Trailer Analysis: 'Avengers: Age of Ultron' – Trailer #2

Gavin Gronenthal ’16 / Emertainment Monthly Editor
Earlier this week, the second trailer for the highly anticipated Avengers: Age of Ultron was released, leading to more questions and a huge increase in hype. So, naturally, we’ve decided to pick apart the new trailer to look for anything out of the ordinary or just plain exciting. Let’s see what we’ve got.

Saving the World?

This shot of what appears to be a large carrier of some kind has a ton of people flowing into it, with Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) seemingly on crowd control. All this is placed over Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) talking about how Earth is a “vulnerable world” and needs “something far bigger than any of us.” Could this mean this mission takes place before the real conflict, and the Avengers fail? Either way, it’s a safe bet that Tony’s response to this now vulnerable world is, of course, Ultron.

Not a String in Sight

Speaking of Ultron, we once again see what will most likely be his villainous introduction, but there’s an interesting twist this time. The one who recognizes the beaten down armor as Ultron is not Stark, but Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo). This most likely means that Iron Man didn’t work on the now sentient AI alone, but had help from Banner. Oh, and in case you didn’t hear it? The creepy piano song in the background is, once again, “I’ve Got No Strings” from Pinocchio. Apparently, they really want us to remember that Ultron, ominously voiced by James Spader, is not a puppet.

The Mystery Woman

And here it is, the most talked about and interesting part of the trailer: the mystery woman. We have never seen this woman before, and have no idea why she’s disrobing in the middle of a pool, so it certainly opens up a whole new batch of questions for the Age of Ultron. Our theory is that she is from Wakanda, the small and secretive country in Africa led by Black Panther, who will be played by Chadwick Boseman in more than a few upcoming Marvel movies. Does this mean he’ll be showing up in this movie? And could the woman seen here be more important than just a Wakandan, such as Black Panther’s sister Shuri? Although nothing is certain, the trailer is really starting to show that the Marvel Universe is more than expanding: it’s exploding.

Back in Black (Widow)

Now here’s a part of the movie that no one seems to be talking about, but everyone should be: in a shot that lasts less than a second, a woman has her head planted on an operating table, looking like she’s about to be tortured. After a lot of pausing and quick looks, we can 100% confirm that the woman is none other than Black Widow herself, played once again by Scarlett Johansson. Due to her different haircut and far more scared looking demeanor, this all but confirms that we will finally get to see the backstory of Natasha Romanoff. Is this part of the red in her ledger? We will have to wait and see.

Serkis Strikes Back

In the last trailer, we got a brief glimpse at Andy Serkis, playing a bearded individual. This time, we got another look, with him holding what appears to be a gun. The most popular theory, mostly due to his unique facial hair, is that Serkis will be playing Ulysses Klaw, a man who attempts to harvest Vibranium from Black Panter’s home country of Wakanda. Vibranium, being the most powerful metal in the world (Cap’s shield is made out this stuff, for example), is very rare, and could possibly one of the things Ultron is after to achieve near indestructability.

Thunderstruck

Soon after we see Ultron fire out red lasers from his hands, we get a very intrigue shot of Thor (Chris Hemsworth). His hammer nowhere to be seen, lightning starts emitting from the God of Thunder’s chest. But it doesn’t look like he’s doing it on purpose; in fact, it looks like he’s in pain. Could Ultron have found a way to use his powers against him? After all, he did say he was going to tear them apart from the inside out. Does he mean that metaphorically, literally, or perhaps both?

Hulk Angry

Although we would have loved to just put in eight shots of the Hulkbuster armor dragging the Green Goliath through a crowd of people, the real money shot is this: a Hulk who somehow looks angrier than usual. His eyes are completely bloodshot and his face looks unbelievable savage, as if Banner has lost all control he tried so hard to gain when he Hulks out. Is Ultron behind this? Almost certainly, but we won’t know for sure for quite some time.
And that’s what we thought was the most important part of the new Avengers: Age of Ultron trailer. Keep reading Emertainment Monthly for any upcoming Marvel news. Avengers: Age of Ultron opens May 1st, directed by Joss Whedon, and stars Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Mark Ruffalo, Jeremy Renner, Elizabeth Olsen, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Andy Serkis, Cobie Smulders, Paul Bettany, Samuel L Jackson and James Spader.

Watch The Trailer: