History YMMV / ThorRagnarok

** Odin [[spoiler:dies in the first act, so he]] is heavily underused and the movie never really gets to explore his troubled relationship with his family, [[spoiler:especially his daughter, who apparently wielded Mjolnir before Thor, nor the fact that he committed many atrocities that had been covered up, and that Asgard's splendor was built on plunder and conquest]]. In addition, we never hear Odin's side of the story, with him only saying that [[spoiler: Hela grew too powerful to control so he banished her. Hela states that Odin, with her as his weapon, drenched the Nine Realms in blood and tears, that Asgard was built on conquest, and that one day Odin just decided to stop being a conqueror and be a protector. Was Odin really a bloodthirsty butcher who just grew tired of it all, or did he have a MyGodWhatHaveIDone moment at some point to convince him to try a peaceful path? Or were the Nine Realms as Odin found them terrible places, leading Odin to become a WellIntentionedExtremist who [[IDidWhatIHadToDo did what had to be done]] to bring peace, and was glad to set aside the fighting as soon as possible?]] We'll never know.

* BaseBreakingCharacter: Shares a [[BaseBreakingCharacter/MarvelCinematicUniverse page with the rest of the franchise]].

* BaseBreakingCharacter: While Hela received lots of praise for being Marvel's first female BigBad, a great example of EvilIsCool and Cate Blanchett cutting loose to give an exciting performance, there are a number of detractors who hate that she spends most of the movie separated from both Thor and Loki - preventing her from having any meaningful interaction with the major characters. Additionally, many fans have called her out for having rather thin and generic characterization. A second camp agrees that the writing falls flat but Cate Blanchett's performance makes up for it.

* MoralEventHorizon: See [[MoralEventHorizon/MarvelCinematicUniverse here]].

* FandomRivalry: Par the course, [[Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse DCEU]] and MCU fans were already split over whether this or ''Film/{{Justice League|2017}}'' would be the bigger film of November 2017. It's especially noteworthy for being the first time a film from the MCU and the DCEU are being [[DuelingWorks released in the same month]]. Complaints have already surfaced on social media from the DCEU fanbase [[TrueArtIsAngsty about most critics praising the movie as "fun"]], and after ''Justice League'''s mediocre reception and [[BoxOfficeBomb financial failure]], cracking jokes about how one of Marvel's former B-list characters managed to outperform one of the most popular superhero teams in existence has become quite popular.

** Valkyrie suffered an enormous breakdown and became an alcoholic due to her run in with Hela, but recovers thanks to Thor. After the events of this film and ''Infinity War'', this is the fate that befalls Thor himself in ''Endgame'', becoming grossly overweight and unclean even ''worse'' than Valkyrie was. [[spoiler:To add harsher irony to it, Thor passes the title of monarch to Valkyrie, seeing him in his current state unfit to lead Asgard.]]

* MoralEventHorizon: Hela crossed this in-universe when she murdered Odin's guards in the past, leading to her banishment and imprisonment. For the audience, she crosses it when she murders [[spoiler:Volstagg and Fandral]] without saying a word.

** WebVideo/HonestTrailers dubbed it ''Flash Thordon'' -- especially as Waititi has stated repeatedly that he based the entirety of Sakaar (Grandmaster is basically Creator/JeffGoldblum AdamWesting Ming the Merciless) on ''Film/FlashGordon1980'' and would have begged ''Music/{{Queen}}'' to do the soundtrack if Music/FreddieMercury was still alive.

* SacredCow: Considered widely by fans to be the best ''Thor'' movie and one of the best entries in the MCU in general -- some fans can get very defensive when the movie is criticised. Especially over [[NeverLiveItDown the jokes in it]].

** After Creator/JamesGunn was controversially fired from ''Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3'' due to the content of some of his old tweets, many fans clamored for Creator/TaikaWaititi to replace him in the director's chair, due to the tone of ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy2014'' being quite similar to this film. Although he would shoot down this idea due not wanting to take ownership of Gunn's characters, Waititi would end up getting to play with the Guardians anyways in ''Film/ThorLoveAndThunder''.

** The second trailer, with its heavy emphasis on often comedic sci-fi action, promptly led it to be dubbed ''[[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy Asgardians (or As-Guardians) of the Galaxy]]''.

** Thor's fond memories of his brother stabbing him as part of a prank he pulled while the two of them were eight years old takes significantly darker context after ''[[Series/Loki2021 Loki]]'' reveals that [[spoiler:a variant of Loki ended up killing Thor as a child, and was pruned by the TVA as a result.]]

