Marvel’s band of misfits has changed the conversation around the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). At least, they have for the time being. In a month where films like Sinners, The Minecraft Movie, and the theatrical re-release of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith are filling seats, Thunderbolts* has kept pace with the trio. Normally, this wouldn’t have been such a big deal, but since the MCU has had a series of films seen as unfavorable to lukewarm, the praise for the latest MCU outing is something to note.
Post-Avengers: Endgame, Marvel Studios has struggled a bit to maintain that same momentum. Spider-Man: No Way Home and Deadpool & Wolverine may have left viewers excited, but it can be argued that their strongest points are the introductions and returns of characters fans have long clamored for. However, they do feature memorable characters outside of the main protagonists, and the antagonist bounced off quite well with what the wall-crawler and the former Weapon X experiments were going for.
As with most MCU films, even the best ones, Thunderbolts* may not have been for everyone, but for everyone else, this hit the spot. And it did it with no cameos.
To examine what makes Thunderbolts* substantial enough to talk about, it bears considering what it did differently to push things forward.
The characters
Thunderbolts* boasts an intimate cast of characters featured in MCU films and series. This may be overwhelming and confusing for fans and viewers who haven’t kept up with all of them. Most of the titular Thunderbolts have already been introduced in past MCU films, while others were introduced via Disney Plus shows. Despite this, they feel they’ve been carefully thought through and given substance.
Even if audiences hadn’t seen most of these series, it’s not as though an introduction to something new wouldn’t work. For example, 2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy established several new characters in one debut, and they, for the most part, are still beloved. Although the same could not be said of a film with a similar set-up: 2021’s Eternals. This collection of immortal cosmic beings may have protected the Earth, but they couldn’t secure their place in fans’ hearts, with largely unfavorable responses to the film.
A common trait amongst all three films is that the main cast of characters is discernible from each other. Different mannerisms, philosophies, personalities, and appearances. It extends beyond their abilities. As such, audiences are given more than one character to care for. In the case of Thunderbolts*, young women may feel a kinship towards Yelena Belova, the new Black Widow. John Walker/US Agent likely resonates with men who are tied to notions of family and purpose. And Bob could very well speak to young men who feel lost and alone in a world where they long to be great.
However, what sets the Guardians of the Galaxy films and Thunderbolts* apart is that they each boast a smaller cast than Eternals. Not only would a familiar band of characters unite, but under an easily digestible roster count. While I admittedly like Eternals, this point is important to note. The characters and their lives outside of their family were great, but the burden of paying attention to that became a struggle.
While characters like Bob, Yelena, Bucky Barnes, and Valentina Allegra de Fontaine are mostly in the forefront, characters like Walker, and Red Guardian also find their arcs. While Ava Starr/Ghost doesn’t have as much to do as the others, she’s positioned with future setups for her character. The only character that doesn’t get any development, however, is Taskmaster, but that’s a different story for a different time.
With the added depth to its cast of misfits, the odds are that Thunderbolts* has a character for virtually everyone.
Themes
Oddly enough, Thunderbolts* balances the seriousness of mental health with the MCU’s humor in a digestible blend. Using crew who’ve worked on the arthouse and indie films seen in A24 films and beyond, Marvel provides an alternate feeling separate from most of the MCU’s catalog. I mention this because it makes the mood, symbolism, and artistry pop out in storytelling.
In a world like Earth-616, it’s natural for citizens and outcasts from the superheroes, sorcerers, and spacefarers to feel lost and aimless and broken. Heavy topics are spread throughout Thunderbolts*, with trauma haunting the band of antiheroes like ghastly darkness.
The trauma of living in such conditions as the main characters experience runs deep. Walker is disturbed by his failures as Captain America and the actions that led to his wife taking his child and abandoning him as a consequence of doomscrolling, reliving his lowest moment, drenched in bloody violence from The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. He hides this under the guise of still having a loving family. The juxtaposition of this and his demeanor as a mansplaining guy who speaks in military jargon and is unnecessarily rude to Bob leaves Walker as a funny secondary character whose baggage of guilt and insecurity must be fought through.
