By Don Hall

Roughly a year ago the most talked about thing culturally seemed to be Tony Stark snapping Thanos out of existence and the closing of a twenty-two-film story arc. Mike Berson and I went to the cinema inside of Boyd Gaming’s Sam’s Town for a matinee, made sure we evacuated our bladders beforehand, and sat down for that epic final chapter of the MCU tent pole.

A year later as we grapple with a faceless pandemic and an economy under siege, the actors who inhabited these icons from my youngest days are grappling with less flashy yet more authentic troubles in film.

Yes, I’ve skipped the Robert Downey, Jr. Doolittle. I dig me some RDJ but the trailers for this thing simply dulled me down.

I have viewed a whole slew of these Marvel stars in completely different characters and, with few exceptions, the fact that Marvel managed to hire some of our best and brightest actors to imbue the MCU with talent cannot be lost in the translation. This is also a solid list to watch as you languish in your homes becoming those paintings of fat, naked people you remember seeing in that art museum your third girlfriend dragged you to in 1997.

Dark Water
Starring The Incredible Bulk
Amazon Prime

Mark Ruffalo is quite good in this true story film about the DuPont Corporation effectively poisoning entire sections of America to create and proliferate teflon. Definitely not the sort of thing the Hulk could tackle but a Ruffalo with a few pounds on him works out well. Among my enjoyment of Ruffalo’s work is the fact that he has some very specific political ideas that he focuses on in his films (unless the movies require him to perform in front of green screen and motion capture balls all over him).

21 Bridges
Starring Bland Panther
Amazon Prime

Chadwick Boseman stars in this Russo Brothers cops and robbers movie as a cop against the corrupt police force. It’s fine but ultimately not truly memorable.

The big takeaway is that Boseman is generally sort of bland. Without the charisma of Michael B. Jordan, Danai Gurira, and Lupita Nyong'o co-starring that fact is pretty obvious.

Jumanji 2: Welcome to the Jungle
Starring Wigged Nebula
Apple+

Karen Gillan once again jumps into the Ruby Roundhouse hottie with crippling anxiety issues character and once again proves to be the secret weapon of a movie starring the ridiculously entertaining and charismatic Duane Johnson. Contrary to women warrior characters of late, she is both badass and completely human.

To be able to project believability playing a video game avatar takes some measure of talent.

Extraction
Starring Thor, The Dark Face
Netflix

Chris Hemsworth takes his angsty Thor from Endgame and makes him a marginally suicidal mercenary. Hemsworth is a funnier actor than this dark, miserable action flick allows. I mean, even John Wick has moments of humor. Also, haven’t we moved past the shakey-cam thing?

Marriage Story
Starring Blonde Widow
Netflix

Scarlett Johansson has been an Oscar-worthy actor throughout most of her career. Marriage Story gives her the kind of meaty emotional terrain to showcase her range. When you consider that she is likewise solid as a Russian assassin turned Avenger, ScarJo is a rockstar in anything she appears in. Except for when she plays Asians and Trans Men.

Defending Jacob
CAP!
Apple+

This new Apple+ series stars Captain America with a beard! Chris Evans is an ADA whose son has been accused of murder. Consistently, Evans is a winning actor in just about any role he plays and this is a solid whodunnit. For my money, he is the Number One Chris of the pack.

Bad Education
Wolverinish
HBO

While not an Avenger, Logan is a part of the MCU and Hugh Jackman’s performance as a vain, secretly gay school superintendent who steals $11 million from the school system for suits and high-end apartments in NYC is phenomenal. Jackman is truly an all-round performer and it’s extra fun seeing him play a character so completely different than the Adamantium-clawed One.

The funny thing is, after watching all these shows and movies, it all makes me want to go back and watch them as superheroes again. I don’t that was the intended effect but I’m a geek.