We're back in the cinema for the 36th MCU Movie and our Thunderbolts* Movie Review. The final movie in Phase 5 is great fun but has such a strong heart to it. We'd highly recommend going to see this in the cinema.

Spoiler Filled Synopsis for Thunderbolts*

Directed by - Julius Onah

Story by - Eric Pearson

Screenplay by - Eric Pearson and Joanna Calo

Since her sister Natasha died. Yelena Belova has just been going through the motions. Successfully complete her mission, go home alone, think about what she’s done and wait for another mission. Rinse, Repeat. Yelena needs a change and wants a more public-facing job. She visits her former fake father Aleksi Shastakov AKA The Red Guardian to find out how he copes. Aleksi just wants to get some missions like Yelena.

But her boss Valentina Allegra De Fontaine has other things on her mind as she’s being impeached for her nefarious activities by Congressman Gary with the backing of newly elected Congressman James Buchanan Barnes. 

Valentina needs to create separation from all of the things that could impeach her and so she arranges a mission for each of her major assets to target each other hoping to kill them all and freeing herself from them. 

In the bunker Yelena accidentally releases an experiment named Bob in her fight against John Walker and while Ghost kills her target Taskmaster they soon realise they are trapped. They team up together to find their way out and Aleksi arrives in his Red Guardian Limo to help save them, but Bob is captured by Valentina and is taken to her new tower in New York City. 

As the rest of the rag tag outfit try to escape, Bucky captures them all to use them in his case against Valentina. Arriving in New York they soon have other problems as they realise that Bob is much more than he seemed. 

Realising her plan failed and her assets are still very much alive, Valentina invites them all to the former Avengers HQ in New York and shows off Bob’s new persona as The Sentry. A superhero in Valentina’s control. Despite what they had done to help Bob he is tasked with defeating this new team, tentatively named The Thunderbolts.

After being easily beaten by this new super powered being the group go their separate ways but it’s not long until they learn there is something much more sinister behind The Sentry. 

Bob had bipolar disorder long before going through the experiment which gave him superpowers. His extreme highs have created the Sentry but his opposite side creates The Void, a dark being which pulls everyone around him into their darkest memory.

Yelena is willingly taken by the void so she can try to help Bob. The rest of the Thunderbolts - Red Guardian, Ghost, Bucky and John Walker - all join her in the void. The team come together and help Bob to overcome the Void and return the light to New York City. But the act wipes Bob of his memory of what happened.

The new team join together again to capture Valentina for her crimes but she brings them in front of the Press and reveals this was her plan all along and has “officially” created The New Avengers to mixed reactions from the world, especially from Sam Wilson the new Captain America.

In the mid credit scene Red Guardian proudly pushes a box of Wheaties cereal with the team on the box on anyone who will list.

After the credits the New Avengers are in Avengers tower discussing the upcoming legal battle over their name as an extra dimensional ship is detected. As they locate and view the ship it turns to reveal a fantastic blue number 4 on its side.

The New Avengers (And Bob) will return!

Cast of Thunderbolts*

• Florence Pugh - Yelena Belova/White Widow
• Sebastian Stan - James Buchanan “Bucky” Barnes/Winter Soldier
• Julia Louis-Dreyfus - Valentina Allegra de Fontaine
• Lewis Pullman - Robert “Bob” Reynolds/The Sentry/The Void
• David Harbour - Alexei Shostakov/The Red Guardian
• Wyatt Russell - John Walker
• Hannah John-Kamen - Ava Starr/Ghost
• Olga Kurylenko - Antonia Dreykov/Taskmaster
• Geraldine Viswanathan - Mel
• Wendell Pierce - Congressman Gary
• Chris Bauer - Holt

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Next Time on Movies on TV Podcast Industries

Thanks so much for joining us for our Thunderbolts* Movie Review podcast. We'll be back on Disney Plus in June for the return of Riri Williams in Ironheart followed by another trip to the cinema for Fantastic Four First Steps in July.

We hope you'll listen along with us. Email us at [email protected] if you have any thoughts on any of the shows or movies we're covering.

Derek, Chris and John

TV Podcast Industries

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