Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)

With a tie in to the Endgame finale, Ant-man and the Wasp saw over a 100 million dollar increase in their world wide box office revenue,  when comparing to it's original film. Director Peyton Reed who helmed both films, maintained that the formula of each film's success is good storytelling and compelling characters, the special effects and smash 'em up troupes come a distant third.

In story, there was a 2 year span between the conclusion of the original Ant-man film  and when Ant-man and the Wasp begins.  During that time Scott Lang joined Captain America in Civil War, was re-incarcerated, did a year in house arrest; meanwhile the government learned of Hank Pym's technology and activites of the Ant-man suit. That admission of knowledge has now brought fourth  criminal charges for both he and his daughter, As they find themselves on the run for unlawful acts in the midst of the superhero registration act, and Sokovia Accords. 

For the most part, the Ant-man stories is not widely regarded as top tier MCU viewing, but in Marvel Studio's defense  the first film out-performed with world wide box office records when compared to either the first Captain America movie or first Thor Movie.  The film also puts in the forefront the family dynamic, something no other film of the first 3 phases has made a point to do.  Ant-man and the Wasp displays elaborate set pieces, 2 great chase sequences and an extremely imaginative special effects to view the everyday world, but the sum of it parts is the family dynamic, with having the audience invested by showing us a relationship between fathers and daughters. Its what connects the audience on a personal level, while injecting humor into their story. 

Hope's mother Janet was never seen in the first film, but was prominent in it's storytelling, acting  more of a specter, that drives Hank Pym and his daughter apart.  Unable to reveal her superhero deeds that cost Janet her life in the 80's. Hank inadvertently pushes his daughter away while burying himself in his work to rescue Janet from the quantum realm.  Fast forward 20+ years, the relationship between Hope and Hank becomes increasingly fractured, until Scott manages to come back from the Quantum realm and sparks a renewed optimism of Janet's survival and rescue. With a fresh pair of eyes to see what Hank might have missed; Hope, Hank and their legion of controlled ants work endlessly to rescue Janet, and in doing so renew the bonds of father and daughter.

Scott and Cassie approaches' the father and daughter connection from a different angle. they have a strong loving bond to start with. It was Scott's incarceration in the first film, that made him work at Baskin Robins and try anything and everything to be there for his daughter. Desperately wanting to make up for loss time while in prison Scott's life is devoted to being there for Cassie.  In the opening of this movie we have Scott maintaining house arrest for the past year,  while in captivity he has created an elaborate
Michel Gondry playground for him and his daughter to connect in.  His involvement with Hank and Hope in the first film stemmed from his need to be with his daughter Cassie. Here we open up wanting to put that chapter in his life behind and as he is just a  week away from getting out of house arrest.

There is a point in the story that Hank turns to fellow scientist Dr. Bill Foster played by Laurence Fishburne for aid; Conversely Fishbourne's character has a sense of moral obligation as he secretly  fosters a young woman named Ava. Determine to cure her condition  Bill's commitment to surrogacy, showcases the idea of parental sacrifices, as is this case of adoptive father to a daughter.  Similar in set up to MCU villain   Killmonger there is  pathos and legitimacy behind  their motivations, however their methods are what is misguided.  From flag-smashers terrorists in Falcon & Winter Soldier  to  Thanos wanting save the universe from a over-population ,depleted resources, and inevitable extinction.  The implications are good, but methods are radically unacceptable. Humanizing the character, understanding their position, and watching the acts through their eyes is something DC has not yet mastered.

Black Widow (2021)

 

In the comics, when Black Widow made her first appearance two Bond films had already been out in theatres - Dr. No and From Russia with Love. The release of Goldfinger was set to hit on September 1964, just a few months after Widow's comic book debut . Tales of Suspense issue #52 (April 1964), and it is obvious that many characteristics were shared with Ian Fleming's Tatiana Romanaova, the Soviet Army corporal officer instructed to send Bond to his doom.

In the beginning the Romanoff character was an alluring agent, shifting evening wear and alliances with the avengers, it was the better part of this century that she has been evolved into a symbol for feministic ideals, thanks in large part to the portrayal of the MCU's writing and character development,  and largely by her inhabiting star Scarlett Johansson.

Secure in weaponizing her femininity, fighting skill, counter interrogation of psychological profiling & manipulation, Black Widow is a formidable assassin, removed of compromise thanks to the Red Room. An institution who creates élite Assassins or Black Widows and graduates them with sterilization to remove the maternal instinct, for a  pure unrelenting  killer instinct. Her character defected to become a shield agent then promoted to becoming an Avenger thanks to Nick Fury's hiring, but positioned secondary to its Trinity of leading heroes, Her Budapest counter assassin Hawkeye were regulated as supporting characters for the majority of phase 1 & 2 within the MCU.  These assassins were given more fleshed out backstory in The Age of Ultron, with Clint Barton being a family man, and Natasha a lonely, but beautiful monster on par with Banner's disposition of without having ties or relationships.

This film maps out when she was taken to the Red Room, the same time Carol Danvers became Captain Marvel and met Nick Fury in 1995. Natasha was a sleeper agent in Ohio, USA, discovered by S.H.I.E.L.D. and fled back to Russia, to be enrolled into the Red Room/Black Widow program at the age of  9. The film quietly supports the concept of a time variant. Captain America went back  in time to return all infinity stones, before anyone realizes they were gone.  In those time jumps he himself was respectively frozen under water, Red Guardian in the movie claims to have fought Captain America in the 1980's which would make Alexi amongst his fellow prison inmates a liar, but of his conviction in his story holds some truth as Steve never returned to his present and decided to live throughout time hidden with Peggy Carter.  Quietly being once again a man out of time, but by choice, not to disrupt the timeline.

The Black Widow movie fits between a period of time, after the events of Civil War, but before Infinity War, and concludes with the moments leading to the team breaking out from the raft.  Like Tatiana Romanaova, she finds herself attracted to her British spy and lethally was willing to save his life at the cost of ending hers. Although Taitana died at the hands of her Boss, Natasha is wanted fugitive, but sacrifices herself in Infintiy War so that Clint Barton and his family could live.