What's Up in the Marvel Universe

There's a lot going on in the land of Marvel right now. I, for one, have been geeking out almost nonstop for the past week or so. A lot of this stuff is really awesome- for example, Marvel's first movies led by a woman and a POC have been announced. Also, the Age of Ultron Trailer has been released and it is perfection.

So let's take a look, shall we?

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First off, the absolutely perfect Age of Ultron trailer I mentioned. Gaze at the glorious thing that is this trailer. Done? (I'm not kidding. You need to watch it.) Good.

First off, the creepy Pinnochio music in the background needs to be mentioned. *shudders* And poor Bruce on the jet.

But what I really want to talk about? BALLET DANCERS. If my memory serves me correctly, one of Black Widow's covers back when she was with the Red Room was as a ballet dancer. So does this mean that we get to see more backstory for Nat in the Cinematic Universe? Let's hope so.

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Second, we got a full list of all the movies for Phase Three! For those of you who aren't IN the Marvel fandom and are more like casual bystanders, the Marvel movies are set up in "phases". Phase One was everything up to The Avengers, and Phase Two will include everything between Iron Man 3 and Ant-Man.

No Black Widow movie, unfortunately- but look what we do get! Carol Danvers AND Black Panther! DC did beat Marvel to the punch with Wonder Woman and Cyborg, but honestly, I'm not going to complain. I'm just happy that these two major companies are both starting to introduce more diversity into their films.

So, anyway, here's the list:

Pretty awesome, huh? I'm loving these gorgeous logos. Also, the introduction of Carol Danvers and the Inhumans means a future Kamala Khan movie is a possibility!

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And, in miscellaneous-but-still-awesome Marvel news (yes, there's more)...

• The Guardians of the Galaxy are getting their own animated TV show on Disney XD!

• For those of you who haven't heard already, there's an alternate universe where Gwen Stacey got spider powers instead of Peter Parker. Well, Spider-Gwen (as she's been dubbed by fans) is getting her own ongoing comic series! Also, several other fantastic Marvel ladies, including Gamora, Peggy Carter, and Silk are getting their own series as well. 
• The new Thor series (starring a mysterious woman as the new Thor) has started off with a bang. 
• And finally, the amazing Natasha Romanoff is getting a YA novel! It will be written by Margaret Stohl (author of the Beautiful Creatures series), and will come out in May 2015.

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So, anyway, I hope I haven't missed anything (but I probably did)! What are you looking forward to the most?

Elsa and Anna: Not the First

A note to my followers- A review of The Fault in Our Stars will be posted soon! I was just too busy crying my eyes out the first time around to review it properly, so I'm going to re-read it.

So. Anyway. You've probably heard the hype about "Frozen being the first Disney movie to show girls that you don't need a man to save you".

But honestly, I don't get it.

I love Frozen. Love, love, love it. It's one of my favorite Disney movies. Just clearing that up.

But... It certainly isn't the first of its kind. We're forgetting quite a few amazing Disney heroines here. How do you think they feel about it? So I'm going to list them here. Hopefully, that way, they'll get a bit of the appreciation they deserve.

Note: Please feel free to discuss your feelings on this in the comments! I'd be very happy to listen to your viewpoints, too.

Mulan. What the heck?! It's been a while since I last watched Mulan (Like, as in several years), but I'm pretty sure the whole message of the story is "you don't need a man to save you". Mulan enlists in the army, fights the Huns, and kicks some serious butt while doing so. It's even got some Twelfth Night- style romance in it, okay? So don't forget Mulan. Please.

Eilonwy. I suppose we can give poor Elionwy a pass, seeing as her movie isn't the most popular of Disney's (The Black Cauldron, in case you're wondering). But don't just totally toss her out the window. Please.

Megara. Okay. Megara isn't an official Disney princess. So what?! Megara saves Hercules. But what's more, she shows that it's okay if you need to be saved now and then. And another thing. She isn't very physically strong, but she is smart. She isn't the stereotypical wimpy-princess. But she also isn't the stereotypical femme fatale. Yet everyone seems to forget her.

Merida. My feelings on this are the same as my feelings on Mulan. Isn't the whole point of the movie that she doesn't need a man to save her? And it isn't like Merida is little known princess... This one is another what-the-heck worthy moment.



So. Those are my thoughts. Opinions, anyone?

