This is it. This is the end of the line. The MCU Rewatch comes to an end today, and while it's sad to see this end, it means that Avengers: Endgame is next week. Let's hop right to it. BACKGROUND:
After the emotional beatdown that was Avengers: Infinity War, it seemed like an ill fit for an epic tale to be followed by a much smaller-stakes affair in Ant-Man and the Wasp. I, for one, didn't mind, and was more interested to see where Ant-Man and co. were during/before the events of Infinity War. I actually talked about this movie on this blog right when it came out. You can read it here and compare my gut reactions from back then versus my post-rewatch feelings now. COMICS TO READ:
MY FAVORITE MOMENTS:
THE EASTER EGGS:
THE HEROES: Scott once again gets to be a cool dad, and his relationship with his family (especially with Cassie) is as endearing as ever to watch. We also see him try to make up for past mistakes, and him dealing with the fact that when he helps, sometimes he ends up getting other people in trouble. He's also still hilarious to watch. After being robbed in the first Ant-Man, we finally get Hope as Wasp, and it is glorious. Not only does she get to kick ass, we also get to see her relationship with her family evolve. It really feels like she has buried the hatchet with regards to her dad, and we get more of her love for her mother, something the first movie shows very little of. Huh. Family is a real big theme here, isn't it? THE VILLAINS: To our heroes, Ghost isn't anything more than a nuisance, as the primary goal of Pym and co. in this movie is to rescue Janet. That is, stopping Ghost isn't the central story. Despite this, Ghost is still a hell of an interesting character. I liked the "tortured soul" angle, and how she's motivated by fear and desperation as opposed to power or whatever the fuck it was Darren Cross wanted. She also gets a cool power set (complete with cool visual effects), plus a backstory that I really want to see more of. I hope she returns. Sonny Burch joins Ayesha in the league of "villains that kinda have to be here to move a few plot threads forward, but otherwise they're just here to annoy the heroes." It doesn't help that he's "generic evil businessman #576". OTHER THINGS:
THE AFTER-CREDITS: We get two stingers again. The first has the gang collecting quantum juice to help Ghost. Scott makes the jump to the Quantum Realm, but as luck would have it, the Snap just happened, and everyone except him dies, leaving him trapped in the Quantum Realm. This is probably the most traumatic mid-credits scene in the entire MCU (I heard a few gasps at the screening I went to). Additionally, there's no doubt in my mind that Scott being trapped will play an important role in Endgame. Janet even offhandedly says something about a "time vortex"? What's that about, I wonder? The post-credits scene seemed like it was meant to be funny, as it's the ant who was posing as Scott continuing the house arrest routine as normal. Instead, I found it incredibly eerie, especially with the emergency broadcast display on the TV. We only briefly see normal, everyday people affected by the Snap in Infinity War, and this is a clear sign that shit has really hit the fan. VERDICT: Ant-Man and the Wasp was a nice palate cleanser after the unadulterated madness that was Infinity War. It was (comparatively) low stakes, the focus was less on fisticuffs (but there's still some fun size-changing action to be had), and it was hilarious from start to finish. It's just good, ol'-fashioned fun, with some nice family dynamics to tie it all together. POSTSCRIPT: Well, here we all are, 20 weeks of rewatches (plus Captain Marvel) later. A wait that felt like an eternity is now suddenly mere days away. I really enjoyed revisiting all these movies (again), and trying very hard to find new things to say. I don't know if people liked this blog series at all (I don't even know if people read this shit to begin with), but at the very least, I hope I've encouraged a few readers to check out some of the source material I've provided (via the Comics to Read section). It's a goal of mine to get more people into the wonderful world of comics, and I can only hope that at least one person was encouraged by my attempts to share this interest. I've loved comic book characters for as long as I can remember, and the MCU is a realization of a childhood dream: a blockbuster franchise that not only brings my favorite characters to life, but is nearly universally beloved by people (even by those who haven't read a single comic book). As somebody who got picked on for liking comics (among various other things), it's refreshing to see that other people have actually grown to like stuff that I've enjoyed for a long time (even if it vexes me that some individuals treat me as if I'm a gatekeeping hipster). A lot of my passions are rather niche in nature, and I'm happy that, thanks to the MCU, there's at least one passion that I can share with more than just a small online community or a handful of friends. Whether you're just as much of a comic geek as I am, or you're a casual viewer with questions (perhaps to prepare for Endgame), you can always shoot me a message if you want to talk more MCU. Heaven knows I have a lot of shit to say. In addition, I would also like to hear what you think about certain things. "Did you like the Mandarin twist or not?", for example. I'm game for any discourse (as long as it isn't mean-spirited or just looking to start shit). Anyway, whatever, you don't care about this shit. Let's all get hyped for Endgame next week, shall we? I can barely contain my excitement! - end -
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June 2024
Derryck
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