The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes - "Winter Soldier" Review

Warning: full episode spoilers follow.

Picking up from the fallout of last week's "Code Red," this week's installment of Earth's Mightiest Heroes continued the focus on Captain America, Winter Soldier, and Red Skull. With the addition of the long-absent Nick Fury into the mix, "Winter Soldier" explored the darker, more espionage-influenced portion of the Marvel Universe. At least until Red Skull's giant super-mech shows up to stomp all over the US Capitol.

The writers offered no further explanation than the previous episode did as far as why Bucky was suddenly able to shake off his decades of brain-washing. Instead, this episode dived right into his current mission, which we eventually learned was trying to dispose of Red Skull's Hydra drones before his fail-safe activated. This was another area where the plot felt a little flimsy. If Red Skull had these gigantic, nearly indestructible drones lying in storage, why did he waste years infiltrating the US government when he could have caused more immediate and significant damage with these?

In any case, the episode delivered some brief but interesting flashbacks to Winter Soldier's early missions. Seeing a younger Fury and his S.H.I.E.L.D. agents in action was a nice bonus. We even learned that Bucky was responsible for Fury losing his eye. It's a shame this material wasn't expanded upon more, particularly with Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine making a silent cameo appearance. Marvel's live-action S.H.I.E.L.D. series can't happen soon enough.

"Winter Soldier" generally handled the title character well. His origin was pretty similar to the one established by Ed Brubaker in the Captain America comics, with the only major difference being that Skull was responsible for his "resurrection" from the beginning rather than stealing the assassin from his Russian handlers. He showed he had the skills to both defeat Fury in open combat and take down Red Skull's giant robot with sheer force of will (again, that fierce willpower should have been reflected more last week). By the end of this episode, Bucky's emotional arc was properly completed and the door was left open for more from the character. The problem there being that the series is ending soon, and it's still not confirmed whether Avengers Assemble will be a reboot or a continuation of Earth's Mightiest Heroes.

The final battle sequence wasn't quite the spectacle it could have been, but at least we got to see Cap and Bucky team up once again to punch Red Skull in the face. It offered a nice counterpoint to the tragic flashback sequence of Bucky's death we've seen multiple times during the course of the show. Unfortunately, Hulk and Yellowjacket were both conspicuous in their absence during the fight. It's been disappointing to see so many weeks pass without a return appearance by Hank Pym. His size-changing abilities might have lent an extra bit of flourish to the battle with Mecha Red Skull. Perhaps "Yellowjacket" was intended to take place after this one chronologically, but then why air it out of order?

On the bright side, at least next week's episode will finally bring Hulk back into the fold. The character was written out of the series just as his stock skyrocketed in the wake of the Avengers movie. Let's hope EMH can still run with that momentum as we inch closer to the big finale.

Jesse is a writer for various IGN channels. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following Jesse on Twitter, or on IGN.

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Peter Cullen Back as Optimus for Transformers 4

Back when Michael Bay was making Transformers 3, he made no secret of the fact that he didn't plan on returning for a fourth installment. But eventually he came around to the idea, and now he's explaining why he changed his mind and will be back for Transformers 4.

New Robots in Transformers 4?

But first! Amid recent rumors that there will be a new array of robots in Transformers 4, Bay was asked whether or not fan favorite Peter Cullen will return as the voice of Optimus Prime. His response: "Of course! Of course." Rest easy, Prime fans, rest easy...

As for why he's coming back to the director's chair -- for what the filmmaker seems confident is one last time -- Bay said the following:

"I thought I was done," he tells The Huffington Post. "Then the ride came out [at Universal Studios Hollywood] and the two-and-a-half-hour lines. And then you're thinking, Oh my God, someone's going to take this over. And you start doing a lot of soul-searching. Like, OK, I'm about to do a little movie, Pain & Gain ... and the studio says they want to restart the franchise. And someone could come in here and screw it up, you know? So I'm thinking that if I do this last one, we set it on a new footing, we change a lot of things -- but we keep the history of the three in place. But we broaden it so it can be set up and be carried on -- it would have a better chance for survival, I guess. You know?"

Bay also points to James Cameron and his Avatar sequels and Peter Jackson and The Hobbit trilogy, saying "When you have a franchise, it's very hard to give it up."

As for whether or not the film will be a reboot, the director says no.

"We're basically taking from the history of where it was -- or where we left it in Chicago [in the last film]," he explains. "And we're going to carry it on from there."

Talk to Movies Editor Scott Collura on Twitter at @ScottIGN, on IGN and on Facebook.

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Resident Evil: Retribution 3D Review

Be advised of some minor SPOILERS ahead. Milla Jovovich’s zombie slayer Alice is back, along with several familiar faces, in Resident Evil: Retribution 3D, the fifth installment in the most successful video game movie franchise ever. This sequel, once again directed by Jovovich’s husband Paul W.S. Anderson, picks up at the end of the previous film, Resident Evil: Afterlife.

Alice is a captive inside a massive, subterranean Umbrella Corporation compound. Umbrella mind-controls Alice’s friend Jill Valentine (Sienna Guillory), turning this former ally into her archenemy here. Umbrella itself is now fully controlled by the Red Queen program, which is determined to bring Alice back into the fold and destroy what’s left of humanity. The story follows Alice’s attempt to escape from the Umbrella compound with assistance from fresh faces Ada Wong (Li Bingbing), Leon S. Kennedy (Johann Urb), and Barry Burton (a cigar-chomping, underutilized Kevin Durand), who are also joined by Afterlife’s Luther West (Boris Kodjoe).

