Thor: Ragnarok is certainly in my top-two Marvel movies of the past decade, and I’m pretty sure it has displaced Guardians of the Galaxy for the top spot. But why? Beware, spoilers abound . . .

• This movie is hilarious, and I mean truly laugh out loud funny. Whether it was Thor trying to convince both Bruce Banner and the Hulk that he likes their individual personality better, or Loki celebrating Thor’s butt-whooping at the Hulk’s hands, or Korg – seriously, Taika Waititi is a genius, both as a director and as a comedian – being Korg, this movie has so many hilarious moments.
• Yet, even in the midst of all the laughs, this movie takes major steps toward Avengers: Infinity War and addresses some serious issues.
  • Asgard’s true history is revealed as one of war-mongering and imperialism in which all the gold gilding the city is a spoil of war. Conquest was Asgard’s agenda, until Odin decided to turn over a new leaf, but even then, the Valkyrie are sacrificed without a second thought. Hela is revealed as the true heir to Odin’s throne, not just as his first-born but also as the one who most closely resembles her father’s desire for conquest and domination. This history was literally buried and forgotten, until Hela comes and tears down the falsified family portraits and rips open the crypt. She reveals the ugly truth at the heart of Asgard’s history, a truth that those in power have covered up and a history Odin has rewritten to recast his role as that of protector of the Nine Realms, rather than as their conqueror.
  • The differences between species and races are clear to the viewer, but it seems that the characters in the movie barely notice them. Korg may be a being composed of rocks, but Thor treats him like a friend from the moment they meet. There is no fear of the other as other here, and that stands in stark contrast to Hela (and previously Odin’s) desire to dominate and destroy all who are other.
  • These two issues resonate today, and they resonate powerfully. We are all living in a time in which we encouraged to fear those who are different from us, to mistrust those who are from a different country or whose skin is a different shade than our own. We live with war on the horizon – always – whether our country appears to be involved or not. There is no escaping it. These wars fuel the fire of nationalism and fear that keep us apart. But Thor: Ragnarok demonstrates, in no uncertain terms, that neither of these need to be our reality. Wars can be ended and fear of the other can be turned into acceptance. Perhaps, if we saw ourselves as Terrans or Earthers rather than as Americans (or for those of us in the Church, if we saw ourselves as the linguistically, culturally, and physically diverse body of Christ before any other affiliations) we might be able to take some positive strides toward peace and reconciliation. And perhaps, we might even be equipped as Thor clearly was – or as Ender was in Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s Game and Speaker for the Dead – to see non-human creatures (whether terrestrial or extra-terrestrial) as God’s children and as his good creations.
  • And if that weren’t enough, the movie’s ending sheds an uncomfortable light on the West’s unwillingness to welcome refugees. While none of those seeking asylum in the world today are virtually immortal aliens of tremendous power (would it actually make a difference if they were?), they are people who want a new home where they can put down roots and make a contribution. Perhaps some of them will change the world one day . . .
  • Any movie that can pull off addressing serious issues while making me laugh – which is just what Waititi’s previous movie, Hunt for the Wilderpeople, did with foster care – is a real winner. The way he deepens Asgard’s history, darkens it with a history of imperialism and conquest that can never truly be made right, is brilliant.
• First Odin, and later Heimdall, assert that Asgard is not a place. It is wherever Asgard’s people are. I think we can and should say the same about the Church, but what is significant here is that even an ugly past need not define the future. If Asgard is its people, then Asgard is not its buildings or its technology or its history. Yes, it is shaped and influenced by all of those things, but it need not be defined by them. Growth and change are possible, and because of how Thor and Loki grow and change in this movie, they seem almost certain.
• Idris Elba. Is he ever anything less than awesome?
• And Cate Blanchett? Whether she’s Galadriel or Hela, she plays the powerful, awe-inspiring queen to perfection.

For these reasons, and others as well, I absolutely love this movie. It will be tough to knock this one out of my top spot.