Release: Sep 26, 2017
Film: Green Lantern (2011)
Tagline: Before Ryan Reynolds broke box office records, he broke comic fans hearts with this CGI bore.
This review contains examples of:
- Actor Allusion: Michael Clarke Duncan's dull performance as Kilowog has the Critic thinking he's just winging it while he's being put in makeup for Planet of the Apes (2001).
- An Aesop: Just because something looks like the original doesn't mean it's as good as the original. Just like how Malcolm!"Deadpool" is just a poor imitation of Deadpool designed to let him get away with being a Jerkass, the film's aesthetics is but a cover for how poorly-thought out it is.
- Alternate Character Interpretation: Two In-Universe cases.
- Hal's incredulous look upon encountering the mortally-wounded Abin Sur is reinterpreted as being the same face his actor Ryan Reynolds may have had when he realized what kind of film he was in.
- Similarly, Hal expressing frustration over being seemingly unable to activate his Green Lantern powers after trying on the Catch Phrases of Buzz Lightyear and He-Man is also reinterpreted as Reynolds realizing that the production staff paid copyright licensing for two weak jokes.
- Cliché Storm: The Critic derides the film for being a mishmash of clichés from other superhero films: the death of a father, Hal being introduced hurrying to work, Hal being a Military Maverick, a "stock geeky guy in every movie", etc.
- Everyone Has Standards: While the Critic hasn't had the best relationship with Hyper Fangirl, even he seems genuinely disturbed by the idea of Malcolm!"Deadpool" being allowed to grope her.
- Fingore: After Devil Boner was done beating up Malcolm!"Deadpool", he then rips off his ring finger and uses it as an impromptu engagement ring with which he can propose to Hyper Fangirl.
- Jerkass: Malcolm!"Deadpool" turns out to just be an obnoxious cosplayer who thinks he can get away with anything because "he's Deadpool".
- Kick The Son Of A Bitch: After Devil Boner was done beating up Malcolm!"Deadpool", the Critic ends the review also giving the impostor a beatdown.
- No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: Devil Boner does not take Malcolm!"Deadpool" trying to grope Hyper Fangirl well, and gives him one of these. Because he forgot the ring to propose to her with, he finishes the beating by ripping off the cosplayer's ring finger and turning it into a ring.
- Paper-Thin Disguise: The Critic compares Hal's disguise of simply wearing a mask over his eyes to balancing a book on his head and saying that he's an entirely different person now.
- Refuge in Audacity: Malcolm!"Deadpool" cosplayer thinks that he can get away with dancing on discs of some of the Critic's favorite movies "because [he's] Deadpool!". In fact this is his logic for everything awful he does throughout the episode. This ultimately gets him in trouble with both Devil Boner and the Critic at the end of the review.
- Rescued from the Scrappy Heap: The Critic begins the review by recounting how, long before he became the much-beloved Deadpool, Ryan Reynolds was considered a jinx on superhero movies, given his main roles in other such bad movies as Blade: Trinity and X-Men Origins: Wolverine (where also played an infamously In Name Only version of Deadpool).
- Shout-Out:
- The Critic notes how the "Guardians of the Universe" seem suspiciously similar in name to Guardians of the Galaxy. When he asks Malcolm!"Deadpool" for his opinion, no reply was forthcoming.
- The Critic compares Parallax to a less realistic Marvin the Martian.
- At the fight scene between Abin Sur and Parallax, the Critic claims he doesn't remember that scene from Injustice 2 (while showing a clip of Hal Jordan vs. Atrocitus), before claiming that it's too lofty a comparison, and instead claims it resembles Superman 64 more.
- Hal's opening scenes featuring him being late for work is parodied by the Critic imitating Marty McFly calling Doc claiming he's late for school.
- The clearly unrendered CGI display of Hal attempting to outrun a pair of AI-controlled jet fighters in a test flight has the Critic compare it to a TRON game.
- A flashback scene of young Hal being handed the jacket of his father Martin is followed with a 1979 Coca-Cola commercial
featuring former NFL star "Mean" Joe Greene doing the same. - When Hal gets transported to the Green Lantern Corps HQ, the Critic claims he'll give the film a chance if he ends up landing at a spaceship operated by Tim Allen.
- The weak special effects accompanying Hal's travel across a cosmic wormhole is followed by a clip of a dismayed Bart Simpson lamenting that the universe is so boring.
- Sinestro's appearance inspired the Critic to compare him to a sunburnt Stephen Colbert.
- Because Thomas bears a strong resemblance to Maurice Moss, the Critic mimics Moss asking if Reynolds has tried turning the film off and on again.
- When he sees that the Big Bad is nothing more but a nerdy schoolteacher possessed by the power of the Yellow Lantern, the Critic's disappointment is echoed by a scene of the Man in Black designed to look like he is telling the Critic to get used to it.
- The film's poor attempt at romantic chemistry between Hal and Ferris is contrasted to those in Superman: The Movie and Spider-Man.
- When Parallax appears, the Critic announces that he's come to bargain with "Bullshit-Face". He also calls him "Moron", the less-impressive younger brother of Sauron.
- Special Effect Failure: The Critic considers the film's CG effects to be so bad that Space Jam's effects looked better by comparison.
- Subverted Catchphrase: At the end...Critic: I'm the Nostalgia Critic and... I'm gonna kick him [Malcolm!"Deadpool"] some more because it's fun.
- Summon Bigger Fish: The Critic calls in Hyper Fangirl to help him deal with Malcolm!"Deadpool". She tricks the jerk into enraging Devil Boner, who promptly gives him a No-Holds-Barred Beatdown.
- Take That!:
- The Critic expresses relief that Ryan Reynolds redeemed himself as Deadpool after a string of bad superhero movies, lest he make Shaquille O'Neal as Steel look good.
- When the Critic describes the Green Lantern Corps as magical heroes wielding magical rings, a poster for Captain Planet and the Planeteers shows up, much to his annoyance.
- When three spacemen crash-landed on planet Ryut, a horrified Critic thinks he's having flashbacks of Fantastic Four (2015).Critic: (Holds up a large wooden cross) You will not avenge your evil on me again!
- A panning shot of Abin Sur's metallic spaceship is compared to "Megatron's schlong".
- A lame joke showing Bob warning Hal to "watch his back", to which he replies that he can't literally do so, the Critic puts it on par with a scene from Good Burger of Ed literally trying to do it.
- Hal's first transformation into a Green Lantern was so boring the Critic thinks it's an introductory scene for a sidekick in a superhero film, thinking he's going to be paired with someone as intimidating as Kevin Hart.
- When the Critic compares the scene where Hal stops a helicopter crash by putting F1 wheels on the vehicle and driving it around to The Mask, he says that he'll still take it over the sequel.
- The Deadpool the Critic originally invited as a guest reviewer is later revealed to be a cosplayer who does it as an excuse to be obnoxious, a phenomenon often found at cosplay conventions in Real Life. In particular, his attempt to grope Hyper Fangirl could also be a reference to "Cosplay Is Not Consent", a slogan made in response to con-goers sexually harassing female cosplayers, which, again, many Deadpool cosplayers have been guilty of. The fact this all ends with Malcolm!"Deadpool" getting beaten half to death for his behavior shows it's most certainly this trope.
