Marvel Studios’ What If? – Season 1 Episode 9 (Season Finale) – Preview

Warning: This article contains spoilers from Marvel Studios’ ‘What If?’ Season 1 and I would highly recommend watching this animated series via Disney Plus before proceeding with your read.

“What If…The Watch Broke His Oath?”

Photo Credit: Marvel Studios

Throughout the comics and even in the entirety of the ‘What If?’ Disney Plus series, ‘The Watcher’ (voiced by Jeffrey Wright) has observed events unfold within different universes, some for worse and some for better but has not intervened at any cost. As is custom to the race from which The Watcher descends, although this all changed with the introduction of last week’s episode which featured a version of ‘Ultron’ (voice by Ross Marquand) who won and proceeded with his age of misery. Accompanied by long time MacGuffin the ‘Infinity Stones’, Ultron would go onto decimate planets and populations within his universe. Once finished with his purpose, he felt the presence of The Watcher which up to this point only ‘Doctor Strange/ Strange Supreme’ (Benedict Cumberbatch) has been able to do so.

Photo Credit: Marvel Studios

This surprised The Watcher as Ultron did not only feel his presence but he could see him which was horrifying moment for both the protagonist and me personally. To make it worse, not long after the ‘out of control’ Android figured out a way to break free of his earth which become a real doom and gloom situation. This resulted in battle between these two powerful beings where they literally broke through shards of different universes. Although The Watcher showed why he is a significant force in the multiverse by putting up a good fight, you kind of felt sorry for him as Ultron creatively tried to afflict damage even taking a bite at the ‘Milky Way’ galaxy (take that Galactus). The conclusion resulted in ‘The Watcher’ fleeing from an Ultron who had won the fight and is now an imminent threat to the entire multiverse.

Official Clip Released

Photo Credit: Marvel Studios

“In the midst of a battle with Ultron’s army, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is chosen by The Watcher (voiced by Jeffrey Wright)“ – IGN. https://youtu.be/bU-FcHQL9uY

‘Marvel Studios’ has released an official clip leading up to the season finale and it features ‘Party Thor‘ in mid battle against the cliffhanger that was Episode 7. Just a recap this was the scene where Ultron’s army showed up to ruin the happily ever moment that was Thor asking Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) out on a date. Even The Watcher appeared to be surprised which is a bit strange because it’s as if it was the first time he had seen this variant or version of Ultron. Unless he taken by surprise that Ultron had reached Thor’s universe already in his conquest to bring “peace in his time”.

Photo Credit: Marvel Studios

Whatever the explanation is the scene appears to take place not too long after in Las Vegas where Thor is taking out the Ultron bots, at the same time grumbling about his date with Jane being ruined. It’s humorous because The Watcher is trying to introduce himself to Thor but Thor is either distracted or oblivious of The Watcher’s presence. It’s not until ‘The Watcher’ literally picks up Thor which causes the Asgardian to scream his lungs out. This scene was great because it displayed how big The Watcher can project him, to the point where he can literally pick up heroes like they are action figures but also the comedic beats that came with it. There appears to be a slight time change as Thor is fighting at night time and the main Ultron is no where to be found which raises more questions. I guess we’ll have to wait for the season finale to air on Disney Plus to find out.

Photo Credit: Marvel Studios

The season finale will also introduce a version of ‘Gamora’ who appears to be wearing similar armour to ‘Thanos‘ as well as from a deleted scene in ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ where we see a flashback of Gamora in her previous life working for the ‘Mad Titan’. Unfortunately her episode was moved to Season 2 due to COVID-19, so there might be a few references which we won’t understand. However the season finale is more focused on the formation of the ‘Guardians of the Multiverse’ which we’ve seen in some previous leaked promotional material and in all the trailer footage. The Watcher as ‘Nick Fury’ and ‘Valentina Allegra de Fontaine’ (Val) have been doing in the ‘Marvel Cinematic Universe’ (MCU), will be forming a team of his own.

