Woohoo, I finally saw a Marvel movie in theaters!

Literally, for the first time.

I can see now why people like seeing them on the big screen, it’s just better for that kind of flick. I felt I could see more of what was happening.

Do I recommend it? You bet.

I thought it was a lot better than I was led to believe by the reviews.

The constant joking around didn’t take away from the story, though it did seem a break from Thor’s character, but considering how much solitude and stress he was under, I think anyone would have to adapt, so I could let it go.

And, unlike what I was told via the internet, the movie did take some moments to pause and pull back. Even though funny things still happened in those scenes, the character’s themselves were quite serious and I bought it.

Now, spoiler alert for the rest of what I liked:

The first two Thor films were some of the best MCU films in the franchise, to my mind. And this one delivers a satisfying ending to Thor’s private story. The character arc he’s being going through ended way better than I expected.

You see, in the same fashion as The Lion king, the first movie was about being the true king, and what that means. It means not power, but character; peace loving, but not stupid.

The second film tackles the theme of being willing to give up power and prestige for someone you love. And also being humble and willing to not have the spotlight. It also covers loss, and delves deeper into Thor and Loki’s bother-brother relationship.

After Thor declined the throne in the second movie and we saw Loki sitting upon it, I was fully prepared for a plot revolving around getting him taken care of, and more tricks and more of the same old same old.

I like Loki, but only because I always thought he was struggling with doing the terrible things he did, and I hoped he would turn around. Thor felt the same.

Oddly enough, the very thing fans were mad at Thor for doing in the Avengers (constantly believing Loki would change) we actually miss as he seems ready in this film to finally give up on him. But it was nice to see Thor finally not duped. He arrives on Asgard and immediately figures out Loki is masquerading as Odin. He exposes him in a refreshingly straightforward and speedy way, and then they go to Earth to find Odin and bring him back.

I can’t detail all the things that happen in a very short amount of movie time, so I’ll just say we get some more insights into Loki’s beef with Thor, and the whole world, apparently.

Then we meet Odin, and it doesn’t take the audience long to realize he is dying. (I mean, they’ve been leading up to it since the first film.) When he dies, Thor realizes this means he is king. But there’s no time for that to even sink in, since immediately afterward, Hella, the goddess of death and Odin’s firstborn, shows up. Odin’s life was all that was keeping her back.

Not only that, she destroys Thor’s Hammer. Making Loki freak and Thor speechless. Loki at once summons Heimdall’s portal, but in so doing unwittingly allows Hella to get to Asgard, and she throws both of t hem out of the tunnel and they land on some random planet just between the known and the unknown reality.

That planet was my least favorite part. It was frustrating to see Hella taking over Asgard, and then Thor stuck being tortured and having his hair cut and fighting the Hulk.

But, boy was that part satisfying. Thor finally gets to kick some rear without his magic hammer, and it was awesome. And that’s coming from someone who usually is bored by those fight scenes.

Also, Loki had some of the funniest moments in that part. And more character building ones too. Like how he was actually sad that Odin died, even if he had been angry at him for years.

Thor also comes to understand in part why Loki is angry. After he finds he’s been lied to by his father too, never being told about Hella’s existence till it was too late to stop her. And having so much history hidden from him.

But Thor never hesitates to do the right thing, and even to defend his father, though he admits he wasn’t perfect.

Thor is pretty beat upon in this movie, but his determination to go back to Asgard and save it or die trying never wavers. Even when Loki says it is no use.

And finally, finally, we get to see some of Thor’s well aimed speeches at Loki pay off.

In the epic show down, which was way better than I had expected from the trailer, (And by the way, the Led Zepplin song worked far better than you’d think) Thor finally learns to harness his power without the hammer. Which makes sense, because not even Loki needed a scepter to use all of his powers, so why would Thor? And he starts beating Hella back.

Hella is not a sympathetic villain, but we at least see why she would be bitter at Odin after what he did to her. Albeit she didn’t really give him a choice. I didn’t like her at first, but by the end I decided she did well at being inhuman, but not so much we couldn’t feel a moment of pity for her.

And Loki finally comes back and does the right thing. Without turning it into a trick at the end. (Yay!)

Also there’s Valkyrie, but I don’t have a lot to say about her. If you see it, you’ll have to decide.

Also,  Bruce Banner’s choice at the end struck me as very noble, since he is not even from Asgard, and it was one of the his best moments.

The theme of this movie is change.

Does a change in circumstances change your identity? Or are you a king with or without your hammer, and your title, and your respect?

Do circumstances dictate who you become? Is being the god of mischief all you can ever be, or can you be more?

Can you change?

Can you change you mind after years and years of trying to forget the past?

Can you change from a monster to a hero by your own free will?

Can you?

This movie says you can. And I love that message.

I loved it and I hope those of you who see it will too and forgive the few flaws with it.

–Natasha.