The Adult Avengers: Thunderbolts* Review

Thunderbolts hits theaters on May 2nd. I had the chance the see it early and there will be spoilers. But! I will mark where in this review the spoilers follow.

Thunderbolts picks up a few months after the events of Captain America: Brave New World. It brings back several Phase 3 veterans: Ava Starr/Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), last seen in Ant-Man and the Wasp; Red Guardian (David Harbour) from Black Widow; and Antonia Dreykov/Taskmaster, also from Black Widow.

John Walker/U.S. Agent (Wyatt Russell) returns following his brutal fall from grace in Falcon and the Winter Soldier, where he publicly executed a Flag-Smasher. Julia Louis-Dreyfus reprises her role as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, last seen in Hawkeye, as does Florence Pugh’s Yelena Belova. Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), now a congressman, reappears after his role in Brave New World.

New additions include Wendell Pierce as a congressman Gary spearheading Val’s impeachment, and Geraldine Viswanathan as Mel—a character from the comics many believe to be Melissa Joan Gold, aka Songbird. The film’s most pivotal new figure, however, is Bob Reynolds, also known as The Sentry.

First Impressions

If I had to sum up this film in one word, it would be: progress. Thunderbolts is easily the best film in Marvel Phase 5. It’s up there with  the better films of Phase 4. It plays like an Avengers movie but for adults.

What elevates the film is its restraint. It delivers spectacle, yes, but avoids drowning in it. The story is grounded, thoughtful, and gives the characters room to breathe. Rather than racing from one CGI explosion to the next. It feels lived in. Not just the super of it all.

I know this sounds like cinema therapy, but one of the aspects this film deals with is the, “who am I when I am not saving the world? Or in their case, who am I if I’m not being used to do someone else’s dirty work when that’s all I see myself as and maybe even feel that’s all I am able to do.”

How much you enjoy this film will largely depend on how much you enjoy these particular characters. It’s very much a Yelena-centered story, with Bucky’s charm and John Wick–style appeal, Red Guardian’s humor and humanity, Ava’s unique powers, and John Walker’s strong-yet-wrong disposition all serving as satisfying entrées that complement the main dish—but could almost fill you up on their own.

Even Val gets moments to chew the scenery with glee. The film works mostly on the attention given to the battle within as much as it does the battle on the outside. Personal voids each character confronts.

Marvel delivers the action-packed sequences we’ve come to expect, satisfying our comic book cravings. But it’s the character work that truly carries the film, While the action punctuates character growth.

There are definitely a handful of standout action moments—which I’ll dive into in the spoiler section—but what really made this film enjoyable for me was the ensemble itself. My rating for Thunderbolts is a 79. Largely because I genuinely enjoy most of these characters, especially Bucky and Red Guardian.

There are a few things that did not work as well for me, mainly the Sentry character.

SPOILERS AHEAD FROM THIS POINT

Unfortunately, the character is just too O.P. and breaks every story he is in.

Bob Reynolds, The Sentry. In the comics, is a substance abuse meth addict who is experiences schizophrenia and anxiety disorder. He steals an experimental version of the Super-Soldier Serum from one of his science professors, a subcontracted researcher with the project. The Serum is called the golden sentry serum, giving Robert the power of a million exploding suns. But in part due to his broken mental state, the serum also manifests a darker side of Bob called The Void.

The film handles his backstory well. Laying things out clearly when we first catch up with Bob and the rest of the main players. It opens by establishing that Val is in full damage control mode, scrambling to cover up everything, everywhere, all at once that could lead to her impeachment—an ongoing threat throughout the film. During the hearing, she even references the events of Captain America: Brave New World and Red Hulk.

We find Yelena on a mission for Val. To destroy the lab and all information related to the Golden Sentry program. Yelena is going through the motions but expresses a deep dissatisfaction with her life.

After the mission, she visits her father, Alexei Shostakov (The Red Guardian), whom she hasn’t seen in a year.

He’s giving serious Brendan Fraser in The Whale energy. He now runs his own limo service, but it’s obvious he still dreams of being a hero.

Yelena asks him if he feels fulfilled. This question captures the central theme of the film: if we are not fulfilled, what do we do with that void?

Alexei tells her there’s no higher calling than being a hero. They talk about Natasha—how she became a hero and ultimately sacrificed herself.

After receiving some sage advice from her dad, Yelena checks back in with Val and tells her that after this last mission, she wants to do more front-facing work.

Val assures her that can be arranged, promising more “good guy material” after she completes this final mission. This is the mission that brings all our major players face to face.