This will feature the return of the Supreme Strange who we saw in the end tag scene of last week’s episode as well as ‘Black Widow/ Natasha Romanoff’ (Lake Bell) who posses the key to stopping Ultron with the help of Arnim Zola (Toby Jones). We will also see the return of Captain Carter/ Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell), Star Lord T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman) and Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan). Sadly this episode will feature the last appearance of Chadwick Boseman in the MCU as this was final episode that he recorded before passing away in 2020. This episode is also expected to culminate all the plot points that have been seen this season which includes the Zombies episode as well as the Peter Quill/ Star Lord (Brian T. Delaney) story line with Ego (Kurt Russell).

Photo Credit: Marvel Studios

Are you excited for the ‘What If?’ season finale? If so, what are you looking forward? Comment below, I would love to hear from you.

I’m Thinking of Ending Things – Spoiler Review (Part One)

Warning, spoilers ahead! The article below discusses spoilers from Charlie Kaufman’s ‘I’m Thinking of End Things’ which can be accessed through Netflix.

Introduction to Charlie Kaufman

To kick off, I just have to say that this is my first ‘Charlie Kaufman’ film and my really good friend (Benjamin ’Benny’ Jones) had recommended for me to watch another of Kaufman’s work instead. Although, as I had already seen the trailer, I made it my commitment to watch this film – in its whole 2 hour and 14 minutes runtime. I’m more of a comic-book/ superhero film or TV show kind of guy but as of late I’ve been wanting to broaden my horizon and this film had me intrigued. Where to begin, let’s just say this film is more than meets the eye. I went in expecting one thing and left with my mind blown as to how the plot panned out.

Dumbstruck

I’ve watched the film once and based on my first viewing, I still have no idea what this film is about. The premise of this film is centred around a couple that are on the rocks. Jake (Jesse Plemons) and the Young Woman’s (Jesse Buckley) relationship is put under the microscope. This plays as a backdrop, as the characters take a journey to see Jake’s parents for dinner. In the midst of it we (the audience) are given full exposure to the psyche and inter-workings of the Young Woman’s mind. A lot of the dialogue adds to this, as it helps to reveal the character’s perspective on life and things in general.

Two storyline’s

The film is focused on Jake and the Young Woman as they commute to Jake’s parent’s farm for the evening but throughout the film we are introduced to an older gentleman. The Janitor’s (Guy Boyd) character takes centre stage and adds more confusion to the mix. My impression of this man at first, was that it was a future version of Jake or a parallel version of character. Kaufman’s use of the character is fascinating, as at times it seems random to have him in the film but as we get to the third act of the film, we find out that he is a janitor that works at Jake’s old school. The link seems more personal though, as his scene’s seem to override the main storyline and things start get even more stranger as we see the Janitor’s uniform in a washing machine at Jake’s parents home. It’s as if this is the Janitor’s story that we’re witnessing but it’s hard to say whether it’s fact or fiction.

Thriller Vibes

As we arrive at Jake parent’s house, the tone of the film changed for me and I was concerned for the Young Woman’s well being. We find that some really shocking things took place at the farm which comprise of the death of farm animals such as young lamb and pigs that were neglected. Jake’s relationship with his parents played by Toni Collette (Mother) and David Thewlis (Father) also seem odd. Jake appears to be distant with his father and at times has moments where he looses his cool. The family dynamic is really strange as Jake doesn’t come off as liking his parents but later on, we see how deeply cares for his mother in her old age.

Time jumps/ Non-Linear Timeline

Speaking of Jake’s parent’s old age, there are a no few scenes where their age changes and then shifts back. I’m not sure if this is time jump or if it’s again a look inside the Young Woman’s head as she imagines Jake’s relationship with his parents. This could also lead back to the theory that this whole film is the Janitor’s story and he’s adding these changes as his tells it. The whole film changes for me when we visit the farm, as the timeline becomes non-linear. Interesting events take place such as the unexpected experiences like the family dog who appears and disappears. Also the journey down to the basement (which has scratch marks on the door) and other parts of the house like the stairs that seem longer than they appears to be.

