It’s been a weird few years for the MCU. With Endgame’s ostensibly closing out phase three, it feels like it’s been missing the wonder and quality of the last 16 years of movies. If anything, the TV shows on Disney+ have been carrying the brunt of the storytelling responsibilities, and everything else has seemed like an afterthought. They used to be tentpole films that sold out immediately, but now it’s almost worth waiting for streaming to see them for free. But then comes Deadpool & Wolverine to change all that as we finally have something to look forward to seeing in theaters. It’s not perfect and can be a bit heavy handed with the jokes, but it really does hit where it counts and rewards us for putting up with a lot of the mediocrity we’ve recently gotten.
Deadpool and Wolverine fight bad guys and start a bromance.
There, see, I told you it would be spoiler-free.
I know everyone has been excited to see Deadpool join the MCU, but I will say that the connections are tenuous here. Yes, we get small aspects of it sprinkled throughout, but this is more a homage to the Fox years than anything else. This isn’t a bad thing, but everyone should have this as an understanding of what’s going on in the movie rather than hoping to see team-ups with more modern characters we’ve grown to know and love. There really isn’t even that much homework to do. The first two Deadpool films are a must, but that’s it. Loki season one is helpful, but the film does a great job of catching you up in just a few minutes.
Now for the important question – is this a real Deadpool movie? Simply put, it’s more Deadpool than the previous ones. You’ve got more blood, language, innuendo, and naughtiness than you’ve ever seen in a comic book movie, and it aims to set a new high (low?) bar for superhero R-rated movies.
As a small gripe though, it almost feels they were trying too hard. As if they were trying to make the movie as offensive as possible to push the limits of what Disney and Marvel would allow. And then to their surprise, they got the green light for everything. It’s not that it’s not funny – far from it, I never stopped laughing the entire runtime, but it was almost too much. We know Deadpool likes to curse, slap his butt, do drugs, and kill people, but it comes dangerously close to wearing out its welcome.
That quibble aside, everything else is fantastic. Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds have great chemistry together and watching them team up to save the day is even more entertaining than expected. Aside from that, the number of Easter Eggs and throwbacks to previous films is almost mindboggling but not distracting. Nostalgia can be awesome when used properly or annoying when not (ahem, Jurassic World), and Deadpool ensures that it’s not looking down its nose at the audience when it’s surprising them with cameos and moments that we never knew we wanted but absolutely needed. They may come fast and frantic, leaving little time to breathe between them, but each has purpose, and not one of them felt tacked-on or unnecessary.
Deadpool & Wolverine gives fans exactly what they want even if it plays out more like a farewell to the Fox years than a new start into the MCU itself. While its violence and potty humor can wear a bit thin, it’s not something you’ll notice at first if you let yourself just get absorbed into the story. It follows the “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” thought process, so even though it doesn’t give us much that is new, it’s not lesser for it. In short, this is a must-see summer blockbuster that you can tell they put maximum effort into for your maximum enjoyment.