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Whatever Happened to "Next Avengers: Heroes of Tomorrow"?

Photo courtesy Lionsgate and Marvel Entertainment

     With the exception of Big Hero 6, animated movies based on Marvel Comics haven't really had the same critical acclaim or massive fan following as DC's animated movies. But there's one Marvel Animated Feature that I can't help but love because it dares to answer the age-old question, "What if the Avengers had a bunch of kids, and then most of the Avengers died off, and then Tony Stark's old robot buddy Ultron came to ruin everything?"
     Enter the 2008 film Next Avengers: Heroes of Tomorrow. Picture a cross between "Old Man Logan" and "Age of Ultron" with some "A-Next" thrown in for good measure, except it's not really based on any of them. The premise? Most of the Avengers are gone, and their kids are left in the care of Old Man Tony Stark. Making up our cast of powered preteens are Pym (Ant-Man and Wasp's son), Azari (Black Panther and Storm's son), Torunn (Thor's daughter), and the reluctant leader James (Captain America and Black Widow's son). They are later joined by Barton, the son of Mockingbird and Hawkeye.
     The entire movie is a love-letter to Avengers fans. It probably won't win over many new viewers, but I always liked how the world feels lived-in without beating the viewer over the head with exposition. The film's only major exposition dump is in the introduction, in which Stark tells the kids a bedtime story about the Avengers, and rather than talk about them by name, he nicknames them by their roles on the team. He talks about how "The Soldier" fell in love with "The Spy," and "The King" found his queen; during the latter, the panther symbol moves to eclipse Storm's lightning bolt. It's these subtle details that make the film worth a few rewatches. We can assume Cap named his son James after his best friend, James Buchanan Barnes. The film doesn't tell us who Torunn's mother is, but her armor and personality combines the best parts of Thor's different love interests.
     With the characters who have still survived whatever apocalypse has ruined the earth, the movie also makes sure their actions are in character. I remember being shocked by Tony's lack of arrogance in this universe, until it was revealed that this version of Tony built Ultron, and like the MCU version would later mirror, this Tony desperately wants to atone for his actions. Our central characters also have their emotional moments; one particularly moving arc involves Torunn, who has never seen her father but believes he is still alive and will hear her cries for help. The movie knows exactly which heartstrings to pull, and it's both a great introduction to Marvel for newcomers and a great reward for longtime fans.
     So whatever happened to it? It seemed like it would be the perfect start to a direct-to-DVD franchise, or an animated series, or some kind of cheap tie-in comic. Instead, it remains largely forgotten, collecting dust on the movie shelves at Half Price Books.
     Well, it turns out they weren't completely forgotten. According to Comic Vine, they apparently later made a few appearances (some even pretty recent). They made their Marvel Comics debut in a time-travel mishap in Avengers (2010) #1:
Photo Courtesy Comic Vine and Marvel Entertainment

     Even though these adolescent Avengers might not have the same fan fervor as say, Teen Titans, it's nice to see Marvel hasn't forgotten my favorite Marvel Animated Feature.

Do you remember Next Avengers? What's your favorite comic-based animated movie? Comment below, and subscribe for more like this!
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