Who knew that fantasy writer George R. R. Martin was such a huge fan of Marvel?
The "Game of Thrones" author recently raved about the new movie "Ant-Man" on his personal blog, deeming it as one of the best movies Marvel has ever produced.
"'Ant-Man' has a proper balance of story, character, humor, and action, I think," he wrote. "A couple reviewers are calling it the best Marvel movie ever. I won't go that far, but it's right up there, maybe second only to the second Sam Raimi/Tobey Maguire 'Spider-Man' film, the one with Doc Ock."
He admitted that he is a huge Marvel fanboy, and has liked most of what the studio offered in the past. However, "Ant-Man" has a special place in his heart.
"I liked this one more than the first 'Avengers' and a lot more than the second, more than either 'Thor,' more than the second and third 'Iron Man' and maybe just a smidge more than the first (though I liked that one a lot too)," he said.
Martin was admittedly iffy when he found out that filmmakers wanted to go ahead with the Scott Lang version of Ant-Man rather than the original Hank Pym, but his concerns flew out the window when he finally saw the finished product.
"I was eager for the film, but apprehensive about it as well, especially when I heard it would be about Scott Lang, not Hank Pym," he shared. "I am relieved and delighted to report that they did it right."
As much as he loved the film though, Martin cannot deny that Marvel villains are lacking for imagination.
"I am tired of this Marvel movie trope where the bad guy has the same powers as the hero. The Hulk fought the Abomination, who is just a bad Hulk. Spider-Man fights Venom, who is just a bad Spider-Man. Iron Man fights Ironmonger, a bad Iron Man. Yawn," he criticized. "I want more films where the hero and the villain have wildly different powers. That makes the action much more interesting."
He also wanted to see more of the Wasp, but unfortunately the movie only offered a few glimpses of her. Martin understands that Marvel is setting things up for the next film, but he is a huge fan of the original Hank Pym and Janet Van Dyne dynamic so he was bummed that it was not included in the film.
