Artificial Intelligence has gone and done it again, this time offering an alternative take on the Avengers. Only instead of Joss Whedon and a 2012 release date, a challenge was issued to a computer to deliver an adaptation that was released in 1980, directed by Wes Anderson.
The results were quite impressive, to the point where it caught the attention of the Russo Brothers who reshared the images to Instagram. Still, as realistic and detailed as the renders are, there’s something unsettling about them. Perhaps that’s partly due to the ‘Wes Anderson’ part of the query, or general AI jank, or perhaps a little bit of both.
The aesthetic gives off more of a thriller and courtroom drama, with the lighting and decor definitely fitting into that aesthetic in the 1980s. While quite detailed, the deadpan and expressionless faces of earth’s mightiest heroes just rubs us the wrong way.
Faces aside, some of the concepts that the AI (Midjourney) came up with are undeniably cool. We’re particularly loving the steampunk-dwarf aesthetic given to Thanos, and Black Panther’s lounge scene has some particularly impressive decor. Though the depiction of Thor is looking a little too Last Supper-ish for our taste.
When all is said and done, we’ve said it before – and we’ll say it again. AI is getting way too close for comfort. Although, there continues to be a nightmarish, somewhat off, and uncanny valley-feeling quality to most of what gets made. We felt similarly about an AI artwork query depicting a John Wick movie made by Pixar.Â