** One of the film's [[FanNickname Fan Nicknames]] is ''[[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy Asgardians of the Galaxy]]'' due to its status as an intergalactic space comedy. Come 2018 and we're actually getting a comic called ''Asgardians of the Galaxy'' featuring Valkyrie and Skurge in the cast.

** After Creator/JamesGunn was controversially fired from ''Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3'' due to the content of some of his old tweets, many fans clamored for Creator/TaikaWaititi to replace him in the director's chair, due to the tone of ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'' being quite similar to this film. Although he would shoot down this idea due not wanting to take ownership of Gunn's characters, Waititi would end up getting to play with the Guardians anyways in ''Film/ThorLoveAndThunder''.

** Multiple news outlets have called Hela the MCU's first female supervillain, even though Nebula was a villain in ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'' and Ayesha was a supporting antagonist in ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol2'', which came out a few months before ''Ragnarok''. However, Hela ''is'' the first MCU movie BigBad to be female, as Ayesha never engages in personal combat with the heroes and largely functions as setup for ''Vol. 3'', and Nebula in the first ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'' was nothing more than TheDragon to Ronan and [[spoiler:became an AntiVillain in ''Vol. 2'']]. And this is only counting the movies. ''Series/AgentsOfSHIELD'', ''Series/AgentCarter'', ''Series/LukeCage2016'' and ''Series/TheDefenders2017'' all have major female villains, with at least four (Jiaying and AIDA in ''Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'', Mariah Dillard in ''Luke Cage'', and Alexandra in ''The Defenders'') being the central Big Bads for entire story arcs.

** The Asgardian play at the beginning of the movie which retells the events of ''Film/ThorTheDarkWorld'' in a very comedic way is considered one of the movie's strongest sequences and gets recognation for featuring Creator/LukeHemsworth, Creator/SamNeill and Creator/Matt Damon as actors playing Thor, Odin and Loki, with especially Damon!Loki being loved by fans and being deemed very memeable.

* OneSceneWonder: Doctor Strange appears in only one scene, but it's a hilarious one where he uses his magic to trap Loki in a pocket dimension and keep Thor off-balance while he's in the Sanctum Sanctorum.

** One of the most common criticisms of the previous two films was the HumanFocusedAdaptation taking the spotlight off of more interesting otherworldly characters and settings. Here, with the exception of Thor and Loki's encounter with Doctor Strange and their subsequent final moments with Odin, this film primarily takes place off-Earth.

** A minor example in the character Korg: in the intro of ''Film/ThorTheDarkWorld,'' Thor faces off against a RockMonster who is ''clearly'' intended to be Korg (identical down to the shape of his head and the specific design of the leather harness he wears and on the commentary, Kevin Feige even calls him "Korg"), and the God of Thunder shatters him to gravel with [[OneHitKill a single strike of Mjölnir.]] [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter This clearly didn't sit well]] with ''someone'', but since his name was never mentioned on screen, and given the opportunity presented in adapting ''ComicBook/PlanetHulk'' in the [[SurprisinglyImprovedSequel threequel]], they apparently decided to "reboot" Korg as a different member of the same species, using a notably smaller and slightly less comic-identical design.

* CompleteMonster: [[Characters/MCUHela Hela]], [[EverybodyHatesHades Goddess of Death]] and Thor's monstrous elder sister, helped Odin conquer the empire of Asgard, but when he tired of war and finally sought peace, she was sealed away when her bloodlust and cruelty grew too great. After murdering his guards, Hela was finally subdued and [[SealedEvilInACan sealed]] but massacred the Valkyries until only one remained when they sought to prevent her escape. Upon returning to Asgard, Hela [[DarkActionGirl slaughters all its soldiers]] when they resist her and tries to claim the sword of Heimdall to open the gate to the other Realms. When Heimdall saves the population of Asgard, Hela attempts to have her undead soldiers slaughter all of Asgard's people while [[ForcedToWatch forcing Thor to watch]] them die--after she had blinded him in one eye. She even killed her own right-hand man, Skurge, when he takes a stand to defend Asgard's civilians. Monstrous, sadistic and insatiable, Hela seeks to open the gate to all other Realms so she can [[GodSaveUsFromTheQueen conquer everything and continue her work of drowning them in blood and tears]].

* AuthorsSavingThrow: It's a common joke that Thor is one of the least interesting characters in his own movies, often being overshadowed by Loki or the other Avengers during team-ups. Director Taika Waititi has said that a lot of effort went into making sure Thor has an interesting arc in Ragnarok, and that he actually gets to be the badass his fans know he can be.

