Thor Odinson, God of Thunder, King of Asgard (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
pirateangelbaby) wrote2028-09-01 07:51 pm
pirateangelbaby) wrote2028-09-01 07:51 pm
Entry tags:
[OOC] A note in regards to Avengers Endgame
Endgame spoilers below the cut.
Playing a character in a pan-fandom roleplay always changes the character, whether in subtle ways or drastic ones. Thor has technically been AU since the end of Ragnarok already, and has experienced numerous things that his canon counterpart never did. He spent months looking after the Asgardian refugees before Thanos arrived, lost an arm in Infinity War, and has an alternate Loki (or several) to share his grief with, as well as other friends who care about his well-being after the Snap. All of these things will affect him moving forward.
Due to playing out RP in real time, the timeskip is only going to be six months instead of five IRL years. Because of the shorter timeframe, and because Thor has supportive friends who aren't going to leave him completely alone for the entire time, I am not going to play out the sort of weight gain that Thor went through in canon. There are going to be additional changes (both to the plot, and to various characters' developments), but because this specific element is so controversial, it deserves a special mention.
I understand that some people found Thor's portrayal in Endgame to be inspiring and empowering, and I do not want to take away from that at all. There is a good message in that Thor's body does not dictate his worthiness, and that he was not required to slim down before he could fight again (something which Chris Hemsworth insisted on, as the original script did call for Thor to get magically buff again for the final battle). Unfortunately, for me that message does not outweigh the parts of the film where his weight and mental state were the target of repeated degrading humor, and his trauma was played for laughs. Nothing about what Thor was going through was funny, and he was never shown to be in on the joke instead of being laughed at. Comedy at Thor's expense is not going to be a part of how I play him at this time.
I do not consider the removal of this one single aspect of Thor's character to be 'fixing' canon, and I will still leave the door open to bring elements of it back at some point after the events of Endgame are over. I've had a lot of time to think about where I feel canon went wrong, and the 'humor' is the vast majority of it. The idea is good, and Hemsworth does an excellent job of portraying the uncomfortable reality of mental illness, and I do intend to still use that as a base for how I will play Thor moving forward after Infinity War. But I refuse to do it in a way that invites people to laugh at him, as canon did.
Playing a character in a pan-fandom roleplay always changes the character, whether in subtle ways or drastic ones. Thor has technically been AU since the end of Ragnarok already, and has experienced numerous things that his canon counterpart never did. He spent months looking after the Asgardian refugees before Thanos arrived, lost an arm in Infinity War, and has an alternate Loki (or several) to share his grief with, as well as other friends who care about his well-being after the Snap. All of these things will affect him moving forward.
Due to playing out RP in real time, the timeskip is only going to be six months instead of five IRL years. Because of the shorter timeframe, and because Thor has supportive friends who aren't going to leave him completely alone for the entire time, I am not going to play out the sort of weight gain that Thor went through in canon. There are going to be additional changes (both to the plot, and to various characters' developments), but because this specific element is so controversial, it deserves a special mention.
I understand that some people found Thor's portrayal in Endgame to be inspiring and empowering, and I do not want to take away from that at all. There is a good message in that Thor's body does not dictate his worthiness, and that he was not required to slim down before he could fight again (something which Chris Hemsworth insisted on, as the original script did call for Thor to get magically buff again for the final battle). Unfortunately, for me that message does not outweigh the parts of the film where his weight and mental state were the target of repeated degrading humor, and his trauma was played for laughs. Nothing about what Thor was going through was funny, and he was never shown to be in on the joke instead of being laughed at. Comedy at Thor's expense is not going to be a part of how I play him at this time.
I do not consider the removal of this one single aspect of Thor's character to be 'fixing' canon, and I will still leave the door open to bring elements of it back at some point after the events of Endgame are over. I've had a lot of time to think about where I feel canon went wrong, and the 'humor' is the vast majority of it. The idea is good, and Hemsworth does an excellent job of portraying the uncomfortable reality of mental illness, and I do intend to still use that as a base for how I will play Thor moving forward after Infinity War. But I refuse to do it in a way that invites people to laugh at him, as canon did.