My Reviews of New Disney Shows: Everything from the Mandalorian, Ant-Man, and Avatar!
Have you been keeping up with all of the new movies and series Disney has been releasing? Well, I have! Disney’s new shows lately, both in theaters and on Disney Plus, have been super entertaining and fun to watch, so I figured I’d let you guys know about them! I’ll be covering a short summary of what the movie or series is about, my personal review and thoughts about it, and what others have to say about it as well! Enjoy reading, and let me know if one of these is your favorite!
SPOILER WARNING:
These reviews may contain spoilers, so read on at your own risk! I recommend watching these shows before you read any reviews!
The Mandalorian: Season Three
Release Date: March 2, 2023 (new episode released weekly, every wednesday)
My Rating:
Rotten Tomatoes Rating:
(Click image to be taken to Rotten Tomatoes Site)My Review:
At the end of The Mandalorian’s Season Two, we had nicely wrapped up the story of Mando and Grogu when Luke Skywalker ended up saving Mando’s crew, and taking Grogu with him to train as a Jedi. From there, it is important that you watch The Book Of Boba Fett series on Disney Plus, as it continues Mando and Grogu’s story. In this series, Grogu chooses to be with Mando over training to be a Jedi, and returns to Din after learning some new tricks with the force. This is key information to know going into the Mandalorian season three in order to understand what is happening.
The new storyline that Season Three follows is one where Mando is trying to be forgiven for taking off his helmet, which is forbidden in his Mandolarian creed. We follow Mando and Grogu as they prepare to adventure to Mandalore, where we see many familiar faces like the Armorer, Greef Karga, Bo-Katan, Peli Motto, and more to come!
I personally LOVE Star Wars, and I eat up any Star Wars content I can get- especially when it involves Pedro Pascal or Grogu. I love the dynamic between Mando (or Din Djarin) and Grogu. I’ve been a fan of The Mandalorian series on Disney Plus for years, and I was excited to hear that they were making a third season for this show. However, I do feel that the initial spark and intrigue of this show is starting to fade, since the original plot line of seasons one and two is finished. However, I do love the connection between Din and Grogu, and all of their scenes are precious to watch as Din is trying to teach Grogu how to be safe as a Mandalorian. I think the added cameo character appearances make the show really fun and connect the dots overall as a fan of the entire Star Wars timeline. I can’t wait to see more episodes every Wednesday, especially since we all love seeing more Pedro Pascal every week!
What Others Had to Say:
Charles Pulliam-Moore, The Verge
“The Mandalorian’s season 3 premiere was a return to simpler, safer Star Wars storytelling… In things like the episode’s overlong repetition-based jokes and action pieces that feel like pitches for future theme park attractions, you do get the sense that The Mandalorian’s going for quick, easy thrills and not necessarily telling the most engrossing tale at this point.”
Matt Jones, Disney Plus Informer
“Dubbed the best Star Wars series, The Mandalorian continues to prove itself with a phenomenal beginning to its third season… Pacing has always been something that The Mandalorian has been great at, and the first two episodes flow perfectly together, with side stories that make up the overall story arc of the series.”
“But one of my prescriptions for great TV is simple: Show, don't tell. And there are way too many moments where The Mandalorian has a character telling audiences something it would have been more exciting to show us, making these first two new episodes feel something like the opening setup of a new video game.”
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania
Release Date: February 17, 2023
My Rating:
Rotten Tomatoes Rating:
(Click image to be taken to Rotten Tomatoes Site)My Review:
In a post-Blip world in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Scott Lang (aka Ant-Man) has returned to his daughter, Cassie, all grown up. This teenage Cassie proves to follow in her dad’s footsteps as an opinionated, action-seeking, risk-taking individual. This father-daughter duo is accompanied by Hope van Dyne (the Wasp) and Hope’s parents Janet and Hank as they accidently get trapped in the Quantum Realm, a microscopic world that's living right under our own. These characters get split up, having to navigate the Quantum Realm in their own groups- finding there is a lot more life and possibilities than they ever knew.
The main villain of this movie is Kang the Conqueror. In this movie we come to find out that Janet and Kang have a past from when Janet was stuck in the Quantum Realm for 20 years. Kang’s ultimate goal is to escape the Quantum Realm and take over the multiverse, destroying thousands of worlds as he has done before. This is Kang’s second appearance in the MCU, with the first being in the Disney Plus Loki series.
I was definitely expecting more from this movie from all of the hype and attention that both Marvel and Disney were giving it. With A-List movie actors Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Jonathan Majors, Bill Murray, and more, I can see why they were giving it that attention. The acting, especially by Jonathan Majors (Kang) was VERY well done, and it made me excited to see more of that character. However, I found this film as a whole to be underwhelming. The plot line seemed predictable, the dialogue was lacking, and some of the CGI was not there. That being said, I did enjoy some of the scenes. The humor in any of the Ant-Man movies is always entertaining, but it sometimes felt dry or overdone in this movie. The visuals, especially of the Quantum Realm landscape, were beautiful to look at.
