It's an excellent time to be a comic book and superhero fan. This past weekend was San Diego Comic-Con, and so DC, Marvel, and the like took to panels to tease fans regarding their next movies. And while we were treated to tons of footage and trailers from the folks at Marvel Studios, one major announcement was made in regards to the Thor threequel, Thor: Ragnarok. Although it won't be released online, those in Hall H for Comic-Con got to see footage from the film's first month of filming. The teaser showed a few villains, one of which was the previously unannounced addition Surtur the fire demon.
Surtur was seen in the final shot of the footage, which had been only just completed and given CGI magic. In the shot, Mark Ruffalo's Hulk was seen roaring into battle, leaping from a very high height. The green guy dives into a sea of fire, which ended up being Surtur himself. I wasn't lucky enough to see the sequence personally, but it sounds absolutely bananas. Is anyone else having serious FOMO at the moment?
Surtur is a pretty gnarly looking villain in the Marvel Universe. One of Thor's lesser known enemies, Surtur is a fire demon who first made his appearance in the comics back in 1963. He's from the interdimensional plane of Muspelheim, where other fire demons of his nature reside. He's got a ton of superpowers at his disposal, including strength, endurance, longevity, pyrokinesis, magic, and dimensional transportation. Basically, he is a seriously tough foe that the majority of the Avengers wouldn't be able to shake a stick at. Luckily, the two biggest powerhouses, Thor and Hulk, will be up against Surtur, making it more of an even battle.
Surtur's presence in Thor: Ragnarok can mean quite a few things for the narrative of the movie. For one, it's clear that The Hulk and Thor will be traveling across a variety of planes throughout the course of the movie. The cast has been referring to the film as an interdimensional buddy road trip movie, so I'm assuming that at some point they get lost and end up on Surtur's stomping grounds. I guess they don't give directions in Muspelheim. Additionally, it's clear that Hulk will finally be facing foes that can truly match his strength. While very valuable to the team, the green guy has never really had any peers in battle, the exception being Iron Man's Hulkbuster armor from Age of Ultron.
Thor: Ragnarok is packing a serious amount of villains. Between Cate Blanchett's Hela (which also made an appearance during the Comic-Con presentation), Jeff Goldblum's Grandmaster, and our old fave Loki, there are a ton of bad guys the threequel. Let's hope that it doesn't become oversaturated with the addition of Surtur, who might just be around for one quick battle.
Are you excited for Surtur to appear in Thor: Ragnarok, or are there perhaps too many villains for one movie? Let us know in the comments.
