The screenplay of the latest movie in the MCU tries to be too many things to too many prior adventures, but at its core is a resonant story about Black heroism.

Before 2023, it would have been unthinkable for a Marvel Studios film to flop at the box office. Regardless, The Marvels failed to, well, marvel audiences, earning a bleak $206.1 million worldwide, while Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania disappointed the studio with only $476.

Brave New World to be a palate cleanser — one that remembers and builds on the events of Marvel’s other recent features. The film does a serviceable job of establishing a new status quo, but it struggles to articulate how this Captain America is different from his predecessor.