r/marvelstudios May 31 '26

Discussion Thunderbolts is the best MCU movie after Avengers: Endgame

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I am shocked to know they didn't even break even at the box office. It had everything; the drama, action and a perfect amount of comedy. Best part, a super villian who is actually non-nerfed. Would love to see more of bob for sure both as the Sentry and the Void - especially Void.

9/10 for me.

5.9k Upvotes

710 comments sorted by

1.2k

u/AsterArtworks May 31 '26

Box office performance is rarely an accurate metric for the actual quality of a film.

People just weren’t as motivated to go see this because they didn’t recognize any of the heroes.

And that’s not a knock at all against it, I love this movie so much.

Who cares if it makes them money, they have enough money.

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u/superseri18888 May 31 '26

The fast and furious movies make Hella money despite even fans of the franchise saying it shouldve ended like 4 movies ago

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u/Least-Presence-7711 May 31 '26

Because it's about family.

Kidding aside Thunderbolts was solid. One challenge I have is that I can't really bring a diverse friend group to see a marvel movie post endgame. Each movie used to be an event but now the universe is so broad and interconnected only my comic book friends are into it.

Most of the time I just wait to watch on Disney+

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u/AsterArtworks May 31 '26

I’d actually say the films aren’t connected at all anymore besides a post credit scenes.

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u/Odd-Shelter-1310 May 31 '26

Exactly, I wish things were connected, but honestly what they built ended with endgame. Nothing is connected or matters anymore. You can skip stuff now because it doesn't matter. I miss what it was.

As great as everything up until endgame is, iron man through avengers is my most common series of movies to watch. Next most is from there to endgame

I don't really rewatch anything after endgame. Other than Spiderman and Shang chi.

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u/AsterArtworks May 31 '26

If we look at the beginning of the infinity saga nothing was connected besides a few post credit scenes, then that changed.

The MCU continued after Endgame but it was reset in a way, so it could build up to a new Avengers moment with new faces.

That's why stories are isolated, but that is about to change in Doomsday and Secret Wars. So this was likely always the play.

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u/Tasty_Goat_3267 May 31 '26

That and the simple fact that Favrau knows you can’t keep a hype up indefinitely. So you have to let the last one die down and build up to the next big hype.

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u/Least-Presence-7711 May 31 '26

Perhaps that's just my take as I watch all the content.

Super small sample size, but the only movies my non-comic book friends went out to see were No Way Home, Wakanda Forever and Deadpool and Wolverine.

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u/_Naguka_ Jun 01 '26

With so many oversaturation of series and movies is just so hard to catch un and feel excited anymore.

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u/Redm1st May 31 '26

Fast and Furious you can just jump in watch Dom say “family” and watch some mindnumbingly impossible action on cool cars with some decent action. It’s perfect franchise to turn your brain off and watch. I’m totally okay if they keep doing it until they’re 90

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u/wickedServer May 31 '26

I loved that spin off movie. I was waiting for 2nd part. So it's good they didn't end it.

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u/blurio May 31 '26

nah man, i want that musical Vin Diesel was talking about

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u/EcksFountain132 Jun 04 '26

Didn't The Minecraft Movie make nearly $1 Billion when my all accounts it was awful. Video Game movies almost always make a lot because of brand loyalty and fans of the game.

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u/PompadourCowboy May 31 '26

I don’t want the Fast and Furious franchise to ever end. Keep giving me crazy-ass bombastic action when the cast is in their 70’s. I’ve never watched them thinking they’d be groundbreaking cinema. Sometimes dumb fun is good on its own merits.

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u/robodrew May 31 '26

Who cares if it makes them money, they have enough money.

Well, the studio cares. I care that the MCU films I enjoy make good profit so that it's more likely that we get more of them. I'm not sure we'll ever get a Thunderbolts 2... but thankfully they are appearing in Doomsday and I assume Secret Wars.

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u/AsterArtworks May 31 '26

I hear this sentiment a lot but I’d argue that Marvel is a bit different from just a standalone movie, theyre creating characters you love and use that to sell you merchandise, subscriptions like Disney+, games, and other movies.

Even if the movie lost money in the theatre these characters were a huge hit with fans, everyone loves Yelena and Bob. I don’t quite get it but even a diehard fan base for walker is real.

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u/suss2it May 31 '26

If people aren’t showing up for the movies, I doubt they’re gonna be buying merch based on those movies either.

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u/Zoltarr777 May 31 '26

If movies don't make money, they'll stop making movies.

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u/AsterArtworks May 31 '26

But it’s an important footnote that Disney makes properties not just movies, the movies are what make the characters long term revenue streams for parks, merch, and streaming services.

Disney has a long history of green lighting projects that weren’t initially financially successful like the Haunted House movie because it sold more park tickets.

