Original caricature by Jeff York of Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Emma Corrin, Matthew Macfadyen, and “Dogpool” in DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE (copyright 2024).
They may be superheroes, but the heavy lifting required of both DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE in their latest adventure is a Herculean task. After all, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has been struggling as of late on both the big and small screen. Additionally, it’s been six years since Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) showed off his snarky, red-suited self in a so-so sequel. And finally, Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine character made one of the best exits of any franchise ever with the riveting LOGAN, a critical and box office hit that killed off his character.
Ah, but then there is always the Time Variance Authority (TVA) to adjust life and death. With this intergalactic bureau monitoring the multiverse and all its timelines, nobody has to die in the MCU and thus, there are no actions that cannot be undone. The trope, one that many would call a crutch, has inspired offerings both sublime and ridiculous. On the plus side, you had the epic two-parter of AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR and ENDGAME which used the gimmick brilliantly to bring back all the dead superheroes that Thanos’s finger snap took out. Then there was LOKI, the acclaimed show on the Disney+ streaming channel, that also used the ploy brilliantly to help the antihero become a hero over two seasons. On the other hand, films like ANT-MAN AND THE WASP: QUANTUMANIA exposed the limits of such a gimmick, creating far too many convoluted worlds where little seemed to matter because everything could be redone. Fortunately, DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE gets the studio back on track with its very clever stab at the multiverse, one which creates definitive stakes and carries with it an emotional resonance that’s quite affecting.
The plot finds Wade Wilson itching to get back into the superhero game as his alter ego Deadpool but needing Wolverine to help him do so. Wade’s latest birthday is no cause for celebration as he’s missing his double life, but the poor sap is no longer dating the comely Vanessa (Morena Baccarin), and his banter with profane roomie Blind Al (Leslie Uggams) has grown tiresome. Wade’s car salesman job is no prize either even though his friend Peter (Rob Delaney) keeps trying to convince him otherwise.
Then one day, the TVA time travels to pluck Wade out of his boring existence and makes him an offer he cannot refuse. At TVA HQ, an expertly designed pastiche of OFFICE SPACE and the 1960s by production designer Ray Chan, middle manager Mr. Paradox (a hilariously pompous Matthew Macfadyen), offers Wade a chance at redemption. Paradox is killing off Wade’s world but will give him the chance to join a better universe and become the X-Men that he always wanted to be. All he has to do is travel to “The Void,” a barren part of the multiverse, to vanquish a villain who’s trying to usurp control of universe timelines. That’s the exact scheme that the bureaucrat Paradox is attempting to undercut his superiors.
The Earth that Wade lives on is on its last legs because its “anchor being” has died and, well, wouldn’t you know it that the esteemed key figure just happens to be the late, great “Logan” Howlett, AKA Wolverine. Wade, being the puckish upstart as always, decides to play Paradox’s game by his own rules, stealing the bureaucrat’s TemPad and hunting down the best of all possible Wolverines from a multitude of universes and timelines to assist him in the fight in the Void.
The numerous Wolverines that Wade encounters are hilarious, giving Jackman a great chance to show off his comic chops alongside the motormouthed Reynolds. The friendship of the two actors only enhances their bitchy chemistry as competing superheroes, and the snark is nonstop between them. (It’s written by Reynolds, director Shawn Levy, and four others, with a fair amount of ad-libbing tossed in too.)
Even funnier than the dialogue is the Void itself, a Mad Max-esque desert landscape occupied by failures from the multiverse including those MCU characters who bombed out in their big-screen efforts. Such in-jokes, celebrity cameos, and fourth-wall breaking are extravagantly meta, as are the multitude of Deadpools that show up to harass the guys. Stealing scene after scene too is a cute/ugly dog named Dogpool whose slobbering eight-inch tongue constantly finds its way into Reynolds’ mouth. (I’ll bet Reynolds wished it was a CGI effect, but alas it is not.)
Emma Corrin scores too as Void villain Cassandra Nova (Emma Corrin). She’s the twin of X-Men leader Charles Xavier, who’s taken over the wasteland due to her intelligence and telekinetic brain. Her backstory is funny, but it also contains some surprising pathos. There is a whole “Island of Misfit Toys” quality to this story as everyone in the plot seems to be misplaced or ashamed of their lot in life. I never conceived of the idea of shame as being so prevalent in an MCU film, but it works well here, grounding the satire with some exceptionally moving gravitas.
That combination of heart and hilarity has always been the sweet spot for the MCU and they’ve recovered their mojo substantially here. DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE is a strong, rollicking return, easily the finest MCU offering since AVENGERS: ENDGAME. The film is so satisfying, that I wouldn’t be surprised if Reynolds and Jackman return for more outings as the oddest couple this side of Oscar and Felix. They’re like Butch and Sundance in the wild west-ish multiverse Marvel has created, quipping gunslingers tossing about wisecracks with their blades, claws, bullets, and mutations. The universe is their oyster and God knows the TVA can take them anywhere.
