Ten years and nearly 20 films into the biggest franchise of all time, Marvel has finally gifted audiences with the climax the entire series has been building toward in Avengers: Infinity War. With fan expectations at an all time high, it would be a tragedy for it to be anything less than the best addition the studio has released to date.

Set just after the events of Thor: Ragnerok and two years after Captain America: Civil War, the movie pins earth’s mightiest heroes against their new villain Thanos as he attempts to gather all six infinity stones and gain total power over the universe. Teaming up with Doctor Strange, Spider-man, and The Guardians of the Galaxy, the new team must stop him at all costs before he can wipe out half of all life and bring “balance” to the universe.

Even though the “Avengers” name is in the title, Thanos steals the show. Portrayed in beautiful motion capture by Josh Brolin, the film somehow manages to make audiences sympathize with with him in his plot to unleash mass genocide. Rather than creating a power hungry bad guy, the writers humanize him by giving him a proper motivation for his actions. It sounds like an impossible feat but the creative team somehow managed to pull it off. This along with his extended screen time make him arguably the best antagonist the franchise has made so far.

Not only did the directors, the Russo brothers, have to worry about making Thanos a grounded villain, but they had to while at the same time telling a story with over a dozen other leads and not leave anyone in the shadows. In a movie with so many protagonists, the story never feels convoluted. With a run time of over two and a half hours, each character gets their time to shine. Yes, some spent more time in the forefront more than others, but fans of each Avenger should be pleased with the turnout.

That is not to say that they each stay in the spotlight. Each hero has their own story to tell. While this does make everyone feel vital in their own way in the fight against Thanos, some are more in the background than others. It only makes sense that not every character is going to be front and center at all times but it would have been nice to see some of the long time favorites get some more to do. These few Avengers will each get their time to shine, just maybe not as bright as their teammates.

Sadly, the biggest drawback audiences have taken away is no fault of the movie’s quality. Many Marvel fans are in opposition to the darker themes and twists that the studio opted with. No doubt a candidate for the best in the series, Infinity War is also very different from any of its predecessors. It makes sense that the the climax built of what is now 19 movies would come with some emotional weight but it’s fair it may lose a viewer who came in expecting just another action flick.

The big question for this movie has been “is it all it’s hyped up to be?” For most audiences, it should be. It is a great culmination of everything Marvel has done and has very few poor qualities.

Defnietly something all superhero fans should see, it may not be for everyone due to some risky choices the filmmakers decided to take. That is not to say it hinders the fun to be had in the theater.

****/5