Thor: Love and Thunder - A Ragnarok Redux (and not in a good way?)

Okay, so I finally saw Thor: Love and Thunder. And honestly? I'm... conflicted. Taika Waititi doubled down on the Ragnarok formula, and while I enjoyed the first go-around, this felt like diminishing returns. The humor, which was a refreshing surprise last time, felt forced and often undercut the emotional weight the film was striving for. Like, we're supposed to be invested in Jane's struggle with cancer, but then there's a screaming goat distracting us? It's tonally jarring. Christian Bale's Gorr, though, was a bright spot. When he was allowed to be menacing and unsettling (the black and white scenes, particularly), he was genuinely terrifying. I just wish the film had leaned more into that darkness. Natalie Portman as Mighty Thor was also great, she clearly relished the chance to actually do something other than being a damsel in distress. The fight choreography was solid, if a bit overly reliant on CGI at times. That said, the shadow realm bit was visually arresting and inventive. But the constant jokes during what should be high-stakes battles made it hard to care. The whole thing felt oddly disjointed. Like they had a bunch of funny bits and dramatic moments, but they didn't quite stitch them together into a cohesive whole. The ending, [spoiler alert if you haven't seen it] with Thor adopting Love, felt rushed and unearned, despite the performances themselves being good. And seriously, the Guardians showing up for like, five minutes? What was the point? Ultimately, Love and Thunder isn't a bad movie, per se. It's just... disappointing. It had the potential to be something really special, but it got lost in its own self-aware humor, and I don't know, maybe it's time to retire the character or, at least, take him in a drastically different direction if they make a Thor 5. Just my two cents.