Rogue Hippo’s Review Score: 8
I have an internet connection, and I saw Thor: Ragnarok over the weekend, which makes me more than qualified to write a review (spoiler-free as usual).
Full Disclosure: I would never call myself a Thor fan. I thought the previous movies were mediocre, I’ve never read any Thor comic books, and I’ve always viewed Thor as simply a walking stoic-warrior stereotype.
So, with all the being said, I thought Thor: Ragnarok was fucking… HILARIOUS!
Yes, HILARIOUS! Like laugh out loud funny (that’s lol for the young readers)! The jokes are piled on thick… really thick. This movie is a non-stop stream of one-liners; and while a few of them fell flat, the majority hit the mark. EVERYONE is cracking jokes! It’s almost too much. In fact, I could see some people having that complaint, but I really enjoyed the endless comedy!
But that’s not all! Without revealing any spoilers, Thor: Ragnarok does does an excellent job of continuing events from Avengers 1 & 2, as well as tying up some loose ends for things still to come in the Marvel Universe. (I should mention here that it is not necessary to have seen the previous Thor movies; however, it will be helpful for audience-members have seen both Avengers movies to fully understand everything) The plot is the usual (and possibly overdone) villain-wants-to-conquer-the-world story; but there are enough twists and turns and side quests and allusions to the over-arching Marvel Universe plotline that it definitely doesn’t feel like just another heroes-save-the-day adventure. In fact, this is probably the most unusual comic-based movie to date, which I will touch on next…
As we have come to expect, Chris Hemsworth is still a natural Thor, and Tom Hiddleston is great as Loki; but, surprisingly, it is some of the more obscure characters, making their Marvel movie debut, that were my favorite additions. I’m talking about these D-list no-namers:
Yea… those guys (or gals maybe? or alien things?) are hilarious! They’re as lovable as Thor and as funny as Loki! They’re also a great example of what Marvel is doing right and what DC is doing wrong. Marvel has the uncanny (haha, get it!? That’s an X-Men joke newb!) ability to make me cheer for virtual unknowns like Korg and Miek! Yet, DC can barely get anyone to cheer for Superman and Batman for F#@%$ sake! In fact, Thor: Ragnarok reminded me a lot of Guardians of the Galaxy in that regard; Marvel Studios took good music, odd characters, a generous dose of comedy, and a wild, interstellar plot; then they threw it all together and it just, plain works!
I started this review by saying that I wasn’t much of a Thor fan, and maybe the “real” Thor fans will hate it; but Thor: Ragnarok is the best Thor film by far and it has actually made me excited for future Thor movies. Go see it!
Until Next Time,
Rogue Hippo