The Multiverse of Madness is a pretty solid sequel, building on the first film in lots of interesting and useful ways, but it never quite feels to find its feet to me. This may turn out to be one of those Marvel films that gets better with each rewatch, but for now it just seemed a bit messy. I will say that, having seen the film and then learning that the director was Sam Raimi, a lot of the aesthetic choices (particularly the aesthetics of the story, if you will) suddenly make a lot more sense. Elements like the zombie-demon Strange, or the surprisingly chilling jump scares that Wanda does, are very Raimi, and within that context I think the film works really well.
In fact, in many ways, you can view TMoM as the first horror film in the MCU. It's horror-lite because kids are still the main audience, but if you view it through that lens I think it's a really good attempt at Marvel horror. I've already mentioned Wanda, but as an actually monstrous witch, she performs brilliantly. A lot of this is Elizabeth Olson just being generally awesome, but the way the character is framed and posed gives her such a heightened level of malice. Certainly, Wanda's attack on the alternate reality Avengers (plus the subsequent chase through the sewers) is genuinely disturbing to watch and hugely fun.
Speaking of which, Marvel are obviously doubling down on both the TV universe and the cameos, which is a whole lot of fun. Obviously, the big shock was the canonisation of Patrick Stewart's Professor X (awesome), as well as getting Hayley Atwell in to play Captain Carter properly and the introduction of John Krasinski's Reed Richards (perfect casting, imo), but for me the best inclusion was Black Bolt. Sure, it's nowhere near as big as getting Charlie Cox in No Way Home or D'Onofrio in Hawkeye, but seeing the MCU at least recognise the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D universe again (and giving their best piece of casting/design some genuine props) was a truly nice touch. I had heard rumours about a Tom Cruise Iron Man, and I personally think it would have been fun to get Chris Evans back but as the Human Torch, however it seems like Marvel are broadly stating that alternate universe characters will basically always be the same actors. Yes, we get different variants of Loki in that show, but those are specifically called out as abnormal variations; most of them are played by Hiddleston. Similarly, here we get Atwell as Captain Carter and Lashan Lynch as Captain Marvel, but both of these actors are playing the same characters, just ones that took different paths and effectively swapped places with their universe's Carol Danvers and Steve Rogers. Overall, I like this decision, particularly because it could otherwise be used to cheapen deaths or sacrifices like those that we saw in Endgame.
That said, whilst MotM had a lot of fun with the existing characters, and gave both Wong and Strange some interesting arcs and moments, the new characters felt a little less interesting. America Chavez is played very well and the central gimmick around her power was nicely done, but I hope we get a bit more from her in the future, if she is to become a full-blown member of the roster, as I don't feel like the plot gave her much space. Similarly, we got a few new sorcerers, most of which are relevant to the comics, but none of which were really introduced. A short exposition piece at the temple, showing the rebuilding under Wong, would have gone a long way to help the audience understand these characters, give their sacrifices a modicum of weight, and help give the assault on the sanctuary a bit more gravitas, too.
Plus, whilst the film went out of its way to tack in little Easter eggs from all over the MCU, I feel like two of the central promises never felt that resolved. First, we didn't really get a multiverse. We got one additional dimension, three distinct universes (four if you include America's pocket universe from the flashback), and then a quick sequence of various surreal moments. That sequence was incredibly fun and visually stunning, but it didn't feel like much more than an updated version of Strange's out of body experience from the first movie.
Then, second, we have Wanda. As I've said, she was played brilliantly, and made for an excellently creepy villain. Getting to see her use her powers more was great fun and she had some really jaw-dropping moments. But also, her character arc didn't feel like it matched up with Wandavision all that well. That show ends with her seemingly healing, particularly with regards to her children, and heavily hinted that her role as the Scarlet Witch was an evolution, rather than a regression to a monstrous/villainous form. It definitely seemed like she was in charge, not that she had been corrupted. The result is that MotM felt a little like retreading the same ground as the TV show did for her character. On top of which, the complete lack of Paul Bettany just felt odd. Vision was central to her previous breakdown and his loss should be on a par with her kids, yet she never seems even vaguely interested in getting back to him, too. Nor was it entirely clear why she couldn't simply use America to get to a universe without a Wanda, and then let her go. Why does she need to kill her, Sylas style? They do briefly mention this in the film, but the answer isn't particularly coherent: she wants to be able to protect the children that are figments of her imagination from things she, a being capable of warping reality to the point of actually creating life, can't control? There is nothing that Wanda can't control and her kids aren't normal kids, they're constructs she brought about, so she can do literally anything she wants to/for them. I think a lot of this could have been better done if Wandavision had ended on a darker or more sinister tone, but as it stands, it just felt a little jarring. (Again, this may improve on rewatch, I feel)
This leaves me with a film that I enjoyed; a film with some incredible moments, both for fans and just for general audiences; a film that managed to build on Strange as a character in interesting ways and finally gives Rachel McAdams some solid screen time (she's great throughout this); a film with really creative visuals (the music-themed battle!) and some interesting ideas; but still, one which I was never properly engrossed in. The cameos and niggles around the wider MCU kept bringing me back out of the action, meaning that I never fully invested in the outcome. I can't fault a lot of the movie, it just didn't blow me away, or even produce a light breeze. It's not bad, it's just... fine, I guess. (A lot like the end-credits, though I am excited for Charlize Theron to join the MCU, even if I know nothing about her character)