Thor: Love and Thunder trailer has arrived! This film, just like many Phase Four Marvel films, underwent some changes, specifically delays. Thor: Love and Thunder was originally supposed to be released on February 18th, 2022, before being delayed to July 8th, 2022, due to the pandemic. The trailer shows off returning and new characters, as well as new locations on Thor’s journey. Taika Waiti returns to direct with Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Tessa Thompson as Valkyrie, Taika Waiti voicing Korg, Natalie Portman as Jane Foster, and Christian Bale as Gorr the God Butcher. 

Where we left off with Thor was in Avengers: Endgame as he’s seen leaving with the Guardians of the Galaxy which is pretty cool. Thor in the comics has never been apart of the Guardians of the Galaxy, however Iron Man aka Tony Stark was for a brief period of time in Guardians of the Galaxy issue #1 written by Brian Michael Bendis where Tony finds the Godkiller armor used by the Aspirants against the Celestials. Thor and the Guardians of the Galaxy is going to make for interesting character interactions, comedically it’s going to bring something great to the table. We also see Valkyrie as the king of New Asgard also revealed at the end of Avengers: Endgame. Valkyrie getting more to do in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is much appreciated and her now being king of New Asgard is pretty awesome, though it doesn’t necessarily make since Marvel comics wise as she doesn’t possess the Odin Force. For those who aren’t familiar with Thor in Marvel comics, the Odin Force is the life force of Odin’s two brothers when they fought Surtur. When Odin uses the Odin Force it physically drains him, the more he uses the Odin Force the longer he has to sleep. Korg also makes a return and Thor’s battle goats, Tanngrisnir and Tanngnjóstr, debut. 

This film is heavily taking inspiration from Jason Aaron’s Thor run where we see Jane Foster become Thor! Jane Foster Thor is still a relatively new character within Marvel comics and she first appeared in Thor issue #1 written by Jason Aaron where we discover that Jane has breast cancer. Thor invites her to represent Midgard in the Congress of Worlds in Asgard where Nick Fury unexpectedly battles Thor. Thor and Fury fight until Fury whispers something into Thor’s ear which makes him unworthy. With the help of Heimdall, Jane finds Mjolnir and lifts it, becoming the next Thor. Jane Foster as Thor in the Marvel Cinematic Universe feels a little rushed especially considering that we haven’t seen Jane since Thor: The Dark World. It’s also unlikely the cancer story would be adapted, though I’d hope that story plays out in a different way; overall it’s cool to see Natalie Portman back in the MCU . Currently in Marvel comics, Jane is a Valkyrie. 

The villain is also a Jason Aaron Thor character in Gorr the God Butcher played by Christian Bale. Gorr the God Butcher is one of Thor’s most formidable opponents he’s faced and it took three versions of Thor to defeat him. Gorr the God Butcher first appeared in Thor: God of Thunder issue #1 written by Jason Aaron and he was banished by his tribe after losing faith in the gods. He came across the All-Black Necrosword and began plotting his revenge against the gods. Gorr killed many gods in his path and comes across a young and brash Thor who he tortures for 17 days trying to gain information about Asgard. Thor is saved and fights Gorr, believing he had killed him after slicing his arm. After his encounter with Thor, Gorr continued killing more gods, eventually coming across the Time Gods and using their blood to travel to a desolate world, creating a Godbomb which would kill all gods across time. Thor meets with his past and future self to confront and fight Gorr. Gorr overpowers the three Thors and begins to activate the Godbomb until Thor absorbs the Godbomb blasts and the All-Black Necrosword with two Mjolnirs, weakening Gorr which allows young Thor to finally kill him. I’d expect one-third of Gorr’s story to be adapted in which he’s banished by his tribe and plans to seek revenge against the gods. Don’t expect to see the All-Black Necrosword as it’s connected to Venom and Knull the Symbiote God, and don’t expect to see other versions of Thor. 

What we also see in the trailer briefly is Olympus and Zeus, one of the many pantheons of gods in the Marvel universe. Zeus will be played by Russel Crowe and will potentially be tagged alongside Hercules. Hercules is an important character within Thor as he’s an ally of Thor, a member of the Avengers, and currently a member of the Guardians of the Galaxy. Now that the Greek and Egyptian gods have been established in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the chances of the Skyfathers being adapted is very likely. 

Thor: Love and Thunder looks like an absolute blast adapting one of the best Thor runs in Marvel comics. If you want to be prepared for Thor: Love and Thunder, I highly recommend Jason Aaron’s Thor run because it’s pretty dope. Thor: Love and Thunder is set for a release date of July 8th, 2022, exclusively in theaters.