Rated PG-13

THUNDERBOLTS* follows a rag-tag group of marginal super-villains who unite against a common enemy. Along the way, they stumble into becoming the not-so-bad guys.

It’s tempting to say THUNDERBOLTS* is Marvel’s answer to DC’s SUICIDE SQUAD, ’cause that does work on some level. However, the characters in the Marvel universe have always been rife with redemption, and it touches on how we are all flawed individuals.

While it’s a team film, the story belongs to Black Widow’s sister Yelena. Florence Pugh does the heavy lifting through a traumatic childhood and contemporary reconciliation.

This is different than other Marvel movies because it plays in a darker sandbox. Swap out the Iron Man snark for a bit of snarl and you’ve got the feel of your middle school buddies relentlessly teasing you.

In the end, THUNDERBOLTS* offers a nice diversion from the usual bright and flashy Marvel fare. Now if they would just light the actors properly so we could see what was going on, that’d be great.

THUNDERBOLTS* gets three and a half boxes of Wheaties out of five. I’m Kevin Carr, and that’s the way I see it.

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