Many dream of experiencing the exhilaration of the shield and its power, but most forget the burden of leadership and responsibility that comes with this great ability.

Following the events of Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Captain America: Brave New World stars Anthony Mackie as Sam Wilson, the new Captain America. Released on February 14 this year by Marvel Studios, the movie grossed about $375 million worldwide and received mixed reviews. Trying too hard to be like The Winter Soldier, this movie compares to the quality of other Marvel movies, yet lacks various crucial elements compared to the all-time bests.

Armed with the power of the Falcon, Brave New World follows Sam Wilson and Joaquin Torres as they tackle global politics in dealing with the Celestial that rose from the ocean during the events of Eternals. Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross, the newly elected president of the United States, must prove himself capable, especially after his reputation was stained for being reckless in his dealings with the Hulk and Abomination during The Incredible Hulk.

After difficulties in the diplomacy of ownership of adamantium, a valuable metal present in Celestial Island, Thaddeus uncovers another monstrous difficulty, an underground disruptor from his past. Meanwhile, Sam and Joaquin must also investigate a terror attack on the White House that was an attempted assassination on Ross–or so they thought. And when the two parties collide, things get really, really messy, especially on the White House lawn.

Although this is an exciting and action-packed movie, the plot feels lacking after the credits roll. Compared to the anticipation-filled, interesting plots of Marvel’s other hits, such as Avengers: Infinity War, Captain America: Civil War, and the previously mentioned Captain America: Winter Soldier, this plot is simply too barebones and surface-level to spark any intrigue.

Firstly, the simplicity of the storyline— identifying the villain and defeating him— is a premature ending when so much more depth could be added to many events throughout the movie. As entertainment shifts to television episodes to accommodate for smaller attention spans, the audience can feel the rushed progression of this plot as an attempt to replicate that, as the discovery of the conflict and resolution come in what seems like only half an hour.

In other Marvel movies where plot armor isn’t as obvious and the catharsis for a hero is palpable, the predictability of the plot allows surprise only to be present in anticlimactic scenes. Also, the Marvel magic simply isn’t there to entertain the crowd, with almost no themes interwoven in the plot, besides the basic “leadership and legacy” which are briefly touched on at the beginning of the movie. With a storyline that any other character could assume, Brave New World’s writers didn’t seem to understand what makes a Captain America movie spark.

In addition, a lot of the characters seem forced in. Seth Voelker (played by Giancarlo Esposito), a wanted arms dealer, seems to be plopped into the plot at the last minute to add some more “star power.” Sabra (played by Shira Haas), a highly trained soldier who received the famed Widow Training, is, in my opinion, one of the flattest, boring characters ever seen in the MCU, with, somehow, her dialogue being even worse than the singular action scene she was in. The rewrites and reshoots that plagued this production were likely the reason for this, with too many ideas crammed into a movie just under two hours long. As cliché as it sounds, there really were way too many cooks in the kitchen for this movie.

To compensate for the lackluster plot and characters, Julius Onah, the film’s director, goes hard into the action with two major set pieces. The Celestial Air Fight and the Red Hulk Brawl give a unique taste to the stale beating-people-in-the-hallway formula the MCU has been using for a couple of years.

Captain America, now with Vibranium wings, does crazy stunts in the air, including missile surfing. These wings also give him the ability to fight an enemy with far superior strength. At first, Red Hulk versus Captain America without the super soldier serum seems impossible, but the Vibranium wings that reflect Hulk’s punches at the madman himself give Sam a fighting chance. However, the shield action is the highlight of the movie-flying dynamically across each fight, the shield action in Brave New World is some of the best in all the MCU movies.

The movie also shines in various other aspects. Visually, the CGI is solid, although the greenscreen is pretty apparent in certain scenes. Despite this, scenes like the White House fight, with the contrast between the colorful lights of D.C. and the night sky, or the Celestial fight scene, with the sun setting behind the skeleton of a giant, keep me watching with their visual direction. Although the music can’t compare to other MCU movies like Black Panther, which are famed for their excellent soundtracks, composer Laura Karpman’s music direction satisfies the movie’s purpose well.

So what does this all mean for the future of the MCU? Marvel has been in a slump recently, with failures like The Marvels tanking at the box office. But, with this movie, the MCU has started to regain its footing. Its movies are connecting again, the fans are starting to gain some interest in its new phase, and with a solid box office run, Brave New World seems like a breath of fresh air for the MCU. Paired with Deadpool and Wolverine, Marvel seems to have a good future ahead of it.

Although the positive factors outweigh the negatives well, Captain America: Brave New World is a downgrade from Phase 3, an upgrade from Phase 4, a good addition to Phase 5, and a well-developed prequel to Phase 6. We would rate such a movie a 7/10, and while IMDb may rate it more harshly at 5.9/10 and Rotten Tomatoes at 48%, the impact of the movie on the MCU in reintroducing Celestial Island, developing the new leader of the Avengers, and displaying the new world developing on Earth-616 places it at a higher position when compared to other concurrent Marvel movies. This movie is hopefully the starting point for the new phase of Marvel, especially as the company deals with competition from the new DC universe, and enters its own brave new world.