2018 Comic Movies
So a little late but 2018 was such a busy year for comic book movies and that was after the two X-Men movies got pushed back to this year. I haven’t seen Venom or either of the animated movies (Teen Titans Go and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse) so I’m just going to do quick reviews of the other five.
Black Panther. This was a lot of fun. I felt it was a little more serious than some of the other Marvel films but there was still plenty of humor as well. My favorite character was T’Challa’s sarcastic scientist sister Shuri but everyone did a good job. I liked the meld of mysticism and science that gave Black Panther his abilities.
I liked the little bit with Bucky at the end but the movie felt a little more stand-alone than some of the other films even though it had reoccurring characters from other films. I guess because most of it took place in Wakanda so there was no other Avengers present. The whole thing could have been avoided if T’Chaka had just taken young Eric with him. Why punish him for his father’s crimes by abandoning him? Still, it was a good film.
Avengers: Infinity War. The big one and it did not disappoint. I think this is one of my favorite comic book movies of all time and I hope the sequel is just as good if not better. They did a great job balancing out so many characters and situations with usual Marvel blend of action and humor.
Thanos’s motivations were a bit weak, in my opinion. In the comics, he was trying to kill half the universe to impress the anthropomorphic personification of Death because he was in love with her. Trying to make him someone who thinks he’s doing good by erasing the supposed problem of overpopulation seems like a letdown compared to that madness. Also, he could have just sterilized half the universe instead of killing so many people.
I loved all the interactions like the conversation between Spider-Man and Dr. Strange where he thinks it’s his codename and Iron Man working with the Guardians of the Galaxy. Plus, the “I am Steve Rogers,” line after Groot says his usual line. Thor’s entrance at the battle of Wakanda made my fangirl heart swoon as did Wanda being all bad-ass.
We all know that most if not all of the deaths are going to be overturned in Endgame. Peter’s was the saddest. “Mr. Stark, I don’t feel so good.” I’m sure Gamora will be back although Peter’s reaction to her death was understandable. I don’t think Loki’s dead. His death was too pathetic and there’s no way he’d be dumb enough to try and stab Thanos with a small knife. I think he created a magical duplicate of himself. It wouldn’t be the first time. We’ll find out in a few months. I’m super excited!
Ant-Man and the Wasp. I liked this one a lot. It explained why Scott wasn’t in the Avengers movie. There was some really great funny moments but my favorite was the giant Pez dispenser in the chase scene at the end and Luis exclaiming, “You got Pezzed!” Luis is always funny.
I liked seeing Michelle Pfeffer as Janet. I liked the storyline with Ghost and how Laurence Fishburne turned out to be helping her. I also really liked when Ant-Man went big and saved the ship. The fight/chase scenes were really well done and I loved how they used the ability to change size very effectively. Just another fun movie and I’m glad Ant-Man will be in Endgame.
Deadpool 2. I think this one was just as adult as the first one but it was a little darker because of Vanessa’s death and Cable’s family being burned alive. Still, I liked the humor and the addition of Cable and Domino. Cable especially was well-done as a grim straight man to Wade’s crazy banter. I was disappointed that the rest of X-Force was played as a brief joke, especially Shatterstar who’s one of my favorites, but I suppose it would have made things too easy if Wade had a whole team at his back during the final fight scene.
Aquaman. The only DC film I saw last year. It was a fun action flick. The underwater world was beautifully portrayed, especially some of the less human-looking denizens of the deep. I liked Jason Mamoa’s portrayal of Arthur Curry even though he was a lot rougher around the edges then the usual comic book version. But his character reminded me of the Aquaman in the Justice League animated series where he was more of a brooding and angry person.
I liked that he grew up in New England and I liked the scene where he was a kid at the New England Aquarium although that’s definitely not how the actual aquarium looks. Nicole Kidman was also great as his mother who cared about both of her sons.
Black Manta’s role wasn’t as big as I thought it was going to be but I’m assuming he’ll be around more in the sequel. I do feel the movie maybe could have been shortened a bit. It felt a bit long but overall, I really enjoyed it.
