The logic gaps
Marvel’s universe seems to get nuttier every time a new episode lands in cinemas, and Ragnarok, with its blitzkrieg of madcap space antics, is no exception. But at times I found myself mentally battling to prevent the huge holes in the screenplay from ruining the experience.
Did anyone out there understand why Thor ended up on the gladiatorial planet of Sakaar, following Hela’s arrival on Asgard? Speaking of the magnificently opulent home of Odin and his people, why did it appear to have the population of a small village? What was fallen Asgardian warrior Valkyrie doing on Sakaar, all drunken and bummed out? And did you really buy her convenient conversion back to the light?
Talking Hulk and a farewell to Bruce Banner
This was the version of the Hulk we know from Planet Hulk, capable of full speech and with signs of intelligence. And while allowing the not-so-jolly green giant to evolve helped transform Thor and his new pal into an excellent comedy double act, that evolution also holds concerns for the future.
We all heard Mark Ruffalo’s Banner suggest that if he became the Hulk one more time, his own personality might be lost forever. And yet the moment when Bruce did finally return to his Hulk persona was rather dismissed – perhaps because Waititi felt it more in keeping with the tone of his movie to play the scene for laughs.
Fair enough. But will Ruffalo now be forced to appear via motion capture for the entirety of his remaining stint in the MCU? I liked Talking Hulk, but the superhero’s duality – and Ruffalo’s charmingly charismatic presence – is a big part of the appeal.
An all-new, one-eyed Thor
If Ragnarok was a reinvention for the Thor movies on a tonal level, placing these films firmly in the cosmic, zany Guardians of the Galaxy corner of the MCU, Waititi also played fast and loose with the god of thunder himself. But while Hemsworth fans might bemoan the defiling of their favourite Aussie hunk, and there will be those who wonder if a shorn, eye patch-sporting
Thor really fits into canon, we should probably be aware that the superhero’s accession to the throne of Asgard is the real transformation here. Who knows what powers our hero will retain now he has taken Odin’s place at the head of the Norse pantheon, and how they might manifest in the upcoming Avengers movies. Does Thor now have the power upgrade he needs to take down Thanos himself?
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