Fact or Fiction

There are some really odd moments in the film such as the random snow that appears inside the house as the Young Woman goes down to the basement. Or when the film that the Janitor or old man is watching finishes and the end credits appear on screen. These moments of randomness that make you question if the events that are unfolding are even real or if they’re imaginary. Musicals or theatre play a part in the film too especially as they seem to be significant to the Janitor’s character and in the third act of the film, two young actors take on the role of Jake and the Young Woman, as they dance in the school corridors. The film gets even more weird as the Janitor walks through the corridors undressed and is confronted by an animated pig. who is thought to be one that had passed away (earlier spoken of in the film). These different moments make me question the credibility of the story and as to what might be real about it.

To be continued…

Thank you for taking time to read this as I try to navigate through this mind bending film and I hope that some of these observations helped you to piece your theory together of what this film is really about.

What did you think of this film? Let me know, I would love to hear from you!

Photo Credit:

– https://www.google.co.nz/amp/s/www.socialnews.xyz/2020/09/03/im-thinking-of-ending-things-movie-new-hd-stills/amp/

– https://www.google.co.nz/amp/s/collider.com/im-thinking-of-ending-things-netflix-images-charlie-kaufman/%3famp

WandaVision – Trailer Review

Warning, Spoilers Ahead! The following article discusses footage that appears in the ‘WandaVision’ trailer. Feel free to watch this first and then come back to read this article. Please see link for video via the ‘Marvel Entertainment’ YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/sj9J2ecsSpo

Marvel Studios, you’ve done it again!

The first full trailer for Marvel Studios’ latest ‘Disney Plus’ series was released during the ‘Emmy Awards’ yesterday and it took the internet by storm. I for one was taken by surprise when the news broke and after multiple viewings of the footage, I can’t help but get excited. With COVID-19, most films and shows have been delayed or rescheduled and this was no exception for big studios such as ‘Disney’. Although for months, we’ve been longing for new footage or any content at all to appease our appetites.

Christmas came early!

Marvel did in 1 minutes and 21 seconds what other studios can only think of doing with big online events (not taking shots at anyone by the way). This series off the bat looks amazing and the new footage gives us a more in-depth look at the ‘chaos magic’ used to bring this false reality to life. ‘Kevin Feige’ (Chief Creative Office at Marvel & President of Marvel Studios) has talked about how this series will give us a true depiction of ‘Scarlet Witch’. And I’m confident to say with this trailer footage alone, that Elizabeth Olsen delivers as ‘Wanda Maximoff’ again. The show has an old school vibe to it with the use of a black & white colour scheme and audience reactions that makes it feel like a family sitcom. Although as it progresses, you get remnants of the modern ‘Marvel Cinematic Universe’ as the witches spell starts to wears off.

Fun fact: The background song used in the trailer is “Twilight Time – Single Version” by The Platters.

The World of WandaVision

We relive the Vision’s (Paul Bettany) fate in ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ (2018) which is brought up by Kathryn Hahn’s witch type character who gives truth to the illusion. Hahn is rumoured to playing ‘Agatha Harkness’, a powerful witch and the antagonist of the film. Although from the footage we get of Hahn’s character, she seems to be more friend than foe but then again this could be a rouse to trick Wanda into creating her fantasy.

The trailer also gives us our first look at Teyonah Paris’ older version of ‘Monica Rambeau’ or ‘Photon’ (for you comic book readers) who was last seen in ‘Captain Marvel’ (2019). Rambeau’s introduction in the trailer sees the character flying through the mid air and then appearing in a different time and place. Now this could just be how the footage is edited but it could also be the character breaking into the Scarlet Witch’s new formed reality. The character is greeted by some military officials but based on leaked set footage, this could be the organisation known as ‘S.W.O.R.D’. The spaced based ‘S.H.I.E.L.D’ like group was teased in the post credit scenes for ‘Spider-Man: Far From Home’ (2019) and appear to have a presence in this film.

