Well, one spoiler: It's awesome
Spoiler-free review of Avengers: Endgame...5 quick thoughts
Apr 23, 2019, 8:21 pm
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Marvel is wrapping up its current universe with one of the most anticipated movies of all time: Avengers Endgame. The following is a spoiler-free review. That obviously limits us, but this is a film that deserves to be enjoyed in person as it goes. The movie opens on Thursday and if you can still get tickets, you should. Five quick thoughts:
1) Prepared to be wowed
This is a movie that will tug on all your emotions. The interactions between the characters are terrific. We have followed many of them for over a decade, and we see acting at its best. From storyline to dialogue, it's everything we were hoping for and more. And of course the visuals are over the top. It is a great movie experience. While it is three hours long, it felt much shorter.
2) Perfect Pacing
Despite feeling much shorter than three hours, the storylines aren't rushed and it does not really drag, either. It covers all the bases, deals with all the characters, and brings us closure. You won't feel cheated at all.
3) A Leftovers feel
The part of the movie that deals with the aftermath of "The Snap" will remind you of HBO's Leftovers. And it's powerful. As usual, the characters deal with loss through serious emotions, and still work in the one-liners. It is classic Marvel.
4) A perfect ending
The story wraps up perfectly. The last 40 minutes or so of the movie are simply incredible. It brings us closure, and is perfectly done. You will cheer. You will tear up. But you will leave with an amazing experience.
5) The bottom line
If you have not already bought tickets, you need to. You will not be disappointed. The ending is one of the best you will see, and there is nothing I would change about this movie. The Avengers have taken us on a wild ride, and this is the wildest of all. If you liked Infinity War, you will love Endgame. It is even better than we could have hoped for. These characters have become part of our entertainment lives, and this movie showed them at their best. Put simply, they could not have done any better ending this iteration. In many ways this is an homage to the original Avengers movies, with the humor of Ant Man added in. But it is much more than that. There are so many touching moments, shows of bravery and at times despair, that you will leave feeling wholly satisfied. So turn off your phone for three hours, sit back and enjoy a perfect movie for fans of the Avengers.
The Endgame is here. And it was well worth the wait.
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The Houston Astros have looked like one of baseball’s most dangerous teams in recent weeks, riding a hot streak fueled by dominant starting pitching and a red-hot offense that’s erupted for double-digit runs in four of their last eight games. But behind the current success, there are fair questions about whether this pace is truly sustainable as the grind of the season continues.
Yes, the Astros are winning — and winning big — but context matters. Many of their recent victories have come against struggling clubs like the White Sox and Athletics. Even matchups against the Twins and Guardians, while respectable, don’t exactly represent championship-caliber tests. That soft stretch of the schedule has certainly helped Houston pad its win column, but it may not be the best predictor of long-term performance. Houston will be tested in the upcoming series against the Phillies and Cubs.
On the pitching side, the numbers have been impressive, but how repeatable is it? With Lance McCullers Jr. sidelined for at least a couple of weeks, the Astros are relying on a patchwork rotation that includes unproven arms like Colton Gordon, Ryan Gusto, and Brandon Walter. While each has shown flashes, asking them to shoulder the load deep into the summer may be a tall order.
Offensively, Houston is firing on all cylinders. But scoring 10 or more runs every other game simply isn’t sustainable over a 162-game season. Regression is inevitable; the question is how the team responds when the bats cool down or the bullpen is asked to carry more weight.
Amid all this, rookie third baseman Cam Smith continues to shine. Just a few months into his major league career, Smith is producing at a level that suggests he’s not just a key piece of the future — he’s already one of the team’s most valuable players. His batting average sits just a point behind Jose Altuve’s, and his OPS is even higher. If the Astros were forced to choose two players to build around long-term, factoring in youth and contract status, the logical duo might be Smith and breakout pitcher Hunter Brown.
So what about the big picture? Is this team a true World Series contender?
Oddsmakers currently have Houston with the seventh-best odds to win it all, and only the Yankees and Tigers rank higher among American League teams. The core is still there, the experience is undeniable, and if the pitching continues to hold — especially with the anticipated return of Spencer Arrighetti and a healthy McCullers — the Astros have every reason to believe they’ll be in the mix deep into October.
But that’s a big “if.” The ceiling is still high, and with Cam Smith emerging as a star in real time, this team might just have another gear. Whether they can reach it when the competition stiffens, that remains to be seen.
There's so much more to cover! Don't miss the video below as we examine the topics above and much, much more!
The MLB season is finally upon us! Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday.
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