WandaVision - Walk Across The Bridge With Me

***WARNING: Have you watched WandaVision yet? If not, there are spoilers ahead, so if you don't want to be spoiled, hold off on reading! And what are you waiting for? Get Disney+ and watch WandaVision. If you're an MCU fan, it's a must!***

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By Source, Fair use, WandaVision Logo

I'm going to be brief with this post, so no over-analyzing everything! I know, that's super tough since I'm always so long-winded. Let's see what I can do. ;)

First, I have to say that I was thrilled when WandaVision finally aired. Too long of a dry spell for new MCU movies! We'd started re-watching some of the movies at one point because we were craving more Marvel. And overall, for the first Disney+ MCU series, I thought it was great.

I know some people felt the series started off too slowly, but I actually enjoyed that slow build. Just a little bit of weirdness in each episode to pull me along. I mean, if you're an MCU fan and have seen most of the movies, you know something is clearly wrong here when Wanda and Vision are in a sitcom. And magic is the logical answer. I mean, Vision is dead, right? Right? OK, OK, comic fans know better. Is anyone ever really dead?

WandaVision sets up a lot to be explored in future movies and series. Because of that, it's really a bridge series. Yes, it still has a story with a full arc of Wanda dealing with her grief. Honestly, though, it felt more like a vehicle to line things up for things like Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness as well as establishing S.W.O.R.D. and Monica Rambeau. That's probably the series' biggest flaw, in my opinion. Not a huge one, by any means.

Along with Wanda, I enjoyed reminiscing over the different style sitcoms. I grew up on sitcoms, too, pretty much, so I recognized so many references. I'm sure I missed some, too!

One of the biggest pluses of this being a TV series instead of a movie is the room to breathe and build the world and characters. It didn't feel like I was being info-dumped on (maybe a little in the "Previously On" episode, but it added so many layers to Wanda, that it's easily forgiven). I'm looking forward to the other series ahead, especially Loki. I think TV series sometimes do better than movies since there's so much more time to explore different paths.

Finally, I love the design of the MCU Scarlet Witch costume! I totally want to be Scarlet Witch for Halloween.

Look, I kept that a bit shorter than usual, didn't I? Lol. I know I didn't delve into much, but I can emphatically say that I enjoyed the series, and I'm looking forward to more Scarlet Witch in Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness.

If you've watched WandaVision, what do you think? Do you agree it feels like a bridge? Did you love it, hate it, or are you somewhere in between?

Spider-Man: Far From Home - MJ Rocks

***WARNING: Spoilers ahead! If you haven't seen Spider-Man: Far From Home you may not want to read ahead. Per usual, there are spoilers. I know, you may think nothing can top Avengers: End-Game, but if you're looking for some humor and a lighter story, just go watch Spider-Man already.***

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Spider-Man: Far From Home Movie Poster

With every new Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) movie, I seem to have a harder time gathering my thoughts and writing up my opinions. This may mainly be because I go into them now with the pure intent to have fun, relax, and enjoy myself. So, being critical can be hard!

What am I getting at? You're probably not going to see a lot of critical commentary here on Spider-Man: Far From Home. I stepped into the theater expecting a fun, humorous superhero flick, and that's exactly what I got. It's actually kind of awesome how even though the MCU movies are all connected, you can head into one knowing what kind of mood to expect depending on what the focus is -- not every MCU title has the same mood. Spider-Man lends to humor, teen angst, and action. It really does tickle my funny bone, and I love that.

Also, as a side note, I have not yet seen Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. I've been meaning to, and I'm excited to watch it, but just haven't found the time. So, no comparisons between that and Far From Home in this post!

I guess I should start talking about the movie, right?

Hands down, my favorite character was MJ. I mean, are you all that surprised? If you've read any of my past posts about MCU movies, you shouldn't be. Anyway, I know some purists want the "typical" MJ, but I'm definitely a big fan of this version. She's not the damsel in distress that's been so overdone. She's smart (yes, she figured out Peter was Spider-Man), headstrong, and willing to defend herself if need be (she grabs a freaking morning star!). And then at the end, it's not Peter rushing to check if she's all right. Nope. MJ runs to check if Peter's all right. I really loved that switch.

Though MJ wasn't what you'd normally find in the comics, Mysterio's fish bowl helmet was plucked straight from the pages, which made a lot of people happy. I'd never read anything with Mysterio before this, but his extravagant costume does lend to his pompous personality in the movie, so it fits. And everybody knew Mysterio wasn't a good guy, no matter how much they wanted us to believe it with the previews. Right when Peter was handing over the glasses, I screamed, "No! You're in idiot! Don't do that!" inside. It was kind of fun how Mysterio created such an elaborate plan to trick Peter -- he not only created illusions with tech, but with his story as well.

