The Avengers Would anyone have liked Jane Foster in place of Selvig? [Spoilers]

[TheVileOne]

I think the way they did it was OK. They addressed it to some degree and that was enough.

 

[Bren]

I noticed that too, for some reason I suddenly want to see much more of him in Thor's sequels.

Aye, me too. I enjoyed his and Thor's interactions in Thor already.

 

[04nbod]

I found Portman's Jane a little bland and overtly gigglish (giggle, fine, but don't come across as a ditzy) - So that, combined with Selvig's visual role being limited and 'negative', I'm pretty glad it was him anyway.

I liked how enthusiastic and almost insane he appeared sometimes later on under Loki's control - Unshaven, dirty with those wacky possessed eyes - cool.

I have a problem with people who have a problem with Jane's giggling

But seriously. A chariasmatic stranger who is extremely hot paying you a lot of attention is going to make you uncomfortable and if you are a shy awkward person you would giggle to disappate the tension. I'd hate to think people thought I was dumb because I giggled in those kind of situations. Its just a distraction mechanism.

I do agree though that I wouldn't have wanted her in Stellan's exact role. You can't damsel Jane Foster. Of all of them, not Jane. The other half of the relationship is so strong you can't make her weak in that way.

 

[Olan]

I was fine with jane not being in the movie and thought they explained her abscence in a really good way.
However given how Loki is all about tricks and maanipulating,, I could easily see Loki kidnapping jane and using her against Thor. Imagine Loki talking about jane being his queen. It would have given Thor a clearer motivation in joining the fight

 

[psylockolussus]

No, because I want Jane Foster's 2nd appearance to be in Thor 2 .

 

[shieldmaiden]

I'd have liked to see Jane Foster in place of Selvig... especially if it'd get her killed. I am NOT a fan of that character OR the love interest role, even though I do like the actress. She's wasted on a flat role like that. She was much better in V.

I LOVED Black Widow saving Hawkeye. When Loki asked her if she was in love and she said "Love is for children" I immediately thought "And that's a yes..." Even if it's not "IN love", it's love, and it seemed very real. Without that strong bond of friendship and mutual respect, all "in love" is would be infatuation. Infatuation is just a temporary illusion. A genuine friendship could be a much stronger and enduring relationship and would be something vastly under-explored between opposite sex characters.

Jane Foster/Thor: Just a couple hot people who hardly know each other that are infatuated and want to have sex. Nothing wrong with that, but yikes! That's not "a romance."

I like Pepper Potts a lot. She's smart, funny, witty and has a strong enough sense of self that she's not threatened by Tony's very obvious failings. She seemed "real"... including having some kind of existence outside the scenes where she's with her male counterpart. She had the courage to put herself in harm's way for the good of other people- no superpowers required. I like her, and wish there were more like her.

I think there's a huge dearth of quality female characters in comic book movies. Notice how I didn't say "strong women." There are "strong women" everywhere, but a lot of them lack depth and are only *****y eyecandy in black leather catsuits. The ability to roundhouse kick is nice, but what about personal honor and courage? Why is it if a character is female, something's always gotta tie in with sex? Sex, sex sexxx.... most women, I think, have a purpose in life beyond simply being an object of some guy's desire. But, if you're there, and you're female, well that's your main function.

I totally loved the "Aliens" franchise, with Sigourney Weaver... and I think it was probably because the role of Ripley had been originally written for a man. She was fleshed out, like a man. If the role had been written for a woman, I swear she would have just sat around waiting for some dude to come save her.

I'm really glad for the way they've handled Pepper and Black Widow... I can't say I've been favorably impressed by either of the other two. Nah, I take that back. Cap's "almost girlfriend" was growing on me, by the end. But I still thought she was kinda two dimensional in the movie. Maybe the comic books were better?

Though, now that I think about it, calling anyone who's main purpose in a film is to fill out a catsuit or whatever "two dimensional" is kind of ironic...

Ok, rant off. :P I'll behave now.

 

[El Payaso]

I'd have liked to see Jane Foster in place of Selvig... especially if it'd get her killed. I am NOT a fan of that character OR the love interest role, even though I do like the actress. She's wasted on a flat role like that. She was much better in V.

