‘Thunderbolts*’ proves MCU is back with heartfelt handling of mental health struggles

CEBU, Philippines — The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is at its best when it focuses on the character development of its larger-than-life superheroes because their powers don’t change the fact that they are still people with real problems.

It’s these human moments that make the stories of Iron Man, Captain America, Spider-Man, Scarlet Witch, her robotic husband Vision, and the Guardians of the Galaxy resonate with the franchise’s fans.

Conditioned by the overwhelming response of screaming fanboys in cinemas on the opening weekend of “Avengers: Endgame” in 2019, it seems the MCU lately has been focused on fan service that does not match the same emotional impact the MCU once had.

We get exemptions like “Deadpool vs. Wolverine,” which can justify its fan service due to its multiverse storyline and hilarious R-rated jokes; “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3,” which served as James Gunn’s emotional swan song for Marvel before transferring to DC; “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” which managed to carry its story without its late star Chadwick Boseman; and the Disney+ miniseries “Agatha All Along,” which fleshes out its female-led cast with nuance.

But it’s still a far cry from the MCU to be back at its prime when projects such as “Captain America: Brave New World,” “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania,” and “Secret Invasion” were released around the same period.

With the release of “Thunderbolts*”, however, it feels like the discourse may finally be shifting toward a consensus.

The story of the misfit bandits anchors on the perspective of Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), who is still grieving the loss of her sister Natasha Romanoff a.k.a. Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson, who serves as the film’s executive producer).

After accepting that Natasha’s partner, Clint Barton/Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner), didn’t actually kill her in “Endgame” — as clarified in his titular TV series — Yelena goes on endless assignments of black ops missions that feel almost too easy to accomplish.

Tired of the same routine and reminded of her sister’s legacy as an Avenger, she asks her boss, Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), for a “public-facing” assignment. Valentina assigns her one last sleuth mission to neutralize a thief planning to steal her company’s assets in an isolated vault in the desert before she can grant Yelena what she wants.

But she gets stuck in the vault with former Captain America, now U.S. Agent, John Walker (Wyatt Russell), Ava Starr/Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), and Taskmaster (Olga Kurylenko), all of whom were also assigned by Valentina to eliminate one another.

They soon realize that their very existence serves as evidence against Valentina, who is facing CIA impeachment charges due to her company’s unlawful experiments.

While the group finds a way to escape, they discover a supposed civilian named Bob (Lewis Pullman), a friendly man with a heavy past who can’t remember why he was in the vault.

At Washington, D.C., Bucky Barnes/The Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan) is now a congressman who is helping a fellow politician take down Valentina. Meanwhile, Yelena’s adoptive father, Alexei/Red Guardian (David Harbour), attempts to rescue the group from their dire circumstances.

With these characters sharing a mission to take down Valentina, they reluctantly decide to team UP — informally as the “Thunderbolts” by Alexei, much to the rest’s annoyance. They also discover why Bob was in the vault in the first place, and his existence may prove to be more lethal than they realized.

The central theme tackles the mental health of these anti-heroes. Since much of the story is carried by Yelena’s perspective, viewers will get a lot of character development from her to see how she is dealing with her trauma and loss. A soft, complex character like Yelena can only be played by someone like Pugh, who always brings delicate depth to her performances.

Another actor in the spotlight is Pullman’s debut as Bob, who has the perfect balance between soft and tough in his performance that is basically the core heart of the plot, with a character development that may hit home with its exploration of mental health issues.

Dreyfus, making her third appearance as Valentina in the MCU, finally shines in the franchise with her manipulative, publicity-savvy persona. She makes for an enjoyable villain to watch, deserving of her position as the villainous equivalent of Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury.

In between is Sebastian Stan as Bucky. Much of his past has already been explored in previous projects, so there is a risk of redundancy if the film tackles it again. Thankfully, it trusts its fans to remember the context of his character and why it only felt natural for him to help the group. He was in their shoes once as someone feeling misunderstood.

Also at the crosshairs between memorable and forgettable is Russell’s John Walker, whose consequences from his previous appearance in “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” still play heavily into his character development here.

Kamen and Harbour are enjoyable to watch as Ghost and Red Guardian respectively. But a bit more character development was needed to make them less one-dimensional, with Ghost being an anti-social person due to her upbringing as a test lab rat, and Red Guardian chasing his former glory. It feels as though the film could’ve added 10 more minutes to explore their backstories a bit.

But nothing comes close to being underused than the film’s handling of Taskmaster, as their second appearance from “Black Widow” continues to waste their potential as a villain-turned-anti-hero who can copy their enemies’ moves almost perfectly.

It’s easy to overlook the issues with handling some of its main characters when you look at what the film tries to achieve with its overall theme of mental health, fully understanding that some of the heroes’ enemies, even for the most powerful one, are always themselves.

We see how the characters handle their inner demons — some metaphorical, others quite literal — making its third act an emotional gut-punch for viewers.

It also doesn’t forget to include its action spectacle: the scenes feel vibrant with the right amount of jump cuts backed by practical sets instead of heavily relying on CGI and green screen, which was notable in previous MCU projects. This prevents the film from being a visual vomit full of fake locales, which in turn makes “Thunderbolts*” feel real.

It’s these factors that have earned the hearts of many MCU fans because it focuses on the heroes dealing with real issues while trying to resolve their extraordinary situations. It’s not just about superpowers; it’s about watching these heroes wrestle with the human condition and still choose to fight for something bigger. It’s why fans get excited to see these characters again -- which won’t take long as the main cast will return next year in “Avengers: Doomsday.”

As with any MCU project, there are two post-credits scenes. The first is a throwaway joke, while the other (the longest in the franchise to date) sets the tone of the MCU’s upcoming projects.

While the film isn’t free of flaws, these are easily overshadowed by stellar cast performances, relatable character development, a clever villain, and an emotional climax. And yes, the film does explain why there is an asterisk in its title. Four stars out of five.