I just saw the new trailer for the Avengers movie. It didn't really give me much of what I was hoping for. Yeah, yeah, action's great and all, but frankly the only thing that really interested me was the tiny little character moment between Cap and Iron Man near the end, when Cap asks "Take away the suit and what does that make you?" and Tony's answer is, "A genius billionaire playboy philanthropist." This moment, brief as it was, gives me hope that the movie will contain what I feel is the most interesting aspect of this story, the potential fraught relationship dynamic for Steve and Tony.
Though I do like them eventually becoming friends, when they first have to work together I want them to clash. They are so different, they come to superherodom from such disparate places. Steve is politeness, waiting for the one, and all-American values, where Tony is glitz, sass, chicks, and booze. Steve just wanted to serve and do the right thing, Tony's got a lot of self-aggrandizement in there. And both of them have some reason to be considered for the leadership of the group (Tony because he wants it and Steve because it's kind of his natural place) which puts them in competition. Given that, I will be extremely happy if we see conflict between them not just based on the ways their personalities clash, but also because of the massive insecurity each inspires in the the other.
One of my favorite things about the way Cap was portrayed in his movie was that he was adorably still just a little bit awkward. Yes, post-serum he's gorgeous and built like a god and becomes a capable and respected leader, but he's still more used to being the dorky ninety-pound weakling that got beaten up and made fun of. He's not that smooth when dealing to other people, he's not used to women wanting anything to do with him, and he doesn't have complete confidence in himself. He clearly thought of himself as just a guy, nothing that special, just trying to do the best he can. I tend to find the version of Cap in the comics so perfectly awesome in every way that he's always been very boring to me, but that dash of awkwardness and insecurity in an otherwise strong, capable, and gorgeous man made me love the Cap in the movie.
Given that conception of Steve, I want Tony to make him really feel like he's that dorky kid again. It might seem like a small thing in the grand scheme of things, but it tends to stick with people when they grow up feeling like they're just not that awesome. Tony's this rich, handsome, urbane playboy genius, the cool kid that Steve has never really gotten to be. Also Tony's sort of a jerk, which I imagine would make it even more irksome. Remember how he got insecure about Howard Stark, assuming that of course Peggy would go for a rich ladies' man rather than a geek like him? I want to see that same thing, only more so, because it's one thing if you're aware that someone's much cooler than you, it's another if you're placed in a slightly competitive position with that person while they're also kind of an ass. So Cap will focus on what a dick Tony is so he doesn't feel so awkward about being less cool.
And on the flip side, I want to see Tony getting insecure about how much a better man and a greater hero Steve is than him. Steve is principled, valiant, strong in ways that should make Tony very aware of the ways in which he is weak and venial and vain. He probably grew up hearing stories from his dad about what it was like to work with the great hero. Tony is trying to see himself as a hero too, but who is he next to Captain Freaking America? So he's going to try to compensate for it by playing up the significance of his coolness and success, and they're both going to bluster the hell out of each other in order to hide the fact that each one feels just a little bit inferior to the other. And then over the course of the movie they'll come to respect rather than envy each other, and in time go from rivals to friends.
Anyway, that's what I'm hoping for. I guess we'll have to wait and see what happens. Doesn't look like I'm going to get my All-Shirtless Avengers like I wanted, so please, powers that be, do at least this much for me.
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