Colossus (Stefan Kapicic) is finally able to convince Wade Wilson (Ryan Reynolds), aka Deadpool, to join the X-Men. Designated as a trainee, Wade is learning from Colossus and Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianna Hildebrand) how to be a part of the team. On one of his first outings, Wade is trying to help contain a boy named Russell (Julian Dennison). Russell, who prefers the name Fire Fist, is threatening to destroy the facility he lives in that houses mutants and kill those in charge. As a result of the standoff, Russell and Wade are sent to the Ice Box, a prison for mutants.

While Wade and Russell are imprisoned, a man named Cable (Josh Brolin) travels from the future, blasting his way through the Ice Box. Wade manages to escape during the fight while Cable retreats to plan his next attack. Russell and the other prisoners will be transported to a temporary holding facility while the Ice Box is repaired.

Knowing Colossus and Negasonic Teenage Warhead won’t help him, Deadpool decides to form his own team. With help from Weasel (T.J. Miller) and his personal driver/sidekick Dopinder (Karan Soni), Wade assembles the X-Force consisting of Bedlam (Terry Crews), Zeitgeist (Bill Skarsgård), Shatterstar (Lewis Tan), Domino (Zazie Beetz), and Peter (Rob Delaney). Hoping to save Russell before Cable can get to him, the X-Force sets out to rescue Russell during the transport.

Capitalizing on the success of the original Deadpool, the highest grossing R-rated movie ever, Deadpool 2 takes everything that worked in the first film and kicks it up a few notches for the sequel.

Ryan Reynolds is back as the “Merc with a Mouth” and is as feisty as ever. His dry wit and deadpan delivery makes every line out of his mouth a masterpiece. Redeeming himself for his very first outing as Deadpool (in X-Men Origins: Wolverine) and Green Lantern, he proves that he has the chops to play a superhero. Opposite Reynolds is Josh Brolin as Cable. Brolin has already shown that he has what it takes to play a villain as the “star” of Avengers: Infinity War release just a few weeks ago. Brolin is on a “hero’s journey” again, hoping to solve a problem, while not necessarily taking the best path to complete his mission. In fact, this similarity is called out at one point. Karan Soni returns as the cab driver Deadpool took under his wing in the original, providing an additional layer of comic relief in a movie already overflowing with it. Zazie Beetz is introduced in this film as Domino, a kick-ass woman whose “super power” is luck. She handles herself both mentally and physically as capably as Wade, maybe even surpassing him at some points.

The biggest concern with sequels, especially in comedies or action movies, is that they try too hard to outdo the original that it becomes an absolute mess. That isn’t the case with Deadpool 2. This film tops the first film in just about every way possible. The action scenes are more intense and better choreographed. The story has more depth. The jokes come fast and furious and mostly land well. As with the first, there is a scene or two where they drag it on just a little too long, but that can be forgiven. Even the breaking of the fourth wall and the pop culture references are better. It helps if you’ve seen the original and have a passing knowledge of comic books and their corresponding movies. (There were only two of us who laughed at the One-Eyed Willie joke, though. I was disappointed in the audience).

Besting a movie like Deadpool is no easy feat. Deadpool 2 does it with ease. A stellar cast and an even better script make for one of the better superhero movies I’ve seen, which is saying a lot coming hot on the heels of Infinity War. If you stay through the credits, there are a couple of end credit scenes, one of which includes some hilarious timeline correcting. As with the original, this is not a Marvel style superhero movie. Leave your kids at home.