Avengers: Endgame is nothing short of unprecedented. While we’ve had plenty of sequels and crossovers and things like that, even within the Marvel Cinematic Universe, I’ve never seen a movie done like this before. Endgame is the 22nd movie in the MCU, and it’s a culmination and conclusion to everything that has come before. Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t the first time the MCU has done this, with movies as early as the first Avengers in 2012 being culminations of what came before. Even last year’s Infinity War, of which Endgame is the direct sequel to, was a culmination of everything in the universe so far. However, Endgame is quite literally ending the story of an entire saga, and of a few of the characters involved in it. This isn’t going to be the last MCU movie by any means, but this is the end of what the MCU has been building towards for the past 11 years.

While I think the genius of a lot of the solo Marvel movies are in how accessible they are, Endgame is literally made for the people that have been following these characters’ journeys. So, if you haven’t seen at least some of the major MCU movies that came before this, you’re probably going to be lost. If nothing else, Endgame serves as the “part 2” to Avengers: Infinity War, as Endgame picks up where that left off. If you haven’t seen that, I’m going to spoil it, so be warned. Infinity War ended with half of the universe being destroyed by Thanos’s snap, and so now the half that are left behind are stuck with figuring out how to move forward. I think to say anything else about the plot would be a crime, so if you’re looking to see how this story concludes, you owe it to yourself to see it without any spoilers.

If I’m being honest, I didn’t think Infinity War was a perfect movie. It was amazing, don’t get me wrong, but it definitely wasn’t on par with some of the other big “event movies” in the MCU for me. However, Endgame definitely is. It delivered everything I could have ever wanted from it, and more. I consider it to be on par with some of my other favorites from the MCU, such as Civil War and the first Avengers movie. Even though this is a three hour movie with barely any action in the first half, I was still enthralled the entire time by what they were doing with these characters and this world.

It’s hard to talk about what made Endgame so great without giving away its plot, but I really don’t like to do too many spoiler reviews since my goal here is to convince you whether to watch it or not. I think Endgame’s biggest achievement is how well it’s able to deliver its surprises and big moments, and so that isn’t an experience that I want to ruin for anyone. There were so many great moments in the movie that I’ll gladly talk about with anyone, but I don’t want to do it in this review. However, let’s be clear that Endgame is full of big moments like these, and that there were so many moments that had my theater either cheering or having their jaws drop.

The other thing that’s so impressive about Endgame is the level of care it has in giving these storylines the conclusions they deserve. It’s no secret that some of the actors’ contracts are up after this movie, so this is the last movie for some characters. It could be possible that we see some people make a cameo at some point, but Endgame really does seem like it’s the end for some of these characters. If you’ve been invested in this franchise since the beginning like I have, then you can appreciate how emotional this ride is. I know I wasn’t alone in the fact that I actually cried in the end, as I was saying goodbye to some of my favorite heroes. Some people make fun of us that cried here because it’s “just a superhero movie,” but I think it’s a testament to how powerful Endgame is (and the MCU as a whole) that it’s able to have this effect at all. Needless to say, I was very satisfied with the conclusions that Endgame delivered.

It’s probably clear to see at this point that I’m going to give Endgame a perfect score (or maybe you just scrolled down to see the score before reading it). However, I do have to be honest that I struggled as to whether or not I should. See, Endgame actually did leave me a little confused on things. There are plot elements that make the story confusing at times, and so when I was discussing it with people, I was saying how I don’t get how certain things in the movie happened, or why they were the way they were. I was debating on whether or not I should dock a point from the movie because of this, but I ultimately decided not to, and here’s why.

See, these big team-up movies have never really served to just be solo movies on their own. They’re meant to be watched in the context of the MCU as a whole. When thinking about it this way, I realized that it’s not a bad thing that Endgame left me puzzled, because Marvel has demonstrated to me that they care enough to answer these questions. I have a feeling that future movies are going to address the questions we have after Endgame, and so what I initially considered to be a negative toward the movie might actually not be. Of course, all of this is speculative, and so it’s possible that nothing is ever addressed and that the confusing moments stay that way in Endgame. It’s impossible to know this at the time of Endgame’s release, so it’s entirely possible that opinions on Endgame could shift when looking at it from a retrospective lens. But, we’ll just have to see about that. For now, I just want to see how Endgame’s bold choices are going to affect the universe going forward.

I think I’ve probably said enough, since most people probably know whether or not they want to see this movie anyway. All I really wanted to demonstrate here is that Endgame winded up living up to my expectations, and then surpassing them in traditional Marvel fashion. The movie is three hours worth of satisfying content, consistently delivering on things that are sure to please fans. Like I said earlier, it’s crazy to see a movie like Endgame, since I don’t feel like it’s been done before. I actually consider Endgame to be a real achievement because of this, and so it’s already easily risen towards the top of my favorite superhero movies. Marvel has done it again, this time delivering the conclusion we’ve all been waiting for.

5/5