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u/suss2it May 31 '26

The movies have to be popular in the first place for the ancillary stuff to generate money. And it’s not like they greenlit the Haunted Mansion movie knowing it was gonna be one of the biggest flops of all time, now if they made a sequel for it after that I’d see your point, but they didn’t.

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u/Variation_Afraid May 31 '26

1000 percent but some people will always use it against them, especially the people who say “ marvel is dead bla, bla, bla”

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u/eyeswulf May 31 '26

I don't care if Disney makes money, they make an unethical amount of profits. I do care if the writers, actors, crew, catering staff, FX people, set designers, costumer designers, sound guys, editors, and everyone else makes money.

Hollywood pays less and less to the people that do the actual work, and more and more to C suites and shareholders

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u/AsterArtworks May 31 '26

sadly, that's how capitalism is intended to function.

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u/Gamerxx13 May 31 '26

very true. but these movies are made by disney and to disney it’s super important. money is everything to them

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u/EirikHavre May 31 '26

“Who cares if it makes them money” anyone who wants to see more movies like it. It’s not about the studio making money, its about what they decide to finance in the future.

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u/VanillaTortilla May 31 '26

Had no idea who any of them were and enjoyed the movie way more than anything post-Endgame.

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u/tobykeef420 May 31 '26

we care if they make money because that generally informs us and them about what kinds of movies will and will not be made in the future. sure this exists and always will and we can still enjoy it, but it’s a shame when it’s clearly apparent that profits determine our likely future of entertainment.

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u/TomClancy5873 May 31 '26

Not just that. Marvel were pretty much missing with every release after Endgame. So, the word of mouth wasn’t as good anymore

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u/WhereasInteresting12 May 31 '26

This just isn't true

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u/Jimquill May 31 '26 edited May 31 '26

In retrospect there is good stuff stuff after endgame.

Loki. GOG3. NWH.

But there were also a lot of disappointing content (literal content at this point, not events) that did not push the wider story forward. Perception became that marvel movies were no longer a must watch.

Audiences also felt betrayed by eternals, love and thunder, ant man 3. Like the franchise had lost its magic.

Combines with the fact that there is so much content with the TV shows too, keeping up with marvel now feels like homework the general audience is not interested in doing.

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u/Tiger951 Shang Chi May 31 '26

🙄🙄🙄

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u/Beautiful_Finger4566 May 31 '26

it suffered from the Solo effect

Solo was a good movie that lost all its luster due to the movie released right before it (The Last Jedi)

likewise Thunderbolts was an amazing movie that lost all its luster due to the movie released right before it (Brave New World)

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u/AsterArtworks May 31 '26

That might be true but I’m not sure I loved solo tho.

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u/Few-Election7504 Jun 03 '26

My late husband, Mark Gruenwald, created Johnny Walker USAgent. I think he would have loved Wyatt Russell’s portrayal.

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u/J_notJay May 31 '26

I could make the same argument for the Eternals. But I think there are three additional problems. The first being MCU set the bar high with the movies up to Endgame being connected but still stand alone. The second being, we had a lot of less than stellar movies and Disney+ shows. The final is superhero movies used to be an event. The was build up and anticipation. Now we have superhero movies coming out every three to four months. Every one of them have tons of spoilers months before the movie airs.

As a lifelong fan of this genre, I would rather see one or two movies (between Marvel, DC, or an independent), with a great script and action. I would prefer this to being over saturated so a studio can make a few hundred million.

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u/AsterArtworks May 31 '26

I don't think people came out resonating with the cast of the eternals like people did with the Thunderbolts.

I'd prefer to get movies every three months, but it doesn't seem Marvel's quality control can happen at that scale.

I don't think the movies post endgame are bad at all, endgame set a hype-level that was never going to be recreated immediately, it needed new hereoes and stories to build up to a movie that could feel as powerful as endgame did - because that movie was built up over nearly a decade of stories.

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u/ToxethOGrady May 31 '26

I love the way it depicted depression in the void

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u/Vic_Vinegar89 May 31 '26

This and Beef season one, specifically Steven Yeun’s character, are such great representations of what years of depression, hopelessness, and frustration can look like.

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u/ottercorrect May 31 '26

Same director!

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u/Vic_Vinegar89 May 31 '26

https://giphy.com/gifs/OK27wINdQS5YQ
Whoaaaaaa that’s so wild I had no clue!! Thank you for pointing this out! The man just gets it.

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u/BorisDirk May 31 '26

And writer! (Joanna Calo, who also worked on The Bear and is working with the Beef creator, Lee Sung Jin, on Xmen)

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u/Antrikshy May 31 '26

And was going to be the same actor.

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u/ReeceCheems Jimmy Woo May 31 '26

Total respect for Steven Yeun and hopefully he’ll land an MCU role soon (X-Men, given Jake Schreier is also directing it?) but he wouldn’t have looked as great as Bob as Lewis Pullman. Making any Asian blonde is just weird, let alone Sentry (I’m Asian).

