The Peanut Gallery Reviews Thunderbolts*
- Steve Titcomb
- May 6
- 3 min read
Updated: 6 days ago
Did Thunderbolts* set the MCU back on the right track?
Thunderbolts* was released in theaters on 5/2/25
Thunderbolts* excelled where the majority of post-Endgame movies failed and that was with balanced storytelling. Funny with heart, action, with substance, Thunderbolts* takes the anti-heroes of the MCU and creates a team that we all want to be a part of. This team of disposable delinquents is just what the doctor ordered. A few new characters and sequels to other franchises is all well and good, but it's the team-up films where the money is. This ragtag group of people who have done bad things but want to make good is the first film in quite a while to bring Avenger-like feels, and that is a very good thing moving forward.
Cast
What a cast. From top to bottom, this is a well-acted film. Florence Pugh (Black Widow) as Yelena is the emotional glue of the story. She’s the bridge needed to de-escalate the climactic crisis and ends up turning in one of the strongest performances since the MCU’s inception. She's a badass, she's vulnerable, and she is most likely one of the star faces of the MCU over the next few years.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Seinfeld) as Valentina is fantastic in her role as a master manipulator. Battling impeachment charges, her attempt to hide all her skeletons leads to Bob, aka The Sentry/The Void, being unleashed on the world. Her ability to adapt, though, will have you begrudgingly enjoying her character as she manages to make herself come off much better publicly than you would think. She's the tainted version of Nick Fury who only has her own self-interest at heart, and she should make an interesting foil to our superheroes going forward.
Wyatt Russell’s (22 Jump Street) Walker had me doing...well, not quite a 180, but more like 120-degree on liking this character, and I don’t mean performance-wise. Wyatt was great, showing his inner turmoil after the fallout of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier saw him publicly execute the wrong man for the whole world to see. He's still an a-hole, but like Star-Lord himself said, "He is an a-hole, but not 100% a dick." Aside from his boorish behavior, I like how the film focused on the way he and Pugh’s Yelena were able to communicate nonverbally after such little time together. Not quite Cap and Natasha, but I like the idea of these two working a whole lot.
David Harbour (The Red Guardian) is the tuna fish to the rest of the team's lamb (thank you, Big Daddy) and helps alleviate a lot of the tension on the team with big laughs and by making everyone annoyed with him, instead of with each other. He shows more heart this time around too, even if he is the butt of a lot of jokes. Lewis Pullman (Top Gun: Maverick) is right up there with Shang-Chi as the most interesting character introduced post-Endgame. The most dangerous and unstable superhero we have met so far, Bob's multiple personalities on top of his depression make him easy to be sympathetic towards, and the chemistry with Pugh's Yelena is next level. She is the only one who can really ground him.
The rest of the cast is great and seeing Bucky (Sebastian Stan) back as the most stable of all these characters is a nice change of pace. Ghost hasn't been seen since Ant-Man and the Wasp, but Hannah John-Kamen (Ready Player One) as Ava gets a whole new life breathed into her here. Much like Walker, she is a dick, but she has a lot of charm that makes it much more bearable.
Mental Health Themes
Thunderbolts* dropping during mental health awareness month isn’t done by mistake. A major part of the story is characters finding their self-worth. All have dark pasts and traumas that still haunt them, and from the best-known characters, such as Bucky, to the newest, in Bob, they all struggle to find their place. The story is great with very little drag...okay, maybe the elevator escape scene. But very little storytelling is wasted and the future for the MCU looks bright.
The Sentry/The Void
Capturing The Sentry/The Void's powers was a worrisome concern before entering the cinema for the first time, but all my worries were for nought. Capturing both sides of his personality and visually displaying the contrast between them made for some epic moments on screen.
Run to the Theater
Thunderbolts* is a hit. It's fun and has tons of heart and action, with a little bit of everything for everybody. Cinema experience at its finest, grab a drink and popcorn and go see this one on the big screen. Highly recommend giving Thunderbolts* a watch.
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