Memorable Moments

The footage also reveals that the show will travel through different time periods as seen through the costume design for some of the characters. We’ll also see a few big events which include the wedding or the harmony period of Wanda and Vision. As well as that we have some Halloween sequences which give us a nice hat tip to Vision’s costume from the comics as well as another look at the comic-book accurate Scarlet Witch costume. And to top it off, let’s forget another appearance of the twins (Wiccan and Speed) who we get a better look at this time around. These events do make me curious though, as to how the show will begin. Specifically for Vision, as the last time we saw the character he was a lifeless grey body in ‘Infinity War’ and from the dialogue of ‘Avengers: Endgame’ (2019) we know he did not have a proper funeral either.

Conclusion

This was superb trailer and gave us some insight to the adventures that will unfold but at the same brought up questions like how will Darcy Lewis (Kat Dennings) and Jimmy Woo (Randall Park) fit into this show? With the series debuting on Disney Plus at the end of the year, I for one am very excited to see how this show ties in with the Marvel Cinematic Universe specifically ‘Doctor Strange: Into the Multiverse of Madness’ that is still scheduled for a 2022 release.

What did you think of the first trailer of “WandaVision”? Comment below, I would love to hear from you!

Arrow – Green Arrow and the Canaries (After Thoughts)

“Arrow – Season 8 Episode 9”:

Spoilers Ahead!

The penultimate episode of the series saw a flash forward to the future, testing the waters for a possible spin off show. Of course you knew that already, if you’re a regular of the show. I have to admit, ‘Arrow’ isn’t necessary a show that I’m up to date on and only watch crossover episodes for major events in the interconnected television universe. Although when hearing that the second to last episode was dedicated to a pilot for a spinoff show, I was intrigued. The episode focuses on Laurel Lance’s (Katie Cassidy) quest to find and convince Mia Smoak (Katherine McNamara) and Dinah Drake (Juliana Harkavy) of a threat that is to come, while at the same time reminding them of the past.

Now I didn’t mind this episode but wasn’t excited enough to demand more screen time from these characters, let a lone an entire new show. As a regular audience member that wasn’t invested into the show, I didn’t know too much about the character apart from the basics. And although the show used plot devices to make things interesting such as memory lose and the aftermath of the previous crossover event ‘Crisis on Infinite Earths’. I believe that the characters involved have already had enough screen time within the continuity of the series.

I thought this side adventure was cool for those invested in the show, particularly those with questions about these characters following the events of ‘Crisis on Infinite Earths’ and hopefully this gave a bit of closure to their storyline’s. Whether the network proceeds with the spinoff show or not, I believe that with the expansive interconnected universe that is the ‘Arrowverse’ there is always room for these characters to come back in some shape or form.

What did you think of the ‘Green Arrow and the Canaries’? Comment below, I would love to hear from you!

Bloodshot – Trailer 2 (After Thoughts)

I don’t know too much about this character nor have I read the comics but this second trailer reminds me of ‘Deadpool’ (2016) and ‘Aldrich Killian’ (Guy Pearce) of ‘Iron Man Three’ (2013). Why those two things you might ask? Well Vin Diesel’s Ray Garrison/ Bloodshot can take shots and still not die but in turn having the ability to regenerate his limbs. These powers he receives as a result of an experiment which sounds a bit like the plot for the first ‘Deadpool’ film. To make things more interesting, the man behind the experiments is none other than Guy Pearce’s character, who is also an antagonist. Taking a step back down memory, we find that Pearce has previously played a similar role in another comic book film – Iron Man Three. This film kind of remind me of ‘Alita: Battle Angel’ (2019) at the same time with the other subjects who partake in the experiments and come after our protagonist. With that being said that I’m looking forward to seeing how this film performs and hope that it is done well and received equally.

