Yes, “Deadpool & Wolverine” is fun, but it points to a larger problem

The big picture

• Deadpool and Wolverine
  brings together Marvel characters, but too much nostalgia affects the development of the story.
• The film brings back classic Fox characters for their send-off, but struggles to give them a significant presence.
• The MCU’s reliance on nostalgia, evident in the film, undermines the potential of the individual projects and the cohesion of the story.

One of Marvel’s biggest successes in recent times, Deadpool and WolverineIt is also one of the biggest movies of the summer and 2024. The unlikely buddy movie stars Wade Wilson (My name is Ryan Reynolds.) team up with a variant of Logan (Hugh Jackman) to stop the Time Variance Authority from destroying Wade’s world. Along the way, they come face to face with a viciously evil villain, Cassandra Nova (Emma Corrin), have hilarious, vulgar one-liners, and join forces with many long-lost Marvel characters. While it’s undeniably epic to reunite with some of the best pre-MCU characters, it’s hard to ignore a larger, lingering problem that has plagued many of Marvel’s recent theatrical releases: An over-reliance on nostalgia that sacrifices important elements of story and theme.

Nostalgia Clutters ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’

One of Deadpool’s most endearing elements is his fourth-wall-breaking antics. His over-the-top references touch on nearly every corner of pop culture, including the corporate shakeups that have kept the character in limbo for so long. As the MCU’s most meta-realistic character, the film took the cinematic universe’s penchant for mash-ups to the next level.bringing back many previously retired characters from the 20th Century Fox days. The titular characters were joined by Fantastic FourJohnny Storm (Chris Evans), Daredevilit’s Electra (Jennifer Garner), Loganby Laura/X-23 (Daphne Keen), Blade (Wesley Snipe), and (perhaps most surprisingly of all) Gambit (My First Encounter with Channing Tatum) from the deleted The X-Men spin off.

While it’s incredibly exciting to see the original stars return to roles that have faded into superhero movie history, it makes for an incredibly overstuffed roster in a film that already had a lot of plot to handle. With two powerful villains and a collapsing universe at stake, there’s a lot more time spent with the returning characters than in the here and now. Cassandra Nova in particular suffers from not having enough screen time. From the moment she appears, she’s clearly one of the most evil MCU villains to ever grace the screen, with abilities that would make Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) picky. Emotionally, she has deep complexities hinted at, though the audience is never given enough detail to feel for her the same way as other MCU villains. When she meets her end, It’s a shame to see her go before she’s had a real chance to shine.The same could be said of many of the highly anticipated characters that have been advertised to the public. Lady Deadpool created quite a stir when it was revealed that it was part of the adventure. Still, it’s just another Deadpool variant and ends up being forgettable and a bit disappointing. But the debut characters weren’t the only ones who deserved better treatment.

Fox’s Characters in ‘Deadpool and Wolverine’ Deserved Better

The main reason the film brought back so many Fox characters was to give them a proper send-off. While it’s certainly a thoughtful way to bring them back for one last hurrah, it’s not all that well planned. Garner is certainly great as Elektra, but the Daredevil the film has never been more popular with audiences (and currently has a 43% critics’ score and 35% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes), which does a lot to harm the sentimentality of the role. In the case of Johnny Storm, It came from a mostly well-received classic, which makes its bloody ending shockingIt could be argued that this Johnny is perhaps a variant and not the same as the Fantastic Four film, but without this confirmation, rewatching the original films becomes rather depressing.

The characters do have an epic battle, as Deadpool and Wolverine battle Cassandra to return to Wade’s universe, but considering this isn’t the final battle, it feels like a sacred farewell to traditional gamers. As a nostalgia reel plays during the credits, it’s hard to feel the level of melancholy the filmmakers intended with such a flat execution for characters who weren’t always the most beloved to begin with. But Deadpool and Wolverine can’t be blamed for his nostalgia issues. After all, he is one of the best MCU entries to date. Avengers: Endgame. The fault, instead, lies with the MCU as a whole..

The MCU relies too much on nostalgia

Since the Infinity Saga came to an end, the MCU has been less critically consistent, an instability that Deadpool and Wolverine acknowledges. While many have expressed their discontent with the Multiverse Saga’s story as a whole, the films have attempted to bounce back with the use of nostalgia. While it’s always fun to look back, the problem has only grown since the release of Spider-Man: No Way Home. Unite Tom HollandPeter Parker with those of Tobey Maguire AND Andrea Garfield generated a lot of great buzz among viewers, the films and shows that followed began to bank on the reminiscence factor, and ultimately damaged the potential of those individual projects. In fact, Spiderman itself didn’t hold up for some once they looked past the fan service, with Forbes saying the film “gets caught up in nostalgia and fan service,” and Collider pointing out that the filmhas a directing problem with major actors like Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), getting lost in the mash-up.

Thor: Love and ThunderHe is perhaps the worst offenderbecause it is not only his villain, Gorr, who fails (Cristiano Bale) but her nostalgic character, Jane Foster (Natalie Portman). Jane’s return as Lady Thor was an exciting way to reinvent the character, but killing her off to set up Thor’s relationship with Love (India Rose Hemsworth) makes Jane’s involvement seem like a disappointment. While Deadpool and Wolverine It’s not as offensive as its predecessors, but it does underscore that the MCU’s nostalgia problem is still very much alive.

Deadpool and Wolverine is a hugely entertaining ride, but its reliance on nostalgia continues to be a troubling trend for the MCU. Instead of focusing on building out their struggling Multiverse Saga, the cinematic universe continues to rely on reminding viewers of better days. With the announcement that Robert Downey Jr. Returns as Doom, It looks like the trend will continue for a while yet.

Deadpool and Wolverine is now showing in theaters. Click below for times.

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