If you're not familiar with the “Young Avengers” storyline in Marvel Comics, in a nutshell they're a group of empowered and non-empowered teenage heroes that formed in the aftermath of Avengers Disassembled. In my opinion, they're well deserving of their own film that would fit nicely into the MCU. Here's why:
(SPOILER WARNING: The following contains a few minor spoilers from the Young Avengers comics.)
1. They are a very relatable team.
The four founding members are fanboys. Basically, they are the audience. If, for instance, the Young Avengers film takes place after the Avengers go their separate ways, they are essentially just like every person who was upset that the Avengers are no longer together. Furthermore, the characters possess inherent characteristics that make them relatable and touch on interesting issues. Patriot uses the mutant equivalent of steroids. Stature is dealing with the recent traumatic death of her father. Wiccan and Hulkling are coming to terms with their homosexuality. Each individual watching the movie will be able to see a little bit of themselves in at least one of the characters.
2. They possess a wide range of diversity.
This is something that is painfully lacking in today's comic book films. In a way, this touches on the previous point. Having a character that represents the viewer's ethnicity, sexual orientation, or social background bridges the gap between audience and character. Patriot, the leader of the original line-up, is African-American. As previously mentioned, Wiccan and Hulking are a homosexual couple. In later issues, hispanic teenager America Chavez (the latest version of Miss America) joins the group. Their diversity also encompasses their powers as well; each of them possess a unique origin to their powers.
3. Their image is modern and cool.
One of the biggest issues with adapting a comic book series to film is designing the character's getup so that it pays homage to the source material without being overly campy. This is not an issue with the Young Avengers because their original line up was created relatively recently. Because of this, their image is modern, cool and does not require a ton of alterations in order to work on the big screen. Also, the fact that they are even wearing costumes is justified by the fact that, in their early stages, they were mimicking what the Avengers wore. They were basically cosplaying fanboys that happen to have powers.
4. They are a logical follow up film if the Avengers cast is ready to move on.
Ultimately, the goal of all film studios is to make money, and once they find a lucrative franchise, they milk it as long as possible. Some would argue that this is a detriment to the franchise itself, but inevitably it always happens. The Lord the of the Rings has The Hobbit series. Harry Potter is getting a new franchise that takes place in the same universe. Star Wars has episodes I-III and now more films are in the works. Eventually, the existing contracts between the MCU actors and Marvel Studios will be fulfilled. Whether or not the actors will decide to move on from their characters is a discussion for another time. But if they do decide to depart the MCU and another Avengers film can't be made, Young Avengers is most logical follow up film. This is because the story originated in the absence of an Avengers team.
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Obviously there are a few existing continuity issues that would inhibit this film from making sense, but nothing comes to mind that clever reworking of the source material cannot fix.
For example:
1. Some of the heroes are derived from other characters that have not been introduced.
Iron Lad is a younger version of Kang the Conquerer. Stature is the daughter of Scott Lang. A new incarnation of Vision is also a key member. As of now, there is no conformation that Marvel will introduce any of these characters to the MCU. However, Lang could make an appearance in the Ant-Man film and Vision could be introduced during or in the aftermath of Age of Ultron. Also it may be possible to introduce Kang in the exposition of a Young Avengers film. But like I said, clever writing can work this out.
2. Some the heroes are mutants.
Until recently it was presumed that FOX owns the rights to all the mutants in the Marvel universe. But with the announcement of Scarlett Witch and Quicksilver appearing in Avengers: Age of Ultron, this point is almost rendered moot. Two of the members, Speed and Wiccan are the magically conceived twin sons of Scarlett Witch and the original Vision. So if Vision is introduced and their relationship is played out on screen, the Young Avengers would be a very appropriate continuation of this story. So in a way, the fact that Speed and Wiccan are mutants is not really an issue if Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver are already being used.
3. The team is formed after the tragic events of Avengers Disassembled.
If the last Avengers movie does not end like Avengers Disassembled, then the origin of the Young Avengers does not have the same effect. However, even if the Avengers series does not end tragically and they just go their separate ways like in the first Avengers movie, the Young Avengers stepping in to fill their place still makes sense.
As always, I welcome feedback. I want to know other fan's opinions. Thanks for reading and if you enjoyed the article please thumbs up.