What did you think of the latest trailer for Bloodshot? Comment below, I would love to hear from you!

Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part Five (After Thoughts)

“Legends of Tomorrow – Season 5 Episode 1”:

Spoilers Ahead!

Let’s talk about the conclusion of ‘Crisis on Infinite Earths’ which saw the aftermath of battle at the ‘Dawn of Time’ where ‘The Spectre’ (Oliver Queen) and the ‘Paragons’ were able to defeat the ‘Anti-Monitor’ (LaMonica Garrett) and recreate the multiverse. This final part was my least favourite, now don’t get me wrong I didn’t mind the coming together of all the ‘Arrowverse’ shows on one earth, as this was the purpose of this crossover. But I felt that the coming off the battle with Anti-Monitor (which felt too easy), this episode didn’t need another battle and if a battle sequence was required that it could’ve been a continuation from ‘Part Four’. We didn’t see the ‘Anti- Monitor’ reach his full size until the finale and when he did, the character felt more like ‘King Kong’ then the destroyer of worlds.

Being the ‘Legends of Tomorrow’ part of the crossover we did get humour and this came in the form of one large stuffed toy name ‘Beebo’. I enjoyed this aspect of the episode as heroes like ‘The Flash’ (Grant Gustin), ‘Supergirl’ (Melissa Benoist), ‘Batwoman’ (Ruby Rose) and Team Arrow were surprised by the unlikely adversary. I also like the realisation of the heroes that they were all on the same earth, which was topped off by the Marv Wolfman cameo who was the editor of the comic book event. I also liked how the team paid tribute to the deceased ‘Oliver Queen’ including the memorial for him at the ‘Justice League’ headquarters.

I thought there were still some choices that were questionable like the use of ‘Dinah Drake’ (Juliana Harkavy) on comms, which would have felt better with someone like ‘Felicity Smoak’ (Emily Bett Rickards) who was mentioned by name but made no appearance (missed opportunity). I did find the sudden reappearance of Superman (Tyler Hoechlin) a bit weird and also how Dreamer (Nicole Maines) had no lines in the battle against the ‘Anti-Monitor’, as audiences unaware of the character would have been lost with her inclusion. I did however find it assuming seeing Alex Danvers (Chyler Leigh) and Wild Dog (Rick Gonzalez) bringing guns to a fight against a cosmic being. The ending of the crossover was notable on ‘Earth Prime’ as our ‘Arrowverse’ heroes formed their television version of ‘Justice League’ with roundtable and spare seat for ‘Green Arrow’ as well. We got a glimpse at all the other shows both past and present which included upcoming shows such as ‘Stargirl’, ‘Green Lantern’ and the ‘Superman’ show with a possible cameo from ‘Brandon Routh’ Superman confirmed? I also liked the nods to the ‘Titans’, ‘Swamp Thing’ and ‘Doom Patrol’ series from the ‘DC Universe’ streaming service.

All in all, I enjoyed this crossover specifically with the canonisation of previous shows and DC content which included film incarnations of characters. Although there was room for improvement specifically with treatment of the ‘Anti-Monitor’ character towards the back half. I am however interested to see how each show addresses the crossover and what lays ahead for future events to come.

What did you think of DCTV’s crossover event? Comment below, I would love to hear from you.

Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part Four (After Thoughts)

“Arrow Season 8 Episode 8″:

Spoilers Ahead!

Shut the front door and sit down on the couch or kind of seat because we need to take about the thing. You know when DC put two versions of ‘The Flash’ on screen together (mind blown!). That moment was unbelievable, to imagine that we could see film and TV collide with two incarnations of Barry Allen on the silver screen together for a couple minutes, was brilliant! When Ezra Miller was cast as Barry Allen, everybody was a little upset because Grant Gustin for so long had been their definitive Flash but who would knew that the folk at Warner Bros would give the all clear on this historic moment. Forget the crossover, can we just watch this over and over again on replay (sorry a getting little carried away here).

