Avengers LOVE

I saw "The Avengers" last night.  I saw "The Avengers" last night because I also saw it on Thursday night by myself, but liked it so much that I convinced my three skeptical preteen daughters that they would love it just so I'd have an excuse to go see it again. The next day.  It may be my 21st century "Titanic," which I ashamedly viewed seven times in the theater when I was 18.

I knew I would want to write about it today.  So while I watched last night, there was a part of me, in the very back of my head, thinking "Ok, what?  What is so important about this movie that you like it so much?"

There is the writing.  Joss Whedon, my GOSH, I love you.  I mean, I already loved you.  You gave me Firefly. You gave me Dr Horrible.  You didn't have to prove yourself anymore.  But, now I REALLY love you.  I will happily see anything you write.  "He's adopted."  I think that was my favorite.  But then, there were a lot of others that were my favorite, so I could be lying.  It was all my favorite.

There were the characters.  Joel, who saw it on the day it opened with a group of people from work, asked me last night which character was my favorite.  I couldn't tell him. I loved Hawkeye.  OH MY GOSH, I thought he was so cool.  There was something about the old school romance of Captain America I adored. The Black Widow was kickass cool.  Robert Downey Jr makes anything awesome.  Thor's Shakespearean delivery amused me. And there's an awfully special place in my heart for the slightly nerdy adorableness to Mark Ruffalo.  *LOVE LOVE LOVE*  So yes, characters. I loved the characters. You made me laugh, and yes, I'll even admit this.  About a comic book movie.  You made me cry.

But there was one moment in this movie that defined it all for me, and made it about you and me.  I don't think I'll give anything away as this scene is in the trailer.  You have these reluctant heroes through the whole movie... and because they've already had their own movies, they are both reluctant heroes but also proud heroes.  BECAUSE NO ONE IS LIKE THEM, and they have accepted that and embraced that, and yes in their secret hearts, they are proud of that.  And then they all get thrown together into one story and they have to figure out how to all be in the same story.  Now they aren't the only hero, now the spotlight isn't always on them.  Okay, maybe I'm spoiling it a little.  Sorry.

But, you get to this scene.  It's the one where they're all making a circle, ready for the battle, all facing out... ready to take on TOGETHER the enemy that threatens to destroy all of humanity.  And my heart sang.  Oh yes, it did.  Tell me yours didn't!  And if you can, you're a big fat liar.  Yours did, too.  Because there was something about that.  There was something about them coming together as a team.  Forgetting their egos, forgetting that THEY ARE THE BEST, and agreeing to do everything they could... not so that they would shine... but so that they, collectively, would win!

Coming on the heels of this, in the same scene, is this moment where they're all sent off, within the battle scene, to do what they do best because the plan doesn't work if they aren't each allowed to do what they do best.  Get that?  That's us.  We're all made differently.  We're all given talents, so many talents, but they are not the same talents.  For it to work, we have to do all do what we do best!  We don't need to worry if we can't do something as good as someone else does something. Their role is not our role.  We have a role and a job and a responsibility and a set of uniquely exquisite talents that are JUST OURS.  Do that!  Do what is uniquely yours, with pride and dedication and fervor.  Don't do what your neighbor does.  Do what you do!

Ahhh, I love this movie.

Don't tell anyone, I may go see it on Monday when my kids are at school!