I LOVED Black Widow saving Hawkeye. When Loki asked her if she was in love and she said "Love is for children" I immediately thought "And that's a yes..." Even if it's not "IN love", it's love, and it seemed very real. Without that strong bond of friendship and mutual respect, all "in love" is would be infatuation. Infatuation is just a temporary illusion. A genuine friendship could be a much stronger and enduring relationship and would be something vastly under-explored between opposite sex characters.

Jane Foster/Thor: Just a couple hot people who hardly know each other that are infatuated and want to have sex. Nothing wrong with that, but yikes! That's not "a romance."

I like Pepper Potts a lot. She's smart, funny, witty and has a strong enough sense of self that she's not threatened by Tony's very obvious failings. She seemed "real"... including having some kind of existence outside the scenes where she's with her male counterpart. She had the courage to put herself in harm's way for the good of other people- no superpowers required. I like her, and wish there were more like her.

I think there's a huge dearth of quality female characters in comic book movies. Notice how I didn't say "strong women." There are "strong women" everywhere, but a lot of them lack depth and are only *****y eyecandy in black leather catsuits. The ability to roundhouse kick is nice, but what about personal honor and courage? Why is it if a character is female, something's always gotta tie in with sex? Sex, sex sexxx.... most women, I think, have a purpose in life beyond simply being an object of some guy's desire. But, if you're there, and you're female, well that's your main function.

I totally loved the "Aliens" franchise, with Sigourney Weaver... and I think it was probably because the role of Ripley had been originally written for a man. She was fleshed out, like a man. If the role had been written for a woman, I swear she would have just sat around waiting for some dude to come save her.

I'm really glad for the way they've handled Pepper and Black Widow... I can't say I've been favorably impressed by either of the other two. Nah, I take that back. Cap's "almost girlfriend" was growing on me, by the end. But I still thought she was kinda two dimensional in the movie. Maybe the comic books were better?

Though, now that I think about it, calling anyone who's main purpose in a film is to fill out a catsuit or whatever "two dimensional" is kind of ironic...

Ok, rant off. :P I'll behave now.

to everything. Specially "bring her back if she's to be killed."

 

[Herolee10]

If anything though, I think characters like Pepper and BW had a certain luxury that Peggy and Jane Foster didn't in the sense where Pepper wasn't rushed in to "be" with Tony by the end of her first film and BW has been allowed to grow as a character first before being saddled with a romance arc.

Given that the studio wanted to have "The Avengers" come out directly after the first Captain America and Thor films, I think they felt as though they needed to somewhat "rush" the romantic arc and press forward on it for Jane and Peggy.

I mean Peggy had to be established (whether they were successful or not can be argued.lol) as the "love" of Steve's old life in order for him to have another so called layer of tragedy attached to him whereas with Thor, well, when you especially only have little more than 3 days to work with in a story, yeah that's not going to work out well.lol

Point being, I think the romances between Thor and Jane/Steve and Peggy would have done well if they had another film like Tony and Pepper had to develop their relationship more before the events of "The Avengers".

 

[shieldmaiden]

If anything though, I think characters like Pepper and BW had a certain luxury that Peggy and Jane Foster didn't in the sense where Pepper wasn't rushed in to "be" with Tony by the end of her first film and BW has been allowed to grow as a character first before being saddled with a romance arc.

Given that the studio wanted to have "The Avengers" come out directly after the first Captain America and Thor films, I think they felt as though they needed to somewhat "rush" the romantic arc and press forward on it for Jane and Peggy.

I mean Peggy had to be established (whether they were successful or not can be argued.lol) as the "love" of Steve's old life in order for him to have another so called layer of tragedy attached to him whereas with Thor, well, when you especially only have little more than 3 days to work with in a story, yeah that's not going to work out well.lol

Point being, I think the romances between Thor and Jane/Steve and Peggy would have done well if they had another film like Tony and Pepper had to develop their relationship more before the events of "The Avengers".

I guess art imitates life? The big rush is to get to the "good stuff" means it's better to get into a shallow gropefest, rather than take the time for something better to develop?"

(Don't get me wrong, I like watching decorative people grope each other as much as the next gal. But it's nothing to build a real story on.)

IMHO, I'd rather see a movie with fully developed characters having relationships based on their personalities, rather than some big fast rush job of a pseudo-romance. Nothing's wrong with a good movie filled with action and character development. Why force it?

Don't folks know... half the fun of a romance is the anticipation!