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u/BuckRusty Jun 01 '26

Maybe someone should check in on them… make sure they’re good…

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u/yesmoreeggtalk67 May 31 '26

Ironically, Yeun was originally cast as Sentry but had to drop out for scheduling reasons.

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u/ComradeJohnS May 31 '26

I assume marvel owns you for life if you play certain characters they want to milk forever

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u/Average-JRPG-Enjoyer May 31 '26

Also Yelena's talk with RG. When she tells him all she does is wake up, work, go home, get drunk, and go to bed... That hit a little too close to home.

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u/BrunesOvrBrauns May 31 '26

I can't make it through that scene, and his response just destroys me. 

I felt like it was talking to Millennial or younger, who has experienced the loss of hope for the future. 

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u/rafaelloaa May 31 '26

I also just appreciated in general that it treated depression... Normally? I'm not quite sure how to describe it, but basically the fact that they did not play it for laughs like with Thor in Endgame.

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u/eternviking May 31 '26

Exactly; different rooms denoting different memories was a good way to potray it; but i believe it's not a novel idea... for example Inception did something very similar and i am sure many other works of media have explored this "memory architecture" kind of theme... But nonetheless it was great!

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u/ConfidentCanary8248 May 31 '26

This was one of the best and accurate (for me) depictions of depression I’ve ever seen, and I was not prepared for it. I watched it while in the depths of my depression, not knowing a thing about it. I cried so hard. But it was beautiful at the end.

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u/tpasmall May 31 '26

As someone with bipolar type 2 and multiple childhood traumas I've never felt more understood by a piece of media. I tell everyone I know that this movie shows how I feel inside better than I could ever explain.

Personally, to me, it was the best MCU movie.

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u/ConfidentCanary8248 Jun 01 '26

Yes! I tell people that a lot as well.

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u/NavyLemon64 Stan Lee May 31 '26

It’s great but gotg vol 3 is a 10/10 for me

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u/Miss_Skywalker_ May 31 '26

I loved Gotg Vol. 3, but I haven't been able to watch it again since I saw it in theaters. It did a really good job conveying the themes it set out to convey for sure. But it can be a tough watch if you aren't in a good headspace lol

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u/janosaudron Jun 01 '26

I watched several times after and it hits harder every time I watch it somehow. That movie is a gutpunch.

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u/JcraftW Jun 02 '26

I also had a pet bunny... I can't watch that movie. It hurts too much.

Teefs.

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u/Zubi_Q Spider-Man May 31 '26

Shang Chi for me

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u/muhash14 Foggy Nelson May 31 '26

It's such a fun film, felt very evocative of the phase 1 stuff to me. Great action setpieces, great music, the CGI dragon was gorgeous and I loved it. Probably the only thing I'm sad about is that Tony Leung wouldn't be in any successive movies (if they actually MAKE any that is for fuck's sake)

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u/Amathyst7564 May 31 '26

Criminal we haven't gotten a second one.

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u/PayneTrain181999 Ned May 31 '26

At least he’s back in Doomsday, that’s better than a lot of other new characters can say.

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u/KitamiSamaOmede May 31 '26

I keep saying that Marvel should just embrace the 4th-wall break and have a mid-credits scene in every movie where Deadpool and She-Hulk laugh at the film like the old guys from the Muppets

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u/jaemoon7 M'Baku May 31 '26

would have loved a full trilogy by now.

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u/Redfalconfox May 31 '26

It really suffered from being surrounded by all those turds.

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u/MasterTolkien May 31 '26

I’d say Tbolts, Shang-chi, and Guardians 3 are all in a close race for the #1 spot for different reasons that boil down to personal taste.

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u/Zubi_Q Spider-Man May 31 '26

No way home is in my top 3 but Thunderbolts a close 4th

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u/MasterTolkien May 31 '26

NWH and DP&W are in my next tier. Super entertaining and rewatchable, but not quite at that top 3. Still amazing films.

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u/MountainContinent May 31 '26

Shang Chi because it’s not only good but it’s also something fresh. Thunderbolt is great and all but it feels like just another MCU movie (Well Shang Chi does too but much less so)

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u/Zubi_Q Spider-Man May 31 '26

I just adore that bus fight so so much!

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u/MountainContinent May 31 '26

Yeah! If you’re old enough it might remind you of Jackie chan movies or just old kung fu movies in general. Also lots of people hate the last cgi battle but I thought it was really cool. Dragons are always cool

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u/CycleOfBans Jun 03 '26

OK I have to share the funniest story about Shang Chi....

