For weeks, the reviews for Marvel’s “Thunderbolts*” have been pouring in, building up a hype train for one of the MCU’s better movies in recent years…but is it ‘Endgame’ level? The Box Office doesn’t think so, but are cinema experiences and Box Office expectations fundamentally different now, since the pandemic? Let’s take a dive into the newest MCU blockbuster so you all can make your own opinions.
If compared to other big movies of the year, Thunderbolts comes in third, but we’re only a little over four months into 2025. “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” is the final MCU film being released this year (July 25th) and given the longtime popularity of that team/franchise, that movie may end up surpassing the surprising run of the “Thunderbolts*”. Warning, beyond this point there will be spoilers for “Thunderbolts*” and the MCU+ in general.
If compared to other big movies of the year, Thunderbolts comes in third,
but we’re only a little over four months into 2025.
First off, we are not bashing “Thunderbolts*” and feel that this is a big step in the right direction for Marvel Studios. We were surprised to see the team of misfits only grab 76 million in the domestic Box Office, although international ticket sales more than doubled the total earnings, with 86.1 million coming from the rest of the world for a pretty solid $162M opening weekend,
There is a reason why the critics and fans alike seem to love the Thunderbolts team, it’s just a very well-done movie. Die-hard comic book fans might have went into the experience expecting to see a variation of one of General Thaddeus ‘Thunderbolt’ Ross’ anti-hero teams (that strongly resembled the Suicide Squad) , but they were given an entirely different experience. Even the name ‘Thunderbolts’ did not come from the General turned Red Hulk, but we won’t spoil the hilarious new origin story.
Most of the main characters got their share of character development, with the exception of the character Ghost (plated by Hannah John-Kamen). Ghost haad an interesting back story first revealed in “Ant-Man & the Wasp”, but she didn’t really have any personal moments in this movie to explain how she can now easily control her phasing powers. The Red Guardian (David Harbour) doesn’t seem to have grown much, but we still get some great moments between him and his ‘kind of’ daughter, Yelena (Florence Pugh). Yelena’s relationship with the new Sentry character (Lewis Pullman) is definitely one of the high points of the film while Sentry’s alter-ego, The Void, was downright terrifying. The Void’s power to bring people to their worst memories gave us deeper insight into the team and helped the narrative sell their very fast bonding.
The action sequences were refreshing, with some old school rescuing being some of the best moments in the movie. The final fight was a surprising twist and visually hit the mark. The movie did end up breaking an MCU record, with the longest end credit scene. The mid-credit scene was a fun treat with Red Guardian, which shows how little the character grew in the movie, but still warmed your heart. The final scene left us with some questions about Sam Wilson and who the avengers actually are in the MCU. The final surprise was probably expected y not fans as the ‘Fantastic 4’ movie is imminently approaching. All in all, we thought this story held up better than “Deadpool & Wolverine”, but lacked the budget and cameos. It didn’t have the scope of the first Guardians of the Galaxy teacup, but it was a type of teamup that the MCU sorely needed.
What did you think? Did you see “Thunderbolts*”? Will the New Avengers and Avengers have a fight or two before ‘Secret Wars’?
Let us know what you think in the comments below!