I also found myself thinking "Poor, Peter," quite often. All he wanted to do was have a nice, normal school trip. And then we get the mid-credit scene. His life will never be normal again! That will be awesome to see unfold.

But what about the end-credit scene? I know some people missed it! I think it left far more questions, though. My biggest question is how did Talos and Soren play Fury and Hill so well? To a tee! And for how long have they been doing it? But I did catch the hint drop earlier in the movie when Fury said not to invoke Captain Marvel's name -- I found it odd phrasing and wanted an explanation. Well, I got it. Totally makes sense that Talos would say something like that. So, it's when he briefly slipped out of Fury's character.

Honestly, I don't have tons to pick on about the movie. Was it perfect? No. Did I have loads of fun watching it? Yes. And for me, that was my main goal. I was a little disappointed that we didn't get the multiverse payoff, though.

I will say, after all the new announcements about Phase 4 of the MCU, I'm really excited for The Eternals and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Especially the latter one. ;)

Avengers: Endgame - How Does Time Travel Work Again?

***WARNING: Spoilers ahead! As this post has been delayed a bit, I seriously hope you've seen Avengers: Endgame already. If not, though, this is your friendly warning that there are spoilers up ahead. This movie is hard to talk about without spoiling anything!***

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Avengers: Endgame Movie Poster

Hubbie partly didn't want to see Avengers: Endgame because he was afraid they wouldn't deliver the pay off after so much build up from the previous Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) movies. I understood his trepidation, but my eagerness squashed any doubts of my own. And I'm happy I went into the movie without that fear because they did a marvelous job of bringing The Infinity Saga to a close (and Hubbie was worried for nothing).

The clear focus of Endgame was to wrap up the story arcs of many of the Avengers -- the ones we've seen grow over several movies. Now, I would have loved to see more Captain Marvel, of course, but I know her story is just beginning, and we'll get plenty more of her in future movies. So, it was nice to see the focus on Iron Man, Captain America, Black Widow, Hawkeye (Ronin), Hulk, and Thor. The ends of their stories needed to shine instead of being taken over by the newer Avengers.

Not only do we definitely see the endings, we're reminded of the beginnings as they travel back in time. This was an excellent way to show how far they'd all come. It felt like things were coming full circle. And certain experiences when they visited the past had direct impact on their decisions at the end, especially for Tony Stark and Steve Rogers.

Now, I know some people aren't sure what to make of the time travel logic in Endgame. They insist it's not like Back to the Future, but it is a lot to wrap your head around. Part of me thinks they tried to make it too complicated so most people would just give up trying to figure it out and accept it as is (that's pretty much where I've landed -- OK, whatever -- lol). I also realized, after a lot of thought, that this was their way of introducing the Multiverse.

I mean, every good ending also has a new beginning in it, right? They might have ended the stories of some of the characters, but they needed to get the next major arc going, and I think they opened the door just enough to the idea of the Multiverse without leaving people flailing.

Not only did they set up the Multiverse, but Loki's soon to be Disney+ series as well. Even before the directors mentioned that Loki's little escape act with the Tesseract splintered off a new timeline, I realized that that was going to be the whole start of his new series. Super excited about this! I honestly hope that many of the MCU series they have planned for Disney+ will have to do with the Multiverse and alternate timelines. Who knows, for all we know they planted several other seeds in Endgame that we won't realize until later.

Now, well I felt the movie was well done and a fitting end to The Infinity Saga (though supposedly Spider-Man: Far From Home is supposed to close out Phase 3), I did have some qualms.

While I'm all for the female Avengers banding together and fighting as a group (I really, really want more female led MCU/superhero movies), I felt the scene where they all faced Thanos together was a bit too contrived. I'm not saying it shouldn't have happened, but I wanted it to feel more natural, just like when several of the women were fighting together at the end of Infinity War -- that scene worked far better than the one we had in Endgame. I just hope that if the rumors about a female ensemble MCU movie prove to be true, that they gather in a way that makes sense and doesn't feel forced. If done right, it would be amazing.

My last two issues are more worries for future movies.

