The '80s were a special time for blockbuster cinema. Over-the-top heroes, memorable one-liners, villains with awesome accents, and jacked-up characters were at the height of action cinema. All of this excitement was complemented by aliens, robots, and monsters at the top of the box office. It is somewhat still that way now, but in a much more subdued way, not leaning into the absurd as much. But one movie that took all of those and cranked the meters to eleven: the 1987 Action/Sci-fi movie, Predator.

Just mentioning the title brings action nostalgia to the brain with amazing titles like Die Hard and First Blood. Predator elicits an expectation and sense of over-the-top action, and it delivers in a way only the 80s could. With Predator, Arnold Schwarzenegger was at the height of his abilities, bringing jacked-up montages, adrenaline-fueled explosions, and some great lines. Along with the help of more 80s action icons like Bill Duke, Jesse Ventura, Carl Weathers, and last but not least, Kevin Peter Hall as the Predator himself, the movie stands the test of time as 80s action at its best.

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But with iconic cinema comes, well, even more excess in the form of sequels, reboots, and the idea of "bigger is better." It was only a matter of time before others tried to amp it up even more, to capitalize on the love many have for the original action movie. Three years after the original came the first sequel with Predator 2. For the most part, Predator 2 is a somewhat enjoyable 90s action movie with some memorable moments. It even featured some 90s cinema staples like Danny Glover, Bill Paxton, Gary Busey, and a returning Kevin Peter Hall as the Predator. Compared to the following two installments, Predator 2 is the one that separates itself the most from the original, as it at least does more than put a pair of nostalgia shades over the eyes of the audience. It also brings the first attempt at expanding the Predator lore, all the while trying something new with the story, location, and characters.

The problem with Predator 2, however, is that it's honestly just not a good movie. Other than some fun, enjoyable, and cheesy sequences, it can really drag. It definitely doesn't hold up as well as the original does. A lot of its problems come from the fact that there's a lot going on for a Predator movie. The original was very straightforward forward, with the movie just being about a group of soldiers trying to survive in the jungle as they are being hunted by the Predator. That is where the movie shines and finds the most fun.

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This is why, on the surface it seems like Nimrod Antal and Robert Rodriguez's Predators seems much better on paper. But Predators is really just a rehash of the original, soundtrack and all. Yes, it introduces some fun new lore to the franchise, but it takes those nostalgia glasses that Predator 2 ignored and turns on the infrared. It hits all the checkmarks for modern-day reboots and sequels. Predators introduces new characters that are more or less identical to the original, especially in the case of the new character in Dutch's role, Royce, played by Adrian Brody. Royce covers himself in mud the same way as Dutch while fighting the Predator one-on-one. The film even goes as far as to use the exact same score and needle drops with "Long Tall Sally."

But because it has to be new and one-up the original somehow, it did what a lot of other reboots do. It went "bigger and better," introducing new Super Predators. Predators pulls a Jurassic Park 3 and attempts to prove how strong the new Predators are, by having them kill an almost identical version of the original Predator. But there really isn't a point to the Super Predator — it literally changes nothing if they were swapped for original Predators. It's new, but is the exact same thing.

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Shane Black's return to the franchise brings yet another bigger and better than ever Predator with The Predator. It at least tries a new and different story, but much like its earlier sequels, really has no purpose. It's a bigger Predator, but again could just be swapped with the original. It just finds itself trying to prove better than the original like Predators. The formula that seems to be running with sequels absolutely mesmerized by nostalgia and trying to be bigger than the original is just falling flat. They aren't good movies in the first place, let alone fun action movies like the original Predator was.

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This leaves the franchise in a weird spot. There is a fandom there who loves the franchise. The upcoming Hulu reboot, Prey, shows some promise. It seems to stick to the simple premise of the original with the human survival of the hunt, all while introducing a new time period, location, perspective, and characters. Stepping away from the same main character that seems to plague the franchise may be the first step at bringing the franchise in a new direction. But like others before it, trailers can mislead. Only when audiences get access to it will they see if Prey can bring the franchise forward, or keep it in the past with nothing good to offer.

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