I watched Blue Beetle.

I thought I was never going to see a superhero again (except Sony's animated Spiderman) until I watched Blue Beetle.

I remember going to the movies when I was in high school and having fun with friends watching movies, like The Avengers (2012) and Thor (2011). My friend’s grandmother gave her a bag full of change for her to pay her ticket, and we all had to sit and count dimes, nickels, and pennies to reach $7, the cost for a movie in San Juan, Puerto Rico. After that, we tried to sneak in food and relish after succeeding in this thrilling and rebellious endeavor. Years later, I watched many superhero movies after high school, and my experience became less fun with each movie as I started to notice similar cocky characters, generic villains, and identical plotlines. Now, I avoid watching these action-driven franchises (but still manage to smuggle food when I enter the theatre).

However, my friend wanted me to watch Blue Beetle with him. I didn’t want to go as I was dreading watching something I’ve seen many times already. He tried to convince me by telling me the film has a major Latino cast and the director, Angel Manuel-Soto, is Puerto Rican. So, I paid $20 and sat at the theatre.

Although many of things I dreaded came true, I was also surprised.

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Disclaimer: There are spoilers.

Likes	Dislikes
The film is about family.	Jaime’s family is sometimes too silly and cartoonish.
The film has characters that are Latino (Mexican, Guatemalan, Brazilian.)	​--------
The villain is a white American exploiting natural resource in Latin America.	The villain is superficial. The "greater good" is never explained. Also, her henchman changes side abruptly.
References and Easter eggs	Dragging the joke of Maria del Barrio

Explaining a dislike:

Let’s go by order: families fight. As much as they love each other, they also hate each other. The only banter was between brother and sister, and when the family makes fun of Jaime’s small dick. On another matter, Latinos dance and sing but not all the time. We have spirit and rhythm, but Jaime’s family behaved silly and dim during a concerning situation, questioning the stakes of the scene. For example, after the beetle finished “activating” its new host, Jaime comes back hurt and confused, then plans to seek Jenny to get answers. The family starts to sing and dance the Maria del Barrio theme song, completely reducing the danger and violence to which Jaime had just been subjected.

Explaining the likes:

Nonetheless, I enjoyed the film because it tries to do something different with the language. In moments of high stakes or levels of stress, Jaime switches to Spanish. One instance happens when Jaime’s host drops him from space and, while plummeting Earth’s atmosphere, he starts praying in Spanish. In another instance, Jaime yells “papá” in a heartbreaking scene that leaves him hopelessly watching his father die of a heart attack while the villains neutralize Jaime's powers and drag him away.

The director includes different references like El chapulin colorado and Guillermo del Toro's Cronos (1993), all using an insect as a recurring trope that nicely ties into the movie and Mexican media. Some other fun Easter eggs include Carlos Ponce, a Puerto Rican actor who started in popular telenovelas, and Jon Z, a Puerto Rican rapper.

These details made the movie enjoyable and fun for me as part of a greater Latino audience that has long been ignored. I hope to see more of Angle Manuel Soto engaging with his audience!