Before the big face-off, we find congressman Barnes. Who has left his Winter Soldier days behind. He’s onto Val and is working with Congressman Gary (Wendell Pierce’s character). Bucky is channeling his best Harry Tasker from True Lies as he tries to convince Val’s assistant Mel to help bring her down.

Bucky reminds us that he was once a weapon of Hydra, and in doing so, drops a key theme of the film: the power of choice and what we choose to give ourselves over to. He says, “You know who I am, so you know what I did. I didn’t have a choice who I worked for… but you do.”

It’s a moment of foreshadowing that echoes the film’s central question and hints at what will ultimately decide the fate of them all.

Yelena is en route to complete the final mission Val assigned her. Only to run into U.S. Agent John Walker, who is also still working for Val. He’s been sent to kill Yelena. Then Taskmaster shows up to kill John. Ava Starr, a.k.a. Ghost, arrives next—her target is Taskmaster. Yelena reveals that she’s there to kill Ghost. The royal rumble kicks off, and Taskmaster ends up shot in the head and killed by Ava.

Then we meet Bob.

Yelena quickly pieces together that Val sent all of them to the same place to tie up her loose ends. Which includes eliminating each of them. John, in denial, believes Val actually values him, convinced he’s the only “real hero” among them. Points were made, but as usual, John is strong and wrong.

But the group has no idea who Bob is—or who sent him.

When Ava tries to escape, they all realize Val’s true plan: disintegrate them and all the evidence in the room. Mel notifies Val about Bob, and they both realize he was supposed to be dead. If he survived, that must mean the Golden Sentry serum worked.

After narrowly escaping what turns out to be a room-sized oven, Yelena and Bob make contact and we’re shown how Bob’s Void abilities work. It plays like if Bob had been trained by Snape in legilimency: he can pull people into the void of their own thoughts and deepest sadness.

Yelena’s not quite sure what just happened, but Bob is clearly more than he lets on.

After a funny group effort to climb out of a tunnel so high that even John’s super-soldier leap isn’t enough, they’re forced to work together again to escape with their lives. Bob begins to show a less guarded side, which leads Walker to poke the bear. Bob retaliates by exposing Walker’s brokenness in the Void—revealing a man mentally checked out with his wife and child, still haunted by the disgrace he suffered in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.

Walker knows something is off.

We then get a big-budget, Defenders-style team-up that’s genuinely awesome, culminating in each of them using their unique skills to fight their way out of a now-surrounded building. They manage to pull a Star Wars-style escape by disguising themselves in bad guys gear.

They’re almost out when the truck Ava stole is stopped and the agents ask for identification. To buy time and cause a distraction, Bob steps out of the truck and fires into the air in front of all the federal agents Val sent to kill them.

As Yelena, Walker, and Ghost drive off, they see the agents unload hundreds of bullets into Bob—who then gets back up and launches himself into the sky uncontrollably. After crashing back down, Bob is captured. Yelena and the team escape.

They’re found by Red Guardian, who was on his way to warn Yelena after overhearing Val’s double-cross while driving her in his limo.

Val’s men are pursuing them and then arrives The Winter Solider, in full T-800 Terminator style action scene. Sebastian Stan keeping her long history of amazing action scenes streak alive.

Bucky, unaware of Bob, arrives not only to save the team but to apprehend them as evidence to take Val down—but he quickly realizes there may be a bigger threat at play.

As they decide to join forces, the Thunderbolts officially form. Unlike the comics, the name comes from Yelena’s childhood soccer team, which wasn’t particularly good.

The team soon discovers they’re all wrestling with the same issue: a lack of fulfillment and a gnawing void in their lives.

We find out that John Walker’s wife and child have left him, confirming that he’s hit rock bottom—just like the rest of them. United by shared pain, they head to confront Val at the Watchtower, formerly known as Avengers Tower.

The team fights their way through Val’s agents in a slick action sequence that channels the best of Avengers: Age of Ultron—the kind of set piece that elevated that film.

Despite knowing it’s a trap, they take the bait, lured by Val. This lead to the cool elevator scene from all the trailers and posters. Still worth it.

They confront Val at the bar that Tony Stark famously stood against Loki in the original Avengers film.

When the go to take Val, she pulls the, I have a Hulk card when she summons Bob, who is now fully actualized Sentry. Val plans to market him as earth’s mightiest hero, clearing her of any wrongdoing and killing them in the process.

The Sentry easily mops the floor with them and rips off Bucky’s arm for good measure.

One of the issues with the film is why did he not just kill them? The power of a million exploding suns verses a few super soldiers and assassins. He bends Walker’s shield when it really should have been balled up like paper. His power scaling just did not make for a very interesting fight.

