Thor

Rating: 9/10 (4 February 2014)

(see original at http://cobyscomics.blogspot.com/2014/02/thor.html)
As good as Iron Man, Incredible Hulk, and Iron Man 2 were, they were all just prologue. Thor is when the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) really kicks off.
I think I enjoyed Thor more this time than any previous viewing. The first time I watched Thor (on a bootleg DVD in Afghanistan), I was bored with all the Asgard stuff and just wanted to get on with the story that mattered, the one of Thor on Earth interacting with S.H.I.E.L.D. The second time I watched Thor (just before watching Dark World), I found myself wanting more Asgard and less flirting between Thor and Jane. This time, I was able to enjoy the movie for what it was: an outstanding origin story (of sorts) for Thor and his introduction to the MCU.
Thor = Jesus ?
One thing I couldn't help but noticing this time I watched Thor thwas the parallels between Thor and Jesus. I'm not versed enough in Norse mythology to know if these parallels actually exist, or if they just made them up for this movie. Either way, I appreciated them. Once you think about it in this light, they become pretty obvious. Thor is forsaken by his father Odin. Thor dies fighting the Destroyer and then comes back to life and saves everyone. Stuff happens, then he returns to Asgard, promising to one day return.
Loki
Tom Hiddleston's performance during Thor went largely unnoticed the first couple times I watched it. Maybe it was because I have now seen him in three movies, or maybe it was because I've read other people's (far better movie critics than I) opinion of his acting, but wow, it is good.
Frost Giants
Am I the only one who feels sorry for the Frost Giants? I mean, when Thor, Sif, and the Warriors Three first go to Jottenheim, they kill like dozens, if not hundreds, of them (or 76). And then Loki vaporizes Laufey and turns the Bifrost on and attempts to obliterate their entire planet! Are Frost Giants not sentient beings, also? Poor, poor Frost Giants.... It's a good thing Thor was there to save the day by smashing the Rainbow Bridge, else their entire species might've been genocided!
Easter Eggs
I missed the Infinity Gauntlet in Asgard's weapons vault.
But I totally caught that "Journey into Mystery" billboard!
I love these little nods Marvel puts in their movies for the comic fans out there.
After the Credits
Talk about a great tease! We see Nick Fury, the Cosmic Cube (err... I meant, Tesseract), and find out Loki didn't die after all! This scene actually got me hyped to watch The Avengers all over again!
Rating
If you'd asked me the previous times I watched Thor, I would've given it a much lower rating, maybe 5 or 6 out of 10. But now, being able to watch it in context with the rest of the MCU, I love it! 9 out of 10!