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Poor Blue Beetle. I’m sure somewhere out there in the multiverse there’s a reality where this film is released as part of a healthy and thriving franchise, however, as it stands, it’s very much the right film at completely the wrong time.

With the lingering stink of The Flash still stinging everyone’s nostrils, Blue Beetle arrives with all the fanfare of that band that kept playing as the Titanic sank. As the soon to be defunct DC Extended Universe crumbles around it, this is a film that was always going to have an uphill task ahead of it.

Hindered further by the writer/actor strikes and by Warner Bros/James Gunn’s inability to market the film to an audience who clocked out long ago, Blue Beetle has seemed doomed from the off. Which is a crying shame as it’s actually rather good.

Returning home from college full of hope for the future, recent graduate Jaime Reyes (Xolo Maridue￱a) is brought back down to Earth with a bump as he finds his family life in flux. As he searches for purpose in this new world, fate intervenes when Jaime finds himself in possession of an ancient alien relic - the Scarab. When the Scarab suddenly chooses Jaime to be its symbiotic host, he is bestowed with a suit of armour capable of extraordinary and unpredictable powers, changing his life forever.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but looking back at it all, the effort Warner Bros put behind The Flash as they left Blue Beetle out in the cold appears entirely misguided. Judged against The Flash, Blue Beetle is a big step up in quality, and had it been shown even a fraction of the marketing love given to its DCEU predecessor, the much-maligned franchise could be going out on a real high.

As it is, however, the cold, hard truth is that Blue Beetle has a huge battle on its hands cutting through in a climate where superhero films – especially DC superhero films – don’t have quite the same box office clout they once possessed.

While it’s as clear as mud what characters and/or actors will carry over into the glorious new DC Universe future, it really would be a shame if this is it for Xolo Maridueña’s Jaime Reyes, because this is undoubtedly one of the better DC films out there and one of the most likable heroes we’ve seen from them in quite some time (a low bar, admittedly).

Although there have been glimmers of hope here and there, the DCEU has been a rather depressing place for quite some time now. The likes of The Flash and Black Adam have sucked a lot of what little joy there was left out of the universe, while even well-meaning, light-hearted fare such as Shazam: Fury of the Gods found it difficult to reignite things.

It really is a huge shame for a franchise that once held so much promise, however, at the last, and just as the DCEU draws to a close, it’s a great relief that they have finally found a little joy amidst the gloom.

Arriving as a warm ray of light in an otherwise bleak universe, Blue Beetle buzzes with the kind of heart and soul Marvel tapped into from the beginning, and that the DCEU has largely lacked. Embedding his film in the Latino culture of its hero and his family, director Ángel Manuel Soto is unapologetic in his infusion of Blue Beetle in the language and the heritage of its characters, producing something with more personality than the vast majority of the DC Extended Universe.

In much the same way as Black Panther and Shang-Chi immersed themselves in their respective cultures, so too does Blue Beetle, swiftly quelling any accusations of cultural lip service or tokenism to offer genuine, much needed representation and an energy that helps to atone for its clear deficiencies elsewhere.

With a familiar superhero origin story and a decidedly by-the-numbers plot, Blue Beetle certainly won’t be winning any prizes for originality. Echoing everything from Iron Man to Spider-Man to Venom and sporting many well-trodden superhero beats, DC have clearly decided to play it safe here, and while this cautious approach is somewhat understandable considering the poor health the studio is in, it’s pretty disappointing that they haven’t pushed the boat out at least a little.

To a lesser extent, the same accusations can be thrown at Blue Beetle’s action, however, despite a derivative, somewhat generic feel to it all, there’s certainly much to admire. Like it’s story elements, you’ll notice similarities between Blue Beetle’s action and many other superhero films, yet Ángel Manuel Soto does well to ensure the hero’s look and fighting style feel relatively unique.

The suit itself, while looking awfully reminiscent of something Tony Stark would’ve put together, allows for some fun bursts of visual innovation that add a little flare to Jaime’s fight sequences. Together with this, the short blasts of hand-to-hand combat have some decent physicality to them, and while a reliance on CGI is absolutely there, it never drowns out Blue Beetle like it does with so many superhero movies before it.

However, despite the familiarities and the derivative nature of Jaime’s hero journey, it’s very much the little bits around it all that make Blue Beetle tick. Playing the titular hero with charm to spare, Xolo Maridueña leads the line wonderfully, playing Jaime with just the right level of youthful exuberance, naïveté, and gung-ho heroics. Building on his Cobra Kai breakout, Maridueña positively shines in the hero role, instantly putting himself up there among DC’s more household names and bouncing off the cast around him superbly.

And it’s here with this ensemble that Blue Beetle truly soars. In roles that could’ve easy become annoying, the seasoned Mexican and Mexican-American cast around Maridueña work as both an emotional anchor for the film and welcome light relief.

Whether it’s Adriana Barraza’s feisty Nana, Damián Alcázar’s wholesome dad, or George Lopez’s hilarious stoner uncle, they all play a crucial role in allowing Maridueña to shine and ensuring Blue Beetle stands out from the comic book movie crowd. Throw in a scenery-chewing Susan Sarandon having the villainous time of her life and you’ve got one of DC’s most memorable ensembles on your hands.

After a decade of diminishing DCEU returns, Blue Beetle is the feel good (almost) swansong the franchise desperately needed. With a familiar story and a by-the-numbers plot, it’s certainly not the most original comic book movie going, yet, with heart, soul, and a strong sense of family in place, Blue Beetle is a true ray of light in the DC darkness. If this is indeed what the post-DCEU world looks like, the franchise will be back buzzing in no time.

Blue Beetle is in cinemas now.