I liked how the episode explored the events that kicked off ‘Crisis on Infinite Earths’ in the first place. Taking a detour from the comics, we find that it was the Monitor/ Mar Novu (LaMonica Garrett) who alerted the Anti-Monitor to the multiverse in the first place as a pose to Pariah (Tom Cavanagh). Being the ‘Arrow’ related episode we got a lot of flash backs to previous seasons of the show and explored moments that dealt with Oliver Queen’s (Stephen Amell) involvement. I liked that aspect of the episode as well as seeing the character become the ‘Spectre’ through his mentoring by the previous incarnation Jim Corrigan (Stephen Lobo). I liked how the opening dialogue came from Ryan Choi (Osric Chau) as his character was centric throughout this episode and you could see why as he was becoming his own. For those unaware the character is also ‘The Atom’ in the comics and with Brandon Routh leaving ‘Legends of Tomorrow’ as Ray Palmer, it was a sort of passing of the torch moment.

The use of the Speed Force as a plot device, I didn’t mind too much as you can’t have The Flash and not his powers. I liked how we travelled to Planet Malthus which is where Mar Novu is from as well as the time jump that was used as the shows often did move forward in time when they are on a break. I did have some negatives mostly regarding the final battle which felt way too short and how easily the Anti-Monitor was defeated. I do understand that he is defeated by ‘The Spectre’ and his forces in the comics and the ‘Part Five’ will deal with the aftermath of the battle but I would have like for the battle to be longer or to continue in the next instalment. I also have a lot of questions about what Ryan Choi was doing in the battle after the forces of the Anti-Monitor. That’s just nitpicking but all in all, I enjoyed this episode specifically that cameo. I do have to say though, if a cameo is the biggest moment of your episode that is not related to the plot, that’s a worry.

What did you think of the latest episode of Arrow? Comment below, I would love to hear from you!

Black Widow – Special Look (After Thoughts)

Marvel Studios gave us some new footage for their upcoming ‘Black Widow’ film. The special look proceeded a ‘behind the scenes’ clip which featured Scarlett Johansson, Kevin Feige and Cate Shortland talking about the character’s history within the Marvel Cinematic Universe as well as the fans demand for a film that was dedicated to Natasha Romanoff. This ‘Special Look’ clip in particular extended upon footage that we had previously seen but gave us a better look at the films antagonist ‘Taskmaster’. Fans who previously attended San Diego Comic Con and D23 in 2019 had an opportunity to see some of the scenes featured. It was awesome seeing Taskmaster go toe to toe with Natasha, mimicking her fighting style; even in the same stance during their action sequence.

However the question still remains who is behind the mask? A couple of candidates come to mind and one of them got more screen time from the footage made available. Rachel Weisz’ Melina Vostokoff is seen in action and a lot of fans are predicting her to be Taskmaster based on her comic book alter ego of ‘Iron Maiden’. Now this isn’t a bad theory as the antagonist has the ability to copy their opponents moves and the fighting style seen by Taskmaster so far appear similar to Romanoff’s. The other contestant is O-T Fagbenle’s Mason who has made zero appearance in any of the footage. We did see the actor with the cast at Sam Diego Comic Con 2019, so the actor must be playing a significant role and Mason could be just a fake alias.

We also got more of Florence Pugh’s Yelena Belova but more in dialogue as well as David Harbour’s Red Guardian/ Alexei Shostakov who brings his strength and humour. Along with the main cast we got a little more footage of the current members of the Black Widow program and more scenes of the flashback to Natasha’s old days as an trained assassin. The trailer continued to grow my excitement for the film and I can’t wait to see what surprises Marvel has hidden in this outing.

What did you think of the latest Black Widow footage? Comment below, I would love to hear from you!

