By Ryan Simmons (Twitter: RyanSimmonsVO)

Avengers: Infinity War – worth the wait?

Apr 27, 2018 | 9:27 AM

Can a movie live up to ten years of hype? It’s tough to say, but Avengers: Infinity War throws everything it has at you in the attempt and what you’re left with is a movie with action, a ton of great laughs and an incredibly blistering pace.

This is the Marvel Universe, so you should know by now what to expect – big explosions, cool fights, simple good vs evil story. Though this time everyone expects, and rightfully so, the biggest, coolest, most dramatic version of that formula we’ve seen to date. The success of Avengers Infinity War won’t be gauged by fans based on how many awards it wins, or how big the inevitably massive box office take is… fans will judge whether it lives up to those expectations.

So… does it? For me, a lifelong comics fan and a person who waited in line for Iron Man 1… it did. Big time. The action was incredibly exhilarating, and the story blistered from battle to battle; Thanos delivers what I thought was Marvel’s best villain to date in both strength and story; and the story not only raises the stakes, often the biggest criticism of Marvel movies, but it leaves them higher than they’ve ever been by the conclusion.

Infinity War is definitely the first part of a two parter, and Marvel has never hidden that fact. The cliffhanger at the end of this movie is immense… but it’s Infinity War’s job to leave you wanting to see the next one and I feel like absolutely everyone will be dying for it after this.

We’ve been told the next chapter is left to be something of a farewell to The Avengers we know and love, and if this movie is meant to set that stage it does so in a way that is extremely exciting, and does it without feeling like a cheap money grab, paying off a ton of the buildup and feeling like a complete movie in its own right.

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I think Marvel fans will be left feeling gratified after spending years and hundreds of dollars to follow along with the story Marvel has been building this past decade, with more faith than ever in their overarching plan. If Marvel falls victim to anything as they carry the Avengers ball over the goal line next year, it’s that they can’t stop raising expectations on themselves. Because if Infinity War is simply setting the stage for the conclusion, and fans are going to be left wanting something even bigger… well I don’t know how they’re going to top this. I guarantee I’ll be there opening weekend, though.