Meanwhile, the others explore their issues separately yet together. Ghost/Ava Starr’s tendency to leave people behind is juxtaposed in each scene by her returning to rescue her teammates as only she could. Red Guardian, on the other hand, wishes to be a hero on the level of The Avengers, rather than some washed-up Russian super soldier, and he gets those moments in complete catharsis. Bucky Barnes, however, has already gone through these arcs and is given an entirely different set of issues to face; his experience glues the team together as he’s found his purpose in our time rather than the 1940s that he would have known.
Yelena, however, carries a different existential burden. Plagued by her actions during her Black Widow training in the Red Room, and having lost her sister Natasha Romanoff in Avengers: Endgame, she drowns in alcoholism, self-loathing, and depression. Earlier in the movie, there are hints to The Void’s nihilistic power that she completely ignores in all the banter; there’s a deadness to her that suffocates a Yelena that could breathe if she learned to let herself. This is seen in the sarcasm she delivers to teammates and her father, Red Guardian. However, she has a soft spot for Bob, having seen the same pit of emptiness in her through him. Perhaps she sees someone who could have and should have a better life that needs to be fought for, and she goes up to bat for him the most; her empathy furthers a connection with someone capable of greatness.
Speaking of Bob... A victim of childhood abuse, adulthood strung out on methamphetamines, and a myriad of mental health issues, all wrapped up in dull pajamas and shoulder-length hair. Full name: Robert Reynolds, Bob never fully recovered from his harsh upbringing and sought to numb his pain with drugs. When the opportunity to partake in Fontaine’s O.X.E. “Sentry” trials, he jumped at it. Leapt, even. If he could turn his life around to be someone others could look up to, he’d take it. However, his issues ran so deep that a typical Sentry project would not work out as intended. On one side of his mental health, he has delusions of grandeur, and on the other is a hopeless and bleak cynicism. The former manifests in the blonde, golden Sentry, whereas the latter bathes in obsidian terror. The Sentry side of Bob holds back, but still believes he should be in control, while The Void wants everyone to give up and give in, so he swallows them whole in shadow.
Polygon’s article on how Thunderbolts* tackles depression brings up a valid point on how the team’s entire world seems to revolve around Bob’s destructively negative mental health while also pointing out that they kind of have to focus their attention on his struggles to save the day. They also highlight that their group hug to bring him out of the darkness is from a place of actual love, not solely a place of obligated heroic duty. A core point of the argument, however, is that Bob didn’t seem too reciprocative to what his new friends were going through, and I think this point could lead to something fascinating. Imagine Bob’s obliviousness to everyone’s feelings that it eventually manifests in the Sentry and/or The Void returning in Avengers: Doomsday, Avengers: Secret Wars, or perhaps a sequel for Marvel’s new blockbuster team.
What Marvel Studios can learn from this
By now, it’s clear that standalone films within the MCU benefit from having a unique vision. Like Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Black Panther, and Thor: Ragnarok, there’s an artistic focus to Thunderbolts* with an almost auteur focus. The direction of the film, while as visually desaturated as other MCU films, did something interesting with the grey bleakness within. Thematically, it was structured in tandem with the story.
The earnest, character-driven story, combined with a well-meaning message, puts this in a category that has re-energized the conversation around the MCU. This is a shot in the arm to a stagnating brand. While I personally have been entertained by even their most floppiest flops, I must admit that this has not been a good period.
Do I think that Thunderbolts* is a return to full MCU glory? Not necessarily. But I do think it's a step in the right direction. The next three big movies coming up will determine that; Thunderbolts* will be the ground zero for it, if so.
With Kevin Feige knowingly expressing the floundering nature of the brand and the intention to slow things down, there might be some hope. With a film on the horizon diametrically different from Thunderbolts*, The Fantastic Four: First Steps aims to push the direction of the MCU back into a more compelling future. Perhaps that’s what Marvel Studios needs, right now: first steps into a slower-growing content library.
I will eat as many Wheaties as possible until the MCU becomes a positive topic again.
‘Nuff said.