We all know a Black Widow movie is coming out, which will be a prequel. In Endgame, we see Black Widow sacrifice herself. This is a heart-wrenching moment, especially since she's clearly become the glue that holds everyone together over the five years after the snap. But my major worry is, now that Black Widow is dead, how will a prequel fit into the next MCU story arc? One of the best things about the MCU movies is that they're all interconnected, parts of a whole. And I really do hope that they find a way to integrate the Black Widow movie into the the next arc instead of it feeling like more of a stand alone (and afterthought).

Finally, I'm really hoping Thor isn't in the next Guardians movie. Don't get me wrong, I loved Thor: Ragnarok, and Thor's interactions with the Guardians at the beginning of Infinity War were amusing, but I don't want him to be a major part of Guardians of the Galaxy 3. I fear his character would overshadow the chemistry between the Guardians. So, here's hoping they drop him off somewhere between the end of Endgame and the beginning of Guardians 3.

On the other hand, I'm looking forward to them searching for Gamora! And since it's not the Gamora who was in love with Star Lord, they'll have to go through the whole relationship building again once she does join them. They needed to bring Gamora back, and I'm glad the Multiverse has allowed for that possibility.

That was a lot to unpack. And man, I'm sure I could touch on so many other things, but I think I'll leave it here.

What do you think? Did Avengers: Endgame do justice to the end of the MCU Infinity Saga?

Powerful Women in Black Panther

***WARNING: Haven't you seen Black Panther yet? Oh, well, if you haven't, you may not want to read on, as there are spoilers below. I've seen it, and if we didn't have to watch our pennies, I'd go see it again in the theater. It was that good. So, go on, add to its box office numbers if you haven't already!***

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Black Panther Movie Poster

It's actually really hard for me to talk about Black Panther because I feel like I'm not going to do it justice. There's so many layers to the movie that this measly little blog post won't be able to cover it all. Plus I'm sure there are layers that I don't understand as deeply as many other people. I'll leave those layers to the more knowledgeable ones.

The main layer I want to delve into is all the strong women in this movie! OK, so this isn't really going to be a typical review, but more of a reflection (and I'm going to try to keep it brief). I'll probably mention more than just the strong female characters, but don't expect me to pick the movie apart.

Wow, I have to say, wow. I mean, I'd been looking forward to this movie for a long time. It got to the point where my husband was poking fun at me because I'd squee every time a preview came on. It called to me, and I knew it would be different (in a good way) than the other movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. And it was. But I had no clue how many powerful women would be in it. This made me love it even more.

Shuri, Nakia, and Okoye -- these three women stole the show. Almost literally. Many times their characters overshadowed Black Panther/T'Challa himself. It honestly felt more like a movie about the people surrounding and supporting Black Panther, not just a focus on Black Panther. And his strongest support are all women.

The beauty of these three women, though, is that they are very different from each other.

Shuri has a razor-sharp wit along with a razor-sharp brain (she totally reminded me of Q from James Bond with all of her awesome gadgets). In a pinch, she's also still willing to jump into a fight. How cool are her panther guns? I may have just ordered a Funko Pop of her yesterday from Hot Topic. ;)

Nakia is the love interest for Black Panther, but she's not fawning all over him, and she makes it clear that her life goals are more important than love. While Black Panther still tries to nudge her, he still understands who she is and needs to be. I love it that he's not trying to protect her the whole movie because he knows she can take care of herself. Nakia also declares she's not a fighter, but a spy, even though by the end she jumps into the fighting and kicks plenty of ass.

Finally, Okoye, is a fierce warrior. One who is devoted to tradition and the culture of Wakanda. She even refuses to support T'Challa's family when he (seemingly) loses the challenge to Killmonger. She fears nothing, and she'll defend whoever's on the throne, unless they break or ignore the rules.

I seriously can't wait until the second movie, and I hope some of these women show up in some of the other movies in the MCU!

One final thought from me, but about Wakanda. I enjoyed the integration of culture and tradition right alongside technological advancement. It was nice to see the technology didn't destroy the culture that existed in this society. There was also a bit of a mix of fantasy among the science fiction with the Heart-Shaped Herb and the spirit realm.

As I mentioned earlier, there are so many layers, and I thought for the most part they were woven together wonderfully.

"Wakanda forever!"

Thor: Ragnarok... Rocks!

