A welcome return of familiar faces—but a sequel that feels like it’s missing just enough to make it truly great.
The Old Guard 2 was okay. It was genuinely nice to see the entire original cast back—the film picks up right where the first left off, and there’s a sense of continuity that’s refreshing. But as much as I enjoyed being back in this world, this sequel feels like it’s just a little bit off in almost every area.
First, the introduction of new immortals creates an inconsistency that doesn’t sit well. In the first film, we learned that all immortals dream of one another—so how is it that these new immortals seem to have existed unnoticed? It felt like a world-building detail that was overlooked for the sake of expanding the cast.
Quynh’s arc is another missed opportunity. In The Old Guard, her madness was hinted at and felt deeply intriguing. Here, she seems oddly mellow and underdeveloped—it feels like they softened her character when they could have leaned into her complexity.
The film’s villain, Discord, is another letdown. There’s no clear or compelling motivation behind her desire to eliminate the immortals. In great antagonists like Thanos (Avengers: Infinity War) or Zaheer (Legend of Korra), we may disagree with their methods, but we understand their philosophy. They’re chilling because their logic—however twisted—makes a terrifying kind of sense. Discord lacks that gravitas, which keeps the stakes from feeling as high as they should.
The action is fine, the pacing is serviceable, and the ending leaves plenty of room for sequels. But the film simply doesn’t feel strong enough to justify more installments at this point. Honestly, if there is a third film, I’d have to think carefully about whether I’d return. The Old Guard 2 isn’t a bad film—but it’s not the sequel this franchise deserved.
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