Trailer Tuesdays: Thor 2: The Dark World

Well, it’s finally here, the trailer for Thor: The Dark World! Aren’t you excited?! I know I am! Let’s take a look.

Oh… okay…

That really wasn’t what I had been expecting.

I’m not about to say that this movie doesn’t look interesting, because it looks like it has a lot of interesting things going on. But I do have some problems with it already. First of all, just from this trailer, I know nothing about what’s happening, or what the stakes are, or even who the antagonist is. According to Wikipedia, this is the premise:

Set one year after The Avengers, Thor battles to save all the Nine Realms from a mysterious enemy older than the universe itself. However, a primeval race led by Malekith, who is out for revenge, intends to plunge the universe into darkness. Confronted by an enemy that even Odin and Asgard cannot overcome, Thor must reunite with Jane Foster and set out on a dangerous journey that will force him to make the ultimate sacrifice.

Yeah, other than darkness and Jane Foster, I didn’t really get any of that in this trailer. For all I know, Malekith is being a douchebag because why not? Revenge! Yes, that sounds good. This is the first trailer out, though, so maybe some of the upcoming ones will better explain the plot. I think the main reason I’m not happy about this trailer, though, is because of Jane Foster.

Jane has never been my favorite character. In the original comics, she was a useless love interest who constantly needed to be saved, was motivated by men, and added nothing other than being an obligatory damsel. That’s changed a little bit in the later comics and even in the animated series Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. She has grown as a person over the decades, and I will admit that Natalie Portman does a good job of adding some depth and likable traits to her character.

That said, I cannot stand the Jane Foster of the movie-verse, and I’m not too happy that most of this trailer seems to be about her and Thor’s relationship, or even that this short clip manages to show her in a damsel-in-distress position. In the original comics, Jane is a nurse. Being a nurse is a traditional female job (not that I’m discrediting it, because it is not an easy job regardless). But the movies chose to make Jane a scientist. Not a big deal, and hey, we can use a few more ladies in scientific positions. By all means, let’s make it happen. The problem is that Jane’s shift in profession was done only to further Thor’s story arc. We never actually really learn what she’s studying, and when you think about it, what we do know about her research makes no sense. And I wasn’t really a fan of the blossoming romance she and Thor had after a whole two days of knowing each other.

I’d much rather see more of Sif, to be honest. Sif actually does stuff without the approval of men. I’d be glad to see Amora show up too. Or Brunnhilde. Natalie Portman might do a good job with Jane, but the role didn’t give her a lot to work with in the last movie, and that doesn’t look to be changing here.

On another note, is Loki allowed to shave in prison, but not cut his hair?