I know I was upset before, but they took one of my favorite actors (Ed Norton) out of what could be the most legendary movie OF ALL TIME.  I had a right to be angry. Am I exaggerating? Eh, maybe, but The Avengers is shaping up to be either the biggest movie of the decade or the biggest letdown, let me say it again, OF ALL TIME.   But seeing this picture from Comic Con just makes me downright happy.

Let’s think about this. Iron Man redefined what a super hero movie could be, and that was just two years ago. Smart and sarcastic, Robert Downey Jr. should make you hate him but instead it’s easy to fall in love.

Really though, I guess that is what my expectations are based on. Mark Ruffalo took over for Edward Norton, which still stings a little bit. I do love Ruffalo, though, so the sour taste is at least not being cleansed with Joaquin Phoenix. But still, I don’t know what he’s going to be like in an action movie, let alone as the Hulk. But okay, I’m interested.

Chris Evans and Chris Hemsworth (Star Trek) are both probably fine, right? Evans has done superhero before in Fantastic Four so I believe he can work well with an ensemble. I don’t know all that much about Hemsworth, but from the pictures I’ve seen he resembles Thor pretty well. Either way I don’t think that these two need to be great in order for the movie to be.    Here’s why:

- Downey Jr. can carry a cast of thousands; he is an easily bankable star and one that can carry a picture.
- Scarlett Johansson and Samuel L. Jackson have performed already and, even though it was in the Iron Man films, can easily bring together a cast. That’s the whole idea here right?
- Director Joss Whedon has a pretty good grasp on the sci fi with his work on Buffy, Angel, and Firefly. The guy’s even done some work on Glee for good measure.
- I love Clark Gregg. His role will most likely be pretty small, all things considered, but he’s great.
- Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye.
- It’s The Avengers. Who is not excited to see it?

There are a lot of stories and characters that have to be woven together in order to make this work, creating a GINORMOUS task for Whedon. However, it can be done with the right touch. It wont be easy but, man, I wish it were 2012, especially after a dismal 2010 summer.