By Chris Snellgrove
| Published
When Thor: Love and Thunder came out, I was as disappointed as most Marvel fans who wanted more of the impeccably weird, impeccably cozy vibe of Thor: Ragnarok. Granted, director Taika Waititi’s sophomore superhero effort isn’t as good as Ragnarokbut it’s not as bad as the haters make it out to be. And re-reading old Thor comics, it occurred to me that this movie is way better than its reputation and way better than other MCU movies that haven’t gotten as much heat from fans .
Following Ragnarok
First, let’s start with the hard truth: Critics almost universally agree that Thor: Love and Thunder was a disappointing follow-up film. On Rotten Tomatoes, Love and thunder has a rating of 63 percent, which means it’s dangerously close to being…well, rotten. In the meantime, Ragnarok ranks high on the Asgardian throne with a critical score of 93 percent. If these two films were precocious young gods schooled in Asgard, Ragnarok would be the winning student while Love and thunder would be the class clown who barely passed the class, let alone the assignment.
I’m ripping the bandage off right now because I don’t want any of you to think I’m saying Love and thunder is better than Ragnarokwhich effortlessly combined humor and action while relying heavily on the comedic chops of Chris Hemsworth (turns out they’re just as developed as the rest of his muscles). However, this fourth Thor film is infinitely better than Thor2a film that simultaneously managed to squander the talents of Chris Eccleston and Natalie Portman. Besides, Taika Waititi deserves all the credit for bringing Portman back into the world. MCU significantly through Love and thunder.
Compared to Iron Man 3
Plus, while I personally love the movie (Shane Black can do no wrong in my eyes), Iron Man 3 is considered one of the MCU’s early misfires, which many fans vilify for (among other things) wasting the Mandarin reveal. Common criticisms of Thor: Love and Thunder include that it’s a little too ridiculous, but ask yourself: are a few too many jokes in this movie really any more worthy than Ben Kingsley’s terrorist mastermind being revealed as a drugged actor? Besides, even I have to admit that Love and thunder has a simple plot (although uneven in tone) while Iron Man 3‘s plot is a convoluted mess.
Plus, while this is obviously completely subjective, I can’t help but feel for Waititi’s big creative shifts in Thor: Love and Thunder led to more memorable moments than we had with most Wonder movies. For example, the screaming goats are annoying and the whole “Jane Has Cancer” plot was invigorating, but almost every frame of this Asgardian adventure is more memorable than anything I’ve seen in Black widow Or Shang Chi. And this Thor movie is likely to leave you smiling and cheering… compare that to films like Quantum which leaves you perplexed or Eternals it puts you to sleep.
Not perfect but not bad
Again, none of this means Thor: Love and Thunder is an impeccable film…it really is a tonal mess, and things like Jane’s death and Gorr’s tragic backstory seem senseless next to the scenes of Chris Hemsworth having his clothes taken off. But I can’t help but rate films on their entire merits (that’s literally my job!), and it turns out that a collection of tonally mixed but memorable scenes makes for a memorable and (especially ) pleasant. The fact that I didn’t have to watch anything on Disney+ to do my “homework” before logging in is just icing on the Frost Giant cake.
If you decide to come back Thor: Love and Thunderyou may find it a refreshing respite from the endless multitude of holiday programs. Also, if you’ve been disappointed with modern Marvel outside of Dead Pool & WolverineIt’s great to return to a comic book classic that’s better than you remember. If we can accept that Tony Stark is flawed but brilliant, then it’s certainly time to accept that about Thor’s most maligned cinematic outing.
Thor: Love and Thunder is available for streaming on Disney+.
