Mark Ruffalo and Chris Hemsworth in Thor: Ragnarok

My Favorite Scene: Thor Ragnarok (2017) “Thor vs. Hulk”

As the MCU rolls into its 19th film, the franchise has gotten to the point where it is able to do one of the things that made Marvel Comics so successful when they first debuted in the 1960s.  You have a feeling that any character can now show up in any movie at any time, and having built strong characters with deep foundations, you can have a ton of fun playing with new combinations.  The third Thor film does this with both the Hulk and Doctor Strange (mostly Hulk), and even though I loved the first two Thor films a lot more than most, there’s not doubt that Ragnarok is the strongest of the three had the most impact on the overall MCU.


Planet Hulk is a storyline that fans have been clamoring for a film adaptation of for years, but Disney and Universal are bogged down in a lawsuit as to who actually owns the rights to make solo Hulk films.  So Disney just went ahead and backdoored Planet Hulk into a Thor film.  Watching the two most powerful Avengers have a knockdown drag-out fight is epic, and I’ve always been a fan of Gladiator Hulk.  Both in the fight and in the almost-as-awesome sequence with Doctor Strange, you really have to admire Chris Hemsworth’s groove with Thor.  The character was always the most troublesome of the original group to solo (he has a magic hammer, wears a winged helmet, speaks like a Shakespearean character, and lives in a magic realm with rainbow bridge….it wasn’t irrational to be worried).  Hemsworth has managed to make the character noble and increasingly mature but also infuse him with a comedic goofiness about his self-importance and in his relationships with the other Avengers, that I can’t imagine anyone else being able to pull off.

Who knows what will happen to Thor over Avengers 3 and 4, but I’m hoping King Thor gets a chance to relocate Asgard when all is said and done on the other side.  I think there are still more stories to tell with the character now that Ragnarok completely changed his entire character and supporting cast.


17 thoughts on “My Favorite Scene: Thor Ragnarok (2017) “Thor vs. Hulk””

  1. I too enjoyed the first two Thor movies, although I felt that The Dark World was relatively weak compared to the other Marvel movies, but Ragnarok is not only a strong addition to the Thor movies but to the MCU as a whole.


    Liked by 1 person

    1. The Dark World’s biggest problem was not even giving Malekith anything whatsoever to do as an antagonist, but without it, we wouldn’t get Lok’s epic recreation (complete with Matt Damon playing him) in Ragnarok. This is one of the best MCU films hands down, and maybe with Civil War the two most impactful on Infinity War going into the movie.

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      1. Ragnarok feels like it’s going to be a direct lead in to Infinity War, although how much is still up for speculation.


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      1. Nah, I dont think they’ll let him because they don’t want the movies to be funny apparently


        Liked by 1 person

      2. I don’t think that’s the case. Humor has been huge to all the MCU films and Ragnarok made so much more money than the other Thors, I can’t believe they wouldn’t jump at having him back.

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      3. I’m pretty sure they are going to keep them funny given the popularity of Guardians and Ragnarok. Wasn’t Ragnarok the most successful Thor movie?

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  2. I’m nearing the end of my entire-MCU-rewatch, and every movie Thor was in had at least one one-liner that gave us hints of his sense of humour, (and Chris Helmsworth’s comedic timing) so I wasn’t too surprised** at how successfully Ragnarok upped the ante on it, and still managed to stay Shakespearean, and serious and superhero-y.

    ** notwithstanding my ‘pleasebegoodpleasebegood’ reactions when the trailers first came out. 🙂

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  3. What an amazing iconic sequence. Great effects work too. I love Ruffalo, whether he gets his solo film or not (I know, he’ll never). He’s so good at conveying the tragic and relatable qualities of the Hulk. Even Ang Lee and Eric Bana, working full tilt to create a “serious” film, left us with a ridiculous and cold and distant figure.


    I LOVE THOR: RAGNAROK. The MCU improves with each passing film. There will soon have been over twenty of these movies, and they haven’t jumped the shark yet. Do you realize how momentous that is? I have my doubts about IW, and yet I’m HIGHLY EXCITED. I only wish I were a kid, living through this. That would make it better. The only thing.

    (You’re right about the Doctor Strange scene, it is wonderful.)

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    1. For what it’s worth it’s at 88% on RT with about 110 reviews in, and this definitely does seem to be half of a massive finale movie for this first act of the MCU – 22 films by the time the credits roll on Avengers 4. It is unprecedented and, yes, they have been getting even better in quality. It will be sad to say good-bye to some old friends, but without an ending, stories are meaningless. The universe’s next generation looks like it’s in good hands, and there are still more stories to tell with the potential for even more corners of the MCU to explore. Soon it will pass Bond to become the most prolific as well as profitable franchise, and maybe this is its height, but I still think there is a lot of excitement to come. Being a kid or a teenager during all of this would blow my mind, but I also wouldn’t have tens of thousands of comics in my head to supplement my film experience. I’m seeing it tomorrow night, and my expectations are tempered. I think it’s going to be more the blockbuster than character-based drama we’ve had from the last few films, and I think it will feel incomplete, but I’m hopeful. I think people will end up rewatching this by finishing with Avengers 3 and 4 back-to-back and it’ll only be when we have the second half that we can really judge it fairly, but I’m avoiding all reviews and my own will be very light and spoiler-free. People should get to go and see this without having anything spoiled.


      Liked by 1 person

      1. I’m not even reading any reviews. Not a single one. It IS going to be incomplete, and it’s simultaneously going to have too much going on. But that’s the nature of the beast.

        This film really needs Thanos to be good. He’s going to put this over the top, or not. Kilmonger was fantastic because he was strong enough to create a through line. The film was structured around the threat he posed. That is how most great movies work, and it’s held back the MCU in general.


        Half a movie, with a ridiculous number of heroes filling it. Thanos needs to be a ROCK. One of the few things I know about the film is that his entire motivation has been changed…I hope his reason for wanting to wipe out half the life in the universe does not suddenly seem reasonable.

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