It’s been about three months since Avengers: Endgame hit theaters and I’m still recovering from it. Please know that this review will touch on some Endgame spoilers. Therefore, if you haven’t seen Endgame yet for some strange reason, than go watch that and then come back to this review.

Spider-Man: Far From Home takes place after the events of Avengers: Endgame. Spider-Man must step up to take on new threats in a world that has changed forever. Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige said in the past that this film is the end of the Infinity Saga, and also the end of the MCU’s Phase 3. At first, I was apprehensive about this movie being the last movie in Phase 3 rather than Endgame, but after seeing Far From Home, I do agree that this perfectly wrapped up Phase 3, while simultaneously planting seeds for new stories.

Personally, I think it was a great move to have the follow up to Endgame be a Spider-Man movie. Peter Parker is essentially all of us when it comes to dealing with Tony’s death and putting the story in his perspective made it that much more real for me. We all know Tony died in Endgame, but actually having that be mentioned and have it be an essential part of this plot was really impactful.

After losing Iron Man, the world turns to Spider-Man expecting him to fill the shoes of his mentor. Peter is reluctant to step into the role because of everything he’s dealt with in the past – and truly, who could blame him? At this point in Peter’s life he just wants to be a normal kid and enjoy the summer with his friends before having to deal with the real world again. When mysterious weather events start happening across the globe, Nick Fury and Maria Hill call upon our friendly neighborhood hero. The beginning of the movie answers all the questions you have about how the snap affected the kids at the school.

An element that I appreciated about Spider-Man: Homecoming was how diverse the cast was. The chemistry amongst them was already great in Homecoming, so to see it evolve and develop even more in Far From Home was perfect. Although it’s technically been five years our beloved high schoolers, it’s only been two years since we last saw the crew (unless you count that scene in Infinity War). With that being said, when we see them all together again, it feels as if we were just on summer break.

Of course we cannot praise the cast without specifically talking about Tom Holland. Holland crushes it as Peter Parker and as was mentioned earlier, Peter has a lot of things thrown at him all at once. From dealing with the loss of Tony, to trying to date MJ, the last thing on his mind is putting on his famed Spidey suit. Holland delivered an exceptional performance by delivering such a wide range of emotions. He has proven his acting abilities within the MCU time and time again, and I believe this is his strongest performance yet. The best part about it is as Holland continues to grow so will Peter Parker.

Endgame took out some of MCU’s heaviest hitters when it comes to leadership. After seeing this movie I am more than confident Holland will be a integral focus moving forward in terms of leadership. It was also pretty cool to have him say “MJ” so casually throughout the movie (shout out to all the trolls who said she wasn’t MJ). Peter and MJ’s chemistry is where the real heart of the movie lies. At first glance this movie will seem like a action thrill ride, but if you pay attention it subtly tells a love story between the two characters which I thought it was handled beautifully.

I cannot say too much about Jake Gyllenhaal’s Mysterio, but I will say I thought he was a fantastic addition to the MCU. Gyllenhaal is a distinguished actor and bringing that talent to this film amplified it to another level. His chemistry with Holland was also another highlight of the movie. The VFX’s for Mysterio’s powers were well done and it reminded me a lot of Doctor Strange in many ways. You’ll definitely want to see his powers at work on the biggest screen available to you.

Jacob Batalon is an absolute scene stealer in Far From Home. Batalon delivers some of the funniest lines in the movie and if you watch any of the interviews or behind the scene moments, you can tell Batalon, Holland and Zendays are actually friends in real life. I believe that is a big factor in why their on-screen chemistry is so organic. Ned is the real MVP! Much like Mysterio, I cannot go into too much detail about Remy Hii’s character, but his introduction is pretty hilarious and he is another great addition to the cast. Hopefully, we will be able to see him again in a future Spider-Man film.

I think Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders) and Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) had more screen time in Far From Home than all of their previous MCU appearances combined (if you exclude Fury’s Captain Marvel screen time). It was cool to actually see Fury interacting with Spider-Man and helping with missions. This is something fans were asking for from the beginning. We always say things are connected and little things like having them be apart of this make it feel like that. Smulders and Jackson work so well together. I hope they utilize them more and more in the future wave of films.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this movie and it might just be my favorite live-action Spider-Man film to-date. For those nervous about the future of the MCU because of the events that occurred in Endgame, don’t worry. This film is proof that the MCU has more stories to tell, and although we don’t have the heroes we grew up with, it’s comforting to know our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man will be there to lead the way into this new phase of the MCU.

Spider-Man: Far From Home swings into theaters July 2!

PS: the post credit scenes are INSANE; game-changing some might say. Please stay off of social media or at the very least, mute keywords about the film as this is something you’ll want to experience first hand.