Whisper it, but the MCU is making an extraordinary comeback
Marvel StudiosThe box office may not reflect it. In fact, things there are positively dire for the MCU and Marvel Studios. But good things have happened for Marvel Studios this week, and they are only going to get better.
I should know. I’ve sat through 37 minutes of Deadpool & Wolverine and was genuinely shocked by how crude, violent, and irreverent the latest Marvel movie was. Needless to say, it was precisely what Deadpool fans wanted from Wade’s latest adventure.
I won’t spoil anything here, but from what I saw, the film’s wildly funny, packed with cameos (insert Marvel brain rot of your choosing here), and bloodier than a school trip to the local abattoir. Perhaps most encouragingly, there are some actual stakes that help give the film some much-needed pathos to temper the bathos.
Also, if you were concerned that Deadpool would have his razor-sharp, katana-like edge blunted by the House of the Mouse’s vice-like grip on the creative process, you have nothing to worry about. If anything, Reynolds and his writers seem emboldened by having some power in their corner now, and the superhero movie takes great delight in poking Mickey in the eye with a sharp stick.
Marvel is back… back again… tell a friend
Honestly, I know people write “how the MCU is back” after every Marvel movie these days, but this feels like a turning point for the MCU. You don’t need to be The Watcher to know the MCU has been in the doldrums these last few years, but there was an energy in the theater that I hadn’t experienced while watching an MCU film since seeing Spider-Man: No Way Home back in 2021 or maybe even Endgame.
If you think I’m an outlier here, you’re just wrong. A quick glance at social media will bring up pages and pages of effusive praise for the film, and not just from people with Deadpool avatars!
Digital Spy’s Ian Sandwell wrote, “[Deadpool 3 had] a promising start with an excellent opening gag, and if you’re still worried Deadpool has been tamed, the bloody and outrageous first set piece will resolve any worries.”
Meanwhile, Emily Murray from GamesRadar+ said, “[Marvel] understood the assignment and are more than delivering – was laughing right from the opening gag. It’s dumb. It’s fun.”
I could list more reviews, but you get the point. Critics were impressed by the film’s opening, which managed to capture Deadpool’s quintessentially profane magic.
Disney money, baby!
Marvel StudiosThat said, while the critical reactions will have pleased the suits over at Marvel and Disney, what’s really gonna get them absolutely rock hard is the box office projections. According to Variety, Deadpool & Wolverine is “on track to open to between $160 million to $165 million,” making it the biggest opening for an R-rated movie ever.
Obviously, these are just projections, but if they turn out to be true, then it should help Marvel Studios shake off the dandruff of box office despair that’s been clinging to their shoulders like a particularly tenacious sloth. A win at the box office will hopefully validate the more strategic release schedule Marvel has adopted in recent months.
Basically, instead of pumping out Marvel movies and shows, they’ve slowed things down and allowed audience anticipation to build back up. This strategy was pretty successful for Marvel back in the heady days of Phases 1 through 3, and if the energy at the Deadpool screening was anything to go by, it’s worked this time around.
Less is often more, as some random guy once said, and if it means we get more films like Deadpool & Wolverine over Ant-Man: Quantum-who-gives-a-sh*t, then I’m all for it.
The future’s bright… possibly
It’s not like we’re wanting for Marvel stuff either. We’ve just come off the back of the astonishing X-Men ‘97, and in the next 12 months, we’re gonna get Agatha All Along and Captain America 4. We’ve had a brief glimpse of them (courtesy of two recently released trailers), and they look good; although I’m not ready to call them great yet, they’re certainly intriguing.
We’ve also got Marvel’s triumphant return to Hall H and ComicCon this year, where we’ll probably learn more about all the new upcoming Marvel movies, including, most excitingly, Fantastic 4. All in all, there’s just a feeling that the sun’s started to rise on the MCU, and that feeling of optimism is contagious.
Yeah, there are those who’ll say it’s just more of the same from Marvel. They say these films are just overly sweet cinematic junk food that doesn’t nourish audiences in the way more ‘worthy’ movies do, but it’s perfectly possible to enjoy both. It’s not like when you eat a burger, you’re swearing off filet mignon for the rest of your life, is it?
To be honest, I’m just happy to feel optimistic about this franchise again. For too long, it’s been embarrassing to be a Marvel fan, and I’m glad the franchise seems to be finding its feet again. So whisper it because we don’t want to jinx anything, but the MCU is back, baby… maybe, please?
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