“Thunderbolts*” was a great return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe after a series of uninspired projects. It showcases what previously made the MCU special to many people, emphasizing character building rather than only setting up future projects.

The film features an ensemble cast of side characters from previous Marvel properties. It has a team-up plot similar to “Avengers” and “Guardians of the Galaxy” with a central villain.

The tone of the movie is noticeably more somber, yet it still emulates the same humor as the previous Avengers movies. The humor lands for the most part, and David Harbour, who plays Alexei Shostakov, is pulling the majority of the comedic weight. The jokes are made for people who enjoy the corny Marvel humor. It does not deviate from the formula of Marvel film comedic timing.

The standout performances are from Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova and Lewis Pullman as Sentry.

Pugh does a great job of working off other characters, especially during emotional and tense scenes. She is the main character of this film, and it does a great job building her personality from previous appearances. This movie is setting her up to be a main character of this phase of the MCU, and I think Pugh will be able to hold that title well for future movies.

Sentry is an incredible character. For the past few years, Marvel has taken how much audiences care about the characters for granted and has put little effort into fleshing them out, forgetting that what made the Avengers appealing was their back stories and connections with one another. They have corrected that mistake by creating a well-rounded character who is very likable, which helps make people want to see him again. Sentry is also incredibly dynamic and plays off the angsty attitude of other characters very well. Also, the mystery of his powers was well written and always kept the audience on their toes. I am excited to see him in future projects.

The conflict being based in character arcs, rather than only one villain, is what makes the story so engaging. It makes the action moments more interesting and tense because they carry so much emotional weight. This was lacking in the past view of Marvel projects because a simplistic villain is not engaging, especially with a lack of convincing characters.

This movie served as a reset for Marvel Studios, as audiences had lost faith in the production to put out good, well-thought-out movies. It hits on all the strong points, like strong character-driven conflicts and humor, that drew so many to care for the MCU. “Thunderbolts*” is a strong restart for Marvel, which makes me personally excited for what comes next.