In case you are suffering from superhero blues now that Avengers Infinity War has been done, here comes Deadpool 2. Starring Ryan Reynolds in the lead, it is the sequel to the 2016 superhero film Deadpool. Bringing back most of the characters who were alive from the first movie, the sequel also brings in its new set of characters, led by Josh Brolin and Zazie Beetz. So in case the headline doesn't answer the question about Deadpool 2 being better than the first one, here's our review for you.

Set two years after events of the first movie, Wade Wilson aka Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) is still in a torrid relationship with Vanessa (Morena Baccarin). He is also killing off all the bad guys in the world, and one such mission ends up in a tragedy for him. Trying to recover from the disaster, Wade first joins the X-Men and later finds himself protecting a kid mutant Russell (Julian Dennison) from a time-travelling mutant Cable (Josh Brolin).

After the success of Deadpool, we expected the sequel to go bigger, raunchier, funnier and better. Well, rejoice, for Deadpool 2 meets most of the expectations, save for going bigger (let's talk about that later). The plot, even if 'derivative' (yes, Domino, I am stealing your joke) of Days of Future Past, is better than the archetypal premise of the first movie. No spoilers here, but there is a layered structure in the narrative here that was missing in the original. There is a also surprisingly emotional tinge to the proceedings that will connect with you, despite the mayhem around it. So, plot wise, yeah, the sequel is miles better.

But then you are in Deadpool 2 for the jokes and Good Gracious of me! There are so many of them! Not every one of them lands with grace, but when they do, you just don't stop cackling! Deadpool 2 begins with a huge dig on Logan with a bit of foreshadowing and later followed by a truly amusing credits sequence. The movie makes barrelful of jokes on everything under the sun (not sure if I missed a Trump joke there) with a lot of burns delivered to all superhero franchises (DC getting the brunt of the lot) with many pokes at Ryan Reynolds' career as well. The whole X-Force subplot is super-hilarious. There are tonnes of unexpected surprises and cameos, so make sure you don't turn your eyes away from the screen even for a minute. The best bit comes during the post-credits. You must have read in many of the reactions on Twitter about the scene being the best PS scene ever. Well, believe them! The movie also doesn't shy away from the gore, justifying the R-rating to fullest.

Apart from the movie references (even Stranger Things gets a nod) and the Easter Eggs, Deadpool 2 also tries to address the prevalent issues of racism and gender-disparity (so many jokes just on the name 'X-Men') in its own inimitable humour.

The cast is fantastic, with Ryan Reynolds and Zazie Beetz being the better of the lot. Reynolds has harnessed his comical energies so freaking awesome, but it is the emotional beat to his performance that makes his character such a charmer. Zazie Beetz as the luck-bending mutant Domino is a scene-stealer and I look forward to see her in more movies. Josh Brolin is alright as the anti-hero, who we could have connected better if we hadn't seen him as a more nuanced villain in Infinity War. Julian Dennison is talented.

However, the returning characters from the first movie gets a raw deal, when trying to shape up the new ones. Fresh from the accusations of sexual harassment against him, TJ Miller as Wade's bestie Weasel is under-utilised (to avoid controversies), though he has some funny lines. Karan Soni, however, gets to display much of his manic humour that he brought from the first movie.

Now let's talk about the movie getting bigger or not. Sure, the cast is bigger and the laughs too. But the scope and the scale sadly remains the same. Despite Deadpool's jokes on it, it is a pity that the studios couldn't make the movie on a larger scale. The makers did best with what they have, but there was a scope to do better. The special effects are very inconsistent. Save for the first action sequence and Domino - Deadpool's fight with Cable, the rest of the action choreography just passes muster. There is also a sense of boredom creeping in certain intervals with some scenes (even the funny ones) dragging on and on.

A major problem that Deadpool 2 borrows from the first movie is failing at fine-tuning the tonal shift between emotional scenes and meta humour. With writers going crazy with the jokes, Deadpool 2 doesn't give us the opportunity to adjust with its shifting tone (a tragic scene is immediately followed by the humourous credits sequence).

But even in its weaker moments, the humour saves the day and that makes Deadpool 2 much more than a one-time watch (repeat watch needed just to catch all those Easter Eggs).

Yay!

- Better plot with so many hilarious gags

- Some terrific surprises and cameos

- Best. Post-Credit Scene. Ever!

- Ryan Reynolds

- Zazie Beetz

Nay!

- The scale is surprisingly small

- Dragging scenes

- Jarring tonal shift

- The action sequences aren't great

Final Thoughts

Deadpool 2 is a better and much more hilarious followup on the first movie. Issues aside, if you are a fan of Merc with a mouth's crazy fetish for gags, you will surely love this one. Also, WAIT for that truly genius post-credit scene. (P.S. - If you want to watch it in Hindi, there is a dubbed version with Ranveer Singh voicing Wade Wilson)

Rating:
3.5 out of 5

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 16, 2018 01:05 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).