***WARNING: Spoilers! Spoilers! If you haven't seen Thor: Ragnarok yet and don't want things to be ruined for you, you're advised to click away and not read the comments below.***

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Thor: Ragnarok Movie Poster

Yes, yes, the title is a little cheesy. Forgive me, I just got over super sick and now I'm getting sick again. I'd put this post off longer, but it's been put off long enough. But I promise you, since it's the holidays and everyone is busy, this will be short and sweet. It's hard to be my chatty self when I'm not feeling the best. ;)

We went to see Thor: Ragnarok opening weekend, and it lived up to my excitement going into it. I know the previous two Thor movies weren't the best, but from the previews of Thor: Ragnarok, I had high hopes for this one. And it didn't disappoint.

It is kind of sad, though, that it took three movies to finally get to a decent Thor movie. Thor: Ragnarok is by far the best of the bunch.

I think the biggest highlight of this movie was the character arc for Thor. This movie was truly a coming-of-age movie for him. Anything that came before this pretty much boils down to the antics of youth. I guess when you're a god, adolescence might extend a bit longer than most people, so even though Thor was never clearly a teenager in any of the previous MCU movies, once Thor: Ragnarok was released, you could completely feel how his previous actions were very much like a teenager.

Well, Thor finally had to grow up, and it was done with a great conflict with Hela. The fact that she was his sister made the conflict all the better. And you got to have Loki in the mix with all of that -- his ever selfish self. Loki was definitely true to character, and you know he snatched the Tesseract even as he was helping Asgard rid itself of Hela (I mean, it's got to be available for Thanos to grab for Avengers: Infinity War).

The other endearing thing about this movie was the humor. I am by and far a Guardians of the Galaxy fan girl, and most of that is due to the humor. I was glad to see that kind of humor brought into a Thor movie. Even though the core conflict was pretty serious, the humor added to the story and rounded out the characters.

However, I do admit at points they took the humor a little too far. There were a few spots that it felt inappropriate. The main one that comes to mind is near the end when Korg mentions squishing his friend. It's a rather serious moment as they're escaping an exploding Asgard, and I felt the attempted humor was misplaced at that point.

I promised short and sweet, didn't I? Well, that's all I got for now. I highly recommend Thor: Ragnarok, if you haven't seen it yet. If anything, you'll get a laugh, but I'm happy to say that the story and character growth was there as well instead of the humor being used as a crutch. I can't wait to see what Thor does next now that he's had to grow up.

Baby Groot! (Well, More Like Toddler Groot)

WARNING: Spoilers! Per usual, there are spoilers in the post below. If you haven't seen Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 and don't want to be spoiled, surf away from this post and come back once you've seen it. However, if you don't mind knowing what happens in a movie before you see it, by all means, continue reading (just don't get mad).

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Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
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"I am Groot!" Oh, that little voice -- so gosh darn adorable. And as expected, Baby Groot was my favorite character in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. Of course, since I'm in the middle of dealing with my own toddler, I totally think he's more of a toddler than a baby. You know, doing the exact opposite thing that he's asked? Yeah. He didn't quite seem to hit threenager status yet, though. ;)

So, for all of you people who thought Drax stole the show, while he had some hilarious lines, I still think Groot was the best.

OK, maybe I started in the middle of the review instead of at the beginning, but I had to express my love for Groot. It was a must. MUST. Let's try this again...

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 was a great movie. A lot of humor, as expected. Action as well. Great alien races and locations. However, it wasn't as good as the first. Let's face it, when the first in a series is a major hit, it's going to be hard to follow it up with a sequel that's just as great, or better. The first one hit all of its beats (in my opinion), but the second movie did have moments where it sagged a bit.

One of the reason for this was because the team had to split up near the beginning. A lot of the greatness of the first movie was due to the interaction of the entire team. Vol. 2 starts out with this awesome play between their personalities. They're all fighting a monster as hired mercenaries. One of the best opening scenes ever as the main fight is in the background for most of it while Baby Groot is dancing around and the opening credits are rolling. They even tip the hat to the Groot in a pot scene where he freezes when Drax looks at him.

But then they crash, and Starlord's dad shows up. We then have the team split up, since Rocket needs to fix the ship, and Baby Groot stays with him. Not that there aren't fun moments when they aren't all together, but it really picks back up once they're all reunited.

It's still chock full of 80s references, which is awesome, and most of the characters are well rounded and add to the drama and humor. Like the first movie, though, the main villain was a little lacking. The god who wants to rule the world. OK, great. We have a selfish jerk who tries to woo Starlord by playing ball with him (I didn't like this scene). A very one-sided character.

However, some of the side villains were great. I especially loved Nebula. I loved her in the first movie, too, and it's because she's such a complicated character. The complexity and layers make her an awesome bad guy, and then it makes sense in the end that she starts to switch sides, though she refuses to stay with the Guardians.

