The Avengers

ROBERT DOWNEY JR. - TONY STARK/IRON MAN

Why It’s a Great Performance: And while Gary Oldman is a true character actor, Robert Downey Jr.’s performance as Tony Stark in the Iron Man films and The Avengers is the very definition of the Hollywood movie star turn.

RDJ isn’t so much as an embodiment of the classic comic book Tony Stark as the actor instantly bringing to life the Tony Stark that Marvel readers suddenly realized they wished the comic book version always was.

His kinetic, hyper-witted, self-effacing-yet-ultra-cocky Stark is mostly just Downey Jr. being Downey Jr., but rarely has a marriage between a role and a actor’s natural charisma been such a match made in Stan Lee’s heaven.

Key to his massive appeal is that Downey Jr. knew enough to revel in simply being Stark and Iron Man in the first Iron Man and The Avengers. The pure joy he clearly had in being himself was infectious. Due to a script misstep, Downey and director Jon Favreau let that slip away in Iron Man 2. Being both Stark and Iron Man became burdensome, a major reason why that film came off as dour and soulless compared to the other two.

Downey Jr.’s performance utilizes a different skill set than they Oldman or the next guy in our countdown, but its no less than impressive. He’s the life of a now multi-billion-dollar party and fans don’t seem ready to go home yet.

Signature Moment: As we’ve previously mentioned in our countdown of the Best Comic Book Films of All-Time, his very first. The opening moments of Iron Man where Stark playfully hangs out with the soldiers escorting him from his weapons test immediately set the tone for the character. As was the case with the star struck soldiers, the audience like was immediate. Downey Jr. simply grabbed moviegoers from get-go and placed them under his spell.

TOM HIDDLESTON - LOKI

Why It’s a Great Performance: When he was cast in as the all-important villain in Thor, Tom Hiddleston was a relatively unknown actor. But instead of being overshadowed by the film’s cast filled with Oscar-winners like Anthony Hopkins and Natalie Portman, he stole almost every scene in which he appeared. He was such an understandable tragic figure, in fact, that there were a few moments where we kind of wanted poor Loki to win.

The key to his success? His portrayal made the god-like Loki seem real, and even human. And while he may have pulled upon his Shakespeare experience when he played the mythological family tragedy of Thor, Hiddleston seamlessly transitioned into the wit and humor of his scenes in this summer’s The Avengers.

Signature Moment: Thor and The Avengers both showcased Hiddleston’s embodiment of Loki more than once — particularly when the villain was in captivity within the SHIELD helicarrier, successfully stirring up mischief with everyone from Black Widow to Hulk.

But we thought the greatest demonstration of his acting abilities was toward the end of The Avengers, when Loki was confronted by his brother atop Stark tower. He actually had us convinced that he was being sincere, but instead stabbed Thor in the side. "Sentiment," he said with a tear in his eye.

CHRIS EVANS - JENSEN

Why It’s a Great Performance: The lifetime achievement award for comic book movie appearances goes to Chris Evans with roles in two Fantastic Four movies, Scott Pilgrim, The Losers, Captain America: The First Avenger, The Avengers, voicing Casey Jones in TMNT, and the super-powered (and later turned into a comic) Push.

Singling out one of his many quality comic book performances is an interesting proposition, with his most recent performances as Captain America are definitely standouts amongst his many roles. But we give him the nod, and the spot on this list not for the joint achievements or his highest profile one. No, we give it up for Jensen, the brainy and zany member of the special ops squad that makes the A-Team look like a Cub Scouts troop. He came right off the pages of Andy Diggle and Jock’s comic, and still made the role his own, with a sarcastic wit coupled with a unique optimism that we haven’t seen from Evans in anything else.

Signature Moment: Jensen puts both hands up, making gun shapes out of his fingers, and tells the bad guys of experiments and mind powers. As he aims at one and yells gun noises, Cougar uses a high-powered and long-ranged sniper rifle to take down the thugs he points at. It’s the perfect mix of lethal and laughs that makes Jensen, and Evans, so great.