Saving the universe with Captain Marvel

Why is her name missing from the plane? 

Who is Carol Danvers? Who is Captain Marvel? Why is she getting a movie now and where was she all of this time? These are probably a few questions that many people who are not familiar with the Marvel character have, but these questions do get answered and show us why Captain Marvel is a great addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe!

We all know, from the second end credit clip in Avengers: Infinity War, that Nick Fury sends a message to Captain Marvel, but we may be asking ourselves, "Why?" and "Where did he get that pager?" It appears that Captain Marvel is the key to stopping Thanos and that is why she is summoned to help the Avengers. Are you getting this so far?

When we are first introduced to Vers, Brie Larson, we see that she has strange dreams about a world that she does not recognize and has powers that she is told she has to learn to control. She feels that there is more to her life, but is pretty much told what she can and can't be by Yon-Rogg played by Jude Law. We next see Vers along with Starforce, an elite command group, about to embark on a mission to rescue a spy and here we get to see Starforce in action. 

One thing leads to another and a strange montage of scenes show Vers at different stages of her life. Now while this might be confusing to some, it is kind of a cool way to dig into the origin story of her without taking the first half of the movie to tell how she got her powers. The fact that Captain Marvel sidesteps the entire origin story makes this stand out from other Marvel movies. It saves us the monotony of seeing the same thing that we saw in the other origin movies. It's kind of like how Spider-Man: Homecoming didn't rehash his origin and just told us how he got his powers by Peter answering Ned's questions.  

Without giving away too much of the movie, Captain Marvel is a great origin movie that is a little slower paced than previous Marvel movies. The action scenes throughout the movie give us a glimpse at her powers, but it is not until the final scene where we can see her full potential. Is this enough to beat Thanos? Who knows? Maybe it will be enough to turn the tide and change the outcome of Infinity War. 

The Nick Fury we see in this movie comes off a little soft and it would be interesting to see a movie showing how he became the hardcore agent that we are all familiar with. This movie does explain why he wears the eyepatch and the reveal may not be what many people expect and that is why I think it works. Think back to the Simpsons episode when Bart meets the one-armed army guy and asks if he lost the arm in the war. The guys answer "Listen to your teachers and don't put your arms outside of a moving school bus!" That's a lot funnier than what you imagined happened to him, same premise goes for Fury's eye. 

We also get to see why she is not around during the timeframe of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and it's not a throwaway answer. Captain Marvel is doing what she was born to do and that is help others. The movie is great in showing us that no matter what people tell you that you can or can't do, you have to believe in yourself. This is the takeaway I hope that children will walk out with after seeing the movie. Many might find this movie not on par with other Marvel movies, but at this point, we know that this movie is important to see how Endgame will play out. 

Final Thoughts: Captain Marvel is reminiscent of the first Iron Man in that it is slow paced and builds up towards the end. The film has a great message for everyone about believing in yourself and to not let any one hold you down. There are a lot of great jokes that might go over your children's head, but it will probably make for great discussion afterwards.

Kid Friendly: The movie falls in the same vein of most Marvel movies with the amount of action. There is nothing really scary or language that is questionable, but seeing the Skrulls might be a little too much for younger viewers.

Violence: There is just fantasy violence in the movie, nothing too extreme.

Fandads Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Set in the 1990s, Marvel Studios’ “Captain Marvel” is an all-new adventure from a previously unseen
period in the history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe that follows the journey of Carol Danvers as she becomes one of the universe’s most powerful heroes. While a galactic war between two alien races reaches Earth, Danvers finds herself and a small cadre of allies at the center of the maelstrom.

The film stars Brie Larson, Samuel L. Jackson, Ben Mendelsohn, Djimon Hounsou, Lee Pace, Lashana Lynch, Gemma Chan, Rune Temte, Algenis Perez Soto, Mckenna Grace, with Annette Bening, with Clark Gregg, and Jude Law.

Marvel Studios’ “Captain Marvel” is produced by Kevin Feige and directed by Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck. Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Jonathan Schwartz, Patricia Whitcher and Stan Lee are the executive producers. The story is by Nicole Perlman & Meg LeFauve and Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck & Geneva Robertson-Dworet, and the screenplay is by Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck & Geneva Robertson-Dworet. “Captain Marvel” is in U.S. theaters now.