Avengers: Endgame Review

All roads lead to the end and what an end it is.

Struggling to move on after half the population of the universe is erased from existence, the remaining Avengers assemble one last time in hopes of saving the day from the effects of the infinity stones.

The weight of their defeat has broken the team. Some are able to build on this and thrive almost like Thanos predicted while others are crushed by it and cling to any hope of restoring what they’ve lost.Marvel has a reputation for being bright and happy, but don’t mistake that brightness for naivety as Endgame doesn’t shy away from some of the darker sides of grief and the lengths someone may go to when they lose everything. This view is polarized by some characters who have arguably gained from the experience.

Though these views are both present they’re never really played off one another and explored. Additionally, there are characters who take the new world order particularly hard despite having lost considerably less than most.

With an army worth of characters to get through the movie runs for around three hours and there’s a lot of build up on the front end of the film. However, as this is the culmination of the infinity war storyline, which has spanned 22 films, allowing some character moments is easily forgiven even if it does slow the plot down somewhat.

Though everyone has at least one shining moment, the film is largely about the original lineup. Iron Man, Captain America, Black Widow, Thor, Hulk and Hawkeye take centre stage once again. This effectively bottle ends the series and adds to the feeling of finality. This is the team that first took us on this journey and fittingly it is them who complete it.

Avengers Endgame is an impressive conclusion to the story that rewards fans for sticking with Marvel by directly referencing many of the films that have come before and while Marvel movies are likely to continue for years to come this is still very much an ending. A bittersweet goodbye to the story Marvel has so carefully woven throughout 22 films.