MCU Time, feels like cap 4 was either a life time ago or a week ago, but anyhow here we are with Thunderbolts*. Hopefully this is going to be a lot of fun & escapism.

This is likely to be a long review & i saw this film twice back to back, once standard, once imax.

Trailers, Ballerina, How to train you dragon(that in imax was epic) mission impossible, Superman & finally FANTASTIC 4! Also loved that the IMAX countdown had changed to be F4 that was so cool.

My thursday 7:30 showing was almost sold out which was good. Mainly people my age.
My Bank holiday monday 10:40 IMAX showing was half full. A lot more families for this, i didnt see who was in the bottom tier of the auditorium.

& then the film started… I mean i think seeing it twice answers your questions.

Before we start we are not calling the film its new name. I was so pissed off that this was announced like not even 4 days after the film came out not just on social media but on busses & signs & posters. Some people do not have the luxury of seeing a film opening weekend. Maybe its not pay day &they cant afford it & Disney & the MCU are busy spoiling it for everyone else already? Year that pissed me off a lot. Also imagine going to ask to see that film & a new cinema staff member going we dont show a film by that name. Yea im angry at that. That did happen after my two viewings so im glad that was afterwards.

Big week for guys called Bob am i right? Yea we got a pope called Bob too this week. But yea i will protect Bob with all my life, he is just the best. I also had no idea before the press tour that Lewis was Bills son, just assumed a relation some where but i also had not idea that Wyatt is Kurk & Goldies son?! What the hell. I mean these are good nepos as i had no idea at all but damn, now i know i cant un see it.

Florence ooooh Queen Flo. She owned this & lead it & was funny but sassy & vulnerable & a just owned every second she was on screen. It was like she had been apart of the MCU for decades not just as 2 bit part characters in other stuff. She was the lead & she was phenomenal. Thats not saying that the rest of the thunderbolts werent amazing. See Marvel this is what happens when you get good actors together, you have something complex to fight about but you remember to also have some fun along the way. That is what this film is. Youve learnt your lesson that youve been forgetting for most of the MCU post Endgame. You need a message for your lead to learn you need a twist & you need to show that powers or no powers are sometimes needed but the power of acting & portraying it really well is the most important thing to your film.

The action scenes made me sit on the edge of my seat & go oooooh this is good especially when they were saving people in the town as the void started to become powerful. I liked that. It properly showed what they could do. All the other set pieces of action were too. It also justified to final over the top battle at the end. It wasnt needed. Even when they had a time clock to get things done by it was filled with stuff. It knew when to pause & it knew when to kick arse & be an action film. Lots of head scissors at one point, did you learn that from when you were Paige babes?

A Limo service… one had no idea that was still a thing, two hysterical & three ahhhhhhhhhhhh when stuff goes down with it. Such a small thing but also so fucking important. & yes weve all pulled our faces away when our dads have been embarrassing. But then the little moments between the two of them at the start & the end of the film were so sweet & moving. I didnt realise it the second time but i was crying watching Flo talk to David.

This is not just a super hero film. Its a film about mental health & depression & anxiety & feeling along & a let down &worthless & that really touched me. Its also so good to show that the villain presents as one thing but deep down hes something else but he doesnt want to be that so hes just stuck in one place & not letting everything else come out either. Very very clever marvel. So cleverly foreshadowed.

I dont trust Val, never have, never will & also what happened to half those committee people, we see them for like 3 maybe 4 scenes & then they are never mentioned again.

IT took them along time to rebuild the avengers tower didnt it, i mean i get it a lots gone down but still, considering it was sold a while ago like nearly a decade a go its a bit much that its still going & you cant blame the blip because when tony rebuilt it after assemble, it took what 3 years. nah aint buying that. Glad it still has a bar though, was waiting for the line of not a great plan, we got an on your left btu i was expecting that call back too.

I laughed a lot. Some subtle jokes & some full on out laddish jokes. It was funny, but not in a lets make you laugh for the sake of it. It was very much earned.

All those rooms, i hope we get clues as to what everyone elses were too.

There is a mid credit scene…meh & an end credit scene… which is super important, like so so so important its crazy, but also leaves so many questions for us to answer. The actual credits & the art work were very clever

Does every captain america have to protect bucky? I mean i would. Seb was looking fit as fuck, which considering he lost all the weight from playing trump for this is a big thing.

What happened to the guineapig?

I didnt think before i went in that i would be saying this was a buzzer contender, but it is. It more than deliver for me & it proves if you make the right product marvel & disney that you can create something that ticks every box for a super hero movie. Well worth a trip peoples.