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Despite a chaotic start, a feeling of multiverse burnout, and villains feeling like a bit of an afterthought, this film has plenty of fun moments and just enough heart to make it a solid ride. The basic story, despite some big plot holes, is relatively simple. (And it also has quite a few similarities to the first “Deadpool.”) The film’s greatest strengths of meta jokes and mulitversal references are also a bit of a weakness as they tend to distract from the more important themes. The heroes of the story have decent arcs, but they seem to be missing a few story beats that could really have helped nail the payoffs. This also applies to some of the side characters that end up straddling the line between glorified cameos and fleshed-out characters in their own right. The film is also hampered by the bad guys never really feeling like they’re important to the final act but are just shoehorned in to ramp-up the stakes for the climax. (It doesn’t help either that I wasn’t entirely sure what Deadpool and Wolverine’s end goal was supposed to be. It’s clear where they need to go, but I wasn’t entirely sure why.) There is a post-credit scene that’s all for fun.
***1/2 out of *****