Part of the Marvel Comics universe, but proudly sitting outside the Marvel Cinematic Universe, 20th Century Fox’s Deadpool sequel offers a continuation of the first’s cheeky fourth-wall breaking and edgy, look-at-me violence. For those who need catching up, Wade Wilson aka Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) is a burns victim with a bad attitude and worse jokes whose superpower is superfast healing, rendering him basically indestructible. A personal tragedy involving his girlfriend (who, in a juvenile romantic gesture, presents him with her IUD in a box) puts him on a redemption arc. Teaming up with cyborg time-traveller Cable (Josh Brolin) and lucky charm Domino (Zazie Beetz) among others, Deadpool’s team sets out to protect firestarter Russell (Kiwi actor Julian Dennison), a teen mutant of the X-Men variety.
From its smug but dated pop culture references (there’s a recurring joke about dubstep, hinged on the 2012 Skrillex track Bangarang) to the frantic, barely comprehensible cutting, there’s very little to enjoy here. Dispensing with the brightness of the MCU but clinging to the franchise’s self-referential quippery and fan pandering makes for the worst of both imagined worlds.
