Everyone at some point in their life has wanted to be a superhero or have superpowers. Unfortunately for us, science has not been able to make that happen quite yet, so we have to live out our fantasies through characters in tv shows and movies. And “Wonder Woman 1984,” the latest installment in the DC Extended Universe franchise, is helping viewers do exactly that. However, critics and some fans alike have felt let down by the movie and are not shy about expressing their feelings.

“Wonder Woman 1984” is the sequel to the hit movie Wonder Woman which came out in 2017. Both movies showcase Diana, played by Gal Gadot, as she tries to save the world from different evils. In “Wonder Woman 1984”  Diana is faced with not only one, but two new villains she has to face off against in order to save the world from falling apart. Armed with the Lasso of Truth and some seriously awesome armor, she learns that you can’t have it all and sometimes you have to give something up for the greater good.

Fans and critics anxiously awaited this sequel to come out both in theaters and on streaming platform HBO Max for a safe viewing experience. Yet many did not think that the movie lived up to the expectations they had set for it. They found some of the villains to be lackluster, the action subpar and the plot well, a giant mess of confusing details that did not really fit together. In a review from the magazine “Vulture,” the title reads, “The Empty Spectacle of ‘Wonder Woman 1984’” which summarizes how most felt about the movie. 

The film features two villains: Maxwell Lord, played by Pedro Pascal, and Barbara Ann Minerva, a friend who eventually becomes the villain Cheetah, played by Kristen Wiig. Maxwell Lord is the main villain of the movie, who seeks to take over the world with the help of a magic rock that grants people’s wishes. Although Lord and Wonder Woman never have an epic battle scene, Lord still proves to be a formidable foe for Wonder Woman by managing to almost destroy the world.

The real action, however, is between Diana and Cheetah. When Barbara was still Barbara, not evil-and-powerful-Barbara, she and Diana face-off in the White House and Barbara wins. The two meet again, but this time Barbara has turned into Cheetah. Most did not like the CGI they used to create the fur on Cheetah or the fact that she was easily defeated by Wonder Woman at the end.

“With her virtual fur and decidedly more feline physique, this Cheetah is neither ferocious nor any kind of match for Wonder Woman,” wrote Peter Debruge, writer for magazine “Variety.”

The plot was also a huge issue for some fans and critics. The movie starts on a scene from Diana’s past that has very little relevance to the rest of the movie. Most also did not like that the driving force behind everything was a magic rock, a sort of played idea in superhero movies. Another issue with the plot was that Diana’s boyfriend, Steve Trevor, played by Chris Pine, who died in the first movie, comes back from the dead in another man’s body. 

“The plot grows more tangled and confusing by the minute, as the film’s central relationships are overshadowed by unnecessary globetrotting, flashy role reversals and poor world building,” wrote Angelica Jade Bastién, writer for the magazine “Vulture.”

Although “Wonder Woman 1984”  did not live up to some fans’ and critics’ hopes, the movie still offers a lot. It shows young girls that women are strong and capable of handling issues without the help of a man. In a genre that is male-dominated, it is important to have female representation on the screen. Although the plot may have had some bumps within it, it still tells a great story that’s captivating till the end. All things considered, “Wonder Woman 1984”  is a decent movie to keep superhero fans satisfied until the next one comes out.