This is so great. (I kind of hope that when Ragnarok is out on DVD the editor goes back in and replaces the grainy footage with clear footage of the same scenes. But that might be too much of a pain in the ass.)
ONE OF MY FAVORITE THINGS THAT RAGNAROK KEPT UP: Thor knows how to make a plan. Whether winging it or planning it out, he’s good enough with working on the fly that Loki STILL doesn’t see him coming either time.
Whether Thor’s using the Dark Elf ship as a distraction because everyone thinks that of COURSE he’s just going to fly around in the loudest, most attention-grabbing way or that Loki’s planning to betray him and Thor knows it’s coming so he outmaneuvers Loki, THOR KNOWS HOW TO GET ONE OVER ON THIS LITTLE SHIT.
In some ways, but not as much as I feared. Actually, what I was really afraid of was that they would turn Thor into Kevin from Ghostbusters, or he would be the version of Thor we saw in the “Thor: Civil War” video. I was incredibly relieved to see that the stupid line in one of the trailers about Thor having more brains because he has more muscles did not make it into the movie.
The filmmakers were clearly aware of the possibility that Thor would come off as anachronistic and/or Tony Stark-like; Taika Waititi even said in an interview that Thor’s change in diction and demeanor could be explained by his having spent more time on Earth hanging out with Tony Stark and learning about sarcasm. There was room for some movement in that direction, but I think they went too far with it. Thor has shown a sense of humor in earlier movies, most notably in the scene in TDW where he and Loki commandeer the Dark Elf ship with a lot of brotherly bickering, but also in Age of Ultron. There’s a post that I’ve seen going around occasionally with all the instances of Thor “trolling” people in AOU; I think the “I am Thor son of Odin, and as long as I have life in my breast I am… running out of things to say” bit is the most memorable. But it was always kind of an understated humor.
I’ve seen some people saying that they see some of the character change as a reversion to the brash, cocky warrior-prince of the first Thor movie, but with more cunning and caution and a better sense of proportion. I guess I can see that, and I can sort of see how that might have happened as he gained some distance from the traumatic events that turned him into the grave, almost world-weary figure he presented in TDW and AOU… but again, I think they went too far in that direction. I’m trying to stay mostly positive about the movie, because for the most part I did like it, and it was not nearly as much of a travesty of the characters as I was afraid it might be. But yeah, I’ll admit to finding the abrupt character transformation somewhat jarring.
One of the friends I’m seeing “Thor: Ragnarok” with for my second time told me that he hadn’t seen the second Thor movie and asked if that was going to be a problem. I filled him in on the important developments but also insisted that there was a particular scene – Loki’s death(?) scene – he needed to have watched for something in “Ragnarok” to make sense. So I sat with my friends outside the restaurant where we’d eaten dinner and showed them Loki’s death scene from TDW on the YouTube app on my phone.
Did anyone else feel seriously called out by that “play” (very Shakespearean, btw) depicting Loki’s death scene from Thor: The Dark World? Because that scene really does affect me. Like… they even had that “angelic choir” singing the score that accompanied that scene, which is a major part of why it’s so emotionally wrenching, but then they’re making fun of it and I can see how everything was (perfectly!) calculated to manipulate my emotions…
Okay I have to get this out of my system. No spoilers, promise. I was watching Thor the Dark World the other day, prepping for Ragnarok and when Thor left Loki on Svartalfheim he was presumed to be dead. So I started thinking about all the theories that came about. Did he die, or did he fake it or plan it. Well, I think the answer could be very simple. Loki thought he was on his way his way out and had one moment of sincerity with Thor just before he passes out and takes a really nice well earned nap while his body healed.
Now the poor guard who discovered him, that guy, he thought Loki was dead too. Probably poked him with a spear and startled Loki awake. Startled, by the guard, Loki straight up slays the man on accident. That poor guard.
Oh shit he killed an innocent man and Thor is no where to be found.
Loki is the Philosopher King 