The Thunderbolts retreat, clearly outmatched by the overwhelming power of the Sentry. When Val coldly commands him to eliminate them, he refuses, calmly asserting that they pose no threat. This moment marks a chilling realization: he understands his own divinity. Recalling when Val  boasted that he was more powerful than all the Avengers combined—including, notably, at least one literal god, (Thor.)

As Val moves to activate a kill switch in desperation, Sentry turns on her. He seizes her effortlessly, but she’s narrowly saved when Mel intervenes, triggering the device herself. Strangely, the logic behind this supposed kill switch is never fully explained—why did they believed it would kill him? Does power of one million exploding suns ring a bell anyone? .When Val’s men arrive to recover the body, he’s not there. The silence that follows is louder than any explosion. But what would follow was even worse.

We see Sentry transformed—his form darkened, shadowed, barely human. This is The Void, his unhinged alter ego. He begins consuming everything around him, pulling people and objects into darkness. The visual effects are haunting: victims dissolve into black smoke, leaving behind eerie stains where they once stood. Chaos erupts as The Thunderbolts spring into action, rescuing civilians from the destruction The Void unleashes.

In a powerful moment, Red Guardian shields a little girl from a collapsing wall. The entire team rushes in to brace the structure, saving both Alexei and the child. It’s in this moment they realize, they’re not just survivors or weapons. They can be the ones who save the day.

But one final battle remains. Yelena, resolved to bring Bob back, walks into The Void.

The depiction of The Void becomes a visually arresting sequence—equal parts nightmare and emotional reckoning. It’s dark, immersive, and helps the audience grasp the weight of internal torment. Inside, Yelena relives her first mission: the moment she lured a fellow Widow into a trap that led to her death. The memory is gut-wrenching and unforgiving.

She navigates through mental and emotional corridors until she finds Bob. Repeating the film’s core message, she tells him that you can’t bury emptiness—you choose to let others in to help you become whole. She urges him to choose. As the Thunderbolts regroup and rally, they begin searching for a way out.

But not before we get our Scott Pilgrim vs. Nega Scott moment: Bob versus The Void.

The Void confronts Bob with his deepest fear—that he will always be alone. As the entity traps the Thunderbolts in a collapsing space of despair, Bob begins to spiral, consumed by fear and doubt. The Void grows stronger as Bob weakens. But just as he teeters on the edge, the team reaches him. They remind him—he doesn’t have to carry the weight alone.

Together, they overcome The Void.

With unity and trust, they expel the darkness. Light floods back in. Balance restores. Bob regains control of his mind but remembers nothing of what happened while The Void possessed him.

With New York restores the team confronts Val. But before they can act, she dramatically pulls back a curtain—revealing a swarm of reporters she called earlier, cameras rolling, ready to spin the story her way.

Val smugly declares that this had been her plan all along. With cameras flashing, she publicly introduces the team as The New Avengers.

Yelena leans in and whispers, “We own you now,” reminding Val that the leverage has shifted.

The credits roll into a fast-paced montage—a 14-month time jump showing press coverage, viral clips, and news segments documenting the team’s rise. They’re becoming the front-facing heroes they once longed to be.

But the world remains divided. Not everyone buys into the rebrand, leading to some sharp, meta-commentary that blurs the line between fiction and the public’s real-world skepticism toward redemption stories.

Mid-Credit Scene:
Alexei beams with pride as he spots himself on a Wheaties box. Standing in a grocery store aisle, he tries to get a nearby lady to notice. “You like Wheaties? That’s me right there,” he says, pointing eagerly at the box. The woman glances, unimpressed, and walks off. Alexei, undeterred, takes the box anyway—still proud, even if no one else seems to care.

Post-Credit Scene:
This is the one fans have been waiting for. Fourteen months later, tensions have escalated. The New Avengers are locked in a legal dispute with Sam Wilson’s Avengers, after filing a copyright claim on the team name.

Dressed in sleek new suits that mirror the modern Avengers branding from recent comics and animated series, the Thunderbolts debate their next move. Yelena casually drops a line about “space disturbances,” a clear nod to the looming incursions.

Then, the room falls silent as a ship enters Earth’s orbit. The camera zooms in. Etched on the ship’s hull is a bold, unmistakable emblem—the new Fantastic Four logo.

Cue the hype. The Fantastic Four have officially entered the 616 group chat.

The movie overall is a step in the right direction. They got a lot of things right but it still falls shy of being in the upper tier of Marvel films at their best; for example Captain America The Winter Solider, The Avengers and Black Panther, but it’s a breath of fresh air and great change of pace. Go see it in IMAX.