In 2010, Tron: Legacy opened to $44 million and topped out at $172 million domestically. Toss in $228 million from overseas markets and it didn’t tank, but it didn’t become a blockbuster, either. With a budget of $180 million, Tron: Ares opened to $33.2 million domestically and $26.7 million outside North America. Even with 15 years of inflation, it opened to less than its predecessor. In other words, Ares seems to be the end of the Tron franchise on the big screen. And that’s a shame because, while it isn’t a masterpiece, it’s a fun movie, especially in an IMAX theater.

So, the question becomes just where does Ares rank compared to the original Tron and Tron: Legacy? Let’s find out.

3) Tron: Ares

Tron: Ares seems to have had a ton of ambition and good intentions, but it perpetually stops short of making any truly compelling points. It wants us to believe that maybe AI isn’t so bad but, let’s face it, a betting person should be laying down cash on it being far from benign. That very rational doubt about AI and its eventual intentions hampers all of the emotional beats we’re supposed to feel when it comes to Jared Leto’s title character. It’s not a fatal flaw, but it is a distracting factor. That said, basically summarizing an AI’s desire to become a real boy by having him not know how to vocalize his feelings for Depeche Mode will certainly be a bridge too far for some.

Even still, there are things that click for Ares, even if they are going to end up sounding like half compliments. For instance, some are complaining about Leto’s casting but that feels more like typical internet bile than any genuine faults in his performance. His fairly flat performance as Ares plays as a rational creative choice, not a lack of ability. Then there are the visual effects, which are still impressive even if they don’t reach the awe-inspiring nature of Tron: Legacy‘s. Lastly, it’s great to see the excellent Greta Lee in a major movie, but even with a lead role she doesn’t get much to chew on. Ares ends on a promising cliffhanger for a more interesting and compelling follow-up, but that now looks quite unlikely to happen, which makes Ares feel like a hollow one-off.

2) Tron

An entry placement that will seem blasphemous to some and spot-on for others, the original Tron is a classic, but it also shows its age. It’s also like The Goonies in that it’s the type of movie you had to grow up with to truly love.

There are plenty of things that are wonderful about Tron, from its world of ’80s tech (which is now nostalgia fuel for many) to the casting of Jeff Bridges and David Warner, but it’s not as involving as one might hope it to be. We don’t really get to know any of the characters enough to feel much for their plight, including Bridges’ Flynn, around whom the whole narrative revolves. It’s mostly just a straightforward (rightful) revenge story coated in digital gloss. On one hand that intimate form of storytelling works for it but, on the other hand, the core of Tron: Legacy—a young man reconnecting with the father he thought abandoned him—is more compelling stuff.

1) Tron: Legacy

Like the original Tron, Tron: Legacy was a movie that did fine at the box office but wasn’t a smashing success and scored only middling reviews. And, also like the original Tron, it’s a movie that has seen its reputation increase in the years since its release. Without a doubt, this is the installment of the trilogy that has a little too much plot, but it still manages to fly by. Furthermore, two performances by Jeff Bridges are always better than one, even if the de-aging technology used to bring Clu to life is less than ideal. But that de-aging technology is the only thing about Legacy that doesn’t look stone-cold gorgeous.

This movie was a blast in theaters and still looks great on a regular everyday television Better yet, all of those stunning visuals are equally matched by a genuinely classic score by Daft Punk, which is never anything short of note perfect. Toss in an underrated lead performance by Garrett Hedlund and star-making work by Olivia Wilde, and this is one of Disney’s most important movies of the 2010s. Lastly, it was integral in putting Joseph Kosinski on the map, which every fan of Top Gun: Maverick (of which there are many) should be thankful for.