 

[jonathancrane]

I really enjoyed Selvig's presence in the film; having Foster in his place would have shaped the film into a different entity. The conflicts and Thor's motivation would be very different. Besides, I enjoy the sequences showing Selvig's possession and discovery of the delights and horrors in the cosmos...very Lovecraftian, which if I may be permitted a bon mot, I love.

 

[Nave 'Torment']

Honestly... and this is coming from a HUGE Jane Foster fan...

No. I wouldn't have wanted her here. Her absence in the film gives a very, very, deep sentiment to Thor's connection with Earth -- and his heroism. Having her around would, and it breaks my heart to say this but, ruined the entire character dynamic that Thor had going for him in this film.

So again, no I would not have liked her in place of Selvig. Not one bit.

 

[Herolee10]

Honestly... and this is coming from a HUGE Jane Foster fan...

No. I wouldn't have wanted her here. Her absence in the film gives a very, very, deep sentiment to Thor's connection with Earth -- and his heroism. Having her around would, and it breaks my heart to say this but, ruined the entire character dynamic that Thor had going for him in this film.

So again, no I would not have liked her in place of Selvig. Not one bit.

Agreed; plus there was just so much going on as it was with this film.

For all of Selvig's connection with Thor and even Banner (as mentioned in "Thor), Selvig never once had a real scene with any of the people that he's been established to be close to and the only time that he was with them was during that farewell montage, so even if you had Jane taking his place, there wouldn't have been as much time in dealing with her relationship with Thor and it would have cheapened their reunion.

 

[shieldmaiden]

Agreed; plus there was just so much going on as it was with this film.

For all of Selvig's connection with Thor and even Banner (as mentioned in "Thor), Selvig never once had a real scene with any of the people that he's been established to be close to and the only time that he was with them was during that farewell montage, so even if you had Jane taking his place, there wouldn't have been as much time in dealing with her relationship with Thor and it would have cheapened their reunion.

For the Jane Foster fans... I totally understand where you're coming from. I also liked Selvig a lot, too. If they do more to deepen the character and her relationship with Thor in the future, I think they have the right actress for it. Portman rocks!

Was Jane Foster in the comic books? Did they do more with her than in the movie?

 

[Herolee10]

For the Jane Foster fans... I totally understand where you're coming from. I also liked Selvig a lot, too. If they do more to deepen the character and her relationship with Thor in the future, I think they have the right actress for it. Portman rocks!

Was Jane Foster in the comic books? Did they do more with her than in the movie?

Jane is a comic book character as well, though as far as I understand, she's actually a nurse in the comics, thus her occupation has been changed for the film's version.

Also, whether they end up together happily in the films or not remains to be seen, but in the comic book universe, they never made it that far as Jane was unable to endure the tests that Odin sent after her in order to test her worthiness for being Thor's wife (it's a messy issue.lol).

 

[04nbod]

I'd have liked to see Jane Foster in place of Selvig... especially if it'd get her killed. I am NOT a fan of that character OR the love interest role, even though I do like the actress. She's wasted on a flat role like that. She was much better in V.

I LOVED Black Widow saving Hawkeye. When Loki asked her if she was in love and she said "Love is for children" I immediately thought "And that's a yes..." Even if it's not "IN love", it's love, and it seemed very real. Without that strong bond of friendship and mutual respect, all "in love" is would be infatuation. Infatuation is just a temporary illusion. A genuine friendship could be a much stronger and enduring relationship and would be something vastly under-explored between opposite sex characters.

Jane Foster/Thor: Just a couple hot people who hardly know each other that are infatuated and want to have sex. Nothing wrong with that, but yikes! That's not "a romance."

I like Pepper Potts a lot. She's smart, funny, witty and has a strong enough sense of self that she's not threatened by Tony's very obvious failings. She seemed "real"... including having some kind of existence outside the scenes where she's with her male counterpart. She had the courage to put herself in harm's way for the good of other people- no superpowers required. I like her, and wish there were more like her.

I think there's a huge dearth of quality female characters in comic book movies. Notice how I didn't say "strong women." There are "strong women" everywhere, but a lot of them lack depth and are only *****y eyecandy in black leather catsuits. The ability to roundhouse kick is nice, but what about personal honor and courage? Why is it if a character is female, something's always gotta tie in with sex? Sex, sex sexxx.... most women, I think, have a purpose in life beyond simply being an object of some guy's desire. But, if you're there, and you're female, well that's your main function.