Yondu's growth arc was amazing, too. It was sad he died at the end, but it felt right, that his story was finished and his growth complete. (Speaking of growth arcs, I did love the slow growth between Starlord and Gamora -- a step toward future things!)

Ayesha and the Sovereign were fun as well. And I look forward to seeing what unfolds with her in the next Guardians movie after the one clip during the credits.

The thing I love most about both Guardians movies is the characters. It's what makes them fantastic. And if I didn't have kids, I'd probably have already gone out and seen Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 a second time already.

Also, Teenage Groot is fun -- the tone in his voice is priceless! But I think Baby Groot will always be my favorite Groot. ;)

Team Cap All the Way!

***WARNING: This post contains spoilers for the movie Captain America: Civil War. If you haven't seen the movie yet, you may want to wait to read this. I take no responsibility in spoiling the awesomeness of this movie if you ignore this warning and read on. If you're still wondering if you should go see it, I highly recommend it.***

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Copyright Info Captain America: Civil War Poster

Now, I don't promise much thoughtful analysis on Captain America: Civil War. I'm kind of in the Fan Girl Zone lately. So, I may just be listing all the fun things I like about it. We'll see how close I examine some things. I'm always happy to hear other people's opinions and viewpoints as well (even if you hated the movie, really).

Now, clearly from the title, I'm on the side of Team Cap. Like him, I trust people, not organizations. Those darn organizations, they always have an agenda!

True, the Avengers cause a hell of a lot of destruction. Hubbie and I watched Avengers: Age of Ultron again the week after, and that was really the first time he got to see most of it (due to toddler issues in the theater - he kindly let me watch while he took her out), and he was pointing out all the destruction and said he might just switch from Team Cap to Team Iron Man.

Nope, we don't have political debates in our house, we have superhero debates. Heh.

Anyway, yes so much destruction! But I honestly don't believe these big baddies wouldn't be around if the Avengers didn't exist. If the Avengers didn't exist Earth would probably be a smoldering afterthought in space. What's a little destruction when in the end you save the world? I mean, Ultron was Tony's fault, though...

Enough about whose side I'm on because no matter what side anyone chooses, this was a damned good movie! Captain America: Civil War was definitely better than Avengers: Age of Ultron. Hands down. And my favorite Captain America movie (hubbie's is Winter Soldier - how do we live with each other with all of these superhero disagreements? - lol).

They balanced all of the superheroes in this movie well, in my opinion. I know some say that Spider-Man stole the show in the airport battle, but I don't think he did. He lent to a lot of other commentary from the other characters, like when Falcon tells Winter Soldier he hates him after Spider-Man trips them up with a little web action. Awesome.

Speaking of Spider-Man, I was seriously leery about yet another reboot of that franchise, but after seeing him in Civil War, I'm excited. I need the Spidie with a sense of humor! I especially loved the bit where he referenced Star Wars and brought down Ant Man. Especially the following responses.

And that whole Black Widow as the double agent thing in the end (I mean, I know she wasn't really intending to be, but that is what happened) was fitting as well.

Oh, and Black Panther! I'm now looking forward to that movie as well. And it's kind of nice that they used Civil War as more of the origin story set up, so then the first Black Panther movie shouldn't need to be the origin story type.

The battles were some of the best too, the airport scene at the top of the list. You clearly knew they were all pulling their punches - they didn't want to kill each other - they're friends, even if they're of different minds! I thought the end of that fight was also extremely well done. War Machine was hit by friendly fire, and I think that was a good choice, as if he had been hit by the other side, there would have been a lot more animosity between both sides, even by the end of the movie.

Finally, I do want to get back to why I'm Team Cap. I guess Captain America doesn't let his emotions blind him, in my opinion, whereas Iron Man is completely consumed by his emotions when he finds out Winter Soldier killed his parents. I can't help but feel Tony is in the wrong when he goes after Bucky. Yes, Winter Soldier killed his parents, but he was under mind control, for the love of gods! Would he have reacted the same way if say, Cap had done it? Someone who he was truly friends with? Would he have hesitated or reacted the same way? Maybe the latter, since he does fight Cap at the end.

Seriously, vengeance can completely derail the best of people! And Tony "Stank" (best Stan Lee cameo ever) already has the cards stacked against him for truly being a good person at times. I guess it could be said that maybe he supports the Socovia Accords to repent for his megalomaniac actions in Age of Ultron. Maybe.

