The Just Us League of Javier Jarquin and Gary Tro return with an update of their whistlestop tour of the first 3 Marvel Cinematic Universe phases (somewhat contradicting their title) in MARVELus: All the Marvel Movies… Kind Of!
The throwaway gags and set pieces come in thick and fast
The stage is set with the centrepiece of a budget-shattering marigold glove… I mean, Infinity Gauntlet, accompanied by the bizarrely chosen My Sweet Lord playing to a crowd featuring people born barely a decade ago, in lieu of any relevant or atmosphere-establishing music, which felt like a missed opportunity.
Javier and Gary are high-quality and versatile performers with excellent chemistry, who quickly form a positive relationship with their audience. They open the show expressing the desire to make it inclusive for non-nerds, but in all honesty, if you’re not into the MCU, this show will mostly sound like a foreign language. Supporters of nerds, don’t be too put off. It should still be kinda fun but your partner’s gonna owe you a blank cheque for the next show.
The show is a summary of Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Infinity Saga, featuring jokes, sketches, and reimaginations of most the hits from Iron Man through to Endgame (minor spoiler: and beyond?). Major highlights include Civil War, Endgame, and the ongoing joy-hating on Hawkeye.
The throwaway gags and set pieces come in thick and fast, with enough adult-ish humour to allay fears when you see some older kids in the audience, but nothing that’ll ruin a 10-year old’s childhood. There’s a lot packed into the hour, and many of the JU League’s finest moments come from ad libbed audience interactions, though it’s a shame that Javier doesn’t include any of the unique and mind-blowing card throwing skills displayed in his solo show Card Ninja, which would surely both fit in with the narrative somewhere and enhance MARVELus no end.
If you are into the MCU and comedy, and aren’t perturbed by the thought of seeing your fictional heroes ridiculed, then this little gem could easily be a big Fringe highlight for you. So, what are you waiting for? Assemble.
