There’s a mess more in the sequel to Ready or Not that manages to still satisfy even when the Satanic magic isn’t as potent the second time around. Here I Come certainly has a grander ambition to expand its world, but in every degree. Not only are there plenty more players on the field and displays of Satanic violence most chaotic, but also far more rules and a cast that crowds the screen as much as the chunks of meaty chunks strewn throughout. Yet, it still has some fun with the material; it’s worth a reheat of these leftovers, even if there’s far too much on the plate.

Samara Weaving returns to the role of Grace MacCaullay, with more at stake than just her life. Thrown into the mix is her estranged sister, Faith, played with similar cynicism by Kathryn Newton. They have a history they need to come to terms with, which is progressively explored as they come under attack by even more Satanists than before. Their dialogue is rather clumsy at times, and the sisterly feud isn’t given much room to grow between scenes of blood and bruises, but MacCaullay and Newton do have some good chemistry in a handful of scenes that sell the sister angle well. Their back-and-forth bodes well for a movie where the two of them get into the swing of things too quickly, where it isn’t long before they are slinging jokes amid getting punched, stabbed, and shot at.

The next game for Grace is so complex that it requires a lawyer, played by Elijah Wood, to explain it all. With Grace defeating the previous family, her survival win forces her into a battle of multiple families vying for the top position of the Satanist who gets to rule the world. Even before the game starts, the lawyer is already speaking like a walking rulebook, divulging the specifics for who can kill Grace and when, sometimes when nobody else needs to hear it, as though he’s addressing the audience directly. I will say I appreciated how straight-faced Wood presents himself, delivering the line “Hail, Satan” in a manner both casual and professional. He was made for horror movies and wears this role like a glove.

The colorful ensemble of assembled Satanist families has its moments in the few scenes where they get to shine. Sarah Michelle Gellar and Shawn Hatosy play squabbling siblings who serve as the perfect counter to the healing relationship between Grace and Faith. Kevin Durand cackles as a coked-up killer, dialing up his usual goofiness. Olivia Cheng is presented as a more calculating schemer, while Varun Saranga is the most delightful loser of the snooty Satanists, who gets humiliated on a grander scale, beyond getting gutted. With their assortment of weapons and family feuds, there’s plenty of variety as the game spans a resort, using everything from propane tanks to dance-floor mic stands to an industrial washing machine.

With all of this and a small yet prominent role for David Cronenberg, there’s so much going on in this sequel that so much of the gruesome absurdity feels rushed. The manner in which Grace dons the dress and sneakers again is presented as ridiculous, and with no time to appreciate the strangeness of her situation. She returns with relative ease to her role as the battered and bruised bride who brutalizes and screams at her elite attackers, with Faith tagging along as though it were Bring Your Estranged Sister To Work Day. The killer Satanists are comical, but to a degree that rarely feels distinct in their desires and selfishness. The many ways they are killed are still clever in their execution, even if the punchlines don’t quite land after each exploding body.

The most common comparison the film is sure to get is John Wick, given how that sequel exploded from a local bout with gangsters into a worldwide rampage. Here I Come has that same vibe, where the devotion becomes more about the abundance of people exploding into blood. There is a decent theme to explore, having moved on from the previous film, with its stance that generational wealth isn’t worth the people you have to sacrifice. Grace has to be a little more clever for this film in how she reconciles with her sister and finds a way to not only survive but keep the Satanists off her back without sacrificing her soul. It’s a lighter theme, but it gets the job done of staging another round of The Most Dangerous Game: Satanic Edition.

Ready or Not 2 still has some charm that manages to wriggle out of its bloody heap of characters and kills. I had some worry that this larger scale would dilute the picture, in the same way your best friend becomes a different person when they get richer. There’s definitely a change in tone and characters, but some of that old dark magic is still present to appreciate one more round. Samara Weaving still looks badass in a blood-stained dress, and she might as well get some more use out of it.

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