2) No More Mindlessly Destructive Climaxes
Superhero movies don’t traditionally go in for the most high-minded of third acts. Nine times out of ten, a comic book film will end with the heroes winning by punching the bad guy into submission or with some massive explosion. Recently, we can throw in citywide devastation into the mix as well.
By this point, that kind of climax has become very samey and has lost the thrill factor it once had. That was why it was such a delight when Doctor Strange actually had the hero save the day by using his wits rather than his fists, tricking the dreaded Dormammu into leaving the Earth alone. It was refreshing to see the hero putting his unique talents, bravery, and intelligence to good use when it would have been far easier to have Strange blast Dormammu to kingdom come with his magic.
The lack of smashing the villain’s face in meant that this was a much more exciting denouement than the likes of X-Men: Apocalypse, which served up a very traditional ‘good buys beat down bad guy in ruined city’ ending. The same goes for – yes, here it comes again – BvS and its big, dumb final fight with Doomsday.
We’re not saying we don’t want to see some great action, but these guys are aren’t action heroes – they’re superheroes. They should find a super way to save the day that’s more imaginative and indicative of their heroic natures than boring old punch-ups and destruction.