The future of the MCU has taken form.

When vengeance-seeking villain Dar-Benn (Zawe Ashton) sets a plan into action to steal from other planets what she believes was taken from the Kree home world, she unintentionally links three heroes to thwart her. Carol “Captain Marvel” Danvers (Brie Larson) is still off-world patrolling space with Goose; Monica Rambeau (Tayonah Paris) works at S.A.B.E.R. for Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson); Kamala “Ms. Marvel” Khan (Iman Vellani) daydreams of working with Captain Marvel when not working on fan fiction or saving New Jersey. Saddled with switching places every time any of them use their powers at the same time, they’ll have to get ahead of and defeat their adversary by working together… and a lot of fears and secrets will be uncovered along the way.

It’s impossible to go online nowadays without seeing reports about Disney’s stock price dropping, theme parks losing attendance, films not making expected summer-blockbuster money, or streaming numbers falling. Marvel fans, however, just want a good movie featuring the characters they enjoy, preferably one that’s entertaining with a story that makes sense. Directed and co-written by Nia DeCosta — who gifted horror fans the 2021 Candyman requel — The Marvels brings together two featured characters from MCU shows on Disney+ as well as delivering a sequel to the successful (in spite of all the supposed hate) Captain Marvel film. While the all-business Monica Rambeau from “WandaVision” makes the often-dour Carol Danvers look sunny in comparison, Kamala Khan from “Ms. Marvel” has a winning personality big enough for all three. The hope is, of course, fans of the shows and the film will show up to support them on the big screen, but will that translate into box office success?

Sometimes fan service is the order (or apology) of the day, and The Marvels film really wants viewers to enjoy it. The plot is simple enough, allowing characters moments to resolve a lot of old baggage both emotional and otherwise. Unlike Thor: Ragnarok, mass civilian deaths aren’t swept under the rug for humor’s sake, and unlike Captain America: Civil War, no one is beating viewers over the head with it, either. The Marvels are full of things Disney+ MCU shows usually champion between film releases while also traveling to big computer-generated worlds and stopping short of overkill with the combat sequences. For the first time in a long time, an MCU film strives for and succeeds in the best balance between plot points, character interaction, story weight, and pure entertainment… all within a runtime of under two hours. ‘Nuff said.

The heart of The Marvels — and arguably of the entire MCU at this point — is Iman Vellani’s Kamala Khan, an infectiously enthusiastic entity all unto her own. It’s impossible to tell where Vellani begins or Khan ends; she’s a constant delight, and viewers skipping the “Ms. Marvel” series on Disney+ should realize they have some homework to do. From super-fan cosplayer to being cast in the role and now co-writing for the title Marvel comic of the same name, Vellani takes her job seriously, even once calling out producer Kevin Feige on which “earth” the MCU takes place (hint: it’s not Earth 616, and she’s exactly correct). While a few parts of the film may appear to be flashbacks, most reveals are things completionists are aware haven’t been resolved onscreen before; fans looking for overarching hints and clues should be plenty satisfied without taxing casual viewers… including the mid-credit scene, of course. There’s still the weird comic-book-physics crutch of massive distances in space being transversed at the speed of plot — and why do space craft seem to be so easy for heroes to come by while displaced galactic refugees never seem able to get anywhere without help?

It would be a shame to see this particular film tank in theaters, because it addresses many if not all of the complaints once-and-future viewers have had when citing “superhero fatigue” as well as providing a clear direction for what’s to come. Even if it doesn’t get a huge opening weekend, there’s little else like it out there right now, and with the SAG-AFTRA strike resolved as of this writing, you can bet the Disney marketing machine is about to get cranked up to eleven. While Ant-Man 3 felt a little hollow this year and Guardians 3 a bit conclusive, The Marvels delivers the goods and makes the right promises… and the MCU should be held to deliver them going forward.

The Marvels is rated PG-13 for action/violence, brief language, and people afraid to talk to one another in that most Shakespearean of ways.

Four skull recommendation out of four