** Many fans were disappointed in the perceived demoting of characters Korg and Miek from core members of the [[FiveManBand Warbound]] in [[ComicBook/PlanetHulk Planet Hulk]] to ComicRelief characters with minimal screen time or character development. In particular, Miek went from the source material's pathetic outcast [[TookALevelInBadass turned hero and destroyer]] to what is effectively a [[TheSpeechless nonverbal]] [[TeamPet purple worm]]--admittedly one with a [[PoweredArmor robotic exoskeleton]]--whose most memorable scene in the film was [[spoiler:pooping out what appeared to be [[{{Squick}} thousands of eggs]].]]

* AuthorsSavingThrow:
** One of the most common criticisms of the previous two films was the HumanFocusedAdaptation taking the spotlight off of more interesting otherworldly characters and settings. Here, with the exception of Thor and Loki's encounter with Doctor Strange and their subsequent final moments with Odin, this film primarily takes place off-Earth.
** This movie makes a much greater effort to ensure Thor himself actually has an engrossing story arc this time, as many people felt his previous film appearances had him overshadowed by more interesting characters like the other Avengers or Loki, and fully utilizes Chris Hemsworth's comedy talents after he had generally been forced to act less funny than everyone around him. In fact, Hemsworth revealed that he and Waititi had been unhappy with the direction Thor had been taken in recent movies, and intentionally envisioned his storyline in ''Ragnarok'' as a course correction.
** In previous films, fans were polarized by the fact that Thor never wore his comic counterpart's winged helmet in battle [[note]][[WhatCouldHaveBeen It was originally meant to be used more prominently]], but Creator/ChrisHemsworth allegedly found it too impractical to wear, so it hasn't been since since his coronation in the first film[[/note]]. While fighting on Sakaar in ''Ragnarok'', Thor wears a new Sakaaran helmet that's more comfortable for Hemsworth while still resembling the iconic design.
** A major complaint many had about ''Film/ThorTheDarkWorld'' was how Loki's beefed-up role (thanks to the popularity of his appearance in ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}'') had something of a stranglehold on the movie, and resulted in the lead villain and many other characters being underutilized. While Loki still has a big part here, it's been toned down from ''The Dark World'', and he's used much more judiciously and effectively this time. He gets some great moments while still allowing for other members of the cast to shine. He also gets knocked around quite a bit, bordering on outright ButtMonkey status at times. Likewise, Heimdall, who fans felt was left vastly underutilized in the prior two films, is given a larger role.
** The first ''Thor'' film included a glimpse of the Infinity Gauntlet in the vault of Odin's treasures which turned into a ContinuitySnarl when the films started to feature the Infinity Stones. Various creators have tried to explain its presence by saying there are two gauntlets in existence which was met with varying degrees of acceptance. In ''Ragnarok'', Hela visits the vault and dismisses Odin's right-handed gauntlet as a fake.
** A minor example in the character Korg: in the intro of ''Film/ThorTheDarkWorld,'' Thor faces off against a RockMonster who is ''clearly'' intended to be Korg (identical down to the shape of his head and the specific design of the leather harness he wears and on the commentary, Kevin Feige even calls him "Korg"), and the God of Thunder shatters him to gravel with [[OneHitKill a single strike of Mjölnir.]] [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter This clearly didn't sit well]] with ''someone'', but since his name was never mentioned on screen, and given the opportunity presented in adapting ''ComicBook/PlanetHulk'' in the [[SurprisinglyImprovedSequel threequel]], they apparently decided to "reboot" Korg as a different member of the same species, using a notably smaller and slightly less comic-identical design.
** ''The Dark World'' gave Hogun the Grim much less screentime than the other two Warriors Three, prompting some accusations of Marvel shafting its Asian actors. ''Ragnarok'' goes the opposite direction, giving Hogun the ''most'' screentime and dialogue of the Warriors Three.
** After ''Thor'', there were complaints that Lady Sif was the only female warrior in Asgard, and people were wondering where the Valkyries were. The movie explains that the Valkyries did exist, and all but one were killed off in a battle with Hela.
** Another criticism of the previous two ''Thor'' films is how they undermine the Thor mythos by treating the Asgardians as merely SufficientlyAdvancedAliens. ''Ragnarok'' addresses this criticism by exploring Asgard's mythic roots from the comics, and a lot of their supernatural feats such as Loki's illusions and Thor's lightning are explicitly a result of magic and not SufficientlyAdvancedTechnology.