Their escape from sees the team move through different levels used for training purposes that recreate New York, Tokyo and Moscow. Along the way, Alice encounters a deaf orphan named Becky (Aryana Engineer), and also learns more about her own past before the T-virus outbreak. She also sees the return of colleagues she’d thought long dead -- Rain Ocampo (Michelle Rodriguez), Carlos Olivera (Oded Fehr), and James “One” Shade (Colin Salmon) – all of whom are sent after her by Umbrella.

While it’s pretty much business as usual in this latest Resident Evil film, Retribution at least feels more like a video game than the last few sequels have. There are different levels the characters have to fight their way through, with different boss battles along the way. Fans who have long wanted to see characters such as Ada Wong or Leon S. Kennedy finally appear in the film series will be momentarily happy to see them; momentarily, because Barry and Leon don’t have much to do except shoot at things. Even Ada is a cipher, but haven’t we come to expect thin characterizations from this franchise by now?

Alice is the only character given anything close to resembling an emotional journey. Jovovich plays the character far more human and vulnerable than we’re used to seeing; being stripped of her powers and meeting a young girl awakens not only Alice’s emotional side, but her maternal one as well. Alice’s “origin” allows Jovovich to play a version of Alice who is ordinary, fearful and unaccustomed to violence. Everyone else is just along for the ride, although the Red Queen makes for a much better baddie this time than Wesker (whose agenda here contradicts much of what he did in the past).

Of the resurrected characters, only Rain really has much to do (Carlos’ best stuff is as Alice’s husband in the “origin” sequence, while One just glares and shoots). Rodriguez seems to be having fun playing against type as one version of Rain who hates guns, drives a hybrid and is a girly girl in high heels. Newcomer Aryana Engineer (who, like her character, is partially deaf) acquits herself fine in a small, but important role as the orphan Alice looks after, but, alas, they’re no Ripley and Newt.

You don’t actually need to see the first four films in order to watch and understand Resident Evil: Retribution. There’s a lengthy recap of the events of the past films in the prologue that allows newbies to just dive in. The opening is a bit tiresome in its replay of the ending of the previous film, but all you really need to know to follow this story is summed up in the prologue.

Resident Evil: Retribution, of course, has its fair share of action, from some rather pedestrian shootouts to some brutal hand-to-hand combat between Alice and Jill Valentine (including some blows that really should have left one of them crippled, or at the very least with broken bones). The highlight set-piece is a car chase in Moscow’s Red Square (Russian military zombies look pretty cool on motorcycles and tanks). While there are still some silly “crap coming at you” shots, overall the 3D in this film is used more for environmental effect than it was in Afterlife.

Even with all of its dopey dialogue, wooden characters and “been there, done that” elements, Resident Evil: Retribution is pretty decent as far as entries in this series go. It’s certainly feels more like a video game and has a bit more emotion to it than some of the past Resident Evil sequels, but if you don’t like this series then there’s not much here to make you suddenly warm up to it. And if you do like the Resident Evil films, then you’ll likely leave the cinema content with how you’ve spent your time.

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Journey Into Mystery #643 Review

It's a good thing Everything Burns is shipping at such a rapid pace. Last week's installment revealed that Loki's former partner and BFF Leah was plotting his demise. I would hate to be kept waiting any longer than necessary for an explanation.

Luckily, Matt Fraction and Kieron Gillen waste no time in getting to the heart of the matter. The explanation for Leah's sudden turn toward villainy is not only surprisingly satisfying, it pays off on material Gillen set up in the first arc of Journey Into Mystery. As I mentioned last week, this crossover is far more of a payoff to Gillen's series than it is Fraction's. Not only is it building on the framework Gillen set up, this issue hinges the conflict on Loki's shoulders more squarely than before. And as ever, Loki is more than up to the task of carrying the story. Gillen tackles him from a significantly different angle for most of this chapter. It seems almost certain that the newest revelation is merely a red herring, but it should be a fun ride while this story beat plays out.

The writers offer up some entertaining material involving the other Asgardians as well. Most notably, Volstagg settles uncomfortably into his new role as Asgard's steward. While there's a bit of comedy to this subplot, there's also a genuine sense of despair at the dark days facing his kingdom. The character has and continues to fare well in this book. The battle scenes across the Nine Realms are also enjoyable, though once again annoying brief and limited in scope.

The biggest problem with Carmine Di Giandomenico's artwork is simply that he isn't Alan Davis. The two styles really clash in the transition from series to series. It's a shame Doug Braithwaite couldn't have returned to deliver the same epic fantasy style he delivered during Fear Itself, as his style would have been a much stronger match for Davis'. Di Giandomenico's pages work well enough, they're just a bit cluttered at times. His Loki also has a tendency to shift dramatically in age from panel to panel. This may actually be an intentional effect, but if so, it doesn't work as well as it should.

Now that fans needn't worry about the Loki/Leah relationship being trampled, they can resume enjoying what is a very dramatic and worthy finish to Gillen's run.

Jesse is a writer for IGN Comics and IGN Movies. He can't wait until he's old enough to feel ways about stuff. Follow Jesse on Twitter, or find him on IGN.

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