The first time I saw “The Avengers,” the experience is not quite what I had hoped for. The movie was not in 3-D, the surround sound was a bit unbalanced, and the theater we went to didn’t even have stadium seating. Though I enjoyed parts of the film nonetheless, I knew that I had to go back, in order to get the full experience. So, a couple days later, I went again, this time to a different theater. This time, we sat front and center, and not only did we see it in 3D, but it was also in an IMAX theater. And I have to say, it was worth every penny. From the beginning of the film, to the final scene after the credits, I was nothing less than ecstatic. So the first thing you must remember, if you are going to see this movie, is this: don’t worry about the added expense. This is the film to see on a big screen, and in the 3-D format.

Now onto the film itself. “The Avengers” has been years in the making. The Marvel Cinematic Universe was created with the premiere of “Iron Man” back in 2008, and since then there have been 4 additional films: “The Incredible Hulk,” “Iron Man 2,” “Captain America: The First Avenger,” and “Thor.” Each film is set in the same world, and they are connected to each other in some way. This is usually seen in an end-of-credits scene involving Nick Fury (Samuel Jackson) and S.H.I.E.L.D., a secret military agency responsible for keeping peace in the world. The Avengers Initiative was originally created by this organization and the idea was, as Fury states: “to bring together a group of remarkable people, so that when we needed them, they could fight the battles that we never could.” And, in the last five films, we have seen the origins of each member. The group consists of Iron Man, the genius with the ultimate bad-ass suit; the Hulk, a scientist who, when provoked becomes a “giant, green rage monster;” Captain America, the end result of a serum that made him into a super-soldier; Thor, the demigod from Asgard; and two highly trained spies, the expert marksman Hawkeye and the tight leather-clad Black Widow. To bring all of these larger-than-life characters into one film must have been a difficult task. But with a director like Joss Whedon, whose past work has included creating the shows “Firefly” and “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” and with a perfectly-chosen cast, which includes Robert Downey, Jr., Samuel Jackson, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlet Johansson, Mark Ruffalo, Jeremy Renner, Tom Hiddleston, and Cobie Smulders; I knew that the film had great potential. And I was not disappointed.

“The Avengers” is, essentially, one extended battle scene, split into two parts. Loki, our villain, is clearly bitter about being over-looked as King of Asgard over his brother, Thor. So, he takes his bitterness out on Earth. In exchange for the Tesseract, a mysterious glowing blue cube that possesses great power, Loki has bargained with an alien race, who would take over Earth and make him King. “You were made to be ruled,” he states. But not if the Avengers have anything to do with it. There are a few action scenes at the start of the film, including in the first 20 minutes, when Loki makes it into the world and immediately starts to wreak havoc. A little later, there is a fight scene on board S.H.I.E.L.D.’s invisible flying ship, during which the captured Loki escapes, and the Avengers find themselves scattered. But the real heart of the film comes a little more than half-way through, when the alien race starts to come through a portal, and the Avengers must come together to stop them. In a style similar to Transformers, though much more fun to watch, the characters fight their way through midtown Manhattan. It is truly a marvel (no pun intended) to witness. Despite the great number of characters, each of them gets the appropriate amount of screen-time. Iron Man owns the skies, shooting down aliens with his seemingly unlimited arsenal of super weapons; Captain America leaps over cars and buses, flinging his shield at enemies; Thor hammers his way through the streets; Hawkeye stands on a perch over-looking the city, shooting his explosive arrows at passing alien-ships; and the Hulk, who is probably the most entertaining to watch, bounds across buildings, ruthlessly destroying everything in his path. Even Black Widow gets a few moments to herself, at one time stealing and riding aboard an alien-ship of her own. Witnessing these scenes, especially in an IMAX theater, is like nothing you have ever seen. Just sit back, and enjoy the show.

In addition to the action, the film also includes more humor than typically seen in a superhero film. Some of the greatest moments come from seeing the different actors play off of each other. As to be expected, there is an obvious clash of two characters in particular: the straight, follow-the rules type Captain America, and the sarcastic, spotlight-hogging Tony Stark. Robert Downey, Jr., who I have always felt was the perfect Iron Man, is a true scene stealer. “A big man in a suit of armor. Take that away, what are you?” asks Rogers. “A billionaire, playboy, philanthropist” is the reply. There is also an interesting relationship between the characters Hawkeye and Black Widow. It is clear that the two have a history together, though we do not know what exactly that is. Renner and Johansson have great on-screen chemistry here. I have even heard that there may be a spin-off prequel, which would explain their origins as spies, and how they came to join the group S.H.I.E.L.D. Even Mark Ruffalo was great as Bruce Banner/Hulk. I was unsure at first if he was the best choice for the part, but Ruffalo plays the part of the nerdy scientist well, which is really all that the Hulk is supposed to be. And, of course, we have Hiddleston, who plays the delightful villain Loki. The character is your typical mad-at-the-world type, who will do anything to get what he feels he rightfully deserves. Yet it is still hard to feel empathy for such a man, and in this way, he is the perfect villain. Hiddleston plays the part well, and is a good contrast to his brother: the strong, formidable Thor.

For any comic book or movie nerd, or just for those who love action films, “The Avengers” is a must. It is the ultimate combination of superheroes, with unbelievable action scenes, and even some great laugh-out-loud moments. If you have not seen the last five movies that precede this one, it is still worth watching. I would recommend watching the others, since each film is enjoyable in their own way, but “The Avengers” easily surpasses them all. The entire film can really be summed up in one scene, which can be seen in the trailer. All of the characters are standing in a circle, with explosions and chaos around them, each with their own weapon at hand, ready to fight as a team. Brilliant.