Hulk Vs. Thor Review

(I am not a comic otaku, I’m a manga otaku. But to appease the fans, I will try to reflect on the movie’s connection to the comic canon itself so as to demonstrate I do appreciate how it began. And there will be spoilers, since this is Direct to DVD anyway)

Hulk Vs. Thor is an interesting proposition in Marvel Comics, probably because it makes one think of parallels between this fight and the one in Marvel Vs. DC: Hulk vs. Superman, though that’s probably just me. In the comics, Hulk has been one of the few people to be able to fight evenly with Thor, one of Marvel Comic’s top three heroes, equivalent to Superman in DC. The premise of this film is a bit larger in scale, not to mention it involves a cast of characters on a different plane of existence, so we’ll see how it compares.

We begin with an explanation of the situation of things in Asgard, Odin going into hibernation and Thor and the other warriors fighting off the forces of Loki, Thor’s evil stepbrother, who tries to conquer Adgard every time Odin takes his week-long nap. We learn that there is one day left until Odin’s sleep is over and Loki with the help of his lover, Amora, has brought Bruce Banner from Midgard so he can utilize the power of the Hulk to defeat Thor. We shift to the Warriors Three speaking after the conclusion of the battle, while Thor complains to his lady Sif of the pointlessness of the cycle of battle they partake in. Sif comforts him by saying that at least it’s not Ragnarok, the end of all things. Meanwhile, Loki, with the help of Amora, the character also called the Enchantress, separates Bruce Banner from the Hulk and then enables Loki to control the Hulk. The Loki/Hulk hybrid beats the hell out of the Warriors Three along with everyone else around it. Amora notes that the spell is only so strong, since Hulk’s rage is fighting against the spell, indicating it may eventually be broken with sufficient power. Hulk/Loki has sufficiently pummeled Balder and he summons Thor, who tries to reason with the Hulk, thinking he is still Dr. Banner. The fight continues, with Loki revealing he is in control of the beast. After a while, Loki/Hulk manages to overwhelm Thor, but is unable to pick up Mjolnir After Thor retrieves it, the lightning he hits Loki/Hulk with breaks Amora’s spell linking Loki to Hulk, reducing Hulk to pure unbridled rage, making him what they term “a new Ragnarok on Asgard”. The Rage Hulk then proceeds to almost completely hand Thor his ass. Elsewhere, Loki now concludes Bruce Banner is useless and summarily kills him. Rage Hulk continues to beat Thor senseless and brings him to the edge of death, turning to go towards the light of Odin’s place of rest. Amora, in a very apologetic mood, heals Thor and brings him to Loki. Hulk continues to rage through Asgard, while the main plot continues at Loki’s hideout. Amora realizes Loki has killed Bruce Banner and thanks to rules in Asgard, Hela, the closest to Hades you can find in Norse mythology, has claimed Banner’s soul, and without his soul, Amora cannot send him back to Midgard. Thor sends her to defend the sleeping Odin along with Sif, who was left to defend Odin by Thor when he was summoned by Balder. Meanwhile, Loki is commanded by Thor to send his remaining forces to stop the Hulk while they go to Hel and try to negotiate with Hela about getting Banner’s soul back. While Hulk continues to fight against everyone stopping him from getting to Odin, we see Bruce Banner in an idyllic existence with Betty Ross and a child and everything is very pleasant. Little does he know he will be drawn out of the illusion and back into Hel; he is anguished as expected. Hulk continues to fight Sif and Amora, while Thor begs Bruce Banner to take on the responsibility to become the Hulk and stop his alter ego’s rampage in Asgard. Hela magically teleports Hulk to Hel and he fights Loki and Thor, subdued for a moment before he breaks free again. Bruce then confronts the Hulk, merging back with him and falling asleep after the raging his unbridled form had been doing. Hela sends Bruce back to Midgard, since he’s too dangerous to keep and also too precious to lose. After negotiating with Thor and Loki, she takes Loki’s soul temporarily to make amends for relinquishing the soul of Bruce Banner/Hulk. Afterwards, Odin gives a great honor to Bruce Banner for saving Asgard, praising the heroism of the mortal Bruce Banner, while we shift to said mortal walking down the highway, reminiscent of the finale to the 70s TV series.

The characterizations are very good, emphasizing the dynamics between the many characters of Asgard. Thor and Sif’s romantic coupling, as well as the potential romance one could see between Thor and Amora are depicted well for the awkward team of Amora and Sif against the Rage Hulk. Amora’s relationship with Loki is questionable, if only because she misunderstood what his intention was in controlling the Hulk, which only further emphasizes her feelings for Thor and her jealousy of Sif. The Warriors Three are comic relief at best in the film, but they do show the viewer that this is not based on real Norse mythology, but Marvel’s adaptation of it. Hela, based obviously on the goddess sharing the name with the Norse underworld, Hel, towers over Thor and Loki in size, not to mention in personality, her threats of taking their souls and maintaining her grip on the soul of Bruce Banner getting the message across that she is supreme in her realm, though she obviously has some authority she submits to Odin in granting souls passage to Valhalla. The rivalry between Thor and Loki is depicted quite well also, one brother cunning and devious and the other assertive and respected in Asgard. The desire for Mjolnir by Loki only further emphasizes the issues he has with the power Thor possesses. Bruce Banner’s mild mannered and otherwise wimpy mannerisms come out here as well as they did in Hulk Vs. Wolverine, begging people to listen to him as he knows best what dangers the Hulk poses to any world that challenges him. And the relationship implied by Thor with Bruce Banner is remarkable, a god showing such respect and consideration for a mere human. However powerful and nigh uncontrollable he may be as the Hulk, Thor recognizes the virtue in Bruce Banner as a person as well, which is the only theme that exists in the film that isn’t explained by the character relationships themselves.

My rating for this film is difficult to determine, since on the one hand, the plot is short and condensed, the film being under an hour in length. But on the other hand, it does leave one with a sense of completion, unlike Hulk Vs. Wolverine. However, there are discrepancies: Hulk only fights Thor while under the control of Loki or while raging uncontrollably as anger and fury incarnate, which makes one reflect that Hulk Vs. Wolverine was at least consistent with having the normal Hulk fight his opponent, whereas the main antagonists here are Loki and Hela. But all these things aside, it is still a film I’d highly recommend, a solid 5 with 70% recommendation. Until next time, Namaste and Aloha.