A little over two years ago, a cancer-stricken mercenary dressed in a red jumpsuit changed what we knew about the superhero genre, mostly by taking the mick out of it. In the film's post-credit scene, he tells viewers to leave the cinema. "It's over, go home!" he tells you while wearing a dressing gown and mimicking Ferris Bueller. He teases two things about his next film, "they don't have the money" and "we're gonna have Cable". One of those is a lie and, if you look above, I'm sure you know which one isn't.
Deadpool 2 sees Ryan Reynolds return as The Merc With A Mouth, only this time he's not alone. In the film he forms a team, the greatly anticipated "X-Force", to protect new mutant Firefist (Julian Dennison) from Cable (Josh Brolin), the film's one-eyed, time-travelling, cyborg antagonist. My favourite aspect of the film is its cast. With a budget double that of its predecessor, you'd expect Deadpool 2 to assemble a big-name, a-list cast. While it does this for its protagonist and antagonist, rising stars such as Zazie Beetz, Shiori Katsuna and Julian Dennison not only make the list, but are essential to the film itself. It's these cast members, the ones newer to mainstream movies like Deadpool, that shine the most in the film. Dennison's performance alone captivates you in a complex character that can make you crack up and then shed tears in a short space of time. In this regard, it's satisfying to see Deadpool 2 take risks in the same way Deadpool did and truly reap the rewards.
However it's rising cast isn't the only risk it takes; it also provides viewers with new, progressive character representations. One example of this is the fact that Deadpool 2 is the first superhero film to feature a queer couple. It's also the first film to feature Domino, who is white in the comics, as a black woman (barely represented in the superhero genre prior to Black Panther) with vitiligo, which goes unaddressed because there's no need to address it. One moment in the film that does address representation, rather boldly, is done by Julian Dennison's character who asks Deadpool "When was the last time you saw a plus size superhero?". While Deadpool's known for breaking the fourth wall, this particular quote has a lot of resonance, prompting the discussion of representation in the genre beyond race and sexuality in a way that doesn't feel forced.
Additionally, Deadpool 2 provides the jolly, red massacre-man with a surprising expansion into the X-Men universe. While the universe felt more like a homage or reference in Deadpool, namely with its X-Mansion cameo, now it feels integrated within the series it's a part of as a result of locations and particular appearances I won't spoil. This doesn't mean, however, that it detracts from the unique tone we know and love from Deadpool, but, in fact, aids it. The X-Men franchise is known for its action and this film is no exception. With a higher budget and John Wick director David Leitch at the helm, action sequences become bigger, better and way beyond your expectations for a R-rated superhero film.
While I'm not against how much "bigger" Deadpool 2 is than its predecessor, there are times where it doesn't feel right. This is because Deadpool 2 has a much larger emphasis on plot than the film that came before it, with some genuinely tragic moments in its first sequence alone. However, there are just a few parts where the balance between comedy and tragedy is broken - delivering jokes before or in the middle of sequences meant to evoke emotion. My only other mild gripe with the film is Cable's setup, mostly because it takes a while from him to flesh out into his own character, which when done is executed perfectly by Brolin, as opposed to feeling like an accessory to Deadpool and Firefist at the start of the film.
Overall, Deadpool 2, like all good sequels, excels the first. It packs the jaw-dropping action that a character like Deadpool needed from the start, manages to handle new characters without missing out on the main man and is even funnier than the first film - and that conclusion doesn't even touch on its incredible post-credits scene.