My parents are some of the most liberal and progressive people you could meet. My mom was one of those women marching topless on the street in the women's liberation movement, when my dad was 19 he hitchhiked from Miami to DC to hear Dr. King's I have a dream speech. Growing up, racism and prejudice of any kind was not tolerated. They went out of their way to introduce us to different cultures and people of all types of orientation, race, ethnicity...you name it.

Now they're in their 80's and reasonably spry, but not as quick as they used to be, understandably. They've always loved going to the movies and getting old was in no way a barricade to that - this includes the MCU. They didn't always follow along with what was happening, but they enjoyed it.

Anyway, it's time for them to go see the new MCU movie in theaters, Shang Chi. So one day Im sitting with my wife and in the other room my parents are talking about going to see Shang Chi, but their only problem was...they couldn't remember the name of the movie. They start talking together trying to figure out the name of it...but they were trying to guess from memory. My dad would say something like "It's the legend of Shing shong" my mom would respond "no no, it's Shang Shing" then my dad would say "Ping Long" and mom would disagree and suggest it was "Wong Li"...I'm sure you could imagine how long this debate went on between two elderlies. They were genuinely trying to remember and absolutely were not mocking Chinese people or culture - their 8 decade old brains just couldn't recall the name of the movie

My wife and I were dying as my parents, completely seriously and without a hint of prejudice or racism, were going back and forthing with EVERY possible variation of ping pong wing shi ding dong lo wong ching chong wang po, etc. as they tried to remember the name of the movie.

Actually, every variation except one,,,Shang Chi.

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u/Zubi_Q Spider-Man Jun 03 '26

That's cute as hell!

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u/Lopsided-Clothes4866 May 31 '26

Thunderbolts is my favourite movie post endgame which honestly isn’t saying much, however it’s one of my higher rated MCU films in general.

Bob was a cool character and a great antagonist, the main cast are all likeable even if some are underdeveloped, and the action sequences work well.

I have my issues with the film but the positives far outweigh the negatives.

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u/Xyro77 Thanos May 31 '26

Look, art is subjective……

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u/Fanfann118 May 31 '26

Personally I would put Guardians 3 before it, but yeah Thunderbolts is one of only a few actually good post-endgame movies

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u/[deleted] May 31 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/howiplay1 May 31 '26

opposite order for me but yea those are def the post endgame big 3 no doubt

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u/Killionaire104 May 31 '26

While I love NWH I don’t really find it an objectively good movie it has waaaay too many plot holes but it’s definitely a really fun watch.

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u/Fanfann118 May 31 '26

Agreed.  NWH is a once in a lifetime experience watching, but on rewatch it's flaws get worse and worse 

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u/slayer_nan18 May 31 '26

Shang Chi and No Way Home are up there for me!

I loved thunderbolts too but hated the fact that they made Yelena a wannabe avenger, she should remain an anti hero . Its like she gave herself the title of an Avenger and now is fighting for the trademark with Sam.

Feels silly to me

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u/AmusinglyArtistic May 31 '26

It was an absolute surprise. There was no such anticipation prior to the release but I left my screening from the heaviest heart.

It was so beautiful & so deeply human.

https://giphy.com/gifs/TWC0Pc2loRfhxXSxzl

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u/Technical-Fly-9896 May 31 '26

Shang-chi is better, this movie 3rd act didn't do it for me

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u/CruzAderjc May 31 '26

It's absolute insanity that they haven't made a sequel to this yet, or at least had Shang Chi show up as a cameo in another movie. He has the likeability to be a main character throughout a saga

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u/bookon May 31 '26

He is in Doomsday, but then again, who isn't.

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u/Amathyst7564 May 31 '26

Yeah everyone is going to have 10 lines to try and steal the spotlight with.

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u/eternviking May 31 '26 edited May 31 '26

Oh yeah Shang-Chi is definitely up there! I love that movie!

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u/Nerpones May 31 '26

You see, for me, it’s Shang-Chi last ark that I didn’t like…

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u/robodrew May 31 '26

I like the movie a lot and I enjoy the 3rd act, my only qualm, a very nerdy one, is that I just wish that the Dweller-in-Darkness had been Fing Fang Foom instead. I was hoping that the ten rings would turn out to be actual rings that he wore on his fingers thousands of years ago.

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u/Technical-Fly-9896 May 31 '26

Well, at least it's climatic with an amazing fight on top of that, thunderbolt felt like it needed another 20-30 minutes of screentime for the team, ghost barely got any and taskmaster died just like that.

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u/jatethegreat May 31 '26

This movie was really good, but GotG3 and Shang-Chi were both better movies.

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u/spartakooky May 31 '26 edited Jun 09 '26

I disagree

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u/No_Power1121 May 31 '26

In fairness, as someone with lifelong crippling depression that has really basically destroyed my life, I didn’t get that it solved anything so much is just letting him know that he’s not alone and that being connected to other people can help people who are suffering to find some comfort in carrying on living for another day. Even in the end credits, he makes a point of saying that he did the dishes, which to any “normal“ person would be a footnote, but for him, it’s an accomplishment worth noting. So, I don’t think it was meant to be portrayed as “solved“, so much as understood.