* FranchiseOriginalSin: Having ''[[Music/LedZeppelin The Immigrant Song]]'' as Thor's main theme was considered an inspired choice, since it's about Vikings being badass. ''Film/ThorLoveAndThunder'' tried to replicate this effect, but instead of finding any other songs pertaining to the story it just went with the most popular songs in the Music/GunsNRoses discography, which have faced so much exposure they do little to give the film its own identity[[note]]Covers of "Sweet Child o Mine" were featured in ''Film/BigDaddy'', ''Last House On The Left'' and ''Film/LifeAsWeKnowIt'', while the original was in ''Film/TheWrestler''. "Welcome to the Jungle" was in a few episodes of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'', ''WesternAnimation/{{Megamind}}'' and ''WesternAnimation/TheLegoNinjagoMovie''[[/note]].

* RelationshipWritingFumble: Between the way she speaks of Odin (referring to the pair of them as "Odin and I" as they appear next to each other on a mural) and her resentment at him having Thor, at times Hela comes off more as Odin's former FemmeFatale mistress than his abandoned daughter.

* FranchiseOriginalSin: Having ''[[Music/LedZeppelin The Immigrant Song]]'' as Thor's main theme was considered an inspired choice, since it's about Vikings being badass. ''Film/ThorLoveAndThunder'' tried to replicate this effect, but instead of finding any other songs pertaining to the story it just went with the most popular songs in the Music/GunsNRoses discography, which have faced so much exposure they do little to give the film its own identity[[note]]Covers of "Sweet Child o Mine" were featured in ''Film/BigDaddy'', ''Film/LastHouseOnTheLeft'' and ''Film/LifeAsWeKnowIt''. "Welcome to the Jungle" was in an episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'', ''WesternAnimation/{{Megamind}}'' and ''WesternAnimation/TheLegoNinjagoMovie''.[[/note]].

** More explicitly, even the approach to how humour is used in the movie, both inserting moment-breaking jokes after serious moments (such as the foundations moment) to how Thor is treated like a bit of an idiot, both have their origins in Walt Simonson run and were even present in the previous movies. In the 80s, Simonson had instances like Odin's sacrificial last stand against Surtur interjected with Loki ruining the moment, as well as had jokes about Thor ruining Lorelei's attempted seductions by falling asleep on her or his EpicFail attempts at pretending to be a normal human with a ClarkKenting style 'Sigurd Jarlson' identity. Never mind the fact in the previous films, where the seriousness of Thor's banishment is undercut by him ''constantly'' getting tased and knocked unconscious, his FishOutOfWater gimmick for much of the film making him act like an idiot, and the way the human characters in ''The Dark World'' were constantly adding humor or Loki's trolling of the others. {{Bathos}} and IdiotHero Thor are pretty much core to the franchise.

* AndYouThoughtItWouldFail: While both of the previous two ''Thor'' movies were financial successes, they are also both often considered amongst the weaker entries of the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe (with ''The Dark World'' in particular often considered one of the franchise's worst films), so audiences were largely unsure what to think when ''Ragnarok'' was first announced. The fact that ''Ragnarok'' was set to be released [[SequelGap a full four years]] after ''The Dark World'' didn't help. And neither did the fact that the Justice League [[Film/JusticeLeague2017 film adaptation]], which was expected to be a bigger draw due to the high caliber of the source material and characters featured, was set to be released into theaters two weeks after ''Ragnarok's'' own debut at the box office. In the end, however, it ended up receiving universal acclaim for its humor, characters, and tone, and is often regarded as one of the best films in the entire franchise (which is really saying a lot). It also became the 9th highest grossing film of 2017, soundly out-grossing even ''Justice League'' (which proved a high profile BoxOfficeBomb). And furthermore, it even singlehandedly renewed interest in Thor as a character to the point that he became the very first solo superhero in the MCU to get a fourth solo feature film greenlit.

* {{Fanon}}: There are few fans who, jokingly or not, think that the Kronan Marauder from ''Film/ThorTheDarkWorld'' was Korg's father, whose death by Thor caused Korg's mother to find another boyfriend.

** When calling on the citizens of Sakaar to find [[spoiler: his missing champion]], the Grandmaster says that he has been stolen by the "seductive" Lord of Thunder. [[ITakeOffenseToThatLastOne Thor then corrects it as "seductive" ''God'' of Thunder]].