Thomas (Dylan O'Brien) is looking to rescue his fellow Glader survivor Minho from WCKD (who will go to any length to find a cure for a zombie-like virus known as the Flare). The opening sequence sees Thomas and his group of friends/ allies rescue a group of teenagers immune from the Scorch as a train is delivering the kids to the last surviving city on Earth. Minho isn't among the rescued which leads Thomas, Newt, Frypan, Brenda, and Jorge to infiltrate the last city where they find an unlikely ally. Meanwhile, Teresa (after betraying Thomas and his fellow survivors months ago) is working on developing a workable serum to contain the Flare, but Thomas may very well hold the cure WCKD has looking for all of these years while Earth falls apart in this final installment of THE MAZE RUNNER series.

THE DEATH CURE (aka THE MAZE RUNNER; THE DEATH CURE) manages to wrap up the series while knowing when and when not to be faithful to the source novel by James Dashner. Vancouver, British Columbia and South Africa serve as a great backdrop for the dystopian world of THE DEATH CURE. The movie was delayed by almost a year due to star Dylan O'Brien sustaining an injury during a stunt which put the film's production on hold for six months. The sequel is worth the wait while it delivers an ending more satisfying than MOCKINGJAY PART 2 and a more worthy conclusion to the YA series it is based on than the DIVERGENT series (which fumbles the ball with ALLEGIANT) or an ending more reality based than the book the movie is based on. The production design is top notch and not focusing so much on the Cranks (like in THE SCORCH TRIALS) benefits the story as the movie splits its time between WCKD and Thomas's group). If you want the book exactly, go read the book. Adapting a book into a movie is a balancing act as the writer must decide what to keep, what not to keep, what won't work on the big screen, and will changing something help to bring about the spirit of the book. If you loved THE HUNGER GAMES series and THE MAZE RUNNER series, you will find yourself entertained with THE DEATH CURE.

This initial review is ©1-28-2018 David Blackwell and cannot be reprinted without permission. Send all comments to feedback@enterline-media.com