DEADPOOL 2 SPOILERS - 4 Things That Worked And 6 Things That Definitely Didn't
With Deadpool 2 hours away from hitting theaters, we're taking an in-depth look at everything that did and didn't work in the Marvel sequel and whether you've seen it or not, you'll want to take a look...
Deadpool 2 hits theaters in North America this evening and there's a lot of buzz surrounding the sequel. Most of that is positive based on the first wave of reviews and fans are now understandably anxious to see if the Merc with the Mouth's return to the big screen lives up to expectations (for me, it sadly didn't). However, what exactly in the sequel works and what most definitely does not?
We're taking an in-depth look at that today, exploring the movie's positives and delving into what ultimately proved to be some hard to forgive negatives. For example, while some characters or moments worked brilliantly, others fell flat and some of those were so bad that they hurt Deadpool 2 in a big way. Regardless of whether or not you've seen the movie, though, you should check these out.
For starters, they'll give you a much better idea about what to expect and we're pretty sure that you'll have some thoughts on them. So, to check out the full list, all you guys need to do is click below...
Didn't Work: The Juggernaut
As cool as it was to see The Juggernaut in action here, the fact we never got to see him in the classic red armour from the comic books is the least of the character's problems. His powers are portrayed effectively and it's great hearing him talk about wearing that helmet to stop his brother (Charles Xavier) from reading his thoughts but the CGI villain looks absolutely horrendous on screen.
It's bizarre seeing him share the screen with Colossus when the Russian X-Man looks so great and he looks like he's stepped straight out of a video game. From a distance, The Juggernaut looks fine but his appearance becomes borderline comical as soon as we get closer to his face and body. As a result, he's now going to be placed firmly alongside Steppenwolf as a bad guy who is an epic VFX fail.
Did Work: The Action
One thing that can't be denied is that Deadpool 2 definitely delivers in terms of action scenes. David Leitch is no stranger to intense, compelling, and memorable fight scenes and there are plenty of those on offer here. Right from the very start, the Merc with the Mouth slices and guns down bad guys in ways which demand repeat viewings and the filmmaker is clearly suited to 'Pool's world.
Didn't Work: Cable And Time Travel
Josh Brolin may be perfectly cast as Cable but don't expect to come out of Deadpool 2 knowing much more about the character than you did before you watched the sequel. His backstory is never fleshed out beyond a single flashback and we don't learn so much as a single thing about why his future is so messed up or how he manages to travel back in time. We don't even get a reference to his parents!
That's a major disappointment seeing as his daughter's name is revealed to be Hope and it doesn't seem unfair to say his introduction was completely botched. The concept of time travel is also wasted because while it ends up factoring into the final act, it's not in a way which is particularly inventive and original so here's hoping it ends up factoring into X-Force in a more memorable way.
Didn't Work: The Humour/References
Deadpool's style of humour has always been pretty juvenile and while that's not necessarily a bad thing, if that's not your cup of tea, don't expect to laugh much! There are definitely some good gags here (Wade's baby legs and the shocking demise of nearly his entire X-Force team, for example) but those are few and far between and the endless pop culture references get real old, real fast.
While comic book fans will no doubt appreciate many of these, there are simply too many of them and there's a better style of humour than just poking fun at stuff only regular messageboard users will appreciate. It's like Ryan Reynolds and company decided to take what worked in the first movie and just do the same thing over and over again. There's an awful lot of repetition here, though.
Did Work: (Most Of) The Cast
The cast of Deadpool 2 is pretty damn good and even the actors cast in minor roles - such as X-Force - do great with the material they're given. Once again, Ryan Reynolds fully embodies the Merc with the Mouth and Zazie Beetz and Julian Dennison are arguably the breakout stars here, delivering stellar performances and making a real mark. Brolin, meanwhile, does the best with what he's got.
Didn't Work: The Cameos...Aside From The X-Men
While I definitely appreciated the sheer inventiveness of how each member of X-Force was killed off, the characters were all wasted and only received a scene or two each. There admittedly wasn't a whole lot of room for them here but it would have been better to save the team's introduction for their own movie as opposed to coming up with an initial version played for laughs and little else.
Many of the cameos flopped, though, with Black Tom Cassidy a real let-down and Brad Pitt's split second of screentime good for a single guffaw and little else (who would have thought this would mark his superhero movie debut?). On the plus side, the appearance of the X-Men was excellent and a really nice touch even if it made absolutely no sense in regards to this world's timeline!
Didn't Work: Most Of The Storyline
Deadpool 2's storyline isn't bad exactly but it delivers few surprises and while there's plenty of emotion on display at times, it's hard to escape the feeling that the sequel could and should have played out in a far more satisfying manner. The problem is, there's nothing in this movie that's particularly original and things go exactly as you might expect (with some minor surprises along the way).
Deadpool and Cable don't like each other...but they eventually team up. Deadpool thinks that he can get through to the kid and stop him from becoming a monster in the future...and he does. Honestly, it's kind of boring and is the sort of "lazy writing" Deadpool 2 frequently pokes fun at. Clearly, Ryan Reynolds, Paul Wernick, and Rhett Reese felt that bad jokes were a much bigger priority.
Did Work: The After-Credits Scenes
Fox may have cut the after-credits scene featuring Deadpool murdering baby Hitler but what remains is a lot of fun. We see Wade Wilson invade X-Men Origins: Wolverine to gun down Weapon XI and to fix the timeline (which isn't the Logan cameo any of us wanted but it'll have to do...) and the Merc with the Mouth later tracks down Ryan Reynolds and kills him as he reads the Green Lantern script.
Both of these are really good fun and a clever way of using time-travel which the rest of Deadpool 2 failed to capitalise on. Unfortunately, there's one scene which isn't quite as satisfying...
Didn't Work: Well, Not THAT After-Credits Scene
On the one hand, Deadpool managing to travel back in time to save Vanessa is great to see as it opens the door to Morena Baccarin's return and brings someone back I don't think any of us wanted to say goodbye to. On the other, it essentially undoes the entire plot of the sequel and makes Wade Wilson's journey almost completely obsolete as he's now no longer had to make a sacrifice.
While the irreverent nature of this franchise means that ultimately won't matter, it essentially tells us that everything we've just watched means nothing and there are pretty much zero stakes in this world. This is a problem which has plagued the X-Men movies since day once, hence why we have multiple versions of the same character in different "timelines" and now it's Deadpool 2 doing it!
Did Work: Exploring Deadpool's Powers
The first Deadpool movie may have explored how Wade Wilson received his powers but it never really delved into his abilities as much as it probably should have. The sequel, on the other hand, does an excellent job of not only looking at how the Merc with the Mouth's healing factor works but what happens when he "dies" and how his abilities essentially stop him from being able to move on.
Taking Deadpool's powers away from him at times is also a smart way of looking at that and it's just a shame his mental instability isn't also addressed because it would add some layers to the character.