OK, I've rambled on long enough. I did enjoy the movie, and right now it's in my top four for Marvel Cinematic Universe movies. Heck, it might even nudge out the first Avengers movie for me (Guardians is still my favorite, and Ant Man was awesome as well).

Though now I'm a bit scared about the let down I'm expecting from X-Men: Apocalypse. I've heard not good things, and if they end up doing one thing that I really don't want them to do, I may never watch an X-Men movie again. We'll see, and that's a blog post for another day!

Deadpool - My Kind of Humor

***WARNING: Oh, yes, there are spoilers in this post. So, if you haven't seen this hilarious movie yet, go see it now. Or I'll hire the Merc with the Mouth to make you. I mean, you can always read the spoilers without seeing the movie, but it's just not the same. So, go see it already. And if you have seen it, go see it again.***

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Copyright Info on Deadpool Poster

Deadpool was a great fucking movie. Yes, I felt the need to use the expletive. In honor of Deadpool. ;)

Now, I've never read a Deadpool comic (if I had the time and money, I'd be tempted to now, though), but I have a husband who is better versed in a multitude of comic book characters (his hay day of buying comics is long past, but Deadpool has been around a while). Since he knows I'm a geek who enjoys comics, superheroes, villains, and the like (even if I can't afford to buy and read them, I like to hear about them), he filled me in long before the movie was even a thought on what type of character Deadpool was. I was intrigued then.

And then the previews for the movie started. It was seriously hard to contain my excitement. I am a sarcastic, snarky person by nature. I like my humor with an edge. Heck, when I write humor I try to have that edge. Oh, Deadpool has lots of edge.

This movie couldn't have gotten away with a lower than R rating. I am so glad they didn't try to wrestle it into a PG-13 rating. It would have been bad. Deadpool is the Merc with the Mouth. And what a mouth!

OK, this might be a bit of a gushing post. Sorry about that, but the only things stopping me from going out and watching the movie several more times are two children who can't see it (we drove all the way up to my mother-in-law's last weekend so she could watch the kids while we went to the movie). I was laughing even at the opening credits.

From breaking the fourth wall, to poking fun at Reynolds' past roles as Green Lantern and Deadpool in X-Men Origins: Wolverine (seriously, why the hell would you sew Deadpool's mouth shut -- that's the best thing about him), the hilarity was infused throughout the movie. Heck, even my husband probably didn't notice all the little Easter eggs because there were so many! That little action figure you see at one point? That's the Deadpool figure from X-Men Origins: Wolverine. No clue until my husband told me about it, and that was after he read it somewhere.

Anyway, I know there are some critics out there that think the villains were a bit weak, and that the plot was a bit thin, but honestly I think the villains and plot worked for this type of movie. The core of such a movie is the humor, the character. Deadpool is larger than life, and he's supposed to be the central focus.

True, his motivations were mostly selfish. First he wanted to cure his cancer so he could spend the rest of his life with Vanessa. Then he wanted to hunt down Ajax to fix his deformities because he thought Vanessa wouldn't love him anymore the way he looked. Not very noble, huh? But Deadpool is not a hero! He's a mercenary by trade. And that's one of the things that makes him so great. Even at the end, when you expect him to grow, become the hero, as Colossus is expounding about the moments that make someone a hero, Deadpool blows Ajax's brains out. I mean, I saw it coming, but that didn't make it any less awesome.

And as far as the villains go, knowing that Ajax had performed the experiment on himself which led to him being physically and emotionally numb was enough of a backstory for me. Right there, you have exactly what makes him tick -- he has no regard for human life because he can't feel anything.

Also, the non-existent backstory for Angel Dust didn't bother me either. This movie is as close to first person as you can get, and everything is colored by Deadpool's point-of-view, a point-of-view that's self-centered. So, it makes sense that we don't get large chunks of information on the other characters.

Finally, I wanted to mention Vanessa. I was quite happy to see what they did with her. Mind you, she's not in a lot of the movie, but it was nice to see a love interest that clearly wasn't an innocent damsel in distress. When she was kidnapped, instead of pleading for her life, she cursed them out -- a reaction that showed she was a lot like Wade/Deadpool. And she managed to escape the container by using the knife. Once she escaped, she went straight for Ajax! Supposedly in the comics she's a mutant called Copycat. I'm kind of hoping that she kicks some more ass in the second movie.

Speaking of the second movie...I can't wait!

Have you seen Deadpool? What did you think about it?