Critics of Thor: Love and Thunder agree that he is not a Ragnarok
Thor: Ragnarok was one of those three rare ones much more beloved than the previous two installments. Overall, it is considered a perfect combination of director vision and fulfillment of franchise demand. In addition, he achieved a successful tonal change that redefined the main character. Following it would never be easy. And judging by the criticism so far of following director Taika Waititi, Thor: Love and Thunder shows the struggle. But even if it’s not Ragnarok, most critics of our unscientific show still manage to find some joy.
Echoing the most critical sentiments, Alonso Duralde writes in The Wrap that: “If the latter intended to mix it by giving equal weight to the masks of comedy and tragedy, it is an effort that falls short.” However, it doesn’t cancel it all out, allowing: “Waititi and the Marvel team are too cunning as showpeople not to keep pace and massive reach.”
Tom Jorgensen at IGN falls more on the positive side, highlighting Chris Hemsworth in particular for the praise “an asgardà as enthusiastic as ever.” But he also finds some disappointment with the story, calling it “less skillful, and much safer than you’d expect, to get the MCU’s biggest story going.” David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter supports this take, adding that Hemsworth “continues to give a great muscular himbo, but the bets never take on much urgency in a film too busy being joking and youthful to tell an exciting story.”
Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian, who calls Ragnarok his favorite MCU film, is also a fan of Hemsworth, “the most shameless, the most visibly enjoying, the most relaxed with his own skin and in front of his own green screen.” . However, as for the larger film, “as much as Waititi plays it skillfully, Marvel’s comedy mode has become a bit of a reflex, a setting mode that could almost be activated in the menu. “Marvel software configuration”.
Josh Spiegel of Slashfilm writes, “There’s a fine line between sincerity and fluidity, and Thor: Love and Thunder is having a very difficult time riding that line.” He praises Christian Bale’s dark twist as villain Gorr, but then adds, “Making a good chunk of this new Thor movie pretty dark, Waititi and [cowriter Jennifer Kaytin] Robinson ends up stumbling upon recovering – or trying to recover – the cheeky comedy that made Ragnarok stand out.
Scott Mendelson of Forbes goes beyond denial than many. While he says, “as colorful and visually inventive as one might expect,” he also calls it “an unnecessary sequel, existing only because his predecessor was unusually well received even by those who were not fans of the MCU.… Bale, [Tessa] Thompson and “Guns and Roses” [sic] Aside from the melodies, this fourth Thor is a real chore. “
Our own review should land later today, and all we’ll say for now is that it falls somewhere on that spectrum.
What do you think of the reviews so far? Let us know in the comments.
Recommended Reading: Jason Aaron’s Thor: The Complete Collection Vol. 1
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