Tag: Marvel

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Quantumania

I liked it.

Of course there are better movies, and better Marvel movies.

But this?  More entertaining to me than I expected.

Maybe that’s the secret, which I’ve been saying for a while, the newer Marvel films (i.e. post-Infinity War/Endgame) can’t be fairly compared to what’s come before.

Rather, they have to be looked upon on their own, despite having familiar characters from previous films/Phases.

They’re telling another story, the next big saga in the Book of Marvel.

Don’t expect them to wow you, just be entertained.  And I was, to be honest.

And if this Phase of movies don’t appeal to you, go back and watch the older ones, or wait for what comes after Avengers 6.

The only thing lacking in the film was an appearance by Luis.

And M.O.D.O.K. was more awesome than I expected him to be.

And if I’m being totally honest, you can probably wait for it on Disney Plus to see it, but the film looks great on the big screen.

Recommended.

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Thor: Love and Thunder

In the words of my nephew Joseph, “it was fun.”

I find it hard to get too excited about any Marvel film after Endgame, to be totally honest.

That said, it was an entertaining film, though it felt a bit rushed at times IMHO.

It moves the story along, that story being the almost 30 movie (and a few TV shows) story called ‘Marvel’.

I loved the goats.

I especially loved the mid credits scene.

Is it worth seeing?  Yes.

Is it worth seeing in the theatre? Sure, but I’ll wait until it’s on Disney Plus to see it again.

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Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness

It was good.

Not as good as, say, Shang-Chi or No Way Home, but better, IMHO, than Black Widow and Eternals.

It’s just hard to rank them in a post-Endgame world, what with 28 films on the list as well.

If anything, this felt more like a non-superhero Sam Raimi film.

The cameos were great, especially the one during the surprising mid credits scene.

It certainly felt like a shorter film than many of the other MCU movies.  Which isn’t good or bad, just an observation.

Just make sure you’ve at least seen Wandavision before seeing this film.

Recommended!  Go see it!

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No Way Home

I left the theatre saying that I liked it.

After sleeping on it, I was wrong.

I loved it.

This movie reminded me of everything that I love about Spider-Man and these movies.

I can’t say much more without spoiling A LOT of the film, I’ll just mention that I need a scene translated by my aunts or uncles.

Recommended.  Go see it!

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Eternals

I really liked it.

In the past I’ve described these movies as”[genre/trope] with superheroes”.

This was… indescribable in those terms.

Superhero movie with superheroes, maybe.

But yeah, I really liked it.

On it’s own, one of the best films I’ve seen this year.

In MCU rankings, this one doesn’t crack my top 5, maybe not even my top ten.

What little I know about the Eternals didn’t sway my enjoyment one way or another.

Though the end credits scene has me more intrigued than the mid-credits scene, which was also intriguing.

I kinda wanna see it again already, but I think I can wait for Disney+ to pick it up.

We’ll see.

Oh, and it appears that another trailer scene was absent from the film.

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Shang-Chi

Confession: I didn’t think I was gonna like this film as much as I do.

I remember being genuinely happy when it was announced that Simu Liu was cast in the lead role, having been a big fan of Kim’s Convenience.

That said, I was having a hard time *not* seeing Jung Kim whenever a trailer for Shang-Chi came on.

But once the movie started and he appeared on screen, he was Shang-Chi.

Or Shaun, initially.

The action/comedy/pacing on this film were about as perfect as I expect from a movie.  The only other film I put in that category is Raiders of the Lost Ark.

I daresay it’s my favorite Marvel film not called “Endgame”.

It’s certainly the best origin film that they’ve put out.

And I wonder how many non-Asians understood the line, “I speak ABC!”

Highest recommendation possible for this one.

It’ll be on Disney+ in a month and a half, if you can’t or don’t want to hit your local theatre.

The only thing that bums me out about this film?

I have to clear a spot in my all-time Top Ten Movies for this one.

It’s already taken the #5 spot in my All Time Marvel Movies list, bumping Ant-Man down a spot.

While both take place in my hometown of San Francisco, the inclusion of one of my all time favorite songs puts it over Ant-Man in the list.

As of this post, I’ve seen it 3 times, opening weekend.  Last movie I saw that many times was The Rise of Skywalker.

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What If…?

One of my favorite comics when I was a kid was Marvel’s “What If…?”.

Back in the day I missed picking up the first few issues, so the first one I read was this one:

The Fantastic Four with different powers?  And a full explanation of how the powers manifested differently?  Blew my 10-year old mind.

And then I didn’t get another issue until this one:

NICK FURY IN SPACE!  Holy crap!

And at the time Marvel was publishing Star Wars, so I was hoping for a crossover with Nick Fury and Han Solo teaming up.  Oh well.

I never got more than a couple of issues consecutively, because the one comic shop where I could find it was the one at Pier 39, which I didn’t go to regularly.  I also found an occasional issue at the flea markets around here.

A few years back I eventually read the entire series when it was released in trade paperback form, acquiring the first 2-3 collected volumes, and  then finished it when it became available on comiXology.com.

It always remained as a favorite, even the more recent What If…? series that came out to cover Marvel’s later history and big events.

Flashforward to now, over 40 years later, and about 13 years after the MCU started with Iron Man.

The first episode of Marvel’s “What If…?” animated series premiered on Disney+, and it was good.

Nothing beats the old comics, but this comes close.

I heard that the idea was to produce 1 episode for each film in the MCU, which now totals 24, but this first season will only be 9 episodes long.

And what a first episode!

Peggy Carter becomes the first Super Soldier.

It felt enough like the old comic for nostalgia’s sake, but with the voices of many of the original actors, I’d love to see this in live action with modern effects.

It even had me guessing and speculating on where the MCU would have been changed, like who becomes the Winter Soldier in this universe?  Who was the Red Skull summoning?  Questions that were answered before the end of the episode, thankfully.

I hope they do get to make at least one episode for each MCU film, and then for the 3 and later upcoming Disney+ series.

I’m totally on board for this show, and they just can’t make them fast enough.

And I gotta get my hands on that Hydra Stomper.  It’s awesome.

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Spider-Man: Far From Home

There was a moment during the film that I felt like I was in a Spider-Man/Mysterio comic book by Lee and Ditko.  It felt THAT right.

And there was another moment that I almost stood up and screamed, “I KNEW IT!”

It was about as good as Homecoming, maybe a little better at some points.

Tom Holland continues to amaze (heh) me in his role as Peter Parker/Spider-Man.  This guy truly plays the part as I remember him when I was reading the comics growing up.

And it does wrap up the Infinity Saga quite well.

Two thumbs up.  Recommended.

Go see it!

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VUDU and Marvel

I’m a completest.

Every time VUDU has a Marvel movies sale, I try to pick one up that I don’t own in order to round out my collection.

Of course, this means I’m down to Iron Man 3 and Thor The Dark World since I bought everything else as they came out.

Today I decided on Iron Man 3.  Next time will be Thor The Dark World.

I’m guessing their next Marvel sale will be in July, before Spider-Man Far From Home comes out.

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Whatever It Takes

At WonderCon in 2008, while watching Jon Favreau’s first clip for Iron Man, I NEVER dreamed that I and many of my friends and family would be so invested, emotionally and otherwise, in what has become the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

And 11 years later, the end is near.

Because if we can’t protect the Earth, you can be damned well sure we’ll avenge it.