VisionQuest, Clayface, Ebenezer and Ray Gunn Trailers: Our Reactions to All Four

We took on four new trailers: VisionQuest, the final trailer for Clayface, Ebenezer with Johnny Depp, and Brad Bird's animated Ray Gunn. Going in, VisionQuest had the most excitement behind it on one side. On the other, it was a toss-up between VisionQuest and Clayface, because Clayface is a character that's always been loved, and there was appeal in this take choosing to "lean into the body horror a little bit."

VisionQuest brings Ultron back inside Vision's head

VisionQuest is coming soon to Disney Plus, and right away Vision's little head twitch showed more personality than we expected. Ultron is still a part of Vision. "Ultron's going to Ultron you," came the warning, and when the answer to getting in is "kill them all," we agreed that's pretty much Ultron's answer to everything.

We like that the show focuses on Vision's other son, and that the kids have aged since WandaVision. The struggle between the different parts of Vision's personality, set inside his mind with Ultron literally living in his head rent free, looks really cool. We feel the show could get us emotionally, maybe the way WandaVision made us cry. The two leads are top notch actors, and it could feel like Wonder Man all over again for the acting. Age of Ultron wasn't the best received Avengers movie, but this feels like a logical way to give Ultron a second chance, even though the MCU seems headed toward a hard reboot.

Clayface looks dark, gross and right for the character

The final Clayface trailer has a needle going deep into his face, eyes doing things we didn't want to see, and a moment where he apologizes and suffocates a man inside of him. "That looks so dark," was the reaction. Clayface starts as a stereotypical movie star, gets a taste of power, and "you just slowly see this decay of his humanity." The music sells that break in his psyche.

We noticed the changes seem tied to his mental or emotional state. Our guess on the airplane scene: maybe he has to keep that muscle flexed, and when he starts nodding off and relaxes, everything goes. Body horror isn't always easy to sit through, but it feels like a really good way to do Clayface. It's four weeks out, and we're curious whether Bruce Wayne or Batman shows up at all.

Ebenezer goes darker, with Johnny Depp adding comedy

This is A Christmas Carol, which has been done with the Muppets, with Bill Murray and traditionally, so we wondered what the twist would be. Depp has a weird high pitched voice and his Scrooge "takes so much pleasure in just being mean." The new element seems to be him going outside and seeing other ghosts beyond the usual three, though that's without having read the book. The design looks "a lot more like grotesque than what they have done in the past," darker and grittier, with Depp sprinkling in fun. The all white Ghost of Christmas Past with dead eyes struck us as dark, since she's normally sweet. Maybe it's leaning more toward adults.

Ray Gunn is a film noir throwback from Brad Bird

Brad Bird, who gave us The Incredibles, Ratatouille and The Iron Giant, directs this animated detective story, hitting select theaters December 4 and Netflix December 18. We think the theatrical run may be for awards. It's a gumshoe noir with murder, intrigue and car chases, and the lines, shadows and music fit the vibe. "This movie is a throwback," was the verdict. Reportedly, it was 30 years in the making, and it was probably hard to finance until now. Michael Giacchino composed it, Sam Rockwell stars, and Scarlett Johansson plays the pop star. It just looks fun.

Which of these four trailers stood out to you the most?