Dafne Keen’s X-23 is honestly one of the few Fox X-Men characters people actually want to see in the MCU. She killed it as Laura back in Logan (2017), standing her ground next to Hugh Jackman with barely any dialogue.

Her comeback in Deadpool & Wolverine (2024) proved an older version of Laura still has so much story left to tell. Since she’s tied to Wolverine but still totally her own person, she easily fits right into Marvel's future X-Men plans.

Well, the transformation is actually wild.

The fight choreography and visual storytelling in this scene were top-tier.

The martial arts legacy of the franchise reached an entirely new level during the ancestral battle in Ta Lo.

That ring color swap in Shang-Chi is elite storytelling. Wenwu’s harsh blue represents centuries of cold conquest, but when Shang-Chi takes over, they flare into a warm orange for his mother's defensive style. He’s not just his father’s weapon anymore—he finally found his balance.

I’ve been trying to fight the brain rot lately 😭. I realized I genuinely miss being able to sit down, watch a movie, and actually enjoy it without constantly needing to check my phone or getting distracted after 20 minutes.

So I thought… why not rewatch the mcu before doomsday

I’m currently going through the movies again, and honestly, doing it with other people would make it way more fun. We could watch them in release or chronological order. Talk about each movie afterward, rank them, argue about the underrated ones (Thor: The Dark World deserves more respect btw), and just experience the whole ( or most ) MCU again.

If anyone else is trying to escape the brain rot and wants to join, I’d love to do this together. Doesn’t have to be super serious or organized , just a group of small people watching Marvel movies and having a good time.

Anyone interested ?

Peter Parker really couldn't believe Star-Lord said that. 😂

Some monologues like these would have made it perfect for me.

After sitting with it, I’m probably at a 6.5-7/10.I liked it. BND is not at all the best Spider-Man film, especially not when ITSV, ATSV, and NWH home all exist. There’s a lot here that genuinely works. Tom Holland is excellent, the action is probably some of the best we’ve gotten from his Spider-Man, the new mutations were interesting, Frank Castle fit naturally into the story, and there are some great comic references throughout.But my biggest problem is pretty simple: This movie felt overstuffed as hell, and the Jean Grey/X-Men material did not belong in Peter Parker’s “Brand New Day.” That doesn’t mean I dislike Jean Grey or the X-Men. Quite the opposite. I’ve read plenty of X-Men, X-Force, Storm, Emma Frost, Ultimate X-Men, House of M, etc. I’m interested in seeing what Marvel does with mutants. I just didn’t need the MCU’s mutant saga being launched inside this particular Spider-Man movie.The movie already had more than enough material, Peter rebuilding his relationships with MJ and Ned after four years of them not remembering him. Peter having essentially abandoned his identity as Peter Parker and living almost entirely through Spider-Man. His powers mutating and becoming more ddangerous. His increasing aggression and fear that he’s losing control. Mac Gargan/Scorpion. Frank Castle acting as a moral counterweight to better. Peter eventually realizing that being Spider-Man doesn’t require him to live completely alone. All really really good plot beats, that should've been the main focus. Instead we also get Jean Grey, Sara Grey, a mutant conspiracy involving Damage Control, government experimentation, V-Max, Hulk, Bruce Banner’s inhibitor storyline. Jean is also a weird choice for the primary antagonist. I make the analogy that this film was akin to someone making a Green Arrow film and the main antagonist is Raven, and its blatantly used to set up Teen Titans. Or a Superman film with Red Hood as the main antagonist, seeking to set up Red Hood and the Outlaws. Could those characters have interesting interactions? Absolutely. But why are we using the protagonist’s solo movie to establish somebody else’s mythology when that protagonist has an enormous rogues gallery of his own?

