The first reactions to Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania have arrived – and no wonder it sounds like another Marvel Studios win.
Ant-Man 3, which kicks off Marvel Phase 5 on February 17, made its world premiere last night (February 6). And with the lifting of the social media embargo on the next Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) movie, critics and influencers have voiced their opinions on how good (or not so good) it is.
Erik Davis of Fandango was one of the first to offer his thoughts Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. Given the film’s Star Wars aesthetic and epic sci-fi setting, it won’t come as a surprise to learn that Davis compared the latest Marvel movie to the legendary Lucasfilm series (among others):
PHASE 5 HAS STARTED! The new #AntMan movie is like a psychedelic roller coaster full of scary and hilarious quirks and one VERY menacing Kang. The grand vibes of STAR WARS meet the MCU in its most bizarre and imaginative form. MODOK is a riot, but Jonathan Majors wins. I loved the ride! pic.twitter.com/gdJqHld3rTFebruary 7, 2023
Davis suggests that Jonathan Majors’ Kang seems to be stealing the show in his second MCU appearance (Majors played a variant of Kang, He Who Remains, in Curls season 1). And it seems a lot of other people agree – Buzzfeed’s Nora Dominick calls him a “strength” and Majors “brings complexity to Kang with one look”:
Jonathan Majors is a force in #AntManAndTheWaspQuantumania. He is convincing, chilling and already puts on a performance of the highest order. I love the complexity she brings to Kang with just one glance. The MCU really won with this casting pic.twitter.com/4W8VCLGFBvFebruary 7, 2023
disinformers Dempsey pilot (opens in a new tab)Diversity Tazz Jangcay (opens in a new tab)and CineXpress” Fico Cangiano (opens in a new tab) everyone also booked praise for Kang from the Majors, calling him a “bad asshole” and so on Ant-Man 3 is “his show” when he appears on the big screen.
There was a lot of love to quantomaniathe lead actor – Paul Rudd, also known as Scott Lang / Ant-Man – also. Hashtag show Hunter Bolding (opens in a new tab) described Scott as “heroic”, while CBR’s Ashley Saunders praises Rudd for being “as lovable as ever”:
ANT-MAN AND THE WASP QUANTUMANIA is a VISUAL FEAST full of SURPRISE (big and small). A WILD RIDE from start to finish. Jonathan Majors CONQUERS as Kang, the dynasty has arrived. Paul Rudd is as cute as ever and 2 credit scenes! #AntManAndTheWaspQuantumania #Quantumania pic.twitter.com/oHJwrKtwy3February 7, 2023
Michael Lee of Nerds of Color also praised the way director Peyton Reed handled Marvel’s first Phase 5 movie, with a special shout out to his work on The Mandalorian for help in shaping the visuals of the film and the entire production:
Peyton Reed’s time as director of The Mandalorian episodes really shows. Not only in the use of the volume, but also in the production and character designs. It’s out of this world! #AntManAndTheWaspQuantumania #AntManAndTheWaspFebruary 7, 2023
Doubling the Star Wars comparisons, Germain Lussier of Gizmodo covered Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania as “the best Star Wars movie since 2018”, adding that its world-building feels “a bit un-Marvel” and that Michelle Pfeiffer “steals” the show:
The best Star Wars movie of 2018 is #AntManAndTheWaspQuantumania. It’s a great sci-fi adventure with great world-building that hardly resembles Marvel considering the amount of worlds being built. But she has humor, heart, Kang totally rules and Michelle Pfeiffer steals it. pic.twitter.com/vRO2Poko2sFebruary 7, 2023
Note that there was a strange reaction that was not universally positive. Kristian Harloff of The Big Thing said “I don’t think it’ll work for everyone” and that “it’s a bit chaotic towards the end”, but he linked these criticisms to how it uniquely combines “Star Wars, The Fifth Element, Dune and Strange World” :
So #AntManAndTheWaspQuantumania goes hard in the paint as a big epic Sci Fi movie. A mix of Star Wars, Fifth Element, Dune + Strange World. I don’t think it will work for everyone, but I really kicked the tone. It’s a bit chaotic towards the end, but it ends nicely. Kang’s rules.February 7, 2023
Finally, the podcast duo The Movie Daniel Baptista (opens in a new tab) and Anthony Gagliardi were less impressed than other viewers. Baptista called it “solid but overly ambitious” and “lacked comedic charm all the way through.” Gagliardi went even further, suggesting he was “plagued with filler” and “totally misses the mark” (auch). Gagliardi, however, agreed with everyone else on Majors’ “cunning and ruthless” performance as Kang:
#AntManAndTheWaspQuantumania should have triggered Phase 5 with a bang, but it misses the mark. The story is plagued with filler, while sufficient, it lacks depth. However, Majors gives an outstanding performance as the cunning and ruthless #Kang. I want it to leave an impression. pic.twitter.com/2PFB2lMWOgFebruary 7, 2023
Before you get too excited by the above reactions (most of them anyway), remember: critics and influencers who liked Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania are more likely to express an opinion now than those who did not like it. So, although it seems that Ant man threequel is another home run for Marvel, best to wait for those important spoiler-free reviews to drop before its release on February 17.
when you are waiting for Ant-Man 3 reviews to post, there’s plenty of Marvel content to read. Check out ours first Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania official trailer failure. Once you’ve done that, read our roundup of the best reactions to MODOK MCU’s iteration, one of Ant-Man 3secondary villains.
Want to read more? See where Ant-Man’s first two solo movies land in our ranking of Marvel movies. You can also find out how to watch the Marvel movies in order or which MCU movies made our list of the best Disney Plus movies.