Morbius – Teaser Trailer (After Thoughts)

Sony’s latest outing for its Spiderverse, sees us introduced to ‘Morbius’. Now I’m not too familiar with the character apart from the fact that he is a Spider-Man villain. The trailer shows his origin from being a scientist who tries to cure himself from a rare blood disease but in turn becomes something else. His supposed cure makes him a bad guy, one who has super speed, strength, eco-location and the ability to teleport. This also comes with its side affects with his desire for blood, making him an antagonist but every character has their own enemies and I’m excited to see who this is for Dr. Michael Morbius (Jared Leto). From all that we’ve seen I think that Leto is doing awesome with this role and I can’t wait to see him interact with other Spider-Man related characters.

Sony used this teaser trailer to make sure audiences understood that this character exists with the Marvel Cinematic Universe and will be associated with Tom Holland’s Spider-Man specifically. This was seen through references to the previous the MCU Spider-Man and ‘Venom’ (2018) films as well as a Spider-Man image with the graffiti of the word ‘Murderer’ over the top of it. This shows that the film will take place after the events of ‘Spider-Man: Far From Home’ (2019) which revealed the web slinger’s identity to the world and also made him out to be a villain in the eyes of the public. J.K Simmons is rumoured to reprise his role as ‘J. Jonah Jameson’ from ‘Spider-Man: Far From Home’ and is expected to bring more Spider-Man hatred.

The trailer takes the Spidey connections to another level with Michael Keaton’s Vulture seen interacting with the Morbius. Keaton is seen in his prisoner uniform giving context to the characters journey within the Spider-Man films so far. Early speculations could potentially lead to the characters working together as members of the Sinister Six. Finally the exciting prospect of the introduction of Morbius is tie in with the character of ‘Blade’. The character was featured in a deleted scene in Wesley Snipes’ 1998 film and now with a new take on the character in the form of Mahershala Ali coming up in the near future, could Marvel Studios use the shared agreement with Sony to step up an antagonist with Leto’s Morbius?

All in all, I enjoyed this trailer as it educated audiences who didn’t know the character that well and also gave us excitement for this film with its connections to Spider-Man and the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

What did you think of the teaser trailer for Morbius? Comment below, I would like to hear from you!

X-Men: Dark Phoenix – Review (After Thoughts)

Spoilers Ahead!

With the Fox X-Men franchise on its last legs before the inevitable Disney take over and the characters returning home to Marvel Studios, Simon Kinberg gave us ‘X-Men: Dark Phoenix’ (2019). The film follows the events of the ‘X-Men: Apocalypse’ (2016) and sees our mutant friends during the 90s, dealing with the ‘Phoenix’. I personally didn’t mind this film, in fact I thought it was better than ‘X-Men: The Last Stand’ (2006). Now I know that that doesn’t give you much confidence but these set of films peaked with ‘X-Men: Days of Future Past’ (2014), so I went in with low expectations after the underwhelming outing that was its predecessor.

I wasn’t totally blown away but enjoyed this telling of the story of Jean Grey (Sophie Turner) becoming the Phoenix. Not one that has watched the ‘X-Men: Animated’ series personally but I believe that this film does follow the events of the Phoenix Force storyline closely to what fans are aware of through that show. I liked how the film loosely introduced the ‘Shi’ar’ through the character of Vuk (Jessica Chastain) but I would have liked more of the alien race, even an end tag scene during Apocalypse. The death of Mystique/ Raven (Jennifer Lawrence) definitely set the tone and unravelling the backstory of Jean’s introduction to ‘Xavier’s School for Gifted Teenagers’ was interesting. The film did move in a fast pace and I was surprised as to how quickly we got to the third event but I do have to give Kinberg credit for not dragging it along, focusing on pointless sub plots.

All in all, I didn’t mind this film of the X-Men franchise and preferred it over ‘X-Men: Apocalypse’. It was enjoyable but not mind-blowing, in saying that if you’re a fan of this current set of characters, definitely do check it out!

What did you think of the final chapter of Fox‘s X-Men franchise? Comment below, I would love to hear from you!