Deadpool and Wolverine | The Mouse comes for the Merc with a Mouth (Non-spoiler reviews)

You know...I, too, actually watched it last night with a friend as part of a (belated) birthday thing (he was out camping with family during his real bday icyw)...and I more or less agree with you.

(I have nothing better to do so here's a really-long spergout about my dumbass thoughts lol)

• Fights, generally good if not amazing. Of course, the opening fight where Deadpool literally uses Logan's skeleton to kill all the TVA agents was a great one, even the best of them all (from the humor to the violence, both in terms of how creative and bloody it was), and then the two separate Wolverine/Deadpool fights, void and Honda were also enjoyable, if not exactly at that same level (do still appreciate how bloody they are lol.

• Jokes, perhaps unsurprisingly, were 50/50. The obvious "lol, Deadpool walks in, makes a Mahvel reference, and then says the f-word!" ones are all over, and for me they varied between being commendably cheeky (or even clever), to being real obvious and ridiculous , though I suppose that I was often watching with somewhat-ironic enjoyment, so I suppose that helped alleviate some of the cringer moments. Of course, I do have to commend the crew for still being relatively bold and spicy with the humor, especially when it came to referencing the MCU and whatnot (I found "low point" and "'til your 90" to be chuckle-worthy tbh) - but again, I do have to repeat what everyone else (who aren't loyalist fanboys) is saying in that this is all pretty "safe edgy" in the end, since all the R-rated jokes and gags and jabs, even the ones directed at Disney/MCU itself, is all still ultimately a polished product that was directly overseen by Disney suits and market researchers - think of it as some executive imagining that they're talking to Reynolds himself that "Sure, you can say frick and piss on the multiverse and our corporate practices all you want, but don't forget who is paying you to do so, at the end of the day"...

• Main characters, were fun, but also not deep. Everybody already accepts that this Wolverine will not be the same one that had all that big arcs and journeys that he did in the Fox films, but even then, there was still some expectation that, behind all the Reddit humor and gracious violence, there will be a decent emotional core between Wade and Logan. And was there an emotional core? Yes, but not exactly a stellar one. Oh nooooo Deadpool really wants to be an Avenger but Happy Hogan told him he was too immature and now he's so depressed by it he literally ends his life as a superhero and leaves his gf and now works as a car salesman because he feels so worthless and considered only as a joke by the rest, and awwww shucks, this Wolverine was apparently too stubborn and drunk to save the X-Men from being killed by flatscans and then he went from "not caring enough" to "caring too much" by killing enemies to the point where the anti-mugga hate was justified and therefore making him the worst Wolvie in the multiverse... which all isn't necessarily bad, but is nonetheless rather basic. Also, the previous side characters from the first Deadpool movies (i.e. the blind black lady, the two lezzie mutants, Colossus, the sexy Indian dude cabbie, etc) are also sidelinded (likely a Disney decision to focus on more MCU stop)...so you know, if you like them (I do), it's a bit disappointing to see barely any interaction (or focus even) with them...especially considering that Deadpool's whole thing is that he wants to save them from the impending timeline destruction! Still, Hugh and Ryan generally get the job done (especially moreso the former when it comes to emotional beats) - and aside from the melodrama, the actual chemistry was enjoyable! At least in terms of the funny, especially when they fight and bicker with each other. And having decent humor chemistry is, ultimately, the movie's saving grace - after all, you've come to the capeslop to watch for this very thing, haven't you? And hey, you get what you pay for!

