Marvel misfits assemble in ‘thunderbolt’ moneymaker

“There was an idea, to bring together a group of remarkable people to see if they could become something more.” The group of remarkable people in question: some of the most worthless, no-name, throwaway characters that have ever been seen in the MCU. In the lead-up to the multiversal threat of Avengers: Doomsday, Thunderbolts* is the culmination of Marvel’s so-called “disappointments” assembling to form a team to fight one of the most powerful characters, if not the most powerful character, from Marvel Comics. 

However, who exactly are the Thunderbolts? Comprised of three super-soldiers, a Red Room assassin, and a phase-shifter, fans were a bit let down by the roster at the initial announcement at Disney’s D23 Expo to say the least. Compared to the comics, the MCU’s Thunderbolts did not feature a group of villains masquerading as heroes with flashy powers and costumes, opting instead for a group of antiheroes who only punch and shoot. Among these are Florence Pugh’s Yelena Belova, David Harbour as the Red Guardian, and Olga Kurylenko’s Taskmaster. All three are from Black Widow, a rather lukewarm movie in the eyes of many Marvel fans, ridiculed for its botched characterization of its villain and poor CGI in its finale. 

Joining the Black Widow alumnus are a myriad of other cast-aside characters from previous projects including but not limited to: Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen, Ant-Man and the Wasp), junior varsity Captain America John Walker (Wyatt Russell reprising his role as U.S. Agent), a nobody named Bob (Lewis Pullman, Top Gun: Maverick), as well as former Winter Soldier turned Congressman Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan, The Apprentice). This colorless cast of characters left once-eager audiences underwhelmed and skeptical of the reasoning behind making such a movie, regarding it as another product of the excessive output of the Marvel machine.  

Taking advantage of its overlooked nature as a project that many fail to see the value of, the marketing for the movie shifted from the usual Marvel big flashy visuals and cameos to one more akin to that of an A24 film. With the emphasis on the talent behind the scenes and its stars in the feature, Thunderbolts* amassed the writers and director of the 2023 critically-acclaimed series Beef, the cinematographer of The Green Knight, the composers of Everything Everywhere All at Once, and even the production designer of Hereditary. Yet highlighting the work that was put into the project instead of its interconnectedness with the rest of the cinematic universe wasn’t the strangest piece of marketing for the movie.  The asterisk’s meaning, which featured so prominently in its title, was revealed just four days after release. In a move which has since then been open to scrutiny, the retitling from Thunderbolts* to *The New Avengers received mixed reviews with some questioning whether or not spoiling such a key part of the film was necessary for its success. 

Despite divulging a major part of the movie, Thunderbolts*’s strength lies in relying on the faults of its predecessors to ensnare audiences into caring about this assemblance of misfits. Cobbled together with the major themes of mental health, its subject matter allows it to feel more depth and emotion than anything else in the MCU. Nearly each and every character in the team has suffered from some sort of tragedy or shortcoming in their past, whether that be being tortured into being a weapon from a young age, subjected to abuse and falling into addiction, or faced with the general feeling of purposelessness. In a shocking twist, the movie doesn’t stray away from such heavy handed discussions, encapsulated in the literal manifestation of these emotions- The Void.    

Spoilers ahead.

Although nearly entirely on its own as a seemingly isolated movie, the second post-credit scene of *The New Avengers serves as a return to form established by the Infinity Saga. Officially crowned the longest post-credit scene existing in the MCU, it picks up 14 months after the climax of the film with the New Avengers returning from a mission to discover an extradimensional ship is entering their atmosphere; at the same time, Sam Wilson has claimed the copyright for their team’s name. Clearly foreshadowing the exposition of Avengers: Doomsday, the hint of two Avengers teams being assembled, along with the spacecraft being revealed to belong to the Fantastic Four (who are receiving their official MCU reboot in July), sparked the same nostalgia and hype once so prevalent in the lead-up to Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame. 

Juggling the balance between being a stand-alone project and an integral part of the future of the MCU, Thunderbolts* captures what made the early phases stand out in viewers’ minds, prioritizing quality over quantity. Bringing together an unlikely group of nigh nobodies and allowing its talent behind the scenes to shine, Marvel reignites hopes for the future as the lead-up to Doomsday is on the horizon. 

Grade: A-

Providing a refreshingly satisfying experience for fans and casual audiences alike, Marvel’s Thunderbolts* revives viewer expectations of installments yet to come. 

by Evan Parfitt

Published May 19th, 2025

Oshkosh West Index Volume 121 Issue VIII