By News Editor: Kayla McClain
Normally those who have seen The Avengers have already watched Thor, Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, and Captain America beforehand in order to know the characters’ individual stories before seeing how they came together to join forces. As for me, however, I came in late, and saw The Avengers only knowing the stories of Iron Man, and The Incredible Hulk. It wasn’t until after seeing the character Thor in The Avengers when his character peaked my interest. And thus, my love for Thor was revealed.
From the creators of Marvel comic books, the first Thor is about the powerful god of thunder who is named Thor (Chris Hemsworth). His power comes from his righteous hammer, and he lives in the world of Asgard. His father is Odin, the King of Asgard (Anthony Hopkins). Thor has partaken in several wars and believes he is a noble leader because of that, so he automatically assumes he is the next rightful heir to the throne. However, due to his “arrogance and stupidity”, his father knows that Thor does not deserve to be king. Odin then banishes him to Midgard (Earth) without his power in order to learn how to be a noble man. He shall regain his power, and his hammer, “when he is worthy”. On Earth he meets Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) and other characters to help him manage his way through Earth, and discover what it truly means to be king.
In order to get the full experience of Marvel Thor: The Dark World, it is best to watch the previous Thor, plus The Avengers. The reason for that is because the main plot of The Avengers is Thor’s Asgardian brother Loki (Tom Hiddleson) obtains the Tesseract, a substance with unlimited power, for another race known as the Chitauri in return for an army to enslave and rule Earth. In the process, Loki created chaos in other realms, as well. By the end, Loki is captured and sentenced to prison in Asgard.
Thor was released in 2011, The Avengers came out in 2012, and now in 2013, the power and action continues with Marvel Thor: The Dark World. From the moment the movie began, I was quickly drawn into the legendary realm of Asgard, picking up right where I was left off from the conclusion of The Avengers. Loki was revealed in chains, and Thor was out protecting other realms from the destruction Loki had caused. However, the film introduces a new villain.
Once long ago, the world as we know it was in the darkness of evil, which was held by an ancient race led by Malekith (Christopher Eccleston). After all of those complex plots, reoccurring characters, and drama and action between brothers and enemies, Malekith returns to demolish any good left in the world. It is up to Thor to save it all, and along with that, manage to work with untrustworthy Loki.
As the IMDB description states, “Thor must embark on his most perilous and personal journey yet, one that will reunite him with Jane Foster and force him to sacrifice everything to save us all.” Even in the description, you get a taste of what is to come. I love it all. Out of all of the Avengers, Thor is my personal favorite. Where he comes from is the more mythological side, and he does not technically have his power from ‘magic’. He makes a point during the first movie that his world does not use the traditional sort of magic or science, but a mixture of both, which fascinates me.
A major aspect about the second movie is the relationship between Thor and Loki. Coming from what Loki has done in The Avengers, and betrayal in every plot, Thor and many others are unable to fully trust Loki. However, in order to defeat the darkness, he and Loki must work together, which requires trust on both parts. This creates drama and suspense for the audience to see if Loki will keep to his word instead of betraying his brother once more.
This movie is also different than the first one in the sense of the fact that it has comedic relief. In the first one, it was dramatic most of the time with nonchalant humor, but in this one, there are several jokes included that relieve the tension. I believe that might be because of the comedic relief in The Avengers. There were many sarcastic and comedic remarks in that movie, and possibly to stick to that style, the director, Alan Taylor, decided to keep some subtle laughs in this movie, as well.
Be aware that there are many plot twists in The Dark World. It caught me off guard, left me in suspense, and put me through an emotional ride when I left the theater. I recommend this for anyone, even if you aren’t a huge fan of superheroes. Believe me, I’m not a huge fan, either, but Marvel heroes, especially Thor, are powerful exceptions.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOddp-nlNvQ&w=560&h=315]
