDRA is keeping tabs on. Among these are Bruce Banner (The Hulk), Dr. Stephen Strange, and "a man in Cairo". The latter is most likely Marc Spector/Moon Knight, an Avengers team member who hasn't made it into the movies yet.
3. UFC Welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre plays a French mercenary in the film. For the filmmakers, landing the popular MMA fighter for the role was a stroke of luck and good timing but is was equally a stroke of luck for Georges St-Pierre who was excited to get his first chance at being in a big action movie.
4. Sebastian Stan is contracted for nine films but according to him, when production for this film began he was not told of anything of which films he will be incorporated. Stan only realized he was playing the title role of Winter Soldier when the title was formally revealed in San Diego Comic Con 2013.
5. Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Elizabeth Olsen appear as Quicksilver and The Scarlet Witch in an extra scene during the end credits, which sets the stage for Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015).
by The Centurion December 06, 2014
Get the Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) mug.The Crow is a comic book series created by James O'Barr. The series was originally written by O'Barr as a means of dealing with the death of his girlfriend at the hands of a drunk driver. It was later published by Caliber Comics in 1989, becoming an underground success, and later adapted into a film of the same name in 1994. Three film sequels, a television series and numerous books and comic books have also been subsequently produced.
The Crow has been translated into almost a dozen languages and has sold around 750,000 copies worldwide.
The Crow has been translated into almost a dozen languages and has sold around 750,000 copies worldwide.
The story revolves around an unfortunate young man named Eric. He and his fiancée, Shelly, are assaulted by a gang of street thugs after their car breaks down. Eric is shot in the head and is paralyzed, and can only watch as Shelly is savagely beaten and raped. They are then left for dead on the side of the road.
He is resurrected by a crow and seeks vengeance on the murderers, methodically stalking and killing them. When not on the hunt, Eric stays in the house he shared with Shelly, spending most of his time there lost in memories of her. Her absence is torture for him; he is in emotional pain, even engaging in self-mutilation by cutting himself.
The crow acts as both guide and goad for Eric, giving him information that helps him in his quest but also chastising him for dwelling on Shelly's death, seeing his pining as useless self-indulgence that distracts him from his purpose.
He is resurrected by a crow and seeks vengeance on the murderers, methodically stalking and killing them. When not on the hunt, Eric stays in the house he shared with Shelly, spending most of his time there lost in memories of her. Her absence is torture for him; he is in emotional pain, even engaging in self-mutilation by cutting himself.
The crow acts as both guide and goad for Eric, giving him information that helps him in his quest but also chastising him for dwelling on Shelly's death, seeing his pining as useless self-indulgence that distracts him from his purpose.
by The Centurion November 08, 2014
Get the The Crow mug.The Art of War (Chinese: 孫子兵法; pinyin: Sūnzĭ bīngfǎ) is an ancient Chinese military treatise attributed to Sun Tzu, a high-ranking military general, strategist and tactician. The text is composed of 13 chapters, each of which is devoted to one aspect of warfare. It is commonly known to be the definitive work on military strategy and tactics of its time. It has been the most famous and influential of China's Seven Military Classics, and "for the last two thousand years it remained the most important military treatise in Asia, where even the common people knew it by name." It has had an influence on Eastern and Western military thinking, business tactics, legal strategy and beyond.
The book was first translated into the French language in 1772 by French Jesuit Jean Joseph Marie Amiot and a partial translation into English was attempted by British officer Everard Ferguson Calthrop in 1905. The first annotated English language translation was completed and published by Lionel Giles in 1910. Leaders as diverse as Mao Zedong, General Vo Nguyen Giap, General Douglas MacArthur and leaders of Imperial Japan have drawn inspiration from the work.
The book was first translated into the French language in 1772 by French Jesuit Jean Joseph Marie Amiot and a partial translation into English was attempted by British officer Everard Ferguson Calthrop in 1905. The first annotated English language translation was completed and published by Lionel Giles in 1910. Leaders as diverse as Mao Zedong, General Vo Nguyen Giap, General Douglas MacArthur and leaders of Imperial Japan have drawn inspiration from the work.
The Art of War has been applied to many fields well outside of the military. Much of the text is about how to fight wars without actually having to do battle: it gives tips on how to outsmart one's opponent so that physical battle is not necessary. As such, it has found application as a training guide for many competitive endeavors that do not involve actual combat.
There are business books applying its lessons to office politics and corporate strategy. Many Japanese companies make the book required reading for their key executives. The book is also popular among Western business management, who have turned to it for inspiration and advice on how to succeed in competitive business situations. It has also been applied to the field of education.
The Art of War has been the subject of law books and legal articles on the trial process, including negotiation tactics and trial strategy.
There are business books applying its lessons to office politics and corporate strategy. Many Japanese companies make the book required reading for their key executives. The book is also popular among Western business management, who have turned to it for inspiration and advice on how to succeed in competitive business situations. It has also been applied to the field of education.
The Art of War has been the subject of law books and legal articles on the trial process, including negotiation tactics and trial strategy.
by The Centurion December 29, 2014
Get the The Art of War mug.