Incredibles 2

A lot has changed for superhero films after The Incredibles appeared in 2004. A lot of it was Marvelous. And now, Pixar's first super family has a sequel of their own. This is Incredibles 2 and it lives up to that name.

It starts where the first film ended. The evil Underminer rises from below to conquer the above. The Incredibles and their pal Frozone take on the subterranean villain and cause some collateral damage. All the world governments decide to ban "Supers" forever after this incident. The Incredibles, in their secret identity of the Parr family, may have to stay normal forever.

Winston Deavor decides to help. He gives Helen Parr/Elastigirl, a sanctioned superhero job to turn public opinion in Supers' favor. The family moves to a nice new mansion. While Elastigirl saves the day, Bob/Mr. Incredible discovers that baby Jack-Jack has a wild assortment of superpowers. The other Incredible kids, Violet and Dash, have their own stuff to deal with. The whole family has to deal with the Screenslaver, a supervillain who decides to "free the masses" of their need of Supers.

Brad Bird returns to write, direct and voice the eccentric costume designer Edna Mode. The film is a super-family dramedy as relatable as a normal family dramedy. Bob and Helen's job troubles are as compelling as their fight against the Screenslaver. Jack-Jack gets the best laughs and his fight with a persistent raccoon is a highlight. You won't get lost in the subplots and it all comes together nicely in the end. There are a few logical questions concerning the film's logic (how did they not notice Jack-Jack's powers before?), but they don't crack it apart.

Pixar's technical excellence continues here. The character designs, new and old, are unique and their environments and costumes look photoreal. Their Super powers provided some Incredible action scenes that fail to bore you. A lot of it has to do with the sound design and Michael Giacchino's score. Both of those audio values succeed with flying colors. The Screenslaver's hypnotic effect, however, might work too well for some viewers.

Incredibles 2 is a welcome sequel to a Super-Pixar film. It stands out proudly with all the live-action superhero films since 2004. It gives its characters plenty to do and none of it stale. I'm ready to see what the family will do next.

It all opens with a new Pixar short, Bao, the story of a Chinese mother and her dumpling son. A dumpling son who grows up into a rebellious young man. The story took a shocking swerve but the ending was nice.