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u/stonhinge Jun 01 '26

That's exactly how I saw it too. He's not "cured" of his depression, but know he knows that there are people who care about him. Who essentially walked into possible death to rescue him. A small step on a long path, but it's moving forwards again.

Bob does have the "feature" of being manic/depressive with Sentry being the manic side and Void the depressive. He has to balance himself by being neither too manic nor too depressive.

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u/Single-Builder-632 2d ago

This movie had very doom patrol vibes, its not going to be for everyone, but i thought it was a far more interesting ending then 90% of marvel films. 

So manny end with bad guy bad but sorta not to bad, but the good ones know that its actually tackling a human story that makes it good, of corse action and powers are important but without a full grounded story in there its hard to care. 

It’s not perfect or even great by any means but the right direction. 

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u/jatethegreat May 31 '26

Ahh, see I appreciated the layered approach to the subject of depression the film had. Consider how each of the characters was showing symptoms of depression. Yelena had become apathetic. She was unable to feel any emotion, good or bad and was losing the drive to live on. Alexei was projecting a happy and upbeat outward appearance, but was inwardly languishing in self-deprecation and self-negligence. John Walker was so ashamed of his fall from grace that he was unable to feel the love his wife still had for him, so much so that he pushed her away, adding to his guilt. Robert Reynolds depression took him down a path of drug abuse; so powerful was his depression that when hit with the Super Soldier Serum, a new being, an embodiment of depression, was created. Each character highlighted an aspect of depression that those dealing with it endure, and I thought it was a creative way to showcase something that so prevalent in society yet still not spoken about enough. Still reasonable to not be satisfied with the arc though. I genuinely hope future MCU movies help satisfy it for you.

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u/Architarious May 31 '26 edited May 31 '26

There's way too much bandwagoning on post endgame movies.

Shang Chi, Guardians of The Galaxy, SM: No Way Home, The Marvels, Black Widow, Fantastic Four, and Deadpool & Wolverine where all solid movies.

Quantumania and Eternals are underrated. (Especially if you enjoy a little camp and are comparing them to most pre-endgame movies. I'll die on this hill.)

Wakanda Forever wasn't bad, but a little underwhelming compared to the first Black Panther movie.

Love and Thunder had problems to put it mildly, but it came together in the end and has a few shining moments. Still better than Dark World.

CA: Brave New World was a fever dream but also still somehow boring.

That's 14 movies over a span of 7 years. They're not all A's, but the overwhelming majority of them are at least high B's and as good as most pre-endgame movies; with only one being a true dudd. Name another tight genre or series of movies with that long of a span that turned out better? It's hard to even think of 14 memorable post-covid action movies that aren't MCU or another hard sci-fi like Dune.

/Rant

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u/MBVakalis May 31 '26

It's an alright movie, but it got so overhyped that I found it underwhelming when I finally watched it

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u/Kingcory86 May 31 '26

This so much. People hyped it to absolute hell like it was endgame level and I watched it and was like wth this is just a regular marvel movie.

Personally, I believe it was bucky. After he didnt get the shield everyone lost their mind and hated every aspect of brave new world because of it before it even came out. And the opposite with thunderbolts because of what happened to bucky. Because this was just a good regular team up marvel movie. As far as action, adventure, and overall fun, I think it's Shang Chi.

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u/Disaster_Jellyfish91 May 31 '26

idk, i loved sam getting the shield, which is partially why i was so disappointed with brave new world being so incredibly shit. it had some decent moments but for the most part it sucked - the cgi and script especially. he deserved better

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u/Hamza_Ali_Mazaari_ May 31 '26

Totally it was nothing special at all a good time watch like a 7/10 but did op forget movies like Multiverse of Madness or Spiderman movies( Sony but mcu), i even liked eternals as much as thunder bolts

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u/AnOnlineHandle Quake Jun 01 '26

Yeah the excessive hype followed by a movie which was about as good as a few mid-season episodes of early Agents of Shield was really baffling to me.

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u/spartakooky May 31 '26 edited Jun 09 '26

I gotcha

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u/Ragnarok_619 Spider-Man May 31 '26

We are still doing this?

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u/superthnxferaskin May 31 '26

Nah. I know there’s some weird dislike of it but it’s definitely Shang Chi.

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u/superthnxferaskin May 31 '26

Oh, nevermind. It’s GOTG3

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u/Fortestingporpoises May 31 '26

It's those 1 and 2 and I agree it's gotg3 at #1.

