Today, during my usual perusing of film sites, I stumbled upon the news that Joss Whedon (Firefly, Serenity, Buffy). Has been asked to not only direct The Avengers, announced earlier this week, but has also been asked to rewrite both The Avengers AND Captain America: The First Avenger. This news can be taken in two ways to be honest.
The first is relief that two of the geek world’s most anticipated films are in the hands of someone who has been responsible for some of the most memorable American Sci-Fi media for this generation. This is the same man who brought us Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly, and the recently canceled Dollhouse. Each of these shows have garnered near cult followings, with people still wishing for certain shows (Firefly) to be brought back from the dead. We know from Joss's history that he is more than capable of handling both single character centric and ensemble cast narrative.
Something that I have found most of these sites forgetting is that Joss has already dabbled in Marvels stock of characters: He was responsible for the writing of the Astonishing X-Men reboot in 2004. Even though this series was plagued by many issue delays, it does show that Joss knows his way around a comic book series ensemble. If his only experience with a comic book world was the musically inclined Dr. Horrible, then I might be a little more wary of him taking the reigns of the upcoming series.
Another thing to consider with this news is the fact that for the Avengers at least, he will be both the writer and director of the film. While granted he is basically doing a rewrite of the script that was written by Zak Penn, it still gives him an opportunity to put his own flavor to the story and then take that and put it on the screen himself. I am one of the very firm belief that someone who both writes and directs his own film creates a much better film. It is the direct connection between the writer and director that allows the vision to be brought more vividly to film. Joss is also known for subtlety, and with the opportunity to add a lot of himself to the script's I know that that subtlety will be brought to the silver screen.
On the opposite end of this spectrum is the fact that while Joss is revered by a large majority of sci-fi fantasy fans. He hasn't always had the most illustrious career. He has had his failings when it comes to his own stories. Firefly would probably be the best example. This show, as well as Dollhouse, suffered from the subtlety I mentioned earlier. Firefly was canceled by FOX after its first season. A show that could have lasted for years was killed before its feet were off the ground. Most people would blame FOX's lack of vision, and I for one and inclined to agree with them. However, there is the side that Joss's subtlety caused all but the most hardcore viewers to lose interest quickly and simply change the channel. When it comes to television, it is a sad but true fact that if the viewer ship isn't high enough to counterbalance the costs of the show, there is no reason to continue shelling out money to the show. Its simple business, I think anyone in the position of FOX at that time would have likely made a similar decision. The same is true for Dollhouse, it suffered rather then prospered from the subtlety. Of course, the difference here is that Joss is writing two films and directing one. It’s not the same if the film is a bomb (which I doubt). If it does not do well in theaters, Joss has already finished his job months prior, sets have been striked, and by the time theatergoers are watching the Avengers Assemble on screen, it’s highly likely another film is being shot on the same spot. I mean, we aren't going to get a cancellation of the movie halfway through us watching it. Therefore Joss knows his constraints on the story, though he might have plot points bleed over from Captain America to the Avengers, it is still a complete story contained within approximately four or five hours.
I for one am excited by this news, and I simply look at it cautiously for the fact of these are characters that are beloved by many people, and with Iron Man already a hit, and Iron Man 2 set to do the same, it is a big deal to a lot of people that these characters be brought to the screen faithfully and carefully. Of course, I think once audiences see the Shield, the Suit, and Moljner on screen at the same time, I don't think they will really care who wrote it or directed it as long as the film entertains them.
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