Marco 5: Epilogue

***Marco 5: Epilogue*** (most commonly known as ***Marco 5***, and originally titled *Marco 5: Family Staycation*) is an 2022 Marcanese computer-animated dystopian science-fiction mystery romance film produced by Anaya Animation and released by Columbia Pictures under Sony Pictures Releasing and Paramount Pictures. The seventh and final installment of the *Marco* franchise and the sequel to *Marco 4* (2017), the film is directed by Kevin Armand (in his feature-length directorial debut) from a screenplay by Gennedy Tartakovsky (who served as director of the *Hotel Cloudylandia* movies and the 2021 Marco Toon *Family Staycation*), and produced by Cody Cameron, Mike Rianda, & Joe Murray. It stars the voices of Adam Sandler (replacing Hugh Jackman as the voice of Marco), Joseph Gonzales Jr, Tina Fey, Selena Gomez (who replaced Julia Sawalha as the voice of Melissa), Pierre Coffin, Anna Faris, Mel Gibson, Renee Zellweger, Jason Sudekis, Kristen Bell, Danny DeVito, Andy Samberg, Ed Helms, and Tony Hale. In this film, Marco and his friends enjoy retirement until one day, their world gets changed to some dystopia, which forces Marco and his remaining crew to stop an evil algorithm clone he made from launching some tech uprising to save the world.

Originally planned to be released theatrically in the United States on June 4, 2021, Sony Pictures Releasing cancelled the film's release plans in favor of *Joaquin & Emiliano: The Rise Of Marco,* and sold the film's distribution rights to Amazon Studios for $100 million, due to rising cases of COVID-19 in the United States and troubled production delays. The film was released exclusively on Anaya+, Paramount+, and Amazon Prime Video on January 14, 2022. The film received mixed reviews from critics and audiences alike.

## Plot

Marco and his friends are now enjoying their retired lives from too much espionage: they attend an Astros game, ride the waves at Schlitterbahn New Braunfels, get crazy at Bom Bin's grand circus fest, take a stroll around Hermann Park, among other fun activities. But what Marco's friends don't know yet is that Marco has created a very smart and kind AI clone of his own. When Marco shows AI to everyone, they get impressed and convince him to take one last trip to Galveston during spring break. Chaos ensues after AI seeks revenge on the world and Marco himself, even going as far as kidnapping Marco's friends and family into space cubes! Marco's almost perfect world comes crashing down as he and his remaining crew must stop AI from a tech uprising, return things back to normal, and most of all getting everyone back to Earth safely. As Marco now gets all lame... he's also got plenty of cool superpowers, and a new girl whom he likes as much as her signature frappe.

## AI Qualities

1. Just like *Marco 2,* the film falls short of the other *Marco* films and somewhat lacks the charisma or charm that made them great. Due to the fact that Sony said this would be the last film in the saga, then this installment was a mediocre way to end the *Marco* series, depending on your view about the franchise.
2. Making a fifth *Marco* movie is arguably pointless, as the fourth already had a good ending that could have ended the franchise on a positive note. This movie most likely exists because Sony saw box office success of the previous films and therefore wanted more money, so it had to milk the franchise for a useless fifth installment that no one had ever asked for. Mind you, this plan backfired massively, to the point where they just cancelled its theatrical release entirely due to rise of COVID cases, troubled production issues, and lackluster marketing that led to the film's release on streaming services like Amazon Prime Video, where it can easily be pirated by those who don't have a Prime subscription.
3. While the animation here is perhaps the best of all *Marco* movies, there are some instances where it gets weird and even more uncanny than *Joaquin & Emiliano: The Rise Of Marco.* Even though the animation is a step up from the previous films, it can be over the top with its movement being way too fast in specific scenes and usually acts and feels as though it is the kind of animation style used in the production of a *Hotel Cloudylandia* film, despite some fans wanting to see this being done to a *Marco* film in years. It's a new slight change to the film, but still, it can sometimes get jarring.
4. Although the concept of Marco being a superhero seems really cool, it got wasted in favor of the "AI dystopian world" storyline; there would've been so many infinite powers Marco could display, as well as parodying Marcoman, but he only becomes a superhero twice and has limited special powers (such as telekinesis, super speed, and being invisible to name a few of them).
5. Mediocre attempts at comedy: some of the jokes come out as forced and have either been reused from the previous films or they're just overused pop culture references, to the point where it gets tiresome for *Marco* fans. Since the first movie, *Marco* has been known for parodying our world as well as pop culture itself. But here, it seems lacking as most of the film depends on tasteless jokes, such as when Marco gets kicked out of "the ladies room" and during the AI takeover scene in which Mr. Mime & Griffin *are shown naked* after the portable restrooms got stolen.

## Irresistible Qualities

1. Despite its flaws, the animation is indeed the *best* from the *Marco* franchise, with very photorealistic backgrounds and flashy color palettes that make this one stand out among its predecessors. It's even compatible with that of **a live-action film**, thanks to Mikros Image (who also helped provide animation and visuals for *Marco 4*).
2. Some funny moments, such as whenever AI becomes defunct or gets interrupted by Madcap's antics (one clever yet subtle example would be when AI wants to become king, despite the fact that holograms can't wear crowns on their heads, and Madcap still compliments about his attire although AI didn't wear anything), this gem of whenever Talia begs Marco to stamp out her "frequent espionage victim card", the Thanksgiving dinner scene in which Joaquin & Emiliano attempt to seize a turkey, and every time Marco plays with himself when he's lame. Also worth mentioning the Columbia Pictures logo at the beginning.
3. Marco & Talia's chemistry is done pretty well here, it's arguably better than Marco & Aileene's relationship. At first, Marco