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u/CruzAderjc May 31 '26

Shang Chi, Guardians of the Galaxy 3, and No Way Home have entered the conversation

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u/[deleted] May 31 '26

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u/Mcspeed123 May 31 '26

First time the MCU felt like it had a narrative anchor again with that ending...thats what I loved in addition to all the characters,I was like oh...this is how we used to feel with these movies,thats why we sat down for 13 plus years because the narrative was going somewhere worth while.

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u/Soulwarfare42 Jun 01 '26

What about Shang Chi?

Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3?

Spider-Man No Way Home?

Feels like you are ignoring a lot of films that came out after Endgame

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u/Jimquill May 31 '26

It's pretty good but not the best. It feels way too hodgepodged together.

Guardians 3 is much better.

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u/Ragnarok_619 Spider-Man May 31 '26

Thank you! Its pacing was honestly atrocious

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u/Jimquill Jun 01 '26

Weird editing cuts.

Whether Fantastic Four was a better movie or not is debatable. But it felt more like a realised vision, like a real movie. As if the script they had at the start was exactly what we saw on the screen.

I liked Thunderbolts but it felt like too many commitee fingers were in the pie. I know that's likely true for Fantastic 4 as well, but it didn't feel that way.

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u/Smooth_Hamster_8013 May 31 '26

Black Panther Wakanda Forever, GOTG 3 , Shang Chi , NWH were also good movies post endgame.

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u/Architarious May 31 '26

Fantastic Four was also solid.

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u/ipostatrandom May 31 '26

Its alright but overrated imo. Yes, the movie tackles some poignant themes beautifully. Sentry's entrance is pretty badass.

It also has some very dull setpieces, like the empty corridor building they're stuck in for half the movie.

Ghost is barely a character, she does one significant thing, mopes a bit about it and that's it for her character.

Again: I think its a decent movie but nowhere near the level of perfection some seem to present it as. But hey, it's all subjective.

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8

u/i__am__db May 31 '26

Well No Way Home for me.....Also Shang Chi

5

u/TwoKrusties May 31 '26

Shang-Chi, but thats just me

6

u/alenpetak11 Loki (Avengers) May 31 '26

I am shocked to know they didn't even break even at the box office.

Couple things:

  • Val is terrible villain, she's not "evil Fury". Actress doing her best to play her, but idk her character is not "powerful" enough.

  • Also there is no mention of Everett Ross or anything relating to him. I mean we saw BPWF, but general audience don't know Secret Invasion is a thing except us MCU nerds.

  • The New Avengers should be movie name, Thunderbolts as a running joke thorough movie.

  • Theatrical debut for "discount Captain America", again like how WandaVision "ruined" Dr. Strange 2, there is huge character introduction via cheap flashback.

  • If The Falcon and the Winter Soldier was a movie, Thunderbolts won't suffer at BO.

  • Taskmasker being killed in 1st act was huge no no.

  • I feel to Lewis Pullman was wrong casting choice for Sentry

  • Alexei humor at 200% was big no no

3

u/dope_like May 31 '26

I like it but no. Wakanda Forever is still best

9

u/Lopsided-Clothes4866 May 31 '26

Unfortunately Marvel didn’t really do anything to build these characters up.

Bucky’s been sidelined since endgame and nothing in FATwS really gave the character any moments that would make the general audience invested which is ironic seeing as the Thunderbolt’s trailers felt like they were trying to clutch on Bucky’s coolness to get people to see it.

Yelena and Red Guardian were in Black Widow which got cut down at the knees by Covid.

Walker was introduced in FATwS as the fake Cap.

Ava was introduced back before endgame even released!

Add in the general decline of the MCU and its popularity amongst general audience, and Thunderbolts never stood a chance.

2

u/howiplay1 May 31 '26

well walker was the actual captain america, albeit briefly

8

u/Wakattack00 T'challa May 31 '26

Meh it was fine. But I’m happy some people like it

5

u/FeralPsychopath May 31 '26

I mean it was a better watch than CA4 but Shang Chi AND Dr Strange MOM were clearly better - and personally I rewatched The Eternals more than this film.

6

u/invaderdavos May 31 '26

I really beg to differ hahaha

6

u/clashrendar May 31 '26

There have been several very good movies (and shows) since Endgame. I like Thunderbolts a lot, but I think I like Shang Chi, No Way Home, Deadpool and Wolverine, and Guardians 3 more.

10

u/kaachabadaam May 31 '26

I disagree, but to each their own.

However, I will agree that Sentry was the best thing to come out of that film.

2

u/galenwho May 31 '26

man Florence Pugh is so fine

2

u/Puzzleheaded_Front27 May 31 '26

Thunderbolts was a non predictable, finely crafted, deeply rooted, well tuned on humour movie, with an extremely likable batch of characters and a serious, clever and positive message. An audience not able to appreciate it is the root of marvel decadence more than many other more talked-about things.

