How To Break Thor: Waititi vs Russos
Thor: Ragnarok, Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame have something in common: they destroy Thor into oblivion. To the point he isn’t standing straight by the end, having lost literally everything, though with an acceptance of it all. The idea that started in Thor3 effectively spiraled out of control by Avengers4, with Avengers3 serving as the perfect balance.
But there is a significant difference in how Taika Waititi did it in Thor3 and how the Russo brothers – Anthony and Joe – along with writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely did the same in Avengers3 and 4. While Thor3 had all kinds of terrible things happen to Thor with 0 impact or payoff – leaving it feeling unfulfilled, Avengers4 doubled down on his misery – eventually tripping over itself and forgetting that trauma isn’t something to be made fun of. Avengers3, however, was the perfect storm. It did everything right and more.
Whenever something bad happens to a character – it should ideally have a reaction, reflection, and an overall impact (payoff) to serve its purpose. For example, back in Thor1, when Thor is kicked out of Asgard, his immediate reaction is disbelief, even denial, asking Heimdall to teleport him back.
Later, we see him reflect when he admits that he was wrong in his ways and his father had been trying to teach him something. And the overall impact is of course the culmination of his arc with him learning valuable life lessons and earning the worthiness of Mjolnir. So there you have it – reaction, reflection, and payoff.
Cut to Thor3 onwards, a plethora of shitty things happen to Thor here on out. While both Avengers films painstakingly show us the impact they have on him and how he really is losing himself with each blow, Thor3 just doesn’t have any of it. Things happen, they are usually followed by a joke, and then life moves on. Thor never reacts or reflects on any of it. It’s honestly bizarre. The payoff, if any, is in the Avengers films that creates the illustration of wholesomeness when it actually isn’t that way
This is why it irks me when people collectively praise Waititi and Russos for “breaking” Thor when it couldn’t be more untrue. Waititi didn’t put any of the leg work Russos did. He had a good idea and he should be praised for that. But that’s about it.
I put together a list of all the tragedy my guy encounters in the 3 films:
Well, that is a lot of tragedy for one person to go through in their 1500-year-old life. No wonder he was a depressed alcoholic in Avengers4.
Quite early on in Thor3, Odin Allfather dies in one of the most awkward scenes in MCU history. Nonetheless, we get a reaction from his son:
He is about to confront Loki for being the cause of Odin’s death, which could have been a great exchange but is conveniently interrupted by the arrival of their sister, Hela. He does have a moment of reflection when he offers his prayers for Odin to rest in peace:
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