This is definitely a huge movie and project that would have been better with more time, money, and attention to detail, but overall it was fairly entertaining. This movie has been negatively compared to Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, where you can definitely tell a shift in priorities from the two films. In regards to the storyline, CGI, costuming, and even acting, to me it does not even stand a chance against the popular sequel to Black Panther. I recommend this movie if you are a big Marvel or Ant-Man fan, but it’s definitely not a must-see favorite film.
What Others Had to Say:
Matt Zoller Seitz, Roger Ebert.com
Eventually, the movie succumbs to the MCU formula and devotes its last act to a lot of overly busy CGI battles, with things crashing into other things and exploding and disintegrating while people yell about having to save the universe. Sometimes the movie overdoes the self-awareness in that unfortunate MCU way—such as by having a character confirm that a weird thing just happened by saying, "That was weird," or announce that another character is cool, both of which happen here. But the film's low-stress, low-stakes attitude saves it.”
Manohla Dargis, New York Times
“The latest installment in the Marvel franchise never takes flight despite its hard-working cast, led by Paul Rudd and a new villain played by Jonathan Majors…Busy, noisy and thoroughly uninspired… Quantumania bops along innocuously at first, buoyed by the charm and professionalism of its performers and by your narrative expectations.”
“When nothing feels real, why should you care? It’s filled with alien biology and vistas that wouldn't be out of place on distant planets. But while that sounds like the perfect setup for a fun sci-fi romp, I never bought it. And, unfortunately, the actors didn't appear to buy it either. The backgrounds looked like psychedelic screensavers, and, similar to the Star Wars prequels, there was an uncanny disconnect between the live humans and their mostly digital surroundings.”
Avatar: The Way of Water
Release Date: December 16, 2022
My Rating:
Rotten Tomatoes Rating:
(Click image to be taken to Rotten Tomatoes Site)My Review:
It’s the long awaited sequel to the highest-grossing film: Avatar! After being introduced to the world of Pandora with the original Avatar movie in 2010, the world became obsessed with the story of Jake Sully becoming an Avatar to connect with the Na’vi- blue alien inhabitants of Pandora. Through machines, Sully is able to link his mind to this Na’vi Avatar, and is able to interact and even fall in love with the Na’vi and one of the women in the tribe, Neytiri. As the humans and Na’vi battle for Pandora’s survival, Jake Sully chooses to fight with the Na’vi. At the end of the first Avatar movie, Sully has his mind and consciousness permanently transferred to his Avatar body, committing to protect and love the Na’vi and their world forever.
Time has passed in between the first and second movies, and Jake and Neytiri have a family. The bond between the Sulley family is strong, and it's definitely shown through the many different battles and struggles that they endure in Avatar: The Way of Water. The continuation of this fascinating world is beautiful and breathtaking, especially as we are introduced to the ocean Na’vi and world.
I have to be honest, at first I was nervous to watch this film. I wasn’t sure how they were going to continue without the storyline of having Jake as an avatar, and that conflict between humans and the world of Pandora. But- they did it! This three hour film was utterly amazing to watch. I definitely recommend watching the first Avatar film before watching this one, as there are many recurring characters and references. The CGI of the Na’vi was beautifully done, and even without being human, you could tell and see the talent and acting behind these actors. Each scene was honestly beautiful to watch, just cinematography wise, because of the beautiful colors, compositions, and more. The visual effects were astonishing, and really set a new high standard for all future movies with visual effects. I also LOVED the family theme throughout the entire movie. The focus of protecting your family, no matter what, and even sacrificing everything for them was just beautiful. But, this theme could be seen as cliqué, especially after three hours. Personally, I thought it was a strong theme for such a beautiful film. I STRONGLY recommend watching this movie. It really is an immersive, beautiful experience and world you are thrown into as a viewer. I definitely enjoyed it more than others out there, so read on to see what other reviewer’s thought too.
What Others Had to Say:
“Avatar: The Way of Water is a thoughtful, sumptuous return to Pandora, one which fleshes out both the mythology established in the first film and the Sully family’s place therein… This is nothing short of a good old-fashioned Cameron blockbuster, full of filmmaking spectacle and heart, and an easy recommendation for anyone looking to escape to another world for a three-hour adventure.”
“James Cameron’s ego turns ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ into endless torture… On more than one occasion we’re told that “the way of water has no beginning and no end.” No kidding. By the finish, we’ve figured that out: “The Way of Water” starts where the first left off and stops with the promise of sequels. Long, long sequels.”
