Incredibles 2 kicks off immediately after the 2004 predecessor’s ending, with the Underminer destroying the city, and all of the members of the Parr family suiting up to save the city and continue their heroics. By immediately following that conclusion, the sequel illustrates just what makes The Incredibles series so great. Not just the fun action or the inventive animation, although very exemplary, but the sharp family dynamic, as during the fight against The Underminer, each of the family members get to work off of one another, displaying a realistic depiction of a family that happen to have superpowers. It is through these dynamics this sequel manages to deliver a satisfying follow-up, in spite of more hiccups than its predecessor.

The real highlight which makes this film stand out is how increased the participation of the other family members. The original focused mainly on patriarch Bob Parr, played by Craig T. Nelson, and his midlife crisis. It certainly benefited that film, but there’s a lot to appreciate in how Brad Bird expanded the dynamic. Helen Parr aka Elastigirl, played by Holly Hunter, is the main focus of the story, as she displays some of the strongest elements of the film that greatly improved over the past 14 years: the animation. With the updated technology, as well as Helen’s elasticity, her sequences, including a motorcycle chase and swinging through the city, allow for some highly expressive, incredibly fluid character animation that rivals some of the best that the medium has to offer, making each scene featuring her an absolute joy to watch.

Bob’s subplot which sees him as a stay-at-home dad attempting to improve his parenting tactics is also richly entertaining. Plenty of creative gags and set pieces are utilized, but what really makes this plot work so well is how willing Bob is to go out of his way to make life for his kids as best as they can possibly be. Doubly impressive considering how the film could have gone through cliched routines depicting Bob as an incompetent buffoon. Teenager Violet, played by Sarah Vowell, is also given an enjoyable subplot involving her relationship with her crush Tony Ridinger that’s both hilarious and heartfelt, depicting issues many teenage girls have to go through in a well-executed manner. Many of the secondary characters, like Frozone and Edna, also return, as well as plenty of new characters like the excitable fanboy business tycoon Winston Deavor, played by Bob Odenkirk, his mellow sister and tech genius Evelyn, played by Catherine Keener, and countless of new supers introduced, all of whom have stand-out and memorable moments, whether it be in their designs, powers, voice acting, or comedy.

The real scene-stealer of the film however is the baby Jack-Jack. Thanks to his multiple powers and inherent innocence, he delivers some of the funniest gags and sequences in the film, with his fight against a raccoon being a particular highlight. It easily helps make this film funnier than the first, and one of the funniest in the entire Pixar canon.

Not only has the family dynamic improved, but the action is top-notch, exceeding every other live-action superhero flick on the market. Because of the limitless possibility of animation, as well as Brad Bird’s impeccable direction, every single fight or action sequence, from the opening Underminer fight to the climax is fantastic. The creativity is endless in these sequences; wild character animation, with characters that move as smooth as butter, fantastic production design, allowing for fantastic sandboxes for these characters to play around in, clever character moments, thanks to their powers and personalities, and much more, delivering some truly outrageous, jaw-dropping battles and sequences that showcase the limitless medium of animation in all its glory.

Unfortunately, a drawback found in this film that the original excelled in was a memorable, entertaining antagonist. In Incredibles 2, a new character named Screenslaver is introduced, who uses hypnotic images in an attempt to brainwash civilians. When compared to Syndrome from the first Incredibles, it’s a severe downgrade. Syndrome worked through many different layers, both as a menacing antagonist, and as a comic foil. His obsession for glory turns him to the dark side, and his willing to go out of his way to kill off any and all supers solely through a bad interaction from his idol is a strong commentary on toxic fandom, which sadly has become more and more relavant today.

In Incredibles 2, not only is there an eye-rolling red herring that has become more and more common at both Disney Animation and Pixar, Screenslaver’s motivations are confusing and muddied, failing to deliver a strong, interesting hook. This poor villain unfortunately dampens some of the impact of the film’s story, as Elastigirl’s plot line, while fun and creative, doesn’t quite deliver on any sort of emotional gutpunch or offer many surprises.

But a lame villain doesn’t hurt the high quality found in just about every other aspect in the film. The humor is on point, the characters are just as lovable and endearing as before, the animation is simply fantastic, and it delivers just about everything a sequel should, and further shows why Brad Bird is a true visionary and a brilliant creative thinker.