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Picking up directly where the first film left, Ultimate Avengers 2 does little to add much in way of depth or characterization to the proceedings. In fact, the two films could have been combined into one two hour action-packed animated adventure and been better off for it.
Once more the only character that gets any true character development is Captain America. This time around he’s undertaking suicide-friendly missions in an effort to feel alive and reclaim his manhood. It makes perfect sense that the world’s super soldier would react to his new life by trying to desperately reclaim his masculinity and get a strangle-hold on his lone field of experience. What else is he good for in an era that is completely different from his, and a time in his life when he no longer knows anybody. He’s thrown himself head-long into a world that he does know.
But Thor, Hulk, Wasp, and Giant-Man are thrown off to the sides, regulated to occupy sub-plots B, C, and D. The Hulk’s regulation to glorified cameo is especially disheartening since this incarnation of him is so much more disturbed, driven, and really exploratory of the Jekyll/Hyde dynamic at the radioactive-id’s core.
But what of the Black Panther, who gets his introduction in this film? Well, his origin follows fairly closely to the one that any good comic fan knows. But, for some odd reason which is given no explanation, his head can turn into a literal panther’s from time-to-time. His new costume leaves something to be desired (don’t let the cover art fool you). He doesn’t do much, despite being the sub-title’s main topic, and just occupies the biggest subplot without very truly being developed or explored.
So much of Ultimate Avengers 2 had potential, but instead of taking their time and really building up and expanding the storylines and character development with the sequel, the folks at the Marvel Animation department just cranked out a sequel within months of the first film’s release. It could have been so much more.
