Faced with a seemingly impossible task after the enormous success of Avengers Assemble, thankfully this sequel really does deliver the goods. Unlike its predecessor's uncertain opening sequence, Age Of Ultron starts with a bang (and some alarmingly cartoonish CGI which mercifully does not reappear) and keeps running, apart from a couple of soft dips in the mid-section. The action and fight scenes are superbly thrilling and entertaining, leading to not so much a final battle as an entire-third-act melee that nudges above the first film's finale in terms of scale and stakes. There are terrific one-liners, some emotional backstory-setting for a couple of the previously underdeveloped leads, and the precision and excellent delivery of the main ensemble in every scene is a reminder of simply how great this core cast is on screen. The Maximoffs and The Vision are excellent additions, and Ultron - especially in his introduction - is often chilling. Age Of Ultron is a shade darker than Assemble and lacks the obvious sense of discovery and fun that the first film enjoyed, but it is equally as entertaining, spectacular and enjoyable. There are moments that clearly set up the MCU Phase Three, and the very brief mid-credits scene sets the course for Infinity War, but for now Age Of Ultron is a more than worthy follow-up to Avengers Assemble that reflects the development of the Marvel movies up to now and certainly does not disappoint in its own right.
