And now for some reviews

Since I made it known I am a huge fan of superhero type cartoons I thought I'd offer my own review of two recent purchases.

Superman: Brainiac Attacks

It sounded interesting enough. Even though it completely stepped out of the Superman universe I had come to know and to enjoy on television. What made this one particularly difficult to take serious was the character of Lex Luthor. He sounded more like the Joker with each passsing moment. This one significant departure really undermined the entire movie. Even with Brainiac not acting as the computer we knew him to be, Lex Luthor just went too much in the opposite of how I knew him to be. The plot was simple and predictable. There was little in the way of character growth for anyone. This movie gets a big thumbs down. Don't waste your money. If you're intent on watching it, wait for the rerun on the Cartoon Network.

Ultimate Avengers

I got this movie mostly for my son. I never paid much attention to most of these superheroes mostly because they didn't interest me. Right off the bat we get an exciting show of how Captain America came to be. It was realistic and kept me glued to the television. I enjoyed the characters and how they grew for the most part. Since I don't follow the comic world too closely, I was a bit thrown by Bruce Banner. He was totally different than what I expected and where he wound up left me wanting more. Captain America is by far the most interesting character in this story. He's complex and conflicted. The others are to some degree, but he was far more dimensional and interesting. This entire movie keeps your attention from beginning to end. It's realistic and pulls no punches. Keep in mind, this is a PG-13 cartoon and does give in to much of the violence we relate to big screen movies. It is refreshing for me since I've yearned for this type of cartoon for some time. This gets two thumbs up and a pledge to buy the second movie coming out soon.