Thor: Love & Thunder Review - 5 Ups & 5 Downs

4. It's A Refreshingly Standalone Adventure

There's a lot of hand-wringing from Marvel fans right now, that Phase 4 of the MCU feels a bit directionless without a clearly marked overarching antagonist.

And while that may be true, it is refreshing that Love and Thunder is such a self-contained, standalone adventure that isn't tethering itself to the import of multiverses and universe-building.

Sure, there are implications for the future of the Thor franchise, but for the most part the movie operates well as a jaunt concerned with little beyond its immediate characters and their actions.

Some fans will unavoidably find this unsatisfying, but there's a lot to be said for crafting holistic stories that aren't forever enslaved to the wider corporate roadmap.

You'll wish Love and Thunder was better, but at least it's not constantly leaving breadcrumbs for the next big Marvel event movie and is instead content to simply do its own thing.