Despite the familiarity, The Old Guard manages to be both very grounded and very entertaining, a marriage of expectations and twists unlike little else the genre has inspired even during its most fruitful times.

What makes this gripping graphic novel adaptation so distinctive is the trust it places in its audience to stay glued through the quiet, character-building interludes threaded among excitingly varied fight scenes that crescendo in an expertly choreographed showdown.

The story opens the door to a fascinating mythology of ancient warriors and immortality, although things get a little clunky when it comes time to explain how it all works. Still, The Old Guard is well worth watching if you’ve got an itch for something new.

What The Old Guard lacks in well-paced, tightly plotted story, it more than makes up for with compelling characters and slick, thrilling fight scenes.

Old Guard feels fresher as a high-minded treatise on mortality and loss than a superhero-y franchise-starter.