"Thunderbolts*" start a new chapter in MCU
The original Avengers are dead. If not literally in the movies, then figuratively, with the dawn of the MCU’s “New Avengers”. A team comprised of Bucky (Sabastain Stan), The Red Guardian (David Harbour), U.S Agent (Wyatt Russell), Black Widow (Florence Pugh), Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), and Bob (Lewis Pullman) brings the newest team comp: “The Thunderbolts*.” While the MCU might seem like it’s trying again at its famous original heroes, the story of the Thunderbolts* brings a new, more heartfelt film to the usual unserious and (recently disappointing) one-off’s.
The film starts off quickly from the perspective of Yelena Belova (Black Widow) on a cryptic mission from the movie's main protagonist. Early into the movie each member bands together in unison to create their small team of underrated-underdogs. Staying true to the MCU’s formula of witty jokes and cheesy lines, the movie does stray in its theme. Instead of fighting aliens or robots, Thunderbolts* instead follows a story of fighting against mental health.
WIth the new addition of Sentury (Bob) he comes to be in an unexpected and rather bold way for Marvel. Not bold as other characters may have had; fighting epic battles and venturing into space, instead our team has to fight not only Sentury, but against their own inner demons as well.
The movie takes you through a story of facing your grief. Accepting your guilt and moving past it, with one of the most prevalent themes in the film being togetherness. Though each member of The Thunderbolts* has things they regret, things they now must face fully with the film's unique storytelling, they achieve an acceptance together. Each one’s own story can't be ignored, and with nothing else to do, they face it together, and with each other, giving the film a deeper meaning than most other Marvel films in the past few years.
By the end of the film you feel more connected to each member. Staying true to the MCU’s happy endings, the movie completes itself by naming this new team as Earth's New Avengers, a new era of the MCU’s heros beginning.