Film Review – Thor: Ragnarok

(No spoilers are contained within this review.)

Premiering in theatres last Friday, Thor: Ragnarok marks the first on-screen appearance of Thor since 2015’s Avengers: Age of Ultron, and returns Loki to an audience quite eager after a four year wait. The film also introduces us to new characters such as Valkyrie, Korg and Miek, and the delightfully over-the-top Grand Master.

The film, directed by Taika Waititi, centers around the attempts of Hela to rule over Asgard, along with Thor’s mission to stop her. Despite the obvious severity of the situation, Ragnarok thankfully manages to maintain a much lighter tone than Age of Ultron, and averts the at-times forced drama that clouded Ultron‘s already cramped plot, achieving a tone more similar to 2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy than any MCU film since.

Ragnarok uses humor expertly, diffusing tense situations while still maintaining their impact. Director Waititi has stated that “probably 80 percent of the film” was improvised, which show through in the film by way of allowing the character’s conversations to appear natural and realistic. This improv also allowed for one of the most memorable lines from the film, in which Thor, upon seeing Hulk for the first time in several years, declares him to be a “friend from work.”

The film’s lack of forced conflict allows for more character development than several previous Marvel movies, while keeping the film fast-paced and engaging. Overall, Thor: Ragnarok is likely the best film to come out of the Marvel universe, and is definitely worth the 2+ hours necessary to take in it’s full run-time.

Is Magneto Really a Villain?: (Still not) A Review of X-Men: Days of Future Past

“I wear red, the color of blood, in tribute to their lost lives. And the harder I try to cast it aside, to find the gentler path, the more irresistibly I am drawn back. I should have died myself with those that I loved. Instead I carted the bodies by the hundreds, by the thousands, from the death house to the crematorium, and the ashes to the burial ground. Asking myself now what I could not then—Why was I spared?” ~ Magneto (Uncanny X-Men #274)

“You built these weapons to destroy us. Why? Because you are afraid of our gifts. Because we are different. Humanity has always feared that which is different.“-Magneto, DOFP

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A Study of Tone: X-Men vs. the MCU

“Sir! I’m gonna have to ask you to exit the doughnut!”- S.H.I.E.L.D. director Nick Fury (MCU)

“Does it ever wake you in the middle of the night? The feeling that one day they will pass that foolish law or one just like it, and come for you? And your children?” – Brotherhood of Mutants leader Erik Lehnsherr (X-Men)

Together we’ve looked at the humor of the MCU, and read some of Marvel’s darker comics; now we will study the tonal dissonance between Marvel Studio’s MCU, and Fox Studio’s X-Men franchise, and learn why the two franchises have such different personalities.

Comic Review #1- Magneto: The Twisting of a Soul

Magneto: The Twisting of a Soul is a double-length issue published by Marvel comics in 1993. The issue expands upon the backstory of Magneto, and garners sympathy for the famed super villain.
The artwork in Twisting of a Soul is astounding, with beautifully drawn characters and scenery. The story, by Chris Claremont, is one of the finest examples of comic writing that I have ever seen, with a storyline so gripping you will be unable to stop reading.
Character details are numerous, and well-woven into the storyline. You will come away from this book with a newfound understanding of–and sympathy for–Magneto.
I highly recommend this book to fans of Magneto, or comics in general, and to anyone wishing to learn more about the Master of Magnetism.
Good night,
-AnJ