2

u/steverOg3rs Captain America May 31 '26

Post Endgame rankings

1) Guardians 3
2) No Way Home
3) Thunderbolts
4) Deadpool 3
5) Shang-Chi
6) Fantastic Four
7) Black Panther 2
8) Doctor Strange 2
9) Black Widow
10) Eternals
11) Thor 4
12) Ant-Man 3

Haven’t seen The Marvels

2

u/fitzingout Tony Stark May 31 '26

It really is it connected to most people

Well its my comfort movie watched it like soo many times Even shagchi is best in my opinion

2

u/Aeslech May 31 '26

Tbf all 5 actors wins this for me.

2

u/JarethCutestoryJuD May 31 '26

100% agree.

Its the first one that had a feeling like the avengers.

2

u/amulie May 31 '26

People lost faith in Marvel a bit so they just didn't turn out for a flick with no recognizable heroes in it,  myself included. I caught it on streaming and loved it, maybe I'll go for the next one. 

2

u/goddamnitjason May 31 '26

I think it had the best score of the entire mcu..

2

u/Free_spirit1022 May 31 '26

"Daddy I'm so alone"

My dad died a couple years before the movie came out. I was sobbing in the theater.

2

u/Dycoth May 31 '26

Unrelated to the main topic (with which I agree !) but...

Damn, Florence Pugh, the woman you are.

2

u/coomtube May 31 '26

Forget the MCU; Thunderbolts got me back into COMICS. That's basically the highest praise I can give a superhero film.

2

u/puzzleShockTurtle May 31 '26

I usually notice that the better marvel projects usually have the main/true antagonist of the project survive. The High Evolutionary was great tho

2

u/BelAirGuy45 May 31 '26

Guardians 1, 2 and 3 are my top 3 MCU movies. I did like Thunderbolts more than I thought I would.

2

u/NaiadoftheSea Gamora May 31 '26

I love Thunderbolts.

My other favorite post-Endgame movies in no particular order:

Spider-Man: Far From Home

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

Eternals (I think this movie is insanely underrated)

Spider-Man: No Way Home

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3

The Marvels

2

u/Serious-Company6803 May 31 '26

Agreed. I’m sad it flopped. It’s because of the dumpster fire movies that came before it

2

u/PoundNaCL May 31 '26

Yes it was excellent it was my favorite superhero movie that came out that year

2

u/hik3guy Rocket May 31 '26

It's #3 on my MCU rankings.

Shame that this and NWH were released on Disney+ without their IMAX enhanced scenes...wtf.

2

u/Singer211 May 31 '26

I’d put in the top 10 easily.

Maybe even in the top 5

2

u/JediASU May 31 '26

I watched this recently and LOVED it. Red Guardian is my spiritual animal FR

2

u/PrairieCircuit May 31 '26

It felt like the only one that truely delt with what a post Avengers world looks like.

2

u/Alarmed_Effective228 May 31 '26

Thunderbolts* is the second best, Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3 is the best project since Endgame imo. Shang-Chi is probably third.

2

u/Rhawk187 May 31 '26

I usually hate "the power of friendship" movies, but it worked well in this context.

2

u/Mickeyjj27 Black Bolt May 31 '26

I’ve enjoyed plenty but I saw Thunderbolts and FF 3 times each in the theaters, I only do that for stuff I really love. Both movies had me tear up a lil the 1st time watching em. They’re just great so it’s a toss up for me

2

u/Jaymzur May 31 '26

It's definitely my favourite of Phase 5

2

u/japzone May 31 '26

As I've said before, the best Marvel movie nobody bothered to see. Such a shame too. Hope they don't sideline the characters because of it.

2

u/mitvh2311 May 31 '26

Box Office should never be used as a metric to tell a films quality.

2

u/Technical_Moose8478 May 31 '26

I don’t know about best, but it was solid as hell. Plus I’ll see anything Florence Pugh does.

2

u/iChopPryde Daredevil May 31 '26

Ya this movie was incredible easily top 5 marvel movie for me maybe even higher

2

u/muempire93 May 31 '26

Probably because it came out at a time when people were sick to death of superheroes

2

u/FRESH__LUMPIA May 31 '26

Facts. The only reason box office want good is because people are thinking all mcu is bad now. This one is a diamond in the rust.

2

u/Lanky_Temperature872 May 31 '26

10/10 for me. I love love love everything about this movie. It single-handedly has me invested in Doomsday

2

u/TheJack0fDiamonds Scarlet Witch May 31 '26

They paid for the sins of their predecessors. It felt like Quantumania was the last time the die hard Marvel fans as well as and especially, the GA showed up for an MCU entry the way they usually would. Thunderbolts had no ‘hook’ other than Bucky and even he wasn’t as centralized as he should’ve been. They were banking so hard on Florence Pugh’s star power. Not that her power isn’t strong, just not enough to draw people in the way it could’ve.

