Fall’s most anticipated film, Marvel’s Thor: Ragnarok, was released on Nov. 3.  Ragnarok is the third installment in the Thor trilogy.  The movie was extremely hyped up due to its seemingly drastic departure from the previous two Thor movies.  There were also many new characters and settings to help show how much the franchise has changed.

Ragnarok introduced the Marvel Cinematic Universe to new characters such as Valkyrie (played by Tessa Thompson), Hela (played by Cate Blanchett), The Grandmaster (played by Jeff Goldblum), and Korg (played by Taika Waititi). Hela is the goddess of death who plans on taking the throne of Asgard for herself. The Grandmaster is one of the Elders of the Universe who rules on the planet Sakaar and runs a gladiatorial competition called the Contest of Champions. Valkyrie is an Asgardian bounty hunter who now works for the Grandmaster, but was once a member of the legendary Valkyrior, a group of female warriors destined to take down enemies of Asgard. Korg is a gladiator who competed in the Contest of Champions who eventually befriends Thor and helps him take down Hela.

Thor: Ragnarok was an extreme improvement from Thor and Thor: The Dark World. The previous two are the more lackluster Marvel films in comparison, but Ragnarok is definitely a redemption for the trilogy. Its comedy level is easily comparable to the level of Guardians of the Galaxy, but with its own special flare. The acting was also incredible, with notable performances by Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Jeff Goldblum (The Grandmaster), Mark Ruffalo (Hulk), and Tessa Thompson (Valkyrie).  

Unfortunately though, Marvel continued its trend of having weak villains. Despite introducing audiences to their first female villain, Hela, it wasn’t enough to make a memorable villain in terms of the MCU due to the fact that she had the same goal of taking over the world as every other antagonist and can never seem to achieve it.   

The most important aspect of this movie was how it displayed Thor’s characterization.  When Thor was first introduced into the MCU, he was viewed as an arrogant prince who wanted the power of the throne. Now, six years later, Thor has grown into a true leader who fights for his people rather than fighting for himself.

Thor: Ragnarok was the perfect finale to the Thor trilogy.  Not only because of its humor, but also because it perfectly displayed Thor’s journey from arrogant prince to selfless hero.