Avengers: United They Stand was an attempt by Fox Kids to create a kid-friendly version of The Avengers. While not great, it wasn't as bad as some have made it out to be.
The lineup here is almost strictly West Coast with Wonder Man (here called "Wonderman"), Scarlet Witch, Vision and Tigra. Hawkeye, Wasp, Falcon and Ant-Man are included as links to the original team. Though Iron Man and Captain America each get a guest appearance in the series, neither Thor nor the Incredible Hulk show up. (Apparently, there was a copyright battle between Marvel and Fox over rights to the more famous Avengers).
That said, this cartoon finds Ant-Man, of all people, in charge of the Avengers in a setting a few years into the future. The group is government-funded, forcing them to have to listen to the rantings of a government liaison named Sikorsky. Sikorsky is so two-dimensional that even the young adult audience the show is geared toward must have wanted to knock out his teeth.
The main villain is Ultron, though there are also appearances by the Swordsman, the Masters of Evil and Kang the Conqueror.
As the show skewed younger, adult viewers may find it tough to follow, especially those who have seen the later series like "Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes." The animation pales in comparison to later shows and often looks like the G.I. Joe and Transformer cartoons of the 1980's. The show also copied the Japanese anime of the time, with every transformation of the heroes shown. The heroes also sport cool-looking armor, though Hawkeye's looks ridiculous.
In the surest sign that the show is kid-friendly, the main foes are robots and lasers have replaced bullets.
The plot lines are easy to follow, but continuity is a problem. For example, in the pilot episode "Avengers Assemble, Part 1," Wonder Man absorbs a laser blast meant to incinerate Ant-Man. The injury leaves the hero in a coma, leading to the comic plot where his memories are placed into the Vision. Yet, Vision hits several of the other Avengers with the same lasers and they are barely fazed. If Wonder Man fell, how do Janet Pym or Tigra walk away unscathed? In the same episode, Tigra is hit in her knee and further injures it when she hits a tree and the ground. She is incapacitated enough to be unable to defend herself, whereupon Falcon makes his entrance to save her. Seconds later, she thanks him and then gets back into the action, without so much as a limp.
As it is a Fox Kids show, character development is given short shrift. Even Hawkeye's hotheadedness sounds forced. This must be taken into account for those who think they're getting one of the later series (the presence of Tigra should dispel that since she was never a major player in the comics).
Another problem lies with the voice-overs. None of the actors providing the voices gives much life to their characters. This would be corrected in the later series but hampers this one. There isn't a memorable one in the bunch.
Overall, for the audience it aimed for, it mostly hits the mark. As far as its place in the Avengers line, it's a weak placeholder. If you view this, don't compare it to the more adult-oriented versions.
The lineup here is almost strictly West Coast with Wonder Man (here called "Wonderman"), Scarlet Witch, Vision and Tigra. Hawkeye, Wasp, Falcon and Ant-Man are included as links to the original team. Though Iron Man and Captain America each get a guest appearance in the series, neither Thor nor the Incredible Hulk show up. (Apparently, there was a copyright battle between Marvel and Fox over rights to the more famous Avengers).
That said, this cartoon finds Ant-Man, of all people, in charge of the Avengers in a setting a few years into the future. The group is government-funded, forcing them to have to listen to the rantings of a government liaison named Sikorsky. Sikorsky is so two-dimensional that even the young adult audience the show is geared toward must have wanted to knock out his teeth.
The main villain is Ultron, though there are also appearances by the Swordsman, the Masters of Evil and Kang the Conqueror.
As the show skewed younger, adult viewers may find it tough to follow, especially those who have seen the later series like "Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes." The animation pales in comparison to later shows and often looks like the G.I. Joe and Transformer cartoons of the 1980's. The show also copied the Japanese anime of the time, with every transformation of the heroes shown. The heroes also sport cool-looking armor, though Hawkeye's looks ridiculous.
In the surest sign that the show is kid-friendly, the main foes are robots and lasers have replaced bullets.
The plot lines are easy to follow, but continuity is a problem. For example, in the pilot episode "Avengers Assemble, Part 1," Wonder Man absorbs a laser blast meant to incinerate Ant-Man. The injury leaves the hero in a coma, leading to the comic plot where his memories are placed into the Vision. Yet, Vision hits several of the other Avengers with the same lasers and they are barely fazed. If Wonder Man fell, how do Janet Pym or Tigra walk away unscathed? In the same episode, Tigra is hit in her knee and further injures it when she hits a tree and the ground. She is incapacitated enough to be unable to defend herself, whereupon Falcon makes his entrance to save her. Seconds later, she thanks him and then gets back into the action, without so much as a limp.
As it is a Fox Kids show, character development is given short shrift. Even Hawkeye's hotheadedness sounds forced. This must be taken into account for those who think they're getting one of the later series (the presence of Tigra should dispel that since she was never a major player in the comics).
Another problem lies with the voice-overs. None of the actors providing the voices gives much life to their characters. This would be corrected in the later series but hampers this one. There isn't a memorable one in the bunch.
Overall, for the audience it aimed for, it mostly hits the mark. As far as its place in the Avengers line, it's a weak placeholder. If you view this, don't compare it to the more adult-oriented versions.
