yume-no-fantasy:

The terrible interpretation of Loki’s character in Thor: Ragnarok

Things that Thor: Ragnarok director Taika Waititi said of Loki:

• “Not to really wanna humiliate Loki all the way through the film, but because he was… most definitely overpowered Thor a lot in the other films in terms of presence and his story, and kind of overshadowed him a little bit… This one, it was just nice to kind of switch it around, after all the shitty things that Loki’s done in the last few films…” (Source: Empire Film Podcast)
• “space orphan”
• “someone who tries so hard to embody this idea of the tortured artist, this tortured, gothy orphan”
• “…this little emo goth hanging out by himself. He was like the kid in Harry Potter [Malfoy].”
• has been trying to kill Thor his entire life

A number of significant ways in which Loki’s character was retconned in Ragnarok:

1.

Tom: Loki’s death on Svartalfheim was written as a death, and Chris and I played that scene for real. That was meant to be sort of that he redeemed himself. He helped save his brother and helped save Jane Foster, but he, in the process, sacrificed himself.

Ragnarok!Thor: You FAKED your own death

2.

TDW!Thor: Loki, for all his grave imbalance, understood rule as I know I never will.

Ragnarok!Thor: And what do I find, but the Nine Realms completely in chaos. Enemies of Asgard assembling, plotting our demise, all while you, Odin, the protector of those Nine Realms, are sitting here in your bathrobe, eating grapes.

3.

Tom: The best thing about Loki is that if he is afraid he won’t show it. He’s been highly trained through the experience of his slightly traumatic life to shield his fear. 

Loki in all other films:

Gagnarok!Loki:

Bonus:

“You’re a screw up, so whatever.”

I could have sworn I’d reblogged this before, but I couldn’t find it when I searched my blog. Tumblr’s search function is weirdly… non-functional. Thanks, @lokiloveforever, for finding this for me!

Anyway, yeah. Evidence that Taika did not like or understand Loki, regardless of what he may have told Tom over a bowl of pasta. It’s quite possible that Taika thinks he didn’t change Loki, because he thought his version of Loki (whiny, hedonistic, venally self-interested, pointlessly malicious, with no real problems or grievances to speak of) is who Loki always was. That means he was wrong about the Loki of the previous films. If Ragnarok fans prefer the new Loki, they can have him, I guess… but stop trying to make the case that he’s identical to the Loki of previous films, or that everyone before Taika somehow got him “wrong,” whatever that would mean. It’s not like Ragnarok!Loki is the Platonic Form of MCU Loki that all prior Lokis were only imperfectly striving toward, and it’s definitely controversial whether Ragnarok succeeded in portraying the Loki of recent comics (which I assume is what some people mean by “canon”… never mind that the various writers haven’t characterized him consistently) or of myth (which was definitely not the target…?).