Thor: Ragnarok

Thor: Ragnarok changes the game for the entire Asgard family. Hela, goddess of death, attacks the entire realm (and might succeed in destroying it), Thor gets booted off into the multiverse and lands on a hellish gladiator planet, and he and the Hulk, his former teammate, are pitted against each other in an arena. Thor also loses his hair, his flowy cape, and — gasp — his hammer!

Taika Waititi just can’t resist putting himself in his own movies, and since he’s such a hilarious talent, it’s not like we’re complaining. We already knew that he’d be playing Korg, the film’s “most lovable character,” but apparently he also stood in for Hulk during some scenes.

Rarely does a movie hook me so hard with trailers and posters, but everything that Thor: Ragnarok is putting down is right up my alley. If the film ends up being more Ant-Man than Guardians of the Galaxy — mostly cookie-cutter superhero fare with a few interesting visuals along the way — I’m going to be all kinds of sad. This is Taika Waititi’s world, Marvel: we just happen to be living in it. Let the man’s imagination run free and I promise we’ll support you.

Over the year’s, Marvel’s marketing strategy seems to have pivoted slightly. As the movies have become more successful and the core group of actors have settled into their roles, Marvel seems to now be emphasizing the fresh blood in its pre-release publicity. Tom Holland gushing about playing Spider-Man? Brie Larson discussing the importance of Captain Marvel? Taika Waititi having a blast talking up his cast and crew? It doesn’t really matter what side of the camera you were on; if you’re still riding that Marvel high, you’ll be the one to do the talking.

Thor and Jane Foster’s breakup has been one of those background subplots shrouded in mystery from the rest of the Avengers, though, to the rest of us who can see Natalie Portman’s real-life career flourishing beyond the bounds of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it makes perfect sense. The breakup was disappointing to some fans (me, I shipped it, it’s the purest relationship in the whole series and it’s OVER and I’m SAD ABOUT IT), but rest assured that Thor: Ragnarok will finally give us an in-universe explanation. Kinda.

Following yesterday’s debut of eight new (and totally rad) character posters, Marvel has unleashed a new sneak peek at Thor: Ragnarok. The special look at the sequel premiered during last night’s NFL season opener, and somewhat appropriately opens with Jeff Goldblum’s Grandmaster touting the “main event” — which is, of course, the gladiator-style battle between Thor and his work friend, Hulk. Oh, and also there’s a giant wolf?!

It won’t be hard for this fall to beat the worst summer box office in more than ten years, but it’s gearing up to blow the past few months out of the water. Fall — that is, Thanksgiving, a.k.a. all-the-kids-are-home-from-school-and-looking-for-something-to-do season — is almost upon us, and with it come some of the most exciting blockbusters of the year. And it’s Marvel vs. DC yet again as two superhero movies vie for the top spot.

Thor: Ragnarok looks truly rad. The trailers for Taika Waititi’s upcoming sequel tease a film that’s supremely funny and wildly colorful and really, really cool; it’s like watching a trailer for the movie version of the smiley face with sunglasses emoji, or a movie called “Rad Dudes With Bad Attitudes.” Marvel’s promotional materials for Ragnarok are definitely in keeping with that particular aesthetic, like this series of eight new, neon-colored character posters — even Jeff Friggin’ Goldblum and Anthony Hopkins get their own posters.

If there is any upside to James Cameron (again) putting his foot in his mouth  —  this time by talking about Wonder Woman  —  it was the resulting conversation about how female action stars should be presented in Hollywood. As our own Emma Stefansky wrote at the time, feminism and depictions of femininity onscreen aren’t a one-size-fits-all equation; creating a false dichotomy between two types of female action stars  —  where everyone has to be either a Diana Prince or a Sarah Connor  —  only places limits on the ways women can be depicted in film and television. Filmmakers should be free to find the depictions of femininity that works for their characters.

I’d like to think I’m not prone to hyperbole, so believe me when I say I’m putting all my remaining Marvel eggs in the Thor: Ragnarok basket. Sure, I’ve more-or-less enjoyed most of the movies in the franchise  —  this year’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, for example, might be one of their best yet  —  but superhero movies are like anything else: the more you ingest, the less you enjoy it the next time around. If Marvel is going to continue making these movies until the sun explodes, then I’m ready for things to get a little bit weird, and Thor: Ragnarok director Taika Waititi is the right person to deliver.