Thor: Ragnarok arrived in theaters Nov. 4, but is Marvel’s latest film getting more love than it deserves? It’s one of the highest-rated comic movies on Rotten Tomatoes (93 percent), and everyone seems to love it, but the Asgardian hero’s latest adventure left Player.One reporters Autumn Kelly and Phillip Martinez underwhelmed.
The following text and video contain major spoilers for Thor: Ragnarok. Proceed at your own risk.
Both Autumn and Phil agree their expectations were too high. Following two of Marvel’s most successful comedies, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 and Spider-Man: Homecoming, the humor had a lot of competition to live up to. Thor has never been the most natural when it comes to jokes, and the comedy felt forced, especially in the first half. Early hype from Marvel suggested Thor: Ragnarok would substantially affect Avengers: Infinity War, but it felt more like a standalone film.
“Ragnarok is supposed to be this whole culmination of everything that’s been going on in Thor and it was too jokey,” Phil says at the nine-minute mark. “It was an afterthought. Ragnarok took a backseat. The movie is called Ragnarok. I don't understand what they are doing. It felt out of left field, like a reset.”
Even when taking the mid-credits scene into account, the film felt unresolved. Fans who aren’t hunting for easter eggs wouldn’t have even noticed the implied connection between Loki, Thanos and the tesseract -- a storyline initiated in The Avengers.
“The director followed through with his intentions. The tone was clear. It was full. It made sense for the context of the film,” Autumn says, “But Thor -- we know this character, we know his roots in the Avengers, we know Thanos and Loki and the infinity stones are a huge deal -- but it didn’t feel like a big epic.”
Phil and Autumn also discuss the impact of the film’s supporting characters-- Hela, Valkyrie and Hulk in the full Cape Talk episode below.
