Today I thought that I would try something a little bit different for a blog post. This past week has been a very good one for trailers, between Detroit, The Last Jedi, and Thor: Ragnarok. As a huge Marvel fan, I was very excited by the trailer for the new Thor...but, as a huge mythology nerd, I was even more excited. That trailer packed so much mythology into under two minutes, and I fangirled pretty hard at some of what was included.
But then I thought - I have a blog where I talk about mythology. Why not do a breakdown of the trailer? But, instead of focusing on the Marvel aspects, why not point out all the similarities to classical Norse mythology?
And so, without further ado, let's jump into the trailer!
First of all: The name. In Norse mythology, Ragnarok is literally "The Doom of the Gods". In traditional mythology, Ragnarok ends with most of the Norse pantheon (and all but a handful of mortals) dead. The name of the movie alone is setting the stage for a cataclysmic event.
Thor drops into the trailer right away. Mythological Thor isn't the brightest lightning bolt in the sky, but he's always game for a fight, and he fights hard to defend those close to him. Marvel movie Thor is pretty much the same in that aspect.
What really interested me were the red, glowing eyes and mouths that can be seen six seconds into the preview. In mythology, Ragnarok comes at the hands of the denizens of Muspelheim - fire Jotunn. These giants are led by a being named Surtr, and it's at their hands that the world ends in fire. The few seconds these dark figures are in the trailer doesn't say much about them, but it has me wondering if they might be the fire Jotunn. (Frost Jotunn have already appeared in the first Thor movie, and their world was explored by Thor and his companions. It wouldn't surprise me to have the fire Jotunn show up, and I'm wondering if Thor might be hanging upside down in Muspelheim.) If so, it's another way the trailer is tying back to Ragnarok.
The next character to appear in the trailer also supports Ragnarok; her name is Hela. This is the Marvel version of the Norse goddess Hel, who rules over (if her name didn't give it away) Hel, the Norse variant on the underworld. Mythological Hel is the goddess of death, as well as being the child of Loki. When Ragnarok arrives in mythology, the forces of Hel (led by Loki) rise up from the underworld and fight against the gods.
The trailer certainly sets Hela up to be a major villain. She destroys Mjolnir with what looks like very little effort. Then she is shown standing in front of the armies of Asgard, home of the gods. "Asgard...is dead." she declares dramatically, and then fire sweeps throughout Asgard, destroying everything. (Fire! Again, it all ties back to Ragnarok.) I'm very much looking forward to seeing what role she plays in the movie.
Next you have Thor being dragged away by a beautiful warrior woman. This woman is called Valkyrie in the Marvel comics, and she too has a mythological counterpart. I'll shamelessly borrow a line from my book to describe the valkyrie:
"The valkyr were the angels of the battlefield, fearsome women warriors who could sense the approach of death and were tasked by Odin to aid his chosen side in battle. When a warrior died they bore him up to the Halls of Valhalla, the Hall of the Slain, where he would join the ranks of the Einherjar. There he would be waited upon by the valkyr and never know sorrow until the coming of Ragnarök.”
Now, I highly doubt that Thor is dead in the trailer, and the arena he winds up in doesn't look much like any afterlife. However, it's worth noting that the Hall of the Slain, where all the valorous dead wound up, was known for its feasting, drinking, and brawling. To have a character named Valkyrie dragging Thor to a place where he's forced to fight isn't too far off from mythology. In addition, her very name is already setting this character up to fight on Thor's side against the bad guys during Ragnarok. She seems to be a pretty competent fighter, so I'm looking forward to that.
A few of the characters from previous Thor movies make a cameo in the trailer. Heimdall, the watcher of Asgard, is there - and so is Loki. Now, it's no surprise that they chose to show Loki in the trailer, since he seems to be a fangirl favorite of Marvel. The inclusion of Heimdall could just be a coincidence, one of many characters from the Thor franchise that they just so happened to pick. However...the myth nerd in me says otherwise. I think his inclusion, along with Loki, was a deliberate foreshadowing.
In the myths, during Ragnarok Heimdall plays an important role. The watcher was never particularly fond of mythological Loki, a trickster whose mischief often went a few steps too far. When Loki eventually was responsible for the murder of a god, Heimdall helped track him down and imprison him. During Ragnarok, Loki breaks free of his bonds and fights against the gods. Heimdall counters him.
In the myths, Heimdall and Loki kill each other.
I can't see Marvel killing off Loki. (At least, not permanently, at any rate.) Tom Hiddleston is a huge asset to them, and as previously mentioned, Loki has a lot of fangirls. My best friend is one of them, and I know she would riot if her favorite character died. (Just like I did when my favorite Marvel character was killed off by Loki...)
However, I can see Heimdall being killed off. It would lend additional emotional weight to the story. His sacrifice could inspire Thor to fight harder. And it would help to show again the villainous side of Loki, who tends to swing between villain and anti-hero in the movies.
And those are my thoughts on the trailer! It's a lot of text for less than two minutes of video, haha. I'm not sure if any of my speculation will pan out, but it's always interesting to me to see what they choose to draw on from the myths. What are you guys' thoughts?
