Incredibles 2 (2018)

I always liked The Incredibles, even before I developed a major interest in the superhero subgenre. At the same time, I've never been sure how to rank it among Pixar flicks. It was more mature than previous entries, clearly earning its PG for better and worse. Before long, I understood that it owed a lot to both the Fantastic Four and Watchmen, also for better and worse. I had trouble buying and being patient with some of the character actions. But nothing else from Pixar had me more interested in a sequel (at least until Inside Out), even if we had to wait even longer than we did for Finding Dory.

Viewers who wanted to see the Parrs/Incredibles years down the line may be disappointed that the action in I2 picks up where TI left off and the ending might be less than a week later. Matters had been even less resolved than I remembered: While the family has reached an agreement to keep using their innate powers for good, they still lack the legal right. And good overall PR. And a house. Early herein, things start looking up for them when hero-worshiping billionaire Winston Deavor (Bob Odenkirk) offers them a spare house and a sponsored mission, involving hi-tech equipment from his sister, Evelyn (Catherine Keener), that might just change public opinion on supers. Unfortunately for Bob/Mr. Incredible (Craig T. Nelson), his tendency toward collateral damage has cost him a favored spot in the mission, so for now, only Helen/Elastigirl (Holly Hunter) gets to do fieldwork; he'll have to make do as a househusband. But she might be in over her head when the Screenslaver, who specializes in hacking and mesmerism, singles her out for challenges in protecting the city.

I used to wonder which decade the franchise was supposed to be set in; now I'm convinced it's an alternate version of the '60s or early '70s, even if that makes the pun on "screensaver" unlikely. Consider the hairdos, the rotary phones, the music reminiscent of James Bond and Mission: Impossible (plus a Shaft theme parody for Samuel L. Jackson's Frozone), and "new math." Director Brad Bird's nostalgia, perhaps? Anyway, this puts Bob's apparent sexism into perspective when he insists he'd make a better face of heroism: Not many men in those days could take the homemaker role without shame.

What difficulties does he face in this capacity? Well, as hinted above, he's not immediately knowledgeable for tutoring fourth-grade Dashiell (Huck Milner this time) in math, and Dash hasn't been the academic type; he's more the play-with-every-remote brat type. When teen Violet (Sarah Vowell) accidentally reveals her alter ego to her crush, Bob arranges for him to get the Men in Black neuralizer-style treatment -- which works too well; good luck digging her out of that well of depression. And baby Jack-Jack (still Eli Fucile) has acquired at least seven powers, any one of which would make him too much for most caretakers. (We saw him use a few near the end of TI, but evidently the rest of the family didn't see.)

If you worry that this is mostly a sitcom about a bumbling dad, I assure you that those moments are interspersed with Elastigirl's utterly different plot, which eventually takes over. I think she gets more screen time than before. Speaking of which, you may have been warned, but it bears repeating: Some of the Screenslaver's hypnotic effects are unfit for viewers with epilepsy. The rest of us may find the action dizzying enough as the camera frantically follows the heroes.

One element that had been missing from TI was battles between supers. Here we get several, but all the super "villains" are under Screenslaver's control. For all we know, everyone with genuine superpowers in this world is a good guy. Maybe they're saving some of that for the threequel. Either way, I hope it's not as easy to guess the main villain's secrets.

Regardless, the action gets pretty intense, and the dynamics largely stay fresh. In addition to newcomers, we get to see extra deeds by Frozone and, of course, Jack-Jack, as well as more innovation from Dash's speed and Vi's cloaking and barrier spheres. The brawn of Mr. Incredible is comparatively dull, but he makes up for that in personality.

In spite of the intensity, the confirmed numbers of deaths and grievous injuries are much smaller than last time. Dare I say zero for each? Even the seemingly rabid raccoon who tangles with Jack-Jack needs no medical attention. Still a clear PG rating, thanks in part to a handful of words I wouldn't use around six-year-olds.

While it's hard to judge across this distance in time, I'm inclined to say that I2 is slightly better than TI. It's certainly a worthy sequel, even if it doesn't look as tho Bird spent a decade writing it.