Once in a while, you’ll find lightning in a bottle in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. And we don’t mean bottling the lightning that comes from Thor‘s hammer. In Thunderbolts*, we have the presence of brooding antiheroes, crazy comedic timing, disorganization, and general klutziness; it’s not hard to like this film. Obnoxious humor and a shabbily dark atmosphere make Marvel’s Thunderbolts* a must-see. (*And yes, we’ll get to that asterisk in a few!)
Thunderbolts* The Rise of the Antiheroes
It could be said that Marvel’s Thunderbolts* are akin to DC‘s Suicide Squad. They’re comprised of a group of ne’er-do-well folks or those who have been the MCU’s troublemakers in the past. In this flick, we find them banding together to fight what they perceive as evil. And sometimes the evil is not clear-cut, so they’ll have to figure it out as they go. Oh, by the way, not all of them really trust each other.
Valentina? Yeah, She’s Not Nice
In a different but fun turn, Julia Louis-Dreyfus of Veep fame, plays Valentina. With her white-streaked hair, Julia is barely recognizable. She might seem like a smooth talker, but Valentina is bad news. It looks like our ragtag crew of Thunderbolts* will have to figure that out on their own.
Are There Any Marvel Movies You Should Watch Prior?
While you certainly don’t need to, it does help with the history of these characters. At the very least, watch Black Widow and Ant-Man and The Wasp, as these two are the best at prepping you for the Thunderbolts* action. Yelena’s fraught history with Natasha is also explored in Black Widow. Also, the first three Captain America movies are a good prep for Thunderbolts*.
Hey, Thunderbolts* – What About Bob?
We don’t mean the movie from 1991 (featuring Bill Murray), we mean character Robert Reynolds. Who is that? How does he figure into all of this? Robert, or Bob, played by Lewis Pullman, is the mysterious Sentry. We know the Sentry has some incredibly massive powers, but is he friend or foe? The Thunderbolts* seriously need to keep an eye on him.
Thunderbolts* – What’s Up with the *?
It could be said that the * means a few things. Perhaps the team uses the name “thunderbolts” as a placeholder for something else. In the trailer, not all of them agree on a name. Or, possibly the * denotes a footnote, which we’ll undoubtedly see in a post-credits scene! Or, maybe the * is quite literal, that our antiheroes all have a**es to risk? Just a thought…
To Sum Up
Thunderbolts* director Jake Schreier has stated multiple times that this MCU movie is not going to be what people are expecting. It will be more along the lines of irreverent humor, satirical comedy, and disorganized chaos. David Harbour, who plays Alexei, or Red Guardian, summed it up best. He said they want to be the heroes on the Wheaties box with a kiddie toy inside. Now, who doesn’t truly love that?
