Haiku Revieu | Thor: Ragnarok

Thor: Ragnarok
★★★★★

The end of Asgard?
Waititi's Thor is stellar
Oh hai, Loki <3¹

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Imprisoned, the almighty Thor finds himself in a lethal gladiatorial contest against the Hulk, his former ally. Thor must fight for survival and race against time to prevent the all-powerful Hela from destroying his home and the Asgardian civilization.

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When I first heard that Taika Waititi was going to direct the third Thor movie, my response was: "huh." I didn't love What We Do in the Shadows, and wasn't familiar with much of his other work, but I knew it was quirky—and a quirky Thor film would be very far removed from Kenneth Branagh's Thor. I didn't see how a more comedic Thor would really work with the preceding two, but I understood that the MCU powers-that-be wanted to move it closer to the feel of Guardians of the Galaxy. After seeing the first trailer, however, I was more excited than hesitant. And after seeing the movie, I am utterly and completely sold.

I LOVED Thor: Ragnarok. It's far and away the best of the Thor movies, and it easily took a spot in my top 5 MCU movies. Waititi found a perfect balance between silly humor and serious moments, and the changes he made to familiar characters only made them better. Chris Hemsworth's comedic timing shines; Hulk actually as a personality; Tessa Thompson's Valkyrie is flawed and fabulous; and Tom Hiddleston's mastery of the mischievous is yet again perfect. (Side note: THAT BLACK SUIT THO.) The addition of Jeff Goldblum as Grandmaster was delightful, regardless of the fact that the character was pretty much just Goldblum being Goldblum. Cate Blanchett was wonderfully over-the-top dramatic as Hela; it would be really hard not to want to follow her charismatic brand of evil. And Waititi's Korg totally stole the show. The volume of quotable dialogue in the movie—and eventual volume of GIFfable moments—is second-to-none.

Watching Hulk and Thor battle it out while being the Grandmaster's pawns was so much fun. Prior to this movie, I wouldn't have thought they'd work so well together without the rest of the Avengers, but Ragnarok has a surprising buddy comedy vibe that worked well with all the action. Unsurprisingly, I also adored the amount of Loki that Waititi graced us with, as well as the genuine moments of brotherly love/brotherly hate between Thor and Loki. Loki's a complex character, and I an thankful that Waititi took the time to examine his anti-hero (not villain) aspects.

I will say that the Hela/Ragnarok storyline was a little rushed, and her defeat a little too easy. I also worry about Loki backsliding from his "I want to be a good guy but just can't help myself sometimes" new outlook on life thanks to that scene with the [REDACTED] close to the end. But that's just me picking nits.

I can't recommend seeing this movie enough. Give me a shout if you're heading to a theater—I'd happily go with you!

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¹ This is pronounced "heart," in this usage, not "less than three."