I totally loved the "Aliens" franchise, with Sigourney Weaver... and I think it was probably because the role of Ripley had been originally written for a man. She was fleshed out, like a man. If the role had been written for a woman, I swear she would have just sat around waiting for some dude to come save her.

I'm really glad for the way they've handled Pepper and Black Widow... I can't say I've been favorably impressed by either of the other two. Nah, I take that back. Cap's "almost girlfriend" was growing on me, by the end. But I still thought she was kinda two dimensional in the movie. Maybe the comic books were better?

Though, now that I think about it, calling anyone who's main purpose in a film is to fill out a catsuit or whatever "two dimensional" is kind of ironic...

Ok, rant off. :P I'll behave now.

Let me guess who you are a fan of Shield Maiden!

Two points I want to make here:

The Thor and Jane story was intentionally held back so as not to distract the Odin, Loki and Thor tension. It will be expanded in the second film and given more depth. We are supposed to see the initial attraction.

The initial attraction is based on multiple things, yes one of them is physical and there is nothing wrong with that. Jane doesn't start falling for Thor until he starts talking to her about the nine realms. Here is a man who doesn't think she's a fool and who is interested and participating in her great passion- science. Thor on the other hand falls for her from the diner when Jane clearly won't take any rudeness from him. She speaks back to him, she doesn't let him get his own way and as a spoiled prince he is attracted to that.

Was Jane Foster in the comic books? Did they do more with her than in the movie?

Jane was a nurse who became a Doctor of medicine in later years. Jane has been woefully underused and abused by Marvel over the years which gave Feige more ability to change up her profession. I don't think movie Jane is different in personality though. Jane can swoon, she can be giggly but she has grown out of it in the comics. She has been let down by Thor so much she has become cynical of gods. What is constant is how authoritarian she is. She is pretty 'socialist' if that is the term. She will talk back to Odin and not really care these days. She has a strong sense of responsibility and does not take kindly to people who shirk it and she will call them on it. You can see why Thor, the arrogant God who got too much of his own way flourishes around her.

 

[Nave 'Torment']

Well, arguably, Ripley in Alien and the subsequent series did have an overtly sexual connotation -- it just came from female sexuality instead of a dominant male sexuality

But yeah, one thing Whedon pulled off was giving Black Widow more depth and if anyone I'd say the creator of Buffy was "the man for the job." But did you guys get the distinct impression that Widow hit every plot-mark that you'd expect from a female character these days? ESPECIALLY go out of her way to establish that she is NOT a romantic figure? I mean i'm a fan, but a friend of mine was bringing that up so yeah.

Going back to Jane -- I think the fact that Cap, Banner and Thor each didn't have their female love-interests managed to do something unique for their characters in some capacity. It certainly established their "isolation" and a recurring theme from Fury was how he'd bring together these isolated individuals. Seeing Widow demonstrate the same thing only made it better for me.

Though, looking back at Pepper Potts and Jane Foster to determine who's more "independent" among the two? That's a tough one, because they're both very much professionals and have their own "world" when the men aren't around. Pepper is certainly more entertaining to watch and I love how they evolved her role throughout the films. Jane's more of a model to be. Both actresses hit the mark pretty well.

 

[Nave 'Torment']

Agreed; plus there was just so much going on as it was with this film.

For all of Selvig's connection with Thor and even Banner (as mentioned in "Thor), Selvig never once had a real scene with any of the people that he's been established to be close to and the only time that he was with them was during that farewell montage, so even if you had Jane taking his place, there wouldn't have been as much time in dealing with her relationship with Thor and it would have cheapened their reunion.

Hey wow I completely forgot about Selvig's connection to Banner would've been great to see em in a scene. Moreso for Thor of course. They were drinking buddies after all

For the Jane Foster fans... I totally understand where you're coming from. I also liked Selvig a lot, too. If they do more to deepen the character and her relationship with Thor in the future, I think they have the right actress for it. Portman rocks!

Was Jane Foster in the comic books? Did they do more with her than in the movie?

I prefer astrophysicist-Jane over nurse-Jane, archetypally they both do the same thing so why not go for the characterisation that takes her closer to the myths and aliens right?

 

[Jordanstine]

I <3 Jane