By Robert Ernest (@thatRobster | www.xgeeks.co.uk)
This review is spoiler-free.
The Marvels brings together many plot points we’ve seen within the MCU as Carol Danvers (Captain Marvel), Kamala Khan (Ms Marvel) and Monica Rambeau band together to save more than one world!
It could be said that Marvel is currently in a slump, resulting in some reshuffling and rethinking after a string of releases which were probably not received as well as they’d have hoped. It pleases me that Carol and Friends could well be the reset button as it delivers comedy – which is not overdone, some fantastic action sequences and heaps of deep-rooted emotion.
Carol (Brie Larson), Kamala (Iman Vellani) and Monica (Teyonah Parris) find themselves teamed up when their powers become entangled, causing them to swap places with each other whenever one of them uses them. The results of this, as the film begins, are really fun to watch and right from the start, Iman steals the show as Kamala as we witness her comic book fantasies becoming a reality. Having said that, all three characters have five multiple moments to shine and all of their character arcs are fulfilling.
Nia DaCosta’s script has us planet-hopping while The Marvels faces a new foe who has personal links with Carol’s past. Dar-Benn (Zawe Ashton) is a Kree who is trying to rebuild her home world after it was destroyed and Carol is instrumental in her revenge. This also provides an explanation for Carol’s absence on Earth and some underlying tensions between her and Monica. Comparatively with other villains within the MCU, Dar-Benn is relatively forgettable, although I could feel myself smiling as I saw tiny traits of Ashton’s Fresh Meat character, Vod, in her facial expressions. I’m a fan and Ashton gives a great performance in the role she was given and I’m very happy to see her in a Marvel film.
Being set in space means we discover all sorts of settings and beings. None have ever been as fun as the planet, Aladna where its inhabitants only communicate through song. These scenes were a real highlight of the film for me and were so much fun to watch. Samuel L. Jackson returns as Nick Fury and there are some hilarious one-liners from him, and Goose provides another of the film’s best moments. However, the real MVPs here are The Khans as Zenobia Shroff and Moham Kapur are back and feature heavily as Kamala’s parents. I loved them before and I love them even more now.
I felt like there was a major payoff from investing in the wider universe due to the continuation of plot points from the Disney+ series WandaVision and Ms Marvel and of course from 2019’s Captain Marvel. This film carries a lot of gravitas too for what’s to come, which makes me suggest that the word pivotal is best used to describe it. The mid-credits scene is beyond exciting and opens the door to what all Marvel fans have desperately wanted. It also backs up lessons learnt in 2019’s Avengers: Endgame – Carol really isn’t great at disarming enemies of arm accessories!!!
The Marvels is a fast-paced, heartfelt and fun superhero movie which follows up on characters that we already feel connected to and acts as a new path which will push the MCU forward. It’s full of fantastic chemistry and has some surprises which will make you want to squeal with excitement.
X-Geeks 