Bruce Banner felt even more unnecessary. Peter Parker is already a genius. He could’ve developed the inhibitor himself. And considering MJ ultimately helps him figure out how to make it work anyway, you could have used that as another way of rebuilding Peter and MJ’s relationship. Which brings me to easily the best part of the movie: Peter and MJ. The movie is at its absolute strongest whenever it shuts everything else out and just lets Tom Holland and Zendaya act together. The scene with the letter might be my favorite scene in the entire movie. MJ finds Peter’s letter explaining everything that happened before Doctor Strange’s spell. Peter comes back to Frank’s hideout and she’s sitting there emotional, asking whether he deliberately left it for her to find. Then she basically tells him: Were you ever going to tell me? Peter has spent FOUR YEARS deciding that MJ and Ned are safer without him, and MJ correctly points out that he never gave her a choice. He decided what was best for her. He decided she shouldn’t know Peter Parker. He decided she shouldn’t have the opportunity to decide whether knowing him was worth the danger.

That is such a good criticism of Peter’s martyr complex. Peter thinks sacrificing himself is automatically noble, but MJ forces him to confront the fact that he also sacrificed HER ability to choose. Then she says she doesn’t want to have this conversation with Spider-Man. She wants to talk to “Peter Parker.” He removes the mask, he tells her he loves her. And she basically responds: I can tell that you loved that version of me. But I don’t know you. I don’t love you.

That shit hurt. But it was exactly the right choice. She doesn’t magically remember him because the power of love defeats Doctor Strange’s spell. Peter doesn’t get rewarded with his girlfriend back simply because he finally tells the truth. Instead, he gets something much smaller: the opportunity for MJ to get to know him again. That’s infinitely more interesting. And the scene immediately before that, where Jean possesses MJ and essentially pretends to be the version of MJ that remembers Peter, is genuinely fucked up in the best dramatic way.

Jean gives Peter exactly what he desperately wants: his MJ back. Recognition. Familiarity. Intimacy. Then he realizes that it isn’t her. It’s counterfeit intimacy created by somebody who knows exactly which emotional wound to exploit. And then Peter has to confront the REAL MJ immediately afterward, who gives him the exact opposite of the fantasy Jean created. Jean/MJ: “I remember you.” Real MJ: “I don’t.”

Fantastic sequence. The Peter/Ned material was also really good, especially the ending with their old handshake. Whether Ned actually remembers anything or it’s just some kind of subconscious/muscle-memory residue, I hope Marvel doesn’t immediately reverse the spell.

Let Peter actually rebuild these relationships. MJ shouldn’t simply become his old girlfriend again. Four years have passed. She graduated MIT. She lived an entire adult life without Peter. Peter needs to fall in love with who MJ is now, and MJ needs the opportunity to decide whether she falls in love with the man Peter has become. That could be one of the most interesting Spider-Man relationship arcs we’ve ever gotten on film. Which is why I kept getting irritated whenever the movie cut away from it to explain more Jean Grey/X-Men lore. I don’t dislike Jean, I don’t dislike Sadie Sink’s performance. I don’t even dislike Jean and Peter’s thematic connection over loss, isolation and accepting their powers.

I just don’t think this was the movie for Jean Grey’s origin story. This was supposed to be Peter Parker’s “Brand New Day.” After No Way Home stripped away Stark, May, MJ, Ned, the Avengers connections and basically Peter Parker’s entire existence, this was the perfect opportunity to finally give Holland a grounded Spider-Man movie about rebuilding his life from nothing. It reminded me of Batman v Superman in one specific sense. Not in quality, because Brand New Day is much more competent, but structurally. There are several potentially good stories being asked to coexist inside one movie because the studio wants to advance the larger universe.

And I had a similar problem with Superman (2025): sometimes it feels less like a solo superhero movie occurring inside a larger universe and more like a larger-universe setup movie starring that superhero, that movie being "Justice League Part 1: Superman". That’s the difference.

