TRAILER!!!

The first official trailer for "The Avengers" has finally been released. Head on over to the Apple website to check it out. My full impressions on the trailer will be posted later this afternoon.

What Just Happened???

A year after he was teased at the end of "Iron Man 2," Thor made his big screen debut in his self-titled movie. Directed by Kenneth Branagh and starring Chris Hemsworth as the Norse god of thunder, "Thor" was another well received film by critics and movie goers alike. However, out of the two "Iron Man" films and "The Incredible Hulk," this film was probably the most important of the set up films for "The Avengers." Up until this point, the Marvel universe was somewhat grounded in realism. It's easy to believe that Iron Man could happen in today's world, as well as, with a little imagination, the Hulk. Thor, on the other hand, combined elements of Norse mythology, magic, and science and could have been a total flop, in the wrong hands. It wasn't, however, and it did a really good job of expanding the scope of "The Avengers" universe. And, like always, Marvel continued their viral marketing with a after the credits scene.

In the scene, the scientist from the film is seen walking up to Nick Fury, again portrayed by Samuel L. Jackson. They talk about the events of the film and then Fury opens a briefcase to show the scientist what he calls "power." To us, it looks like a shiny blue box. Then, in the reflection of the mirrored walls, we see Loki (Thor's brother) manipulate the scientist into saying that he would take a look at the blue box.

What?

Apparently, this blue box, called the Cosmic Cube, plays an integral role in the upcoming "Captain America: The First Avenger." I guess we will have to see what happens when that movie opens tomorrow. But what we can take from this clip is that Loki is going to play an important role in "The Avengers," which is exciting because he was easily one of the best parts of "Thor." Stay tuned to Viral Infection and don't forget to follow us on Twitter (@viral_Nfection)!

The Avengers Prequel, Featuring Iron Man

In 2010, the highly anticipated sequel to the well received "Iron Man" hit the theaters. While it retained a lot of the fun of the first film, many - myself included - felt that it was merely an extended commercial for the now announced "The Avengers" that featured Iron Man as basically a cameo. Don't get me wrong, I still like the movie. I just feel like they did such a good job making the first two films ("Iron Man" and "The Incredible Hulk") unique and letting them stand on their own that this just was sort of a let down. That being said, short of a few cast and director announcements, there had been nothing in the way of marketing for "The Avengers" since 2008 - that's two years! Even through this drought of information, people were still very excited to hear more about the superhero team up film.

"Iron Man 2" introduced us to more of the world that "The Avengers" would live in by giving Nick Fury and Agent Coulson more screen time, as well as introducing Black Widow, portrayed by Scarlett Johansson. Furthermore, at the end of the movie but before the credits there was a scene that really set up "The Avengers." Throughout the course of the film, Johansson's character was investigating Tony Stark to see if he would be a good addition to the Avengers team. Nick Fury meets with Tony Stark to tell him that while Iron Man is approved to be a part of the team, Tony is not. They are now looking at him being in a more behind the scenes role. Who knows what that means.

If you saw the movie in theaters in 2010, you might have left the theater when the credits started to roll. They already showed their Avengers scene, so surely there is nothing after the credits, right? Hopefully, you were smart and you stayed after the credits. If you were, you were greeted with this clip:

(Sorry for the bootlegged version - I couldn't find a good one on YouTube). In that clip we see Agent Coulson (who left Tony Stark to go deal with a situation in New Mexico) drive up to a 'crash site.' The camera pans out and we see what crashed - Thor's magical hammer Mjolnir. Coulson then gets on the phone and says either "We found it," or "We found him." While this wasn't as explicitly a set up for "The Avengers," this did announce which direction they were going in next - the most mythical of the Avengers, Thor himself. Of course, movie goers had to wait an entire year to see this next film...

Tony Stark: Weapons Manufacturer and Superhero Recruiter

The viral marketing campaign for "The Avengers" kicked of in May of 2008 with the release of "Iron Man" and the extreme tease of a clip that played after the credits. However, "Iron Man" wasn't the only Marvel superhero movie to release in 2008 - their reboot/sequel/re-imagining of the Hulk, "The Incredible Hulk" was released in June of 2008. While not as huge of a success as "Iron Man," it was still received fairly well by the masses, especially over the flop that came out a few years before. The most exciting part of this movie, however, did not take place during the main part of the film. Just like in "Iron Man," there was a little clip that showed just after the credits rolled. I can't seem to find the clip on YouTube, so I'll just tell you what happened. After the events of "The Incredible Hulk" have taken place, General Ross is seen drinking in a bar. In walks none other than Tony Stark himself, and he approaches Ross with a proposition. "I'm putting a team together," Iron Man says - and the clip ends.

At first, all we got was a teaser that there was a bigger universe than just the one that Iron Man occupied. But, with "The Incredible Hulk," we see that the characters of these movies live together in that same universe. So, not only is Marvel making an Avengers movie - but they are making solo films for each of the characters first, and then bringing them, and all of the actors associated with the films, together to bring this movie to life.

And so, with two huge reveals in 2008, the viral marketing was off to an unprecedented start. I'll keep reminding you - no "Avengers" announcement had been made by this point. And yet still, EVERYONE was hyped up for this eventual film. This could be the smartest viral marketing campaign I've ever seen...

Viral Marketing Campaign for "The Avengers" Kicks Off... in 2008?!?

On May 2, 2008, the movie "Iron Man" was released to widespread acclaim. Not only did it open the common movie-goers eyes to B-list superheroes, it also made Robert Downey Jr a household name and shot him into the stratosphere of stardom. But to many fans of comic books and superheroes, the most exciting part of that movie was the mere seconds that happened after the credits started rolling. Just as a refresher - by the end of "Iron Man," Tony Stark (Downey Jr) has decided to ignore the helping hand of S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Coulson, and announces to the world that he is Iron Man. If you were smart enough to wait after the credits, you were treated with the following scene:

Samuel L. Jackson is portraying S.H.I.E.L.D Director Nick Fury, the man who, in the comics, brings together each of Earth's mightiest heroes to form the Avengers. In the very, very short clip, Marvel makes it abundantly clear that they have something MUCH bigger than just an Iron Man franchise up its sleeves. With just this tantalizing hint from Nick Fury, the viral marketing for "The Avengers" was born. And, while they might not consider it as part of the campaign, it got people excited and talking about a movie that, at that point, had not even been announced yet. Sounds like viral marketing at its best to me.

What is "The Avengers?"

In the comic books, The Avengers is a team of several different superheroes that band together to face a larger-than-life threat. Owned by Marvel Comics, the Avengers originally consisted of Ant-Man, Wasp, Thor, Iron Man, and the Hulk. It is kind of like Marvel's version of the Justice League - you know, the much better superhero team made up of Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, etc. "The Avengers," set to release on May 4, 2012, is directed by Joss Whedon (of "Buffy: The Vampire Slayer" fame) and stars Robert Downey Jr, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, and Chris Evans.