10 Life Lessons From The MCU's Thor Trilogy (original) (raw)
From all the Marvel trilogies, Thor's franchise definitely had the weakest first two installments compared to Captain America and Iron Man's respective trilogies. Taika Waititi, however, managed to revamp the franchise with his action-packed, incredibly funny, and outrageously bold movie Thor: Ragnorak, bringing life into the Thor movies once again.
Despite the slightly disappointing start to the trilogy, in typical Marvel fashion, the movies are still packed with morals, lessons, and messages that have impacted many fans across the globe. Thor, more specifically, has dealt with grief, betrayal, and taught us plenty of important lessons over the years as the God of Thunder.
10 Everyone Can Be Redeemed
A recurring theme for the Marvel Cinematic Universe is following characters who begin as villains and eventually join the good guys fighting crime and saving the planet. One of the best examples of this character arc is Thor's younger brother Loki, the God of Mischief. Initially, he was introduced as the main antagonist of Thor, rivaling his older brother for the Asgardian throne.
Then, once again, he served as a villain fighting off the Avengers and starting an alien attack on New York. It was only after his imprisonment in Thor: The Dark World, and him teaming up with Thor and the Hulk in Thor: Ragnorak that he showed his true colors. His redemption was complete after he gave his life at the peril of Thanos at the start of Avengers: Infinity War.
9 Everybody Has Their Own Demons
From the outside, life can seem pretty perfect for some people, but deep down, no matter how perfect their life is, everybody has their own demons. Loki once again is the perfect example and, to an extent, so is Thor. There's a reason Loki is one of the most loved characters in the Marvel Universe. He grew up constantly in the shadow of his older brother and never felt loved by his family.
Inner demons can cause people to shut themselves out and do things for attention that they don't really mean. Deep down Loki is a good person, but his tough exterior led him to turn against his morals out of pure jealousy.
8 You Are Not Your Parents
Whether one lives in the shadows of their powerful father or is desperate to gain the approval of their parents, it's important for people to learn that they are not their parents. Loki is the prime example of a son desperate to feel loved by his parents and does everything in his power to get their attention, even if it means launching an alien invasion on New York City.
Thor also wanted his father's approval, eventually leading to Odin taking away his hammer and deeming him unworthy. Both brothers eventually learned who they really were and become heroes that fans across the world grew up to love.
7 Teamwork Makes The Dreamwork
Initially, Thor was an arrogant and cocky hero when he was first introduced. Playing by his own rules, battling villains on his own, conquering other worlds, eventually, Thor realized that sometimes everyone needs a little help and can't do everything on his own. In Thor, he enlisted the help of Jane Foster and Professor Erik Selvig to stop the Destroyer.
In Thor: Ragnarok, he went a step further and formed his own superhero mini-team to defeat his sister Hela. With a team of Thor, Hulk, Valkyrie, and Loki they managed to stop Ragnarok and the ruthless Hela, proving once again that sometimes the only way to win is with a team.
6 Family Is Important
Although Thor and his family have had their differences throughout their trilogy, when it matters the most, they were always there for each other. Loki helped Thor out on multiple occasions and eventually gave his life to help him, despite his constant bickering and mischievous magic tricks.
Another example is in Avengers: Endgame during Thor's grief after losing practically everyone important to him. He traveled back in time to meet his mother once again, and she inspired him, reminded him of his worth, and helped him move on.
5 It's Okay To Lighten Up Sometimes
Taika Waititi is one of the most well-known writers and directors at this moment in time, primarily thanks to his incredible sense of humor and outrageous wild, and hilarious scripts. In Thor: Ragnarok, the franchise had a change of tone, and it was definitely worth the risk.
The film was full of hilarious moments, from every single scene with Korg, voiced by Taika Waititi himself, to the Hulk's friendship with Valkyrie, to that awesome fight on Sacaar with Thor against his "friend from work." Thor: Ragnarok's humor was simply hilarious and reminded everyone to lighten up a little and have fun.
4 Love Is Powerful
Love is a theme scattered around the MCU. From romantic relationships like Tony and Pepper to brilliant friendships like Steve Rodgers and Bucky Barnes, or to family relationships like Scott Lang and his daughter, Marvel constantly uses love as a main motivating factor for the heroes. And the Thor movies are no different. In fact, they have some of the most memorable relationships.
Thor and his family all love each other and care for each other deeply, but this is only the beginning. Thor forms some great friendships with characters like Lady Sif and Valkyrie and also fell in love with astrophysicist Jane Foster all the way back in the first Thor movie.
3 Grief Can Be Hard
Arguably, out of all the characters in the Marvel universe, Chris Hemsworth's Thor went through the most traumatic events. Losing his brother multiple times, his mother, and eventually his father, as well as half of Asgard, was incredibly tough on the character, and this all caught up to him in Avengers: Endgame, where his grief led to him stay indoors all day and let himself go.
Thanks to a talk with his mother in the past, Thor is reminded of his worthiness and brings himself together to help the Avengers stop the Mad Titan Thanos. Thor is the perfect example of someone who never gives up despite being broken so many times.
2 Don't Give Up
Despite his strength and might, Thor doesn't always defeat his villains easily. Challenging opponents like his brother, Malekith, Hela, not to mention Ultron and Thanos with the Avengers, have always put up a strong fight against the mighty son of Odin and made sure his resilience was vital.
After grueling battles and heavy blows, Thor always had to find some hidden strength within himself and pick himself up to destroy the villain, teaching fans a lesson about never giving up and always fighting for what he believes in.
1 Prove People Wrong
At the start of the first Thor movie, in the middle of a battle between the Asgardians and the Frost Giants, Thor's arrogance took the better of him as he rebelled against his father and confronted Laufrey himself, which resulted in Odin taking his hammer Mjolnir away from him and stopping him from wielding it until he was worthy.
Thor was banished from Asgard and had to prove himself to his father again and show he was worthy and a good person. After sacrificing himself in a battle against the Destroyer, Thor proved everyone wrong and showed his true nature.