THUNDERBOLTS* (2025)

The written companion

Draft companion · Awaiting editorial review

Thunderbolts*: The Marvel Conversation Turns Personal.

Matt is surprised by how long Thunderbolts* stays with him. It is not simply another set of Marvel characters he has enjoyed watching for an evening. Days afterward, he is still thinking about them and wanting to see the film again. Dan finds it a welcome change of direction too, though a familiar problem with superhero storytelling keeps his enthusiasm a little lower.

The unexpected part for Matt is the film’s attention to mental health. He does not arrive expecting a Marvel movie to give so much weight to feeling low, disconnected, or uncertain of your place. The approach makes characters he only partly knows matter to him. He recognizes familiar faces from earlier stories but finds a stronger sense of who these people are when they are allowed to struggle together.

That emotional investment works alongside the humor rather than replacing it. Matt laughs more than he expected, then finds the character development giving those lighter moments something to connect with. Florence Pugh, David Harbour, Sebastian Stan, and the wider ensemble offer different reasons to stay interested. The episode includes plenty of the hosts’ usual asides, but they return to a clear point: a team film gets stronger when you care about more than what each member can do in a fight.

Dan appreciates that direction and wants it carried into future Marvel ensembles. He talks about personal growth and skills that complement each other as a more promising foundation than simply collecting powerful characters. His reservation is the familiar tendency to create a threat so overwhelming that the story seems to have painted itself into a corner. The emotional approach offers a way forward, but it does not entirely remove that concern for him.

**Matt settles on four out of five stars; Dan gives Thunderbolts* three and a half.** Matt does not put it among his absolute top Marvel films, but considers it one of the better entries and something the larger series needed. Dan’s slightly lower rating still comes with a clear recommendation. Neither sounds as though the future connections are the main thing he is taking home.

Instead, they finish by talking about checking on friends. The film’s themes have carried the discussion beyond the fictional team. Matt’s advice to hug your friends and Dan’s reminder that these struggles affect ordinary people make their verdict feel personal without requiring them to describe the ending.

**Did Thunderbolts* make you care about its characters beyond their place in the Marvel universe—and is that what you most want from the next team movie?** Watch their Picture This discussion ↗.

This companion discusses themes and broad reactions without revealing the ending or later franchise connections. The video contains story spoilers.