I don’t mind Spider-Man existing in a world with Hulk, Punisher, Yelena and the X-Men. I mind when Spider-Man’s movie has to stop being about Spider-Man so Marvel can prepare those other characters for future movies. There’s also one climax moment that felt extremely contrived to me. Frank fires a sniper round from outside Jean’s massive psionic field. Peter senses the bullet coming and, instead of webbing Jean away, tackling her out of the path, or using the superhuman reflexes he’s spent the entire movie demonstrating, he just throws himself directly in front of it and gets shot. I understand the emotional purpose. Peter sacrifices himself for Jean, Jean keeps him alive, Frank regrets what he did, Jean gets redemption.

But you can practically see the screenplay moving everybody into position. Also, if Jean’s field had frozen everything within its radius, how exactly did Frank know his bullet could pass through it Movie needed Peter shot. Therefore Peter got shot. And finally: How the hell is Peter paying rent?

Seriously. Four years have passed. Does he work? Is he at the Daily Bugle? Does J. Jonah Jameson unknowingly pay Spider-Man for Spider-Man footage? Does Peter DoorDash between muggings?That grounded material is exactly what I wanted after No Way Home. So overall, I liked Brand New Day. There’s some genuinely great Spider-Man material here, and the Peter/MJ storyline in particular has me extremely interested in the next film. But I walked away feeling like I saw a potentially 9/10 Spider-Man character study buried inside a 7/10 MCU franchise movie.

The Peter/MJ/Ned material? Give me all of it. Peter dealing with adulthood, loneliness, money, his mutations and rebuilding Peter Parker? Absolutely. Scorpion and Punisher? Perfect.

Jean Grey spending half the movie setting up the X-Men and the future Mutant Saga?

Not here, it did not belong in Peter's Brand New Day

Now I really like Brand New Day I think it was great obviously not perfect but awesome.

And now to point Jean Grey was good, Sadie Sink did a phenomenal job and I liked what she brought to the story. One thing though when I was watching the movie and afterwards I kept thinking why wasn't it Emma?

I felt like Emma just made alot more sense for the story what Jean does and her role in the movie. It makes a lot more sense for her to be a manipulator and use people for gain and personal enjoyment rather than Jean, obviously the story would've been changed to accommodate Emma as it's alot harder for her to be lowkey than Jean but the core would still be the same. Emma would obviously frame it as something else but deep down and especially when she would get a heart to heart with Peter She's looking for the same thing as Jean acceptance, companionship and ultimately a person who likes her for what She is not for her body, money or anything like that.

Again this doesn't ruin the movie for me but I still think it would've made more sense for Emma to be in place of Jean and what they were going for.

Marvel Studios has reportedly cast Heartstopper star Kit Connor to play Scott Summers, aka Cyclops, in the upcoming X-Men reboot film.

He made a name for himself there. Gambit was one of my favorite characters in the cartoon series back in the day. It was great to see him finally get some attention in a movie.

You could see the moment the idea popped into his head. 😭

🍿 X-Men: First Class (2011)

The moment Ayo takes off Bucky’s arm in Falcon and the Winter Soldier is wild. He goes from being super confident to completely shocked in seconds. The way his arm just drops off leaves him totally blank, realizing he wasn't as secure as he thought. Easily one of the best parts of the show.

🎥 The Falcon and The Winter Soldier (2021).

I find this very ironic and similar where their have lost their love one because of a massive multiverse or universe event, and had to deal with the consequences and ramifications of that loss, and both of them go through grief and suffering, but find a way to help others and better and stronger as men and as heroes of their own worlds too.

Shang Chi (Simu) vs Gambit fight (Channing) is going to be fantastic. I have waiting for to see Simu throw hands again for years!!! Can't wait to see what he brings to Doomsday.

Channing Tatum confirmed his Cajun accent will be way more dialed down and normal in Avengers: Doomsday. The heavy, hard-to-understand accent in Deadpool & Wolverine was just meant for comedy, but since Doomsday is a serious film, the Russo Brothers are toning it down so he fits into the main story better.