Canon-Strike VI: Marvel Cinematic Universe

[Asura]

I love Doctor Strange. I remember leaving the cinema and been underwhelmed, then watching it again on dvd and it clicking. The mirror realm stuff is really neat, as is the time loop concept used to bore Dormammu (? Can’t remember) into conceding defeat.

Cumberbatch really nails the role. Strange is like Stark, but with a more developed sense of perspective and his role in the universe. Wong is a likeable foil, and the cape is ace. The magical effects are brilliant. I wish they’d use it with a tad more creativity, but Strange showcased that in IW.

Yeah, I loved the time loop thing. It was great to have a villain they defeat not by punching it, kicking it, shooting it...

Though it did have a "portal in the sky" climax, which is becoming a worn cliche.

[Dogg Thang]

Ha ha it’s not like us to say the opposite about a character, Dogg.

Well I don't disagree with you about Cumberbatch and I think he makes Strange really watchable. One thing generally about the Marvel movies is that I think their casting has been absolutely brilliant. I just find the character hard to pin down by the end of the movie. Like, he starts off with the big ego and I feel the idea was that he would be broken down but what came out the other side of his training? I don't know! But Cumberbatch is great.

[prinnysquad]

I think he starts off as an arrogant prick, and by the end still retains some arrogance, but with the burden of responsibility of being a portal defender, he’s less dismissive of people and the wider world. He knows his role in the world. He’s not a hotshot surgeon treating people like crap. He’s been taught a degree of humility by the revelation that this whole alternate reality exists.

Or something.

[QualityChimp]

Doctor Strange is the only Marvel films character than won by making the bad guy rage-quit.

[Dogg Thang]

It does deserve a lot of kudos for that ending, I reckon.

[fishbowlhead]

Doctor Strange is the only Marvel films character than won by making the bad guy rage-quit.

I mean, right? He actually annoyed a near immortal being enough so it just gives up.

[QualityChimp]

It's also one of my fave 3D films.
That trippy bit in Supes' gif and the folding city and all the translucent shields and ghostly out-of-body experiences, it looks great as well as being lots of fun.

BONUS: Scott Adkins plays a henchman.

[Neon Ignition]

Movie 15 - Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
Taking place not too long after the events of the first film, Guardians 2 primarily exists to answer the lineage questions over Starlord that the first film set up. As a result the film takes less of a focused stance on the Thanos arc than the original did but still released at a steady enough paced window that you get an overall arc from Vol1 to Vol2 to Infinity War for the characters and their motivations in the last Avengers film.



Does Guardians Vol.2 set up enough to help justify the characters important actions in Infinity War?

[QualityChimp]

I think this suffers a bit from being the second film.
People had low expectations of the first film but loved it.
They had high expectations of the sequel and it didn't match those expectations, despite being no worse a movie.

[Dogg Thang]

I feel it is a worse movie and in this essay I will prove it with screenwriting science: the characters have no agency.

That's it. That's my essay. Basically for very large chunks of that movie, the characters have nothing to do and no goal. They didn't have to do anything to find Quill's dad - he finds them. And then a bunch of the main characters have nothing to do other than hang out on Kurt Russell's planet for a big portion of the movie while time is filled with large blocks of exposition by Russell and some pretty visuals. In those sections, the movie comes to a halt. That never happened in the first movie, which had clear goals all the way through and character action carried us through at a brisk pace.

So yeah, I feel Guardians 2 is a worse movie because the characters pretty much have nothing to do for big parts of the movie. And it's the only Marvel movie I can think of where this happens. It's like that party scene in Ultron only for the meat of the movie rather than just being an intro and with a few history sections added.

It has a lot of comedy and some really fun moments which are probably comparable with the first movie. Baby Groot is adorable. The Mary Poppins line is hilarious. Not sure about the Hasslehoff cameo at all.

One very personal irk with this: Yondu is a knob but they play the "deep down he wanted to be a good father" thing and, as someone who had a rubbish dad, that trope just annoys me. Bad dads are bad dads. You don't get to repent at the end and make it all better.

[Neon Ignition]

Vol2 is one of those films where I get and broadly agree with people's issues with it but at the same time I enjoy it more than half the MCU movies. It's just fun to spend time with the characters and though Vol.2's structure is flawed it's at least different than the well worn mould Marvel likes to stick to. The ending lands for me too, it may be a forceably heavy twist of Yondu's character to make that arc work but it always lands for me.

[prinnysquad]

Holy Shid.

I agree with all you guys!

It’s exactly what Dogg says. Nothing much happens. It’s a character play. I love the sequence at the beginning with Mr Blue Sky, I love the attack on Rocket in the woods, I like the VR controlled attack ships sequence, and the ending is pretty ace. Yondu is a great character with a great coda. But in some respects it reminds me of Star Trek V. Not a great deal happens bar weighty character issues.

Yet, like SF, I like it. A lot. I can’t pinpoint why. Maybe SF nails it. It’s fun to be with the characters, which makes a character piece more enjoyable.

[Neon Ignition]

Movie 16 - Spider-Man: Homecoming
The first MCU movie to step out from being entirely under Marvels supervision is Sony's third incarnation of the web-slinger. The film opens with the aftermath of the first Avengers film in New York before jumping forward to a canonically impossible time period in the present day. Skipping the origins of Parkers powers and his Uncle's death we see Peter operate under the supervision of Tony Stark who is also responsible for nearly all of this Spider-Man's abilities. Thanks to Sony's ambitions for MCU Spider-Man to be an incredibly long running hero and spearhead of there SMCU extension project, Peter enjoys probably the slowest character development arc because he has so many films ahead of him but from this jumping point we get a fuller taste of the character after what was seen in Civil War.



How important is Spider-Man to the MCU currently?

[Neon Ignition]

Movie 17 - Thor: Ragnarok
The hard tonal reset for the character that pretty much lasted just for the duration of this one film. Ragnarok went out of it's way to counter the drab approach of Dark World as Thor was electrocuted and joked his way through his fathers death, the destruction of his home world and the impending near extinction of his race. The film also offered some plot progression for Hulk/Banner who hadn't been seen since Ultron.



Rate Ragnarok's role in the MCU arc

[Cassius_Smoke]

Movie 16 - Spider-Man: Homecoming

I'm gunna say it...i didn't like it. I think its quite a weak Marvel entry. I don't like the high-tech spider suit, it's like 'Iron-Man lite' rather than spiderman. The film seems to lack heart and doesn't really explore Peter Parker's character much. I also don't think Tom Holland can act very well.


...I'll just leave now...