Why Gertude Yorkes Needs a Bit More Appreciation

Okay. So, I just finished Volume Six (Parental Guidance) of Runaways last night, and, well... My. I haven't had this many feels since Reichenbach. So, that being said, this post is in honor of Gertude Yorkes.

1. Gert is the only superheroine I've ever heard of who looks as if she weighs over a hundred pounds. Now, Runaways does quite a good job at beating back the skinny, scantily clad cliche, but look at Gert next to say, Karolina, and you'll see what I'm talking about.

2. She has a pet dinosaur, for crying out loud. Fancy suits of armor and superhuman powers are all well and good, but you can't beat Gert when it comes to 'powers'. Need I say more?

3. She's smart. On the Marvel wiki, Gertude was rated a four out of seven on intelligence. Although not quite a genius, she even rivals Ultron's 'son' when it comes to smarts.

4. She realizes that not everyone is perfect, but doesn't let that impact her relationship with them. Even though she doesn't act like it, Gert is one of the most compassionate members of the Runaways. She helps Molly get past the fact that her parents are supervillains, and she gives her life to save Chase.

5. Speaking of that, she has one of the saddest death scenes in the Marvel Universe...

6. And her and Chase also have one of the most adorable relationships.

7. She's critical of society, and a deep thinker. Even Spidey says so, which is saying something.

8. She has pink hair. I think that's pretty cool, don't you? And she would also be quite fun to cosplay.

Thoughts on 'Fangirling'

Fangirl

Noun; fan-girl

Informal, derogatory; An obsessive female fan

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Some people would call me a fangirl. Most, actually. Why? I'm a girl, and I enjoy nerd culture.

But why does that make me a fangirl?

And why is okay to be a fangirl, but not a geek girl?

After all, 'geek girls' are being called out today, for cosplaying and wearing the costumes that the very men shaming them designed.



Yet nobody is calling out the thousands of 'fangirls'. Why?

Because it's okay to idolize an actor for his portrayal of a character in a movie or TV show that happens to belong to nerd culture.

But enjoying the actual comics? Or the movie, simply for its quality? Or cosplaying your favorite character?

No. That's not okay, in today's society

And that needs to change.

Because it's okay to like an actor. Being a fangirl is just fine. But it's not okay to also enjoy nerd culture for something other than certain British men.

And that's just wrong.

Now, why do people assume that any girl who enjoys nerd culture is a fangirl?

Am I, a teenage girl, incapable of enjoying something, simply for its content?

No. I'm not.

Maybe I do on occasion think 'Oh. He's cute."

But I'm not a fangirl, and I'm sure there are plenty of other people like me.

People who are sick of being stereotyped because of the things they enjoy.

She-Hulk Says: WE CAN DO IT

Way to Go, Marvel!

I love superheroes as much as the next girl. Possibly even more. But I must say, it gets a bit annoying when you have to slog through pictures like



or even



to find just a single decent, modestly dressed, somewhat realistic rendering of your favorite characters. I'd love to be able to find a good role model in the Marvel universe, but its tremendously hard to do when the majority of the female characters are under dressed Mary-Sues. I mean, so far we've had two main personality types. I mean, we've got two main personality types among the Marvel women.

Hot headed, independent, with a single soft spot for this one guy and a fair bit of cleavage, like the Black Widow




or even worse, wimpy and overall annoying. Like Mary Jane Watson.



Of course, she can have a fair bit of cleavage too.

Marvel has no shortage of realistic characters, but unfortunately the majority of them are men.

That's why I was so happy when I found out about the 'Characters and Creators' program, though Pintrest. Marvel is aiming to create more representation for their female characters, including a focus on the female X-Men, plus solo comic books for She-Hulk, Ms. Marvel, and more. Sweet!

The new Ms. Marvel, to be frank, seems utterly amazing. A sensibly dressed, Muslim heroine will throw a wrench in the traditional rut and bring a whole lot more diversity into the universe.



Now, to clear things up a bit. I've got no problem with a few exposed midriffs, or even the occasional Emma Frost type. But when I'm looking at, say, Storm, in a similar outfit, it gets annoying. I understand if the costume fits the character, but if it doesn't, I don't.

With the changes Marvel is going to make, I'll hopefully be able to empathize with a few more characters, and have more fun enjoying plain old superhero awesomeness at the same time. So thank you, Marvel.