Marvel really patched together something but couldn’t make it special.
Hard to review without spoilers. Will do my best. In general terms, its’s the celebration for an end of an era. All Marvel comic properties are now under the Disney banner (barring cameos like Spider-Verse). In FGC terms, this is X-Men: Anniversary Edition.
Deadpool and Wolverine are well represented. Wolverine’s dialogue in particular matches that from Logan, compared to the other appearances of the hero. Deadpool seems to be more restrained from previous appearances, but isn’t out of place given the narrative.
5 writers credited here… illustrates the problem w/ this mishmash. No single voice represented all of the characters. The Deadpool cast regulars just appear to be contractually obligated to appear in this third film. Morena Baccarin in particular seemed to be done with it.
Additionally, there’s dual antagonists that calls into question the conclusion of Loki Season 2. It’s everything John Boyega warned people about. A film made to connect to another film. Because the story isn’t standalone like the best Marvel-Fox movies, you NEED to have some exposure to the following in order to follow along: Loki, Logan, X-Men, Deadpool. At least the film canonically illustrates that multiple actors can play the same character. So RDJ as the new Doctor Doom shouldn’t be surprising, neither will be the eventual re-cast of Black Panther and Kang the Conqueror.
BTW if you saw the last trailer, you should be aware that Dafne Keen reprises her X-23 character. As she was the highlight of Logan, she’s also the highlight of this film. Very fit, and has amazing screen presence. Deserving to appear in the MCU as the new Wolverine.
First screened August 4, 2024 at Icon Cinema OKC.