• Costumes, were pretty neat. Granted, I'm not a huge nerd about comic-accuracy and whatnot, but it was cool seeing all the costumes - which does include Wolverine's too, matter of fact. Of course, I didn't burst into tears about the whole thing like some manchildren on the Internet do...but hey, after all this time with Fox and their decisions about the X-Men, I think it was nice to see Huge Jackedman wear the yellow-and-blue and the cowl (even if the lore behind why Wolverine wears that costume is rather bleh) - not only because we got to actually see it in a physical form (and not as a shoddy Photoshop that so many capeshit "content creators" do), but also because I enjoy seeing vivid and colorful stuff in these sorts of flicks in general (especially since spending so much time in the drab butt Void is rather visually boring lol)

• Villains...fine. I suppose if you need a fix of the "pedantic and/or mischievous Bri'ish antagonist" trope, then you would be quite double satisfied! Or at least content, really. Maybe it's me, but I did enjoy Matthew Mcfayden for his performance as Paradox, and then Emma Corrin for her their (you don't want to be misgendering somebody...without a gender...you know) acting as Nova, especially as the former does the whole "pompous and ego-tripping bureaucrat twat" shtick, and then the latter with the "intelligent and nihilistic villian (with a wicked sense of humor)" angle. As always, the motives are basic(seriously, it's literally just "muwahahahah I'm gonna destroy your timeline (and then all the timelines) with my evil timeline-destroying machine because I just want to!!!!!") , but at least the interactions between them and the other characters and even the other villains were pretty fun. Overall, both actors took this as an opportunity to ham out - and like a fat motherlover, I indulge in this endeavor of ham!

• Cameos...because you can't have a Mahvel movie that doesn't make epic references!!!! And boy where these references extra epic, like a chimichanga!!! But for real, I suppose they were all pretty neat, with some - namely the Chris Evans fakeout, and then all of the resistance members (Elektra, Blade, Gambit, X-23/Laura) being slightly more neater. But of course, as cool as it was to see them, it's all but another routine MCU cameofest that's more style than substance...mostly. I guess I can't complain because it was all pretty cool, especially in terms of when they were fighting (I heard that the big battle to get to the top of Ant Man's head and put Juggernaut's helmet on Nova was pretty cool, but alas, I thought that I reached a good enough point to go to the bathroom and get a soda, so I more or less missed a huge chunk of it so woof lol)...and then a few of the jokes as well (Deadpool seemingly accusing Johnny Storm of saying bad things about Nova to get him killed - only to eventually show us all that Human Torch did say all that in the epic postcredits, jesting about Channing Tatum Gambit's thick Cajun accent, Reynolds and Snipes being rather bold with the "only one Blade" statement, and even the whole "Jennifer Garner Elektra being unbothered by Mattfleck Daredevil dying - which notably got quite a lot of my Middle America theater chuckling at the M E T A H U M O R (including me), and what not). I guess my feelings in the middle of a MCU fanboy's near-orgasmic hype, and an anti-capeshit video essayist's vitriolic hate - it's neat cameos, but not one with much meat to the bones.

• Story...mixed bag. Of course, I stand with the common public consensus that oops, it's all basic plot! The bad guys want to destroy Wade's timeline, and you know he don't want that so now he has to rescue his new favorite bub Logan to stop them nefarious schemes! I mean, I guess it really is all just a device to throw epic random humor and references and what not (and I am at peace with that)...but still, iirc the first two Deadpool flicks had a bit more heart to them, or at the very least a more unique plot and emotional core. And while I wouldn't necessarily say that this movie is being cynical (even the OG flicks had a degree of "let's make bank off of comic nerds lol") - I will say that Disney's influence has definitely neutered its potential somewhat, even if this influence is what allowed this movie to exist at all! But alas...I wish not to be too negative, so I will also say that, in terms of all this "multiverse" shit the MCU is doing these days...I'm honestly rather glad that D&W keeps everything (relatively) contained in the end. Neither Deadpool nor Wolverine join "Earth-616" (STOP FORCING US TO USE THE NEW UNIVERSE NUMBERING MICKEY MOUSE REEEE), and the ending is set up like they will be spending the rest of their days chilling in wherever the heck they are living at. Of course, this isn't going to stop Feig from perpetually bringing them out to face whatever next big scary bad guy that wants to destroy the Sacred Timeline, as dictated by the box office returns...but hey, at least there aren't more teasers or hype-building or any of that silliness. Just a story that, even with all the multiverse shenanigans, eventually starts and ends in the same pocket dimension. So yeah, mixed bag.

SHOW MORE