There are seven more comic book movies coming out this year so hopefully they’ll all be as entertaining as these movies were.
Black Panther. This was a lot of fun. I felt it was a little more serious than some of the other Marvel films but there was still plenty of humor as well. My favorite character was T’Challa’s sarcastic scientist sister Shuri but everyone did a good job. I liked the meld of mysticism and science that gave Black Panther his abilities.
I liked the little bit with Bucky at the end but the movie felt a little more stand-alone than some of the other films even though it had reoccurring characters from other films. I guess because most of it took place in Wakanda so there was no other Avengers present. The whole thing could have been avoided if T’Chaka had just taken young Eric with him. Why punish him for his father’s crimes by abandoning him? Still, it was a good film.
Avengers: Infinity War. The big one and it did not disappoint. I think this is one of my favorite comic book movies of all time and I hope the sequel is just as good if not better. They did a great job balancing out so many characters and situations with usual Marvel blend of action and humor.
Thanos’s motivations were a bit weak, in my opinion. In the comics, he was trying to kill half the universe to impress the anthropomorphic personification of Death because he was in love with her. Trying to make him someone who thinks he’s doing good by erasing the supposed problem of overpopulation seems like a letdown compared to that madness. Also, he could have just sterilized half the universe instead of killing so many people.
I loved all the interactions like the conversation between Spider-Man and Dr. Strange where he thinks it’s his codename and Iron Man working with the Guardians of the Galaxy. Plus, the “I am Steve Rogers,” line after Groot says his usual line. Thor’s entrance at the battle of Wakanda made my fangirl heart swoon as did Wanda being all bad-ass.
We all know that most if not all of the deaths are going to be overturned in Endgame. Peter’s was the saddest. “Mr. Stark, I don’t feel so good.” I’m sure Gamora will be back although Peter’s reaction to her death was understandable. I don’t think Loki’s dead. His death was too pathetic and there’s no way he’d be dumb enough to try and stab Thanos with a small knife. I think he created a magical duplicate of himself. It wouldn’t be the first time. We’ll find out in a few months. I’m super excited!
Ant-Man and the Wasp. I liked this one a lot. It explained why Scott wasn’t in the Avengers movie. There was some really great funny moments but my favorite was the giant Pez dispenser in the chase scene at the end and Luis exclaiming, “You got Pezzed!” Luis is always funny.
I liked seeing Michelle Pfeffer as Janet. I liked the storyline with Ghost and how Laurence Fishburne turned out to be helping her. I also really liked when Ant-Man went big and saved the ship. The fight/chase scenes were really well done and I loved how they used the ability to change size very effectively. Just another fun movie and I’m glad Ant-Man will be in Endgame.
Deadpool 2. I think this one was just as adult as the first one but it was a little darker because of Vanessa’s death and Cable’s family being burned alive. Still, I liked the humor and the addition of Cable and Domino. Cable especially was well-done as a grim straight man to Wade’s crazy banter. I was disappointed that the rest of X-Force was played as a brief joke, especially Shatterstar who’s one of my favorites, but I suppose it would have made things too easy if Wade had a whole team at his back during the final fight scene.
Aquaman. The only DC film I saw last year. It was a fun action flick. The underwater world was beautifully portrayed, especially some of the less human-looking denizens of the deep. I liked Jason Mamoa’s portrayal of Arthur Curry even though he was a lot rougher around the edges then the usual comic book version. But his character reminded me of the Aquaman in the Justice League animated series where he was more of a brooding and angry person.
I liked that he grew up in New England and I liked the scene where he was a kid at the New England Aquarium although that’s definitely not how the actual aquarium looks. Nicole Kidman was also great as his mother who cared about both of her sons.
Black Manta’s role wasn’t as big as I thought it was going to be but I’m assuming he’ll be around more in the sequel. I do feel the movie maybe could have been shortened a bit. It felt a bit long but overall, I really enjoyed it.
There are seven more comic book movies coming out this year so hopefully they’ll all be as entertaining as these movies were.