Ant-Man and the Wasp

Ant-Man and the Wasp is the newest Marvel movie to hit center stage. The story takes place right after Captain America: Civil War and right before Infinity Wars. We watch as Ant-Man goes from housebound criminal with an ankle monitor, to a super hero yet again. Hope Van Dyne (The Wasp, played by Evangeline Lilly) and her father, Hank Pym (Michael Douglas), enlist Ant-Man's help in bringing back Hope's mother from the quantum realm. That is, until others have better plans for Dr. Pym's quantum machine.

There was a lot going on in this film. First you have the main story with the rescue mission of Hope's mother, but then you also have this villain that wants to use the quantum machine for her own needs. Much of the film is spent trying to keep the lab safe from this Ghost (Ava, played by Hannah John-Kamen) that jumps through walls and comes into and out of vision as if she's not actually of this world. She puts up a huge challenge for Ant-Man and the Wasp and it was interesting watching them try to fit someone that could actually jump right through them.

I actually think that this Ant-Man sequel beats the first one, and reviews so far agree. IMDb has this movie at a 7.6/10 whereas the first is rated a 6.3/10. The CGI is very well done especially in the quantum realm and for Ava. The comedy is great and kept me entertained throughout. I wouldn't say it's the best comedy by any means, but it was funny. My only complaint is that I prepped for this film with the wrong movie, and it references the past quite a bit. I thought, "OK, I'll watch Ant-Man first and then I'll be ready for this sequel." Wrong! If you have seen the first movie, that's good, but it won't help you here. You need to prep with Civil War. That movie explains why Ant-Man is on house arrest and why Hope and Dr. Pym are angry with him. I saw Civil War years ago when it first came out, but I haven't seen it again, so when this movie started I was very lost. So much has happened in the Marvel world that Civil War was certainly not on my mind.

To be completely honest, I don't totally understand why Ant-Man is even a thing. He's not one of the big name super heroes and his story really isn't a part of all the other Avengers. He's just there, and maybe some of you love these movies, and there is nothing wrong with that. All the power to you! Ant-Man is a good movie, but he will never be one of the super heroes that draws a big crowd. I really only wanted to see it because I love Evangeline Lilly (yay Lost!), and because I had to so as not to miss anything important in regards to the Avengers.

If you really love Marvel, then sure go see this one. You will probably be in a not-so-crowded theater which is always nice. Room to stretch out right? It was a good movie, but it's not helpful to the Avengers story. The best part by far was the cut-scene after the movie (there are 2 but only the first is worth watching). So, the decision is yours. If my lack-luster review does not help you, then I do apologize. I'll make it up to you soon!