Note: This review contains spoilers for Deadpool and Deadpool 2.
Deadpool 2 sits in a unique position within the X-Men film series. Not only did Fox greenlight this sequel by the time the first film released, but after its premiere in May 2018, it would receive two additional cuts within the same year: the direct-to-video extended Super Duper Cut in August and the theatrically-released PG-13 Once Upon a Deadpool in December. Due to a lack of an official word on the matter, one could conclude that Fox wanted to make as much money as possible ahead of the Disney/Fox merger that completed in March 2019, but in any case, Deadpool 2 did break additional box office records on in its initial release, including highest-grossing R-rated film of all time (by just $3 million over Deadpool) until 2019’s Joker.
Since I’ve made it no secret that I’m a fan of Deadpool, it should come as no surprise that Deadpool 2’s existence piqued my interest enough that I watched all three cuts of the film as they came out. Although I still liked the film after rewatching it in the context of the rest of the X-Men films, I now find that the difference between Deadpool and Deadpool 2 feels more like the difference between Shrek and Shrek 2: while the sequel has more narrative complexity and shows more technical competency than the original, it doesn’t age as well due to the dated humor rooted in the exact moment it came out.
