If you are someone who considers vaguely gesturing to the well-established formula of an iconic sports franchise as spoiling, the following may contain spoilers for you.

It would seem that the Rocky series has been going on for so long that Rocky doesn’t show up in his movies anymore. My theory? Paulie’s Robot wasn’t happy about being cut from the Director’s Cut of Rocky IV. So P’s Robot got some revenge by cutting Stallone out of life. I won’t lie: that’s what happened. Yet, despite tastefulness, I will still feature this act of reverse roboticide in my new screenplay Chopping Mall II: Between a Rock y Hard Place. The film takes place during a Boxing Championship in Mexico City. Rocky is shopping at the Mexico City Mall (he forgot his gloves) & then BAM! Señor Balboa gets killed by P’s R- controlled by the Creed III Producer who is most out to get him. Wow! Now that sounds great, but how can we bump up the number of people hitting each other? Maybe Creed can show up so we can add Creed III to the title. You may ask, “but isn’t there already a Chopping Mall II?” YES! My Chopping Mall II is what filmmakers call “a roboot” sequel that ignores previous sequels. As for it possibly being called Chopping Mall II: Creed III? Well, that would be silly because, like Chopping Mall II, there’s already a Creed III. I don’t know why they included all those capital i’s in the title… Wait, I think… one… two… three capital i’s…  hm. Wait a minute…. that Creed I saw in theaters contained the Roman Numeral for three! Perfect, this means I can review Creed III! For a second, I thought I’d accidentally gone to a showing of the first Creed three times. You’ll never believe how many times I saw Scream before I realized it wasn’t Scream VI.

So, how did they write off Rocky for Adonis Creed’s first true standalone adventure (the Rocky films each being stand-Stallone adventures)? The character Rocky gets mentioned but other than that, he’s nowhere to be seen. That is fine! Michael B. Jordan doesn’t need to reference past films anymore. Creed is well-established by this point, so the focus can be solely on Creed’s issues and past without feeling like a connection is missing. The past is back to haunt Adonis Creed in the form of “Diamond” Dame Anderson (played by Jonathan Majors) and he is nothing short of menacing. Creed II is about Adonis facing Rocky’s past. In this trilogy topper, he is facing his own. It’s a more personal story for Adonis and for Michael B. Jordan himself as his directorial debut. Jordan understands the build-up to a fight, using television segments to build the hype, and allows boxing introductions to play out as they would. There’s no hard cut to the action- the place setting makes the punches land harder. Any great Rocky or Creed movie captures the tribulations of our main characters and uses slice-of-life to humanize the champions. We witness important life events outside of the ring. At times Jordan is being a bit obvious about table setting for future Creed installments (his daughter is interested in boxing? I think I know what that means).

Jordan crafts a sports thriller that is easy to get on board with. I’ve always enjoyed the Rocky movies so luckily, the Creed saga has been just as magnetic. I’m already on board and that wont stop with the third film. The hype is palpable, the boxing is electric, and the inevitable training montage gives the viewer enough energy to run a marathon. Jordan shows his eye for action filmmaking with a dynamic camera that never devolves into unintelligible shakiness for easy action. Using IMAX cameras, the boxing pops with detail. Dame’s boxing stance is that of an unpredictable wild man. Creed’s boxing stance is steady yet full of movement like Jordan’s camerawork. Watching Creed step into the ring and face a prison rules contender is exciting and well-executed. Also, Adonis and Bianca (Tessa Thompson) still have great chemistry and provide a realistic couple that speaks truthfully with one another. Where the movie falters is at the very end. While the final face-off is good, there’s a lot left on the table. It seems as though the producers got nervous about a potentially darker ending and gave into Stallone’s demands for uplift. I can’t say that this is true for sure (unlike the robot story) but it feels like some of the film’s dramatic upheaval was thrown out at the last minute for a more positive drive home from the theater. Why not go for a darker conclusion to a gnarled relationship? You can do that and we’ll still be getting our tickets for whatever the Roman Numerals are for 4, 5, and 6. 

Creed III is proof that the Rocky/Creed formula still works. Stallone’s fear that the series was heading in a downtrodden direction proved to be a bit silly. It’s a compelling drama with a complicated villain. Yes, the uplifting elements don’t fit Creed III as well as past films but it still hits the beats with just as much energy and excitement as past installments. 

Rating: 7.5/10

In a word: Good!