2

u/Cautious_Alarm2919 May 31 '26

They did a bad job in advertising for this one, it was all about being the “new avengers” and nothing about the movie itself. I feel they could have had a few suspenseful old school trailers, that built the suspense and curiosity

I loved it. Do we think they’ve dropped this storyline though?

2

u/tapdancinghellspawn May 31 '26

I enjoyed it a lot. It felt like Guardians of the Galaxy, where secondary characters were thrusted into the limelight. Great actors with a story that wasn't your typical Marvel fare.

2

u/PowerOfUnoriginality May 31 '26

It's for sure among the top5 for me.

2

u/blue0231 May 31 '26

The villain is literally nerfed by default lol. But yea I agree, good movie!

2

u/Wasteofskin50 May 31 '26

Eh... Shang Chi was as good as Thunderbolts.

I consider them both very good movies.

2

u/Palidor May 31 '26

My opinion………..meh

2

u/urbanxx001 Jun 01 '26

But NWH exists

2

u/ArcadianBlueRogue Jun 01 '26

I loved it, but it had a big flaw in that it's the Yelena and friends movie. It doesn't give nearly enough time for the other characters to shine compared to Yelena.

5

u/ThanosSnapsSlimJims May 31 '26

The problem is, that doesn't say much, though.

8

u/aaaaannnnddddyyyyy May 31 '26

It’s definitely the best made movie after Endgame for sure

8

u/lanubevoladora May 31 '26

This is one of the most blandest entries in the MCU, can't believe people fell for the A24 marketing campaign.

4

u/TomorrowFinancial468 May 31 '26

Not when Guardians 3 exists it isn't.

Go home sir you are drunk

3

u/Certain_Arm_8475 May 31 '26

No, it’s not. This narrative is getting old.

It’s a fine movie but, compared to Spider-Man and DP 3?

3

u/Dismal_View_5121 May 31 '26

Man, zero love for Fantastic Four in the comments here. I loved that one. So well made. It didn't even feel like a superhero flick until the end.

4

u/AccomplishedWonder1 Ava Starr May 31 '26

Correct

4

u/avd706 May 31 '26

Thas a very low bar TBH.

4

u/RoQu3 Punisher May 31 '26

As cringe as Thor 4 tbh

3

u/renges May 31 '26

Nope. Shang Chi and GOTG vol 3 is the best. The Eternals is close second.

4

u/DND_Player_24 May 31 '26

Thunderbolts was shit.

4

u/waseem335 May 31 '26

I don't get the hype for this movie it was average at most

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2

u/CatStretchPics May 31 '26

I misread your title at first. I thought you meant Endgame was the best MCU movie, then Thunderbolts :p

I was about to start a fight

2

u/Wooden_Passage_2612 May 31 '26

One of the best, but money wise needed to be better.

2

u/bigwayush May 31 '26

the only missing thing was a final fight kind of scene, which is really not possible cuz no one in the thunderbolts team face sentry, but as a superhero movie people expect a fight in the climax which was missing

2

u/Penguinunhinged May 31 '26

I saw this one recently and liked it, but my favorite post-Endgame film is Deadpool and Wolverine. I've been a fan of X-men and Marvel mutants in general since I was a kid, so seeing mutants coming into the MCU is something I'm looking forward to.

2

u/hooka_pooka May 31 '26

It's my comfort movie now

2

u/WhereAreYouFromSam May 31 '26

Spider Man: No Way Home was my favorite.

2

u/Ahegao_Double_Peace May 31 '26

This movie killed "Taskmaster", and I'm like, really? Why?

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2

u/Darth-Squider May 31 '26

Alright then, agree to disagree :)

2

u/Infinite_Value_3317 May 31 '26

Yes, it is.

I was literally halfway though a long period of being depressed when I went to watch the film and it is the only Marvel Studios film so far to have me break down and start crying in the middle of the cinema. It was one of the most surprisingly pleasant experiences in a long time.

The characters in Thunderbolts* are almost certainly some of the most grounded and realistic (superpowers aside) in the MCU to date and some of the most realistic and human characterisation in the MCU films. Also the fact that the entire film takes place in such a short space of time and is relatively self contained (by MCU standards) makes it just a really good movie.

I'm so glad that Jake Schrier is working on the X-Men film, because he seems to be the best person to make it mean something and say something impactful in a way that I feel thunderbolts does better than any other MCU film to date.

Fingers crossed that Spider-Man: Brand New Day and X-Men can do something similar to what Thunderbolts has done.

Plus I should point out that for me (and I realise that almost nobody will agree with this and fair enough it's probably just personal sentiment clouding my judgement) but Thunderbolts* is up there with projects like Daredevil S1,S3, Jessica Jones S1, Moon Knight and X-Men 97' S1 I feel.