C&C Retrospective - Thor: The Dark World - Lead-up to Age of Ultron!

C&C Retrospective - Thor: The Dark World

More Phase 2 lead-up to Age of Ultron!

By Dan Uppington 

 

“Some believe that before the universe, there was nothing. They're wrong. There was darkness... and it has survived.”

That's right; it's week 2 of our lead up to Avengers: Age of Ultron and by sweet Odin’s Raven it's time to review Thor: The Dark World. In the immortal words of Dr Erik Selvig… "I better get my pants". 

Let us returneth to Asgard once more brothers and sisters!

We learn via the all-father Odin about the ancient universe and the presence of the Dark Elves and their leader Malekith the Accursed, of whom seeks to bring the known universe to darkness by using the Aether; a viscous force with highly destructive qualities. It was at the time of The Convergence that Malekith decided he would attempt to bring down the nine realms, but the Asgardians led by Odin’s father Bor were able to defeat the Dark Elves and retrieve the Aether by force, hiding it and keeping it’s location secret for the safety of the universe.

Malekith is into ancient powers of destruction, it's kind of his deal

We catch up with Thor on a round-the-realm tour with his warriors four, with a view to bring peace to the nine worlds once and for all. The events of the first film and Avengers Assemble have brought a sincere maturity to Thor, of which has changed Odin’s opinion of his once brash and warmongering son and he is know being eyed for the throne of Asgard, whilst his estranged brother Loki is left to stew in an Asgardian cell for his crimes against Earth. 

Thor hits his stride early on and Hemsworth is really confident in the role now

When she's not doodling Mrs Thor of Asgard in her science books, Jane Foster is adjusting her world back to pre-Thor times after his swift departure due to the destruction of the Bifrost. But due to some scientific abnormalities, Jane and her assistant Darcy investigate some strange goings on in London of which cause some ripples in space time of their own, causing Thor to return to Midgard to make amends with his faraway girlfriend… 

Hemsworth and Portman get their noses really close to each others

The films structure is heavily based around The Convergence, which is a really cool concept and tries hard to build on the explaining of the nine realms in the first film. The second idea is generally convenience. It's convenient that Jane ends up next to the Aether. It's super convenient that Thor and Jane stumble into another portal back to Earth. There's just a lot of it going around and it bugged me. The only other negative were the early scenes in London. Even Marvel can't escape the dreariness of this bloody country, and with Jane and the gang phoning in the comedy, it's kills the movie quite early (despite a topless Chris Hemsworth mere moments before at the 10 minute mark - you're welcome ladies). 

Even Superheroes have trouble with potholes in England...

I will say this – what The Dark World lacks in a driven plot, very much makes up for with the action. With Game of Throne’s Alan Taylor at the directorate helm, the full on battle pieces are larger than life, from the opening fight on Hogun’s home turf to Thor’s fight against Kursed Algrim, which I swear reminded me of Hulk Hogan vs Andre the Giant at Wrestlemania. 

Yeah, Thor is about to get his ass handed to him

Chris Hemsworth returns to fine form as the God of Thunder, keeping his own momentum going from Avengers of which we certainly see him maturing as a character and starting to take responsibility for the wider scheme of things of which his hammer touches. Christopher Eccleston takes a good swing at joining Marvel’s varied smorgasbord of villains, and makes a great leader of the army of evil Teletubbies. But this leaves the rest of the cast unfortunately in the shadows slightly. 

The Dark World boasts some incredible visuals

Except of course Loki. Tom Hiddlestone's talent is endless, and like RDJ to Tony Stark, absolutely shines as Loki again, showing that the character is crude and cruel as ever with no remorse for those who oppose. And even when shackled and caged, he is still able to flex the feels. It's no wonder Loki's fan base is mad by itself. 

Anyone else up for a solo Loki spin-off?

I'm giving Thor The Dark World a 6/10. Great action and good acting but a phone in for plot and over complicated story that really was about introducing a new infinity stone. We saw what you did there Marvel. One down … Five to go. Join me next week for my review of Captain America: The Winter Soldier, of which I'm really looking forward to! Keep it Locked at Cape and Cowl for everything Superhero!