LogFAQs > #971506091

GavsEvans123 posted...

Thank goodness Smell-o-Vision didn't catch on, because the Sludge Monster scene would have constituted cruel and unusual punishment if it had!

Yeesh.... I can only imagine. If that was in a theater, everyone would head for the hills. (Thanks for the laugh, I needed it after the horrible week I had.)

Incredibles 2 (2018)
Written and Directed By: Brad Bird
Starring: Craig T. Nelson, Holly Hunter, Sarah Vowell, Huckleberry Milner, Catherine Keener, Samuel L. Motherfucking Jackson, Bob Odenkirk, Brad Bird
Previous status: Never seen

"It's like a superhero's playground!"

I should have watched this months ago, but... life.

This one starts right where the last one left off, where the guy who asked Violet out recaps Mr. Underminer rising from the depths.. and him recognizing her and her blowing her cover. And then the interrogator goes full Lacuna on him and erases her from his mind. Mr. Underminer collapses the bank to rob all the cash from the vault with a vacuum... and the video game is most likely retconned or whatever, not that anyone ever cared about it. He gets away in the escape pod as the Parrs + Frozone handle the bigger drill... for which they're arrested, because of course the populace would rather have the Underminer go crazy and destroy the town. The politicians actually say this. "Orderly fashion" my ass. The town would be in total chaos. I DO hope these politicians get theirs later. (Spoiler: They sadly don't.)

After Parr family drama over dinner in their motel room (they still haven't found a place), Frozone comes over with a business card for a Winston "Win" Deavor, who screams "bad guy who wants to use superheroes for nefarious purposes." Bob and Helen wear their classic outfits but aren't subtle enough because Violet, being Violet, notices. Should've rethought that one! Winston and his sister Evelyn explain their father, a superhero advocate, was murdered by robbers right after the superhero ban, and the two of them want to restore his biggest passion... by having supers show their perspectives via camera, so people have more than just the ending on the covfefe. Uhhh... I still question if he's using those cameras for something else. Helen isn't sure. Bob is 100% right in convincing her to change this law. This certainly feels like commentary against anyone on EITHER side who wants to restrict people's self-expression, whether that being one side's legislation or the other's calling people names just for disagreeing. I'll leave it there.

The mega-mansion offers plenty of humor, with the crazy tech and Bob adapting to being a stay-at-home dad... in "Doozle-dorf." Jack-Jack refuses to sleep and makes a comparison between a TV robber and a raccoon, adorably fighting the thing before starting himself on fire, using Double Team, and whipping out LASER EYES! This is hilarious! It tops his mother Helen saving the day hi-tech style from this supervillain "the Screenslaver" who knows who she is. Hmmm. Imagine if Win and/or Evelyn is just doing this for fun. Also fun is Bob lying to Helen about how things aren't in total disarray after Violet's eating half-gallons of ice cream for comfort food, Dash is drooling while asleep over his homework, and Jack-Jack is still trying to pick a fight with raccoons. All this fun stuff is replaced by devastation when Violet doesn't realize that Tony had Lacuna performed on him until he asks if he knows her. WHOOPS!

Now that Elastigirl is getting positive press, people are starting to say "I SUPPORTED YOU ALL ALONG!" even though they never did anything about it. One of these, Ms. Ambassador, suddenly is jeopardized by Screenslaver in the middle of Helen's interview, at which point she manages to save the day (but not the helicopter). Back home, Bob lets it slip that Dicker ruined Violet's date by erasing her from Tony's mind, and she berates him. He just ruined her chance of getting laid. She takes it out on her indestructible supersuit, xD. But other young superheroes are finally emerging, such as Voyd, who idolizes Elastigirl, and Brick who's from Wisconsin (you know me). Another thing I noticed: Evelyn saying she invents, Win sells. So... she's Screenslaver? Elastigirl thinks otherwise and they scheme to bait Screenslaver. Speaking of bait, Bob baits Violet by taking her out to eat at Tony's parents' restaurant. This is awkward. And hilarious. Poor Violet, though. Teenage angst galore.

Helen tracks Screenslaver's signal and finds stolen evidence in his apartment, then fights him in a dizzying screen room with her eyes closed for long enough until she can destroy it. She misses the bomb but gets the guy... and enough evidence on camera to lock him up. Meanwhile Bob shows exactly why I have no plans to have kids by snapping when he can't handle all three of them... while sleep-deprived. Frozone scolds him and says he needs more than me-time... so he goes to Edna moaning uncontrollably. She takes Jack-Jack in for study, especially once he shows he has copycat powers, too. He's a wildcard... babies, yeah? Edna loves this assignment because it's a new challenge - the sets are exactly the same as the original, which is nice. Bob also sets a sleep record: 17 hours, lol!

It clicks with me when Win says a hundred world leaders will sign this pro-superhero legislation on a big boat. Yeah, I think he's after some kind of world domination, else why would he have this at sea instead of, y'know, the UN? To take them hostage. This clicks with Helen, too. What clicks with Bob is that he needs to apologize to Violet, so he does. This is juxtaposed with Helen telling Evelyn that this all felt too easy, like it was a setup, and that Screenslaver hacked into her supersuit's camera... and just as she's connecting the dots, Evelyn puts goggles on her. Like... hello, Helen? Obvious plot twist is obvious. Win isn't a tech guy. Evelyn is sadistic, torturing Helen in an ice chamber to further her agenda: Banning superheroes forever. BIGOT ALERT! She blames that for her parents' deaths - superheroes existing makes people weak. But you know what makes people weaker? People who use technology to make others helpless. People like you, Evelyn. I hope your death is as gory as Syndrome's. (Interesting how Win is not involved. How many back-and-forths I had! His lack of involvement wasn't predictable.)

It doesn't occur to anyone to take the goggles off. Because it doesn't. But... the kids are in charge now, because everyone else is possessed. Violet connects the dots, and the Incredibile - a James Bond car on steroids - takes off. I know the good guys will win. I know this bitch will get hers. I hope it's satisfying. But it's NOT satisfying that Violet isn't removing these thugs' mind-control masks. What the HELL? And Evelyn's evil plot is hugely successful. Boom, sheeple ate it up. The end. The rest is unrealistic. Evelyn gets a shock though, when Jack-Jack takes off Helen's mask and she takes off the others. They FINALLY start destroying that shit. Evelyn tries escaping in a jet, but Helen plays in a stupor, then kills Evelyn with the flare gun. That... was not satisfying... oh she's still alive? What? Meh. And supers save the day, ***** is arrested, Parr drama is resolved, the superheroes are accepted because the script calls for it, Violet and Tony reconnect just like at the end of the first one, and blah blah blah. Then some thugs start shooting and... oh yeah, the Underminer is still at large.

Yeah this isn't as good as the first one. Yes, it's still great. Yes, it's still a fun ride. Yes, the raccoon sequence is the best part (@Zachnorn I am a nerd). I needed that laugh. But there are still a few things - namely